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diff --git a/43600.txt b/43600.txt deleted file mode 100644 index f05122d..0000000 --- a/43600.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,3255 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg EBook of Wonderful Stories for Children, by -Hans Christian Andersen - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with -almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or -re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included -with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org - - -Title: Wonderful Stories for Children - -Author: Hans Christian Andersen - -Translator: Mary Howitt - -Release Date: August 30, 2013 [EBook #43600] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: ASCII - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK WONDERFUL STORIES FOR CHILDREN *** - - - - -Produced by Dianna Adair, John Campbell and the Online -Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This -file was produced from images generously made available -by The Internet Archive) - - - - - - - - - -TRANSCRIBER'S NOTES - - -Obvious spelling, typographical and punctuation errors have been -corrected after careful comparison with other occurrences within the -text and consultation of external sources. - - More detail can be found at the end of the book. - - Italic text is denoted by _underscores_. - The oe ligature has been expanded. - - - - - WONDERFUL STORIES - FOR CHILDREN. - - BY HANS CHRISTIAN ANDERSEN, - AUTHOR OF "THE IMPROVISATORE," ETC. - - TRANSLATED FROM THE DANISH BY MARY HOWITT. - - NEW YORK. - WILEY & PUTNAM, - 161 Broadway. - - 1846. - - - - -CONTENTS. - - - PAGE - - OLE LUCKOIE--THE STORY-TELLER AT NIGHT 5 - - THE DAISY 28 - - THE NAUGHTY BOY 37 - - TOMMELISE 42 - - THE ROSE-ELF 64 - - THE GARDEN OF PARADISE 74 - - A NIGHT IN THE KITCHEN 102 - - LITTLE IDA'S FLOWERS 108 - - THE CONSTANT TIN SOLDIER 124 - - THE STORKS 133 - - - - -OLE LUCKOIE, (SHUT-EYE.) - - -There is nobody in all this world who knows so many tales as Ole -Luckoie! He can tell tales! In an evening, when a child sits so nicely -at the table, or on its little stool, Ole Luckoie comes. He comes -so quietly into the house, for he walks without shoes; he opens the -door without making any noise, and then he flirts sweet milk into the -children's eyes; but so gently, so very gently, that they cannot keep -their eyes open, and, therefore, they never see him; he steals softly -behind them and blows gently on their necks, and thus their heads -become heavy. Oh yes! But then it does them no harm; for Ole Luckoie -means nothing but kindness to the children, he only wants to amuse -them; and the best thing that can be done is for somebody to carry them -to bed, where they may lie still and listen to the tales that he will -tell them. - -Now when the children are asleep, Ole Luckoie sits down on the bed; -he is very well dressed; his coat is of silk, but it is not possible -to tell what color it is, because it shines green, and red, and blue, -just as if one color ran into another. He holds an umbrella under each -arm; one of them is covered all over the inside with pictures, and -this he sets over the good child, and it dreams all night long the -most beautiful histories. The other umbrella has nothing at all within -it; this he sets over the heads of naughty children, and they sleep so -heavily, that next morning when they wake they have not dreamed the -least in the world. - -Now we will hear how Ole Luckoie came every evening for a whole week to -a little boy, whose name was Yalmar, and what he told him. There are -seven stories, because there are seven days in a week. - - -MONDAY. - -"Just listen!" said Ole Luckoie, in the evening, when they had put -Yalmar in bed; "now I shall make things fine!"--and with that all the -plants in the flower-pots grew up into great trees which stretched -out their long branches along the ceiling and the walls, till the -whole room looked like the most beautiful summer-house; and all the -branches were full of flowers, and every flower was more beautiful than -a rose, and was so sweet, that if anybody smelt at it, it was sweeter -than raspberry jam! The fruit on the trees shone like gold, and great -big bunches of raisins hung down--never had any thing been seen like -it!--but all at once there began such a dismal lamentation in the -table-drawer where Yalmar kept his school-books. - -"What is that?" said Ole Luckoie, and went to the table and opened -the drawer. It was the slate that was in great trouble; for there was -an addition sum on it that was added up wrong, and the slate-pencil -was hopping and jumping about in its string, like a little dog that -wanted to help the sum, but it could not! And besides this, Yalmar's -copy-book was crying out sadly! All the way down each page stood a -row of great letters, each with a little one by its side; these were -the copy; and then there stood other letters, which fancied that they -looked like the copy; and these Yalmar had written; but they were -some one way and some another, just as if they were tumbling over the -pencil-lines on which they ought to have stood. - -"Look, you should hold yourselves up--thus!" said the copy; "thus, all -in a line, with a brisk air!" - -"Oh! we would so gladly, if we could," said Yalmar's writing; "but we -cannot, we are so miserable!" - -"Then we will make you!" said Ole Luckoie gruffly. - -"Oh, no!" cried the poor little crooked letters; but for all that they -straightened themselves, till it was quite a pleasure to see them. - -"Now, then, cannot we tell a story?" said Ole Luckoie; "now I can -exercise them! One, two! One, two!" And so, like a drill-sergeant, he -put them all through their exercise, and they stood as straight and -as well-shaped as any copy. After that Ole Luckoie went his way; and -Yalmar, when he looked at the letters next morning, found them tumbling -about just as miserably as at first. - - -TUESDAY. - -No sooner was Yalmar in bed than Ole Luckoie came with his little wand, -and touched all the furniture in the room; and, in a minute, every -thing began to chatter; and they chattered all together, and about -nothing but themselves. Every thing talked except the old door-mat, -which lay silent, and was vexed that they should be all so full of -vanity as to talk of nothing but themselves, and think only about -themselves, and never have one thought for it which lay so modestly in -a corner and let itself be trodden upon. - -There hung over the chest of drawers a great picture in a gilt frame; -it was a landscape; one could see tall, old trees, flowers in the -grass, and a great river, which ran through great woods, past many -castles out into the wild sea. - -Ole Luckoie touched the picture with his wand; and with that the birds -in the picture began to sing, the tree-branches began to wave, and the -clouds regularly to move,--one could see them moving along over the -landscape! - -Ole Luckoie now lifted little Yalmar up into the picture; he put his -little legs right into it, just as if into tall grass, and there he -stood. The sun shone down through the tree-branches upon him. He ran -down to the river, and got into a little boat which lay there. It was -painted red and white, the sails shone like silk, and six swans, each -with a circlet of gold round its neck and a beaming blue star upon its -head, drew the little boat past the green-wood,--where he heard the -trees talking about robbers, and witches, and flowers, and the pretty -little fairies, and all that the summer birds had told them of. - -The loveliest fishes, with scales like silver and gold, swam after the -boat, and leaped up in the water; and birds, some red and some blue, -small and great, flew, in two long rows, behind; gnats danced about, -and cockchafers said hum, hum! They all came following Yalmar, and you -may think what a deal they had to tell him. - -It was a regular voyage! Now the woods were so thick and so dark--now -they were like the most beautiful garden, with sunshine and flowers; -and in the midst of them there stood great castles of glass and of -marble. Upon the balconies of these castles stood princesses, and every -one of them were the little girls whom Yalmar knew very well, and with -whom he had played. They all reached out their hands to him, and held -out the most delicious sticks of barley-sugar which any confectioner -could make; and Yalmar bit off a piece from every stick of barley-sugar -as he sailed past, and Yalmar's piece was always a very large piece! -Before every castle stood little princes as sentinels; they stood with -their golden swords drawn, and showered down almonds and raisins. They -were perfect princes! - -Yalmar soon sailed through the wood, then through a great hall, or into -the midst of a city; and at last he came to that in which his nurse -lived, she who had nursed him when he was a very little child, and -had been so very fond of him. And there he saw her, and she nodded -and waved her hand to him, and sang the pretty little verse which she -herself had made about Yalmar-- - - Full many a time I thee have missed, - My Yalmar, my delight! - I, who thy cherry-mouth have kissed, - Thy rosy cheeks, thy forehead white! - I saw thy earliest infant mirth-- - I now must say farewell! - May our dear Lord bless thee on earth, - Then take thee to his heaven to dwell! - -And all the birds sang, too, the flowers danced upon their stems, and -the old trees nodded like as Ole Luckoie did while he told his tales. - - -WEDNESDAY. - -How the rain did pour down! Yalmar could hear it in his sleep! and -when Ole Luckoie opened the casement, the water stood up to the very -window-sill. There was a regular sea outside; but the most splendid -ship lay close up to the house. - -"If thou wilt sail with me, little Yalmar," said Ole Luckoie, "thou -canst reach foreign countries in the night, and be here again by -to-morrow morning!" - -And with this Yalmar stood in his Sunday clothes in the ship, and -immediately the weather became fine, and they sailed through the -streets, tacked about round the church, and then came out into a great, -desolate lake. They sailed so far, that at last they could see no more -land, and then they saw a flock of storks, which were coming from home, -on their way to the warm countries; one stork after another flew on, -and they had already flown such a long, long way. One of the storks was -so very much tired that it seemed as if his wings could not support him -any longer; he was the very last of all the flock, and got farther and -farther behind them; and, at last, he sank lower and lower, with his -outspread wings: he still flapped his wings, now and then, but that -did not help him; now his feet touched the cordage of the ship; now he -glided down the sail, and, bounce! down he came on the deck. - -A sailor-boy then took him up, and set him in the hencoop among hens, -and ducks, and turkeys. The poor stork stood quite confounded among -them all. - -"Here's a thing!" said all the hens. - -And the turkey-cock blew himself up as much as ever he could, and asked -the stork who he was; and the ducks they went on jostling one against -the other, saying, "Do thou ask! do thou ask!" - -The stork told them all about the warm Africa, about the pyramids, and -about the simoom, which sped like a horse over the desert: but the -ducks understood not a word about what he said, and so they whispered -one to the other, "We are all agreed, he is silly!" - -"Yes, to be sure, he is silly," said the turkey-cock aloud. The poor -stork stood quite still, and thought about Africa. - -"What a pair of beautiful thin legs you have got!" said the -turkey-cock; "what is the price by the yard?" - -"Ha! ha! ha!" laughed all the ducks; but the stork pretended that he -did not hear. - -"I cannot help laughing," said the turkey-cock, "it was so very witty; -or, perhaps, it was too low for him!--ha! ha! he can't take in many -ideas! Let us only be interesting to ourselves!" And with that they -began to gobble, and the ducks chattered, "Gik, gak! gik, gak!" It was -amazing to see how entertaining they were to themselves. - -Yalmar, however, went up to the hencoop, opened the door, and called -to the stork, which hopped out to him on the deck. It had now rested -itself; and it seemed as if it nodded to Yalmar to thank him. With this -it spread out its wings and flew away to its warm countries; but the -hens clucked, the ducks chattered, and the turkey-cocks grew quite red -in the head. - -"To-morrow we shall have you for dinner!" said Yalmar; and so he awoke, -and was lying in his little bed. - -It was, however, a wonderful voyage that Ole Luckoie had taken him that -night. - - -THURSDAY. - -"Dost thou know what?" said Ole Luckoie. "Now do not be afraid, and -thou shalt see a little mouse!" and with that he held out his hand with -the pretty little creature in it. - -"It is come to invite thee to a wedding," said he. "There are two -little mice who are going to be married to-night; they live down -under the floor of thy mother's store-closet; it will be such a nice -opportunity for thee." - -"But how can I get through the little mouse-hole in the floor?" asked -Yalmar. - -"Leave that to me," said Ole Luckoie; "I shall make thee little -enough!" And with that he touched Yalmar with his wand, and immediately -he grew less and less, until at last he was no bigger than my finger. - -"Now thou canst borrow the tin soldier's clothes," said Ole Luckoie; "I -think they would fit thee, and it looks so proper to have uniform on -when people go into company." - -"Yes, to be sure!" said Yalmar; and in a moment he was dressed up like -the most beautiful new tin soldier. - -"Will you be so good as to seat yourself in your mother's thimble," -said the little mouse; "and then I shall have the honor of driving you!" - -"Goodness!" said Yalmar; "will the young lady herself take the -trouble?" and with that they drove to the mouse's wedding. - -First of all, after going under the floor, they came into a long -passage, which was so low that they could hardly drive in the thimble, -and the whole passage was illuminated with touchwood. - -"Does it not smell delicious?" said the mouse as they drove along; "the -whole passage has been rubbed with bacon-sward; nothing can be more -delicious!" - -They now came into the wedding-hall. On the right hand stood the little -she-mice, and they all whispered and tittered as if they were making -fun of one another; on the left hand all the he-mice, and stroked their -mustachios with their paws. In the middle of the floor were to be seen -the bridal pair, who stood in a hollow cheese-paring; and they kept -kissing one another before everybody, for they were desperately in -love, and were going to be married directly. - -And all this time there kept coming in more and more strangers, till -one mouse was ready to trample another to death; and the bridal pair -had placed themselves in a doorway, so that people could neither go in -nor come out. The whole room, like the passage, had been smeared with -sward of bacon; that was all the entertainment: but as a dessert a pea -was produced, on which a little mouse of family had bitten the name of -the bridal pair,--that is to say, the first letters of their name; that -was something quite out of the common way. - -All the mice said that it was a charming wedding, and that the -conversation had been so good! - -Yalmar drove home again; he had really been in very grand society, but -he must have been regularly squeezed together to make himself small -enough for a tin soldier's uniform. - - -FRIDAY. - -"It is incredible how many elderly people there are who would be so -glad of me," said Ole Luckoie, "especially those who have done any -thing wrong. 'Good little Ole,' say they to me, 'we cannot close our -eyes; and so we lie all night long awake, and see all our bad deeds, -which sit, like ugly little imps, on the bed's head, and squirt hot -water on us. Wilt thou only just come and drive them away, that we may -have a good sleep!' and with that they heave such deep sighs--'we would -so gladly pay thee; good-night, Ole!' Silver pennies lie for me in the -window," said Ole Luckoie, "but I do not give sleep for money!" - -"Now what shall we have to-night?" inquired Yalmar. - -"I do not know whether thou hast any desire to go again to-night to a -wedding," said Ole Luckoie; "but it is of a different kind to that of -last night. Thy sister's great doll, which is dressed like a gentleman, -and is called Herman, is going to be married to the doll Bertha; -besides, it is the doll's birthday, and therefore there will be a great -many presents made." - -"Yes, I know," said Yalmar; "always, whenever the dolls have new -clothes, my sister entreats that they have a birthday or a wedding; -that has happened certainly a hundred times!" - -"Yes, but to-night it is the hundred and first wedding, and when -a hundred and one is done then all is over! Therefore it will be -incomparably grand. Only look!" - -Yalmar looked at the table; there stood the little doll's house -with lights in the windows, and all the tin soldiers presented arms -outside. The bridal couple sat upon the floor, and leaned against the -table-legs, and looked very pensive, and there might be reason for it. -But Ole Luckoie, dressed in the grandmother's black petticoat, married -them, and when they were married, all the furniture in the room joined -in the following song, which was written in pencil, and which was sung -to the tune of the drum:-- - - Our song like a wind comes flitting - Into the room where the bride-folks are sitting; - They are partly of wood, as is befitting: - Their skin is the skin of a glove well fitting! - Hurrah, hurrah! for sitting and fitting! - Thus sing we aloud as the wind comes flitting! - -And now the presents were brought, but they had forbidden any kind of -eatables, for their love was sufficient for them. - -"Shall we stay in the country, or shall we travel into foreign parts?" -asked the bridegroom; and with that they begged the advice of the -breeze, which had travelled a great deal, and of the old hen, which -had had five broods of chickens. The breeze told them about the -beautiful, warm countries where the bunches of grapes hung so large and -so heavy; where the air was so mild, and the mountains had colors of -which one could have no idea "in this country." - -"But there they have not our green cabbage!" said the hen. "I lived -for one summer with all my chickens in the country; there was a dry, -dusty ditch in which we could go and scuttle, and we had admittance to -a garden where there was green cabbage! O, how green it was! I cannot -fancy any thing more beautiful!" - -"But one cabbage-stalk looks just like another," said the breeze; "and -then there is such wretched weather here." - -"Yes, but one gets used to it," said the hen. - -"But it is cold--it freezes!" - -"That is good for the cabbage!" said the hen. "Besides, we also have -it warm. Had not we four years ago a summer which lasted five weeks, -and it was so hot that people did not know how to bear it? And then we -have not all the poisonous creatures which they have there! and we are -far from robbers. He is a good-for-nothing fellow who does not think -our country the most beautiful in the world! and he does not deserve to -be here!" and with that the hen cried.--"And I also have travelled," -continued she; "I have gone in a boat above twelve miles; there is no -pleasure in travelling." - -"The hen is a sensible body!" said the doll Bertha; "I would rather not -travel to the mountains, for it is only going up to come down again. -No! we will go down into the ditch, and walk in the cabbage-garden." - -And so they did. - - -SATURDAY. - -"Shall I have any stories?" said little Yalmar, as soon as Ole Luckoie -had put him to sleep. - -"In the evening we have no time for any," said Ole, and spread out -his most beautiful umbrella above his head. "Look now at this Chinese -scene!" and with that the whole inside of the umbrella looked like a -great china saucer, with blue trees and pointed bridges, on which -stood little Chinese, who stood and nodded with their heads. "We shall -have all the world dressed up beautifully this morning," said Ole, "for -it is really a holiday; it is Sunday. I shall go up into the church -towers to see whether the little church-elves polish the bells, because -they sound so sweetly. I shall go out into the market, and see whether -the wind blows the dust, and grass, and leaves, and what is the hardest -work there. I shall have all the stars down to polish them; I shall put -them into my apron, but first of all I must have them all numbered, and -the holes where they fit up there numbered also; else we shall never -put them into their proper places again, and then they will not be -firm, and we shall have so many falling stars, one dropping down after -another!" - -"Hear, you Mr. Luckoie, there!" said an old portrait that hung on the -wall of the room where Yalmar slept: "I am Yalmar's grandfather. We are -obliged to you for telling the boy pretty stories, but you must not go -and confuse his ideas. The stars cannot be taken down and polished! The -stars are globes like our earth, and they want nothing doing at them!" - -"Thou shalt have thanks, thou old grandfather," said Ole Luckoie; -"thanks thou shalt have! Thou art, to be sure, the head of the family; -thou art the old head of the family; but for all that, I am older than -thou! I am an old heathen; the Greeks and the Romans called me the god -of dreams. I go into great folks' houses, and I shall go there still. I -know how to manage both with young and old. But now thou mayst take thy -turn." And with this Ole Luckoie went away, and took his umbrella with -him. - -"Now, one cannot tell what he means!" said the old Portrait. - -And Yalmar awoke. - - -SUNDAY. - -"Good-evening!" said Ole Luckoie, and Yalmar nodded; but he jumped up -and turned the grandfather's portrait to the wall, that it might not -chatter as it had done the night before. - -"Now thou shalt tell me a story," said Yalmar, "about the five peas -that live in one pea-pod, and about Hanebeen who cured Honebeen; and -about the darning-needle, that was so fine that it fancied itself a -sewing-needle." - -"One might do a deal of good by so doing," said Ole Luckoie; "but, dost -thou know, I would rather show thee something. I will show thee my -brother; he also is called Ole Luckoie. He never comes more than once -to anybody,--and when he comes he takes the person away with him on his -horse, and tells him a great and wonderful history. But he only knows -two, one of them is the most incomparably beautiful story, so beautiful -that nobody in the world can imagine it; and the other is so dismal and -sad--oh, it is impossible to describe how sad!" - -Having said this, Ole Luckoie lifted little Yalmar up to the window -and said, "There thou mayst see my brother, the other Ole Luckoie! -They call him Death! Dost thou see, he does not look horrible as they -have painted him in picture-books, like a skeleton; no, his coat is -embroidered with silver; he wears a handsome Hussar uniform! A cloak of -black velvet flies behind, over his horse. See how he gallops!" - -Yalmar looked, and saw how the other Ole Luckoie rode along, and took -both young and old people with him on his horse. Some he set before -him, and some he set behind; but his first question always was, "How -does it stand in your character-book?" - -Everybody said, "Good!" - -"Yes! let me see myself," said he; and they were obliged to show him -their books: and all those in whose books were written, "Very good!" or -"Remarkably good!" he placed before him on his horse; and they listened -to the beautiful story that he could tell. But they in whose books was -written, "Not very good," or "Only middling," they had to sit behind -and listen to the dismal tale. These wept bitterly, and would have been -glad to have got away, that they might have amended their characters; -but it was then too late. - -"Death is, after all, the most beautiful Ole Luckoie," said Yalmar; "I -shall not be afraid of him." - -"Thou need not fear him," said Ole Luckoie, "if thou only take care and -have a good character-book." - -"There is instruction in that," mumbled the old grandfather's -portrait; "that is better: one sees his meaning!" and he was pleased. - - * * * * * - -See, this is the story about Ole Luckoie. This night, perhaps, he may -tell thee some others. - - - - -THE DAISY. - - -Now thou shalt hear!--Out in the country, close by the high road, there -stood a pleasure-house,--thou hast, no doubt, seen it thyself. In the -front is a little garden full of flowers, and this is fenced in with -painted palisades. Close beside these, in a hollow, there grew, all -among the loveliest green grass, a little tuft of daisies. The sun -shone upon it just as warmly and as sweetly as upon the large and rich -splendid flowers within the garden, and, therefore, it grew hour by -hour. One morning it opened its little shining white flower-leaves, -which looked just like rays of light all round the little yellow sun -in the inside. It never once thought that nobody saw it down there in -the grass, and that it was a poor, despised flower! No, nothing of the -kind! It was so very happy; turned itself round towards the warm sun, -looked up, and listened to the lark which sang in the blue air. - -The little daisy was as happy as if it had been some great holiday, and -yet it was only a Monday. All the children were in school, and while -they sat upon the benches learning their lessons, it also sat upon its -little green stalk, and learned from the warm sun and from every thing -around it, how good God is. And it seemed to it quite right that the -little lark sang so intelligibly and so beautifully every thing which -it felt in stillness; and it looked up with a sort of reverence to -the happy bird, which could sing and fly, but it was not at all vexed -because it could not do the same. - -"I see it and hear it," thought the daisy; "the sun shines upon me, and -the winds kiss me! O, what a many gifts I enjoy!" - -Inside the garden paling there were such a great many stiff, grand -flowers; and all the less fragrance they had the more they seemed to -swell themselves out. The pionies blew themselves out that they might -be bigger than the roses; but it is not size which does every thing. -The tulips had the most splendid colors, and they knew it too, and -held themselves so upright on purpose that people should see them all -the better. They never paid the least attention to the little daisy -outside, but it looked at them all the more, and thought, "How rich -they are, and how beautiful! Yes, to be sure, the charming bird up -there must fly down and pay them a visit. Thank God! that I am so -near that I can see all the glory!" And while she was thinking these -thoughts--"Quirrevit!" down came the lark flying,--but not down to the -pionies and the tulips: no! but down into the grass to the poor little -daisy; which was so astonished by pure joy, that it did not know what -it should think. - -The little bird danced round about, and sang, "Nay, but the grass is in -flower! and see, what a sweet little blossom, with a golden heart and a -silver jerkin on!"--for the yellow middle of the daisy looked as if it -were of gold, and the little leaves round about were shining and silver -white. - -So happy as the little daisy was it is quite impossible to describe! -The bird kissed it with its beak, sang before it, and then flew up -again into the blue air. It required a whole quarter of an hour before -the daisy could come to itself again. Half bashfully, and yet with -inward delight, it looked into the garden to the other flowers; they -had actually seen the honor and the felicity which she had enjoyed; -they could certainly understand, she thought, what a happiness it was. -But the tulips stood yet just as stiffly as before, and their faces -were so peaked and so red!--for they were quite vexed. The pionies were -quite thick-headed, too! it was a good thing that they could not talk, -or else the daisy would have been regularly scolded. The poor little -flower, however, could see very plainly that they were not in a good -humor, and that really distressed her. At that very moment there came -a girl into the garden with a great knife in her hand, which was very -sharp and shining, and she went all among the tulips, and she cut off -first one and then another. - -"Ah!" sighed the little daisy, "that was very horrible; now all is over -with them!" - -So the girl went away with the tulips. The daisy was glad that it grew -in the grass, and was a little mean flower; it felt full of gratitude, -and when the sun set, it folded its leaves, slept, and dreamed the -whole night long about the sun and the little bird. - -Next morning, the flower again, full of joy, spread out all its white -leaves, like small arms, towards the air and the light; it recognised -the bird's voice; but the song of the bird was very sorrowful. Yes, -the poor little bird had good reason for being sad! it had been taken -prisoner, and now sat in a cage close by the open window of the -pleasure-house. It sang about flying wherever it would in freedom and -bliss; it sang about the young green corn in the fields, and about the -charming journeys which it used to make up in the blue air upon its -hovering wings. The poor bird was heavy at heart, and was captive in a -cage. - -The little daisy wished so sincerely that it could be of any service; -but it was difficult to tell how. In sympathizing with the lark, the -daisy quite forgot how beautiful was every thing around it--how warmly -the sun shone, and how beautifully white were its own flower-leaves. -Ah! it could think of nothing but of the captive bird, for which it -was not able to do any thing. - -Just then came two little boys out of the garden; one of them had a -knife in his hand, large and sharp, like that which the girl had, and -with which she cut off the tulips. They went straight up to the little -daisy, which could not think what they wanted. - -"Here we can get a beautiful grass turf for the lark," said one of the -boys; and began deeply to cut out a square around the daisy-root, so -that it was just in the middle of the turf. - -"Break off the flower!" said the other boy; and the daisy trembled for -very fear of being broken off, and thus losing its life; when it would -so gladly live and go with the turf into the cage of the captive lark. - -"Nay, let it be where it is!" said the other boy; "it makes it look so -pretty!" - -And so it was left there, and was taken into the cage to the lark. - -But the poor bird made loud lamentations over its lost freedom, and -struck the wires of the cage with its wings. The little daisy could -not speak, could not say one consoling word, however gladly it would -have done so. Thus passed the forenoon. - -"There is no water here," said the captive lark; "they are all gone -out, and have forgotten to give me a drop to drink! my throat is dry -and burning! it is fire and ice within me, and the air is so heavy! Ah! -I shall die away from the warm sunshine, from the fresh green leaves, -from all the glorious things which God has created!" and with that -it bored its little beak down into the cool turf to refresh itself a -little. At that moment it caught sight of the daisy, nodded to it, -kissed it with its beak, and said, "Thou also must wither here, thou -poor little flower! Thou and the little plot of grass, which they have -given me for the whole world which I had out there! Every little blade -of grass may be to me a green tree, every one of thy little white -leaves a fragrant flower! Ah! you only tell me how much I have lost!" - -"Ah! who can comfort him!" thought the daisy, but could not move a -leaf; and yet the fragrance which was given forth from its delicate -petals was much sweeter than is usual in such flowers. The bird -remarked this, and when, overcome by the agony of thirst and misery, it -tore up every green blade of grass, it touched not the little flower. - -Evening came, and yet no one brought a single drop of water to the -poor bird. It stretched out its beautiful wings, fluttered them -convulsively, and its song was a melancholy wailing; its little head -bowed down towards the flower, and its heart broke from thirst and -longing. The little flower knew this not; before the evening was ended, -it had folded its petals together and slept upon the earth, overcome -with sickness and sorrow. - -Not until the next morning came the boys, and when they saw that the -bird was dead they wept, wept many tears, and dug for it a handsome -grave, which they adorned with leaves of flowers. The corpse of the -bird was laid in a beautiful red box. It was to be buried royally, the -poor bird! which, when full of life and singing its glorious song, they -forgot, and let it pine in a cage, and suffer thirst--and now they did -him honor, and shed many tears over him! - -But the sod of grass with the daisy, that they threw out into the dust -of the highway; no one thought about it, though it had felt more than -any of them for the little bird, and would so gladly have comforted it. - - - - -THE NAUGHTY BOY. - - -There was once upon a time an old poet, such a really good old poet! -One evening, he sat at home--it was dreadful weather out of doors--the -rain poured down; but the old poet sat so comfortably, and in such a -good humor, beside his stove, where the fire was burning brightly, and -his apples were merrily roasting. - -"There will not be a dry thread on the poor souls who are out in this -weather!" said he; for he was such a good old poet. - -"O let me in! I am freezing, and I am so wet!" cried the voice of a -little child outside. It cried and knocked at the door, while the rain -kept pouring down, and the wind rattled at all the windows. - -"Poor little soul!" said the old poet, and got up to open the door. -There stood a little boy; he had not any clothes on, and the rain ran -off from his long yellow hair. He shook with the cold; if he had not -been taken in, he would most surely have died of that bad weather. - -"Thou poor little soul!" said the kind old poet, and took him by the -hand; "come in, and I will warm thee! and thou shalt have some wine, -and a nice roasted apple, for thou art a pretty little boy!" - -And so he was. His eyes were like two bright stars, and, although the -water ran down from his yellow hair, yet it curled so beautifully. He -looked just like a little angel; but he was pale with the cold, and his -little body trembled all over. In his hand he carried a pretty little -bow; but it was quite spoiled with the rain, and all the colors of his -beautiful little arrows ran one into another with the wet. - -The good old poet seated himself by the stove, and took the little boy -upon his knee; he wrung the rain out of his hair, warmed his little -hands in his, and made some sweet wine warm for him; by this means the -rosy color came back into his cheeks, he jumped down upon the floor, -and danced round and round the old poet. - -"Thou art a merry lad," said the poet; "what is thy name?" - -"They call me Love," replied the boy; "dost thou not know me? There -lies my bow; I shoot with it, thou mayst believe! See, now, the weather -clears up; the moon shines!" - -"But thy bow is spoiled," said the old poet. - -"That would be sad!" said the little boy, and took it up to see if -it were. "Oh, it is quite dry," said he; "it is not hurt at all! The -string is quite firm: now I will try it!" - -And with that he strung it, laid an arrow upon it, took his aim, and -shot the good old poet right through the heart! - -"Thou canst now see that my bow is not spoiled!" said he; and laughing -as loud as he could, ran away. What a naughty boy! to shoot the good -old poet who had taken him into the warm room; who had been so kind to -him, and given him nice wine to drink, and the very best of his roasted -apples! - -The poor poet lay upon the floor and wept, for he was actually shot -through the heart, and he said, "Fy! what a naughty boy that Love is! I -will tell all good little children about him, that they may drive him -away before he makes them some bad return!" - -All good children, boys and girls, to whom he told this, drove away -that naughty little lad; but for all that he has made fools of them -all, for he is so artful! When students go from their lectures, he -walks by their side with a book under his arm, and they fancy that he -too is a student, and so he runs an arrow into their breasts. When -young girls go to church, and when they stand in the aisle of the -church, he too has followed them. Yes, he is always following people! - -He sits in the great chandelier in the theatre, and burns with a -bright flame, and so people think he is a lamp, but afterwards they -find something else! He runs about the king's garden, and on the -bowling-green! Yes! he once shot thy father and mother through the -heart! Ask them about it, and then thou wilt hear what they say. Yes, -indeed, he is a bad boy, that Love; do thou never have any thing to do -with him!--he is always running after people! Only think! once upon a -time, he even shot an arrow at thy good old grandmother!--but that is a -long time ago, and it is past. But thus it is, he never forgets anybody! - -Fy, for shame, naughty Love! But now thou knowest him, and knowest what -a bad boy he is! - - - - -TOMMELISE. - - -Once upon a time, a beggar woman went to the house of a poor peasant, -and asked for something to eat. The peasant's wife gave her some bread -and milk. When she had eaten it, she took a barley-corn out of her -pocket, and said--"This will I give thee; set it in a flower-pot, and -see what will come out of it." - -The woman set the barley-corn in an old flower-pot, and the next day -the most beautiful plant had shot up, which looked just like a tulip, -but the leaves were shut close together, as if it still were in bud. - -"What a pretty flower it is!" said the woman, and kissed the small -red and yellow leaves; and just as she had kissed them, the flower -gave a great crack, and opened itself. It was a real tulip, only one -could see that in the middle of the flower there sat upon the pintail -a little tiny girl, so delicate and lovely, and not half so big as my -thumb, and, therefore, woman called her Tommelise. - -A pretty polished walnut-shell was her cradle, blue violet leaves -were her mattress, and a rose leaf was her coverlet; here she slept -at night, but in the day she played upon the table, where the woman -had set a plate, around which she placed quite a garland of flowers, -the stalks of which were put in water. A large tulip-leaf floated on -the water. Tommelise seated herself on this, and sailed from one end -of the plate to the other; she had two white horse-hairs to row her -little boat with. It looked quite lovely; and then she sang--Oh! so -beautifully, as nobody ever had heard! - -One night, as she lay in her nice little bed, there came a fat, yellow -frog hopping in at the window, in which there was a broken pane. The -frog was very large and heavy, but it hopped easily on the table where -Tommelise lay and slept under the red rose leaf. - -"This would be a beautiful wife for my son!" said the frog; and so she -took up the walnut-shell in which Tommelise lay, and hopped away with -it, through the broken pane, down into the garden. - -Here there ran a large, broad river; but just at its banks it was -marshy and muddy: the frog lived here, with her son. Uh! he also was -all spotted with green and yellow, and was very like his mother. "Koax, -koax, brekke-ke-kex!" that was all that he could say when he saw the -pretty little maiden in the walnut-shell. - -"Don't make such a noise, or else you will waken her," said the old -frog; "and if you frighten her, she may run away from us, for she is as -light as swan's down! We will take her out on the river, and set her on -a waterlily leaf; to her who is so light, it will be like an island; -she cannot get away from us there, and we will then go and get ready -the house in the mud, where you two shall live together." - -There grew a great many waterlilies in the river, with their broad -green leaves, which seemed to float upon the water. The old frog swam -to the leaf which was the farthest out in the river, and which was the -largest also, and there she set the walnut-shell, with little Tommelise. - -The poor little tiny thing awoke quite early in the morning, and when -she saw where she was she began to cry bitterly, for there was water on -every side of the large green leaf, and she could not get to land. - -The old frog sat down in the mud, and decked her house with sedge and -yellow water-reeds, that it might be regularly beautiful when her new -daughter-in-law came. After this was done, she and her fat son swam -away to the lily leaf, where Tommelise stood, that they might fetch her -pretty little bed, and so have every thing ready before she herself -came to the house. - -The old frog courtesied to her in the water, and said,--"Allow me to -introduce my son to you, who is to be your husband, and you shall live -together, so charmingly, down in the mud!" - -"Koax, koax, brekke-ke-kex!" that was all that the son could say. - -So they took the pretty little bed, and swam away with it; but -Tommelise sat, quite alone, and wept, upon the green leaf, for she did -not wish to live with the queer-looking, yellow frog, nor to have her -ugly son for her husband. The little fishes which swam down in the -water had seen the frog, and had heard what she said; they put up, -therefore, their heads, to look at the little girl. The moment they -saw her they thought her very pretty; and they felt very sorry that -she should have to go down into the mud and live with the frog. No, -never should it be! They therefore went down into the water in a great -shoal, and gathered round the green stalk of the leaf upon which she -stood; they gnawed the stalk in two with their teeth, and thus the leaf -floated down the river. Slowly and quietly it floated away, a long way -off, where the frog could not come to it. - -Tommelise sailed past a great many places, and the little birds sat in -the bushes, looked at her, and sang,--"What a pretty little maiden!" -The leaf on which she stood floated away farther and farther, and, at -last, she came to a foreign land. - -A pretty little white butterfly stayed with her, and flew round about -her, and, at length, seated itself upon the leaf; for it knew little -Tommelise so well and she was so pleased, for she knew that now the -frog could not come near her, and the land to which she had come was -very beautiful. The sun shone upon the water, and it was like the most -lovely gold. She took off her girdle, therefore, and bound one end of -it to the butterfly, and the other end of it to the leaf, and thus she -glided on more swiftly than ever, and she stood upon the leaf as it -went. - -As she was thus sailing on charmingly, a large stag-beetle came flying -towards her; it paused for a moment to look at her, then clasped its -claws around her slender waist, and flew up into a tree with her, but -the green lily leaf floated down the stream, and the white butterfly -with it, because it was fastened to it, and could not get loose. - -Poor Tommelise! how frightened she was when the stag-beetle flew away -with her up into the tree! but she was most of all distressed for the -lovely white butterfly which she had fastened to the leaf. But that did -not trouble the stag-beetle at all. It seated itself upon one of the -largest green leaves of the tree, gave her the honey of the flowers -to eat, and said that she was very pretty, although she was not at -all like a stag-beetle. Before long, all the other stag-beetles that -lived in the tree came to pay her a visit; they looked at Tommelise; -and the misses stag-beetle, they examined her with their antennae, and -said,--"Why, she has only two legs, that is very extraordinary!" "She -has no antennae!" said the others. "She has such a thin body! Why she -looks just like a human being!" "How ugly she is!" said all the lady -stag-beetles; and yet Tommelise was exceedingly pretty. - -The stag-beetle which had carried her away had thought so himself, at -first; but now, as all the others said that she was ugly, he fancied, -at last, that she was so, and would not have her, and she could now -go where she would. They flew down with her out of the tree, and set -her upon a daisy. Here she wept, because she was so ugly, and the -stag-beetles would have nothing to do with her; and yet she really was -so very lovely as nobody could imagine, as delicate and bright as the -most beautiful rose leaf! - -Poor Tommelise lived all that long summer, though quite alone, in -the great wood. She wove herself a bed of grass, and hung it under a -large plantain leaf, so that the rain could not come to her; she fed -from the honey of the flowers, and drank of the dew which stood in -glittering drops every morning on the grass. Thus passed the summer -and the autumn; but now came winter, the cold, long winter. All the -birds which had sung so sweetly to her were flown away; the trees and -the flowers withered; the large plantain leaf under which she had -dwelt shrunk together, and became nothing but a dry, yellow stalk; and -she was so cold, for her clothes were in rags; and she herself was so -delicate and small!--poor Tommelise, she was almost frozen to death! It -began to snow, and every snow-flake which fell upon her was just as if -a whole drawer-full had been thrown upon us, for we are strong, and she -was so very, very small! She crept, therefore, into a withered leaf, -but that could not keep her warm; she shook with the cold. - -Close beside the wood in which she now was, lay a large cornfield; -but the corn had long been carried; nothing remained but dry stubble, -which stood up on the frozen ground. It was, to her, like going into -a bare wood--Oh! how she shivered with cold! Before long she came to -the fieldmouse's door. The fieldmouse had a little cave down below the -roots of the corn-stubble, and here she dwelt warm and comfortable, -and had whole rooms full of corn, and a beautiful kitchen and a -store-closet. Poor Tommelise stood before the door, like any other -little beggar-child, and prayed for a little bit of a barley-corn, for -she had now been two whole days without having eaten the least morsel. - -"Thou poor little thing!" said the fieldmouse, for she was at heart -a good old fieldmouse; "come into my warm parlor, and have a bit of -dinner with me." - -How kind that seemed to Tommelise! - -"Thou canst stop with me the whole winter," said the old fieldmouse; -"but then thou must be my little maid, and keep my parlor neat and -clean, and tell me tales to amuse me, for I am very fond of them!" And -Tommelise did all that the good old fieldmouse desired of her, and was -very comfortable. - -"Before long we shall have a visitor," said the fieldmouse, soon after -Tommelise was settled in her place; "my neighbor is accustomed to -visit me once a week. He is much better off in the world than I am; he -has a large house, and always wears such a splendid velvet dress! If -thou couldst only manage to get him for thy husband, thou wouldst be -lucky,--but then he is blind. Thou canst tell him the very prettiest -story thou knowest." - -But Tommelise gave herself no trouble about him; she did not wish to -have the neighbor, for he was only a mole. He came and paid his visits -in his black velvet dress; he was very rich and learned, the fieldmouse -said, and his dwelling-house was twenty times larger than hers; and he -had such a deal of earning, although he made but little of the sum and -the beautiful flowers; he laughed at them; but then he had never seen -them! - -The fieldmouse insisted on Tommelise singing, so she sang. She sang -both "Fly, stag-beetle, fly!" and "The green moss grows by the water -side;" and the mole fell deeply in love with her, for the sake of her -sweet voice, but he did not say any thing, for he was a very discreet -gentleman. - -He had lately dug a long passage through the earth, between his house -and theirs; and in this he gave Tommelise and the fieldmouse leave -to walk whenever they liked. But he told them not to be afraid of a -dead bird which lay in the passage, for it was an entire bird, with -feathers and a beak; which certainly was dead just lately, at the -beginning of winter, and had been buried exactly where he began his -passage. - -The mole took a piece of touchwood in his mouth, for it shines just -like fire in the dark, and went before them, to light them in the long, -dark passage. When they were come where the dead bird lay, the mole -set his broad nose to the ground, and ploughed up the earth, so that -there was a large hole, through which the daylight could shine. In -the middle of the floor lay a dead swallow, with its beautiful wings -pressed close to its sides. Its legs and head were drawn up under the -feathers; the poor bird had certainly died of cold. Tommelise was very -sorry for it, for she was so fond of little birds; they had, through -the whole summer, sung and twittered so beautifully to her; but the -mole stood beside it, with his short legs, and said,--"Now it will -tweedle no more! It must be a shocking thing to be born a little bird; -thank goodness that none of my children have been such; for a bird -has nothing at all but its singing; and it may be starved to death in -winter!" - -"Yes, that you, who are a sensible man, may well say," said the -fieldmouse; "what has the bird, with all its piping and singing, when -winter comes? It may be famished or frozen!" - -Tommelise said nothing; but when the two others had turned their backs, -she bent over it, stroked aside the feathers which lay over its head, -and kissed its closed eyes. - -"Perhaps it was that same swallow which sang so sweetly to me in -summer," thought she; "what a deal of pleasure it caused me, the dear, -beautiful bird!" - -The mole stopped up the opening which it had made for the daylight -to come in, and accompanied the ladies home. Tommelise, however, -could not sleep in the night; so she got up out of bed, and wove a -small, beautiful mat of hay; and that she carried down and spread -over the dead bird; laid soft cotton-wool, which she had found in the -fieldmouse's parlor, around the bird, that it might lie warm in the -cold earth. - -"Farewell, thou pretty little bird," said she; "farewell, and thanks -for thy beautiful song, in summer, when all the trees were green, and -the sun shone so warmly upon us!" - -With this she laid her head upon the bird's breast, and the same moment -was quite amazed, for it seemed to her as if there were a slight -movement within it. It was the bird's heart. The bird was not dead; it -lay in a swoon, and now being warmed, it was reanimated. - -In the autumn all the swallows fly away to the warm countries; but if -there be one which tarries behind, it becomes stiff with cold, so that -it falls down as if dead, and the winter's snow covers it. - -Tommelise was quite terrified, for in comparison with her the bird -was a very large creature; but she took courage, however, laid the -cotton-wool closer around the poor swallow, and fetched a coverlet of -chrysanthemum leaves, which she had for her bed, and laid it over its -head. - -Next night she listened again, and it was quite living, but so weak -that it could only open its eyes a very little, and see Tommelise, who -stood with a piece of touchwood in her hand, for other light she had -none. - -"Thanks thou shalt have, thou pretty little child!" said the sick -swallow to her; "I have been beautifully revived! I shall soon recover -my strength, and be able to fly again out into the warm sunshine!" - -"O," said she, "it is so cold out-of-doors! it snows and freezes! stop -in thy warm bed, and I will nurse thee!" - -She brought the swallow water, in a flower-leaf, and it drank it, and -related to her how it had torn one of its wings upon a thorn-bush, and, -therefore, had not been able to fly so well as the other swallows, who -had flown far, far away, into the warm countries. It had, at last, -fallen down upon the ground; but more than that it knew not, nor how it -had come there. - -During the whole winter it continued down here, and Tommelise was very -kind to it, and became very fond of it; but neither the mole nor the -fieldmouse knew any thing about it, for they could not endure swallows. - -As soon as ever spring came, and the sun shone warm into the earth, -the swallow bade farewell to Tommelise, who opened the hole which the -mole had covered up. The sun shone so delightfully down into it, and -the swallow asked whether she would not go with him; she might sit upon -his back, and he would fly out with her far into the green-wood. But -Tommelise knew that it would distress the old fieldmouse if she thus -left her. - -"No, I cannot," said Tommelise. - -"Farewell, farewell, thou good, sweet little maiden!" said the swallow, -and flew out into the sunshine. Tommelise looked after it, and the -tears came into her eyes, for she was very fond of the swallow, and she -felt quite forlorn now it was gone. - -"Quivit! quivit!" sung the bird, and flew into the green-wood. - -Tommelise was very sorrowful. She could not obtain leave to go out into -the warm sunshine. The corn which had been sown in the field above the -mouse's dwelling, had grown so high that it was now like a thick wood -to her. - -"Now, during this summer, thou shalt get thy wedding clothes ready," -said the fieldmouse to her; for the old neighbor, the wealthy mole, had -presented himself as a wooer. - -"Thou shalt have both woollen and linen clothes; thou shalt have both -table and body linen, if thou wilt be the mole's wife," said the old -fieldmouse. - -Tommelise was obliged to sit down and spin; and the fieldmouse hired -six spiders to spin and weave both night and day. Every evening the -mole came to pay a visit, and always said that when the summer was -ended, and the sun did not shine so hotly as to bake the earth to a -stone,--yes, when the summer was over, then he and Tommelise would have -a grand wedding; but this never gave her any pleasure, for she did not -like the wealthy old gentleman. Every morning, when the sun rose, and -every evening, when it set, she stole out to the door; and if the wind -blew the ears of corn aside so that she could see the blue sky, she -thought how bright and beautiful it was out there, and she wished so -much that she could, just once more, see the dear swallow. But he never -came; he certainly had flown far, far away from the lovely green-wood. - -It was now autumn, and all Tommelise's wedding things were ready. - -"In four weeks thou shalt be married," said the old fieldmouse to her. -But Tommelise cried, and said that she would not have the rich mole. - -"Snick, snack!" said the fieldmouse; "do not go and be obstinate, else -I shall bite thee with my white teeth! He is, indeed, a very fine -gentleman! The queen herself has not got a dress equal to his black -velvet! He has riches both in kitchen and coffer. Be thankful that thou -canst get such a one!" - -So the wedding was fixed. The bridegroom was already come, in his best -black velvet suit, to fetch away Tommelise. She was to live with him -deep under ground, never to come out into the warm sunshine, for that -he could not bear. The poor child was full of sorrow; she must once -more say farewell to the beautiful sun; and she begged so hard, that -the fieldmouse gave her leave to go to the door to do so. - -"Farewell, thou bright sun!" said she, and stretched forth her arms, -and went a few paces from the fieldmouse's door, for the corn was now -cut, and again there was nothing but the dry stubble. - -"Farewell! farewell!" said she, and threw her small arms around a -little red flower which grew there; "greet the little swallow for me, -if thou chance to see him!" - -"Quivit! quivit!" said the swallow, that very moment, above her head; -she looked up, there was the little swallow, which had just come by. As -soon as Tommelise saw it, she was very glad; she told it how unwilling -she was to marry the rich old mole, and live so deep underground, where -the sun never shone. She could not help weeping as she told him. - -"The cold winter is just at hand," said the little swallow; "I am -going far away to the warm countries, wilt thou go with me? Thou canst -sit upon my back; bind thyself fast with thy girdle, and so we will -fly away from the rich mole and his dark parlor, far away over the -mountains, to the warm countries, where the sun shines more beautifully -than here, and where there always is summer, and where the beautiful -flowers are always in bloom. Only fly away with me, thou sweet little -Tommelise, who didst save my life when I lay frozen in the dark prison -of the earth!" - -"Yes, I will go with thee!" said Tommelise, and seated herself upon -the bird's back, with her feet upon one of his outspread wings. She -bound her girdle to one of the strongest of his feathers, and thus -the swallow flew aloft into the air, over wood and over sea, high up -above the great mountains, where lies the perpetual snow, and Tommelise -shivered with the intensely cold air; but she then crept among the -bird's warm feathers, and only put out her little head, that she might -look at all the magnificent prospect that lay below her. - -Thus they came to the warm countries. There the sun shone much brighter -than it does here; the heavens were twice as high, and upon trellis -and hedge grew the most splendid purple and green grapes. Oranges and -lemons hung golden in the woods, and myrtle and wild thyme sent forth -their fragrance; the most beautiful children, on the highways, ran -after and played with large, brilliantly-colored butterflies. But the -swallow still flew onward, and it became more and more beautiful. Among -lovely green trees, and beside a beautiful blue lake, stood a palace, -built of the shining white marble of antiquity. Vines clambered up the -tall pillars; on the topmost of these were many swallow nests, and in -one of these dwelt the very swallow which carried Tommelise. - -"Here is my home!" said the swallow; "but wilt thou now seek out for -thyself one of the lovely flowers which grow below, and then I will -place thee there, and thou shalt make thyself as comfortable as thou -pleasest?" - -"That is charming!" said she, and clapped her small hands. - -Just by there lay a large white marble pillar, which had fallen down, -and broken into three pieces, but amongst these grew the most exquisite -large white flowers. - -The swallow flew down with Tommelise, and seated her upon one of the -broad leaves,--but how amazed she was! There sat a little man in the -middle of the flower, as white and transparent as if he were of glass; -the most lovely crown of gold was upon his head, and the most beautiful -bright wings upon his shoulders; and he, too, was no larger than -Tommelise. He was the angel of the flower. In every flower lived such a -little man or woman, but this was the king of them all. - -"Good heavens! how small he is!" whispered Tommelise to the swallow. -The little prince was as much frightened at the swallow, for it was, -indeed, a great, gigantic bird in comparison of him, who was so very -small and delicate; but when he saw Tommelise he was very glad, for -she was the prettiest little maiden that ever he had seen. He took, -therefore, the golden crown from off his head, and set it upon hers, -and asked her what was her name, and whether she would be his wife, and -be the queen of all the flowers? Yes, he was really and truly a little -man, quite different to the frog's son, and to the mole, with his black -velvet dress; she therefore said, Yes, to the pretty prince; and so -there came out of every flower a lady or a gentleman, so lovely that -it was quite a pleasure to see them, and brought, every one of them, -a present to Tommelise; but the best of all was a pair of beautiful -wings, of fine white pearl, and these were fastened on Tommelise's -shoulders, and thus she also could fly from flower to flower,--that was -such a delight! And the little swallow sat up in its nest and sang to -them as well as it could, but still it was a little bit sad at heart, -for it was very fond of Tommelise, and wished never to have parted -from her. - -"Thou shalt not be called Tommelise!" said the angel of the flowers to -her; "it is an ugly name, and thou art so beautiful. We will call thee -Maia!" - -"Farewell, farewell!" said the little swallow, and flew again forth -from the warm countries, far, far away, to Denmark. There it had a -little nest above the window of a room in which dwelt a poet, who can -tell beautiful tales; for him it sang,--"Quivit, quivit!" and from the -swallow, therefore, have we this history. - - - - -THE ROSE-ELF. - - -There grew a rose-tree in the middle of a garden; it was quite full of -roses; and in one of these, the prettiest of them all, dwelt an elf. He -was so very, very small, that no human eye could see him; behind every -leaf in the rose he had a sleeping-room; he was as well-formed and as -pretty as any child could be, and had wings, which reached from his -shoulders down to his feet. O, how fragrant were his chambers, and how -bright and beautiful the walls were! They were, indeed, the pale pink, -delicate rose leaves. - -All day long he enjoyed himself in the warm sunshine, flew from flower -to flower, danced upon the wings of the fluttering butterfly, or -counted how many paces it was from one footpath to another, upon one -single lime leaf. What he considered as footpaths, were what we call -veins in the leaf; yes, it was an immense way for him! Before he had -finished, the sun had set; thus, he had begun too late. - -It became very cold; the dew fell, and the wind blew; the best thing he -could do was to get home as fast as he could. He made as much haste as -was possible, but all the roses had closed--he could not get in; there -was not one single rose open; the poor little elf was quite terrified, -he had never been out in the night before; he always had slept in the -snug little rose leaf. Now, he certainly would get his death of cold! - -At the other end of the garden he knew that there was an arbor, all -covered with beautiful honeysuckle. The flowers looked like exquisitely -painted horns; he determined to creep down into one of these, and sleep -there till morning. - -He flew thither. Listen! There are two people within the bower; the -one, a handsome young man, and the other, the loveliest young lady that -ever was seen; they sat side by side, and wished that they never might -be parted, through all eternity. They loved each other very dearly, -more dearly than the best child can love either its father or mother. - -They kissed each other; and the young lady wept, and gave him a rose; -but before she gave it to him she pressed it to her lips, and that with -such a deep tenderness, that the rose opened, and the little elf flew -into it, and nestled down into its fragrant chamber. As he lay there, -he could very plainly hear that they said,--Farewell! farewell! to each -other; and then he felt that the rose had its place on the young man's -breast. Oh! how his heart beat!--the little elf could not go to sleep -because the young man's heart beat so much. - -The rose lay there; the young man took it forth whilst he went through -a dark wood, and kissed it with such vehemence that the little elf was -almost crushed to death; he could feel, through the leaves, how warm -were the young man's lips, and the rose gave forth its odor, as if to -the noon-day's sun. - -Then came another man through the wood; he was dark and wrathful, and -was the handsome young lady's cruel brother. He drew forth from its -sheath a long and sharp dagger, and whilst the young man kissed the -rose, the wicked man stabbed him to death, and then buried him in the -bloody earth, under a lime tree. - -"Now he is gone and forgotten!" thought the wicked man; "he will never -come back again. He is gone a long journey over mountains and seas; it -would be an easy thing for him to lose his life,--and he has done so! -He will never come back again, and I fancy my sister will never ask -after him." - -He covered the troubled earth, in which he had laid the dead body, with -withered leaves, and then set off home again, through the dark night; -but he went not alone, as he fancied; the little elf went with him; it -sat in a withered, curled-up lime leaf, which had fallen upon the hair -of the cruel man as he dug the grave. He had now put his hat on, and, -within, it was very dark; and the little elf trembled with horror and -anger over the wicked deed. - -In the early hour of morning he came home; he took off his hat, and -went into his sister's chamber; there lay the beautiful, blooming -maiden, and dreamed about the handsome young man. She loved him very -dearly, and thought that now he went over mountains and through woods. -The cruel brother bent over her; what were his thoughts we know not, -but they must have been evil. The withered lime leaf fell from his hair -down upon the bed cover, but he did not notice it; and so he went out, -that he, too, might sleep a little in the morning hour. - -But the elf crept out of the withered leaf, crept to the ear of the -sleeping maiden, and told her, as if in a dream, of the fearful murder; -described to her the very place where he had been stabbed, and where -his body lay; it told about the blossoming lime tree close beside, and -said,--"And that thou mayest not fancy that this is a dream which I -tell thee, thou wilt find a withered lime leaf upon thy bed!" - -And she found it when she woke. - -Oh! what salt tears she wept, and she did not dare to tell her sorrow -to any one. The window stood open all day, and the little elf could -easily go out into the garden, to the roses and all the other flowers; -but for all that, he resolved not to leave the sorrowful maiden. - -In the window there stood a monthly rose, and he placed himself in one -of its flowers, and there could be near the poor young lady who was so -unhappy. Her brother came often into her room, but she could not say -one word about the great sorrow of her heart. - -As soon as it was night she stole out of the house, went to the wood, -and to the very place where the lime tree stood; tore away the dead -leaves from the sod, dug down, and found him who was dead! Oh! how she -wept and prayed our Lord, that she, too, might soon die! - -Gladly would she have taken the body home with her,--but that she could -not; so she cut away a beautiful lock of his hair, and laid it near her -heart! - -Not a word she said; and when she had laid earth and leaves again upon -the dead body, she went home; and took with her a little jasmine tree, -which grew, full of blossoms, in the wood where he had met with his -death. - -As soon as she returned to her chamber, she took a very pretty -flower-pot, and, filling it with mould, laid in it the beautiful -curling hair, and planted in it the jasmine tree. - -"Farewell, farewell!" whispered the little elf; he could no longer bear -to see her grief, so he flew out into the garden, to his rose; but its -leaves had fallen; nothing remained of it but the four green calix -leaves. - -"Ah! how soon it is over with all that is good and beautiful!" sighed -he. At last he found a rose,--which became his house; he crept among -its fragrant leaves, and dwelt there. - -Every morning he flew to the poor young lady's window, and there she -always stood by the flower-pot, and wept. Her salt tears fell upon the -jasmine twigs, and every day, as she grew paler and paler, they became -more fresh and green; one cluster of flower-buds grew after another; -and then the small white buds opened into flowers, and she kissed them. -Her cruel brother scolded her, and asked her whether she had lost her -senses. He could not imagine why she always wept over that flower-pot, -but he did not know what secret lay within its dark mould. But she knew -it; she bowed her head over the jasmine bloom, and sank exhausted on -her couch. The little rose-elf found her thus, and, stealing to her -ear he whispered to her about the evening in the honeysuckle arbor, -about the rose's fragrance, and the love which he, the little elf, had -for her. She dreamed so sweetly, and while she dreamed, the beautiful -angel of death conveyed her spirit away from this world, and she was in -heaven with him who was so dear to her. - -The jasmine buds opened their large white flowers; their fragrance was -wondrously sweet. - -When the cruel brother saw the beautiful blossoming tree, he took it, -as an heir-loom of his sister, and set it in his sleeping-room, just -beside his bed, for it was pleasant to look at, and the fragrance was -so rich and uncommon. The little rose-elf went with it, and flew from -blossom to blossom. In every blossom there dwelt a little spirit, and -to it he told about the murdered young man, whose beautiful curling -locks lay under their roots; told about the cruel brother, and the -heart-broken sister. - -"We know all about it," said the little spirit of each flower; "we know -it! we know it! we know it!" and with that they nodded very knowingly. - -The rose-elf could not understand them, nor why they seemed so merry, -so he flew out to the bees which collected honey, and told them all the -story. The bees told it to their queen, who gave orders that, the next -morning, they should all go and stab the murderer to death with their -sharp little daggers; for that seemed the right thing to the queen-bee. - -But that very night, which was the first night after the sister's -death, as the brother slept in his bed, beside the fragrant jasmine -tree, every little flower opened itself, and all invisibly came forth -the spirits of the flower, each with a poisoned arrow; first of all -they seated themselves by his ear, and sent such awful dreams to his -brain as made him, for the first time, tremble at the deed he had done. -They then shot at him with their invisible poisoned arrows. - -"Now we have avenged the dead!" said they, and flew back to the white -cups of the jasmine-flowers. - -As soon as it was morning, the window of the chamber was opened, and in -came the rose-elf, with the queen of the bees and all her swarm. - -But he was already dead; there stood the people round about his bed, -and they said--"That the strong-scented jasmine had been the death of -him!" - -Then did the rose-elf understand the revenge which the flowers had -taken, and he told it to the queen-bee, and she came buzzing, with all -her swarm, around the jasmine-pot. - -The bees were not to be driven away; so one of the servants took up the -pot to carry it out, and one of the bees stung him, and he let the pot -fall, and it was broken in two. - -Then they all saw the beautiful hair of the murdered young man; and so -they knew that he who lay in the bed was the murderer. - -The queen-bee went out humming into the sunshine, and she sung about -how the flowers had avenged the young man's death; and that behind -every little flower-leaf is an eye which can see every wicked deed. - -Old and young, think on this! and so, Fare ye well. - - - - -THE GARDEN OF PARADISE. - - -There was a king's son: nobody had so many, or such beautiful books -as he had. Every thing which had been done in this world he could -read about, and see represented in splendid pictures. He could give -a description of every people and every country; but--where was the -Garden of Paradise?--of that he could not learn one word; and that it -was of which he thought most. - -His grandmother had told him, when he was quite a little boy, and first -began to go to school, that every flower in the Garden of Paradise -was the most delicious cake; one was history, another geography, a -third, tables, and it was only needful to eat one of these cakes, and -so the lesson was learned; and the more was eaten of them, the better -acquainted they were with history, geography, and tables. - -At that time he believed all this; but when he grew a bigger boy, and -had learned more, and was wiser, he was quite sure that there must be -some other very different delight in this Garden of Paradise. - -"Oh! why did Eve gather of the tree of knowledge? why did Adam eat the -forbidden fruit? If it had been me, I never would have done so! If it -had been me, sin should never have entered into the world!" - -So said he, many a time, when he was young; so said he when he was much -older! The Garden of Paradise filled his whole thoughts. - -One day he went into the wood; he went alone, for that was his greatest -delight. - -The evening came. The clouds drew together; it began to rain as if -the whole heavens were one single sluice, of which the gate was open; -it was quite dark, or like night in the deepest well. Now, he slipped -in the wet grass; now, he tumbled over the bare stones, which were -scattered over the rocky ground. Every thing streamed with water; not a -dry thread remained upon the prince. He was obliged to crawl up over -the great blocks of stone, where the water poured out of the wet moss. -He was ready to faint. At that moment he heard a remarkable sound, and -before him he saw a large, illuminated cave. In the middle of it burned -a fire, so large that a stag might have been roasted at it,--and so it -was; the most magnificent stag, with his tall antlers, was placed upon -a spit, and was slowly turning round between two fir trees, which had -been hewn down. A very ancient woman, tall and strong, as if she had -been a man dressed up in woman's clothes, sat by the fire, and threw -one stick after another upon it. - -"Come nearer!" said she, seeing the prince; "sit down by the fire, and -dry thy clothes." - -"It is bad travelling to-night," said the prince; and seated himself on -the floor of the cave. - -"It will be worse yet, when my sons come home!" replied the woman. -"Thou art in the cave of the winds; my sons are the four winds of the -earth; canst thou understand?" - -"Where are thy sons?" asked the prince. - -"Yes, it is not well to ask questions, when the questions are -foolish," said the woman. "My sons are queer fellows; they play at -bowls with the clouds, up in the big room there;" and with that she -pointed up into the air. - -"Indeed!" said the prince, "and you talk somewhat gruffly, and are not -as gentle as the ladies whom I am accustomed to see around me." - -"Yes, yes, they have nothing else to do!" said she; "I must be gruff -if I would keep my lads in order! But I can do it, although they have -stiff necks. Dost thou see the four sacks which hang on the wall; they -are just as much afraid of them, as thou art of the birch-rod behind -the looking-glass! I can double up the lads, as I shall, perhaps, have -to show thee, and so put them into the bags; I make no difficulties -about that; and so I fasten them in, and don't let them go running -about, for I do not find that desirable. But here we have one of them." - -With that in came the northwind; he came tramping in with an icy -coldness; great, round hail-stones hopped upon the floor, and -snow-flakes flew round about. He was dressed in a bear's-skin jerkin -and hose; a hat of seal's-skin was pulled over his ears; long icicles -hung from his beard, and one hail-stone after another fell down upon -his jerkin-collar. - -"Do not directly go to the fire!" said the prince, "else thou wilt have -the frost in thy hands and face!" - -"Frost!" said the northwind, and laughed aloud. "Frost! that is -precisely my greatest delight! What sort of a little dandified chap art -thou? What made thee come into the winds' cave?" - -"He is my guest!" said the old woman; "and if that explanation does not -please thee, thou canst get into the bag!--now thou knowest my mind!" - -This had the desired effect; and the northwind sat down, and began to -tell where he was come from, and where he had been for the greater part -of the last month. - -"I come from the Arctic Sea; I have been upon Bear Island with the -Russian walrus-hunters. I lay and slept whilst they sailed up to the -North Cape. When I now and then woke up a little, how the storm-birds -flew about my legs! They are ridiculous birds! they make a quick stroke -with their wings, and then keep them immoveably expanded, and yet they -get on." - -"Don't be so diffuse!" said the winds' mother; "and so you came to Bear -Island." - -"That is a charming place; that is a floor to dance upon!" roared the -northwind, "as flat as a pan-cake! Half covered with snow and dwarfish -mosses, sharp stones and leg-bones of walruses and ice-bears lie -scattered about, looking like the arms and legs of giants. One would -think that the sun never had shone upon them. I blew the mist aside a -little, that one might see the erection there; it was a house, built -of pieces of wrecks, covered with the skin of the walrus, the fleshy -side turned outward; upon the roof sat a living ice-bear, and growled. -I went down to the shore, and looked at the birds' nests, in which were -the unfledged young ones, which screamed, and held up their gaping -beaks; with that I blew down a thousand throats, and they learned to -shut their mouths. Down below tumbled about the walruses, like gigantic -ascarides, with pigs' heads and teeth an ell long!" - -"Thou tell'st it very well, my lad!" said the mother; "it makes my -mouth water to hear thee!" - -"So the hunting began," continued the northwind. "The harpoons were -struck into the breast of the walrus, so that the smoking blood started -like a fountain over the iron. I then thought of having some fun! I -blew, and let my great ships, the mountain-like fields of ice, shut in -the boats. How the people shrieked and cried; but I cried louder than -they! The dead bodies of their fish, their chests and cordage, were -they obliged to throw out upon the ice! I showered snow-flakes upon -them, and left them, in their imprisoned ship, to drive southward with -their prey, there to taste salt-water. They will never again come to -Bear Island!" - -"It was very wrong of thee!" said the winds' mother. - -"The others can tell what good I have done!" said he! "And there we -have my brother from the west; I like him the best of them all; he -smacks of the sea, and has a blessed coldness about him!" - -"Is it the little zephyr?" inquired the prince. - -"Yes, certainly, it is the zephyr!" said the old woman; "but he is not -so little now. In old times he was a very pretty lad, but that is all -over now." - -He looked like a wild man, but he had one of those pads round his -head, which children used to wear formerly, to prevent them from being -hurt. He held in his hand a mahogany club, which had been cut in the -mahogany woods of America. - -"Where dost thou come from?" asked the mother. - -"From the forest-wilderness," said he, "where the prickly lianas makes -a fence around every tree; where the water-snakes lie in the wet grass, -and man seems superfluous!" - -"What didst thou do there?" - -"I looked at the vast river, saw how it was hurled from the cliffs, -became mist, and was thrown back into the clouds, to become rainbows. I -saw the wild buffalo swim in the river; but the stream bore him along -with it; madly did it bear him onward, faster and faster, to where the -river was hurled down the cliffs--down, also, must he go! I bethought -myself, and blew a hurricane, so the old trees of the forest were torn -up, and carried down, too, and became splinters!" - -"And didst thou do any thing else?" asked the old woman. - -"I tumbled head-over-heels in the Savannas; I have patted the wild -horses, and shook down cocoa-nuts! Yes, yes, I could tell tales, if -I would! But one must not tell all one knows, that thou know'st, old -lady!" said he, and kissed his mother so roughly that he nearly knocked -her backward from her chair; he was a regularly wild fellow. - -Now came in the southwind, with a turban on his head, and a flying -Bedouin-cloak. - -"It is dreadfully cold out here!" said he, and threw more wood on the -fire; "one can very well tell that the northwind has come first!" - -"Here it is so hot, that one might roast an ice-bear!" said the -northwind. - -"You are an ice-bear, yourself!" replied the southwind. - -"Do you want to go in the bags?" asked the old woman; "sit down on the -stone, and tell us where thou hast been." - -"In Africa, mother," said he; "I have been lion-hunting, with the -Hottentots, in Caffreland. What grass grows in the fields there, as -green as the olive! There dances the gnu; and the ostrich ran races -with me, but my legs were the nimblest. I came to the deserts of yellow -sand, which look like the surface of the ocean. There I met a caravan! -They had killed their last camel to get water to drink, but they only -found a little. The sun burned above them, and the sand beneath their -feet. There was no limit to the vast desert. I then rolled myself in -the fine, loose sand, and whirled it up in great pillars--that was a -dance! You should have seen how close the dromedaries stood together, -and the merchants pulled their kaftans over their heads. They threw -themselves down before me, as if before Allah, their god. They are now -buried; a pyramid of sand lies heaped above them; I shall, some day, -blow it away, and then the sun will bleach their white bones, and so -travellers can see that there have been human beings before them in the -desert; without this it were hard to believe it!" - -"Thou, also, hast done badly!" said the mother. "March into the bag!" -and before the southwind knew what she would be at, she had seized him -by the body, and thrust him into the bag. The bag, with him in it, -rolled about on the floor; but she seized it, held it fast, and sat -down upon it; so he was forced to lie still. - -"They are rough fellows!" said the prince. - -"So they are!" returned she; "but I can chastise them! But here we have -the fourth!" - -This was the eastwind, and he was dressed like a Chinese. - -"Indeed! so thou comest from that corner, dost thou?" asked the mother; -"I fancied that thou hadst been to the Garden of Paradise." - -"I shall go there to-morrow," said the eastwind. "It will be a hundred -years, to-morrow, since I was there. I am now come from China, where -I have been dancing around the porcelain tower, till all the bells -have rung. Down in the street the royal officers were beating people; -bamboos were busy with their shoulders, and from the first, down to the -ninth rank, they cried out--'Thanks, my fatherly benefactor!' but they -did not mean any thing by it; and I rung the bells, and sang--'Tsing, -tsang, tsu! Tsing, tsang, tsu!'" - -"Thou art merry about it," said the old woman; "it is a good thing that -to-morrow morning thou art going to the Garden of Paradise; that always -mends thy manners! Drink deeply of wisdom's well, and bring a little -bottleful home with thee, for me!" - -"That I will!" said the eastwind; "but why hast thou put my brother -from the south down in the bag? Let him come out! I want him to tell -me about the phoenix; the princess of the Garden of Paradise always -likes to hear about it, when I go, every hundred years, to see her. -Open the bag! and so thou shalt be my sweetest mother, and I will give -thee a pocketful of tea, very fresh and green, which I myself gathered, -on the spot!" - -"Nay, for the sake of the tea, and because thou art my darling, I will -open the bag!" - -She did so, and the southwind crept out, and looked so ashamed, because -the foreign prince had seen him. - -"There hast thou a palm leaf for the princess," said the southwind; -"that leaf was given to me by the phoenix bird, the only one in the -whole world. He has written upon it, with his beak, the whole history -of his life during the hundred years that he lived; now she can read it -herself. I saw how the phoenix himself set fire to his nest, and sat -in it and burned like a Hindoo widow. How the dry branches crackled! -There was a smoke and an odor. At length it flamed up into a blaze; the -old phoenix was burned to ashes, but its egg lay glowingly red in the -fire; then it burst open with a great report, and the young one flew -out; now it is the regent of all birds, and the only phoenix in the -whole world. He has bitten a hole in the palm leaf which I gave thee; -it is his greeting to the princess." - -"Let us now have something to strengthen us!" said the mother of the -winds; and with that they all seated themselves, and ate of the roasted -stag; and the prince sat at the side of the eastwind, and therefore -they soon became good friends. - -"Listen, and tell me," said the prince, "what sort of a princess is -that of which thou hast said so much, and who lives in the Garden of -Paradise?" - -"Ho! ho!" said the eastwind, "if you wish to go there, you can fly with -me there to-morrow morning. This, however, I must tell you, there has -been no human being there since Adam and Eve's time. You have heard of -them, no doubt, in the Bible." - -"Yes, to be sure!" said the prince. - -"At the time when they were driven out," said the eastwind, "the -Garden of Paradise sank down into the earth; but it still preserved its -warm sunshine, its gentle air, and its wonderful beauty. The queen of -the fairies lives there; there lies the Island of Bliss, where sorrow -never comes, and where it is felicity to be. Seat thyself on my back -to-morrow morning, and so I will take thee with me. I think that will -be permitted. But now thou must not talk any more, for I want to go to -sleep!" - -And so they all slept together. - -Early the next morning the prince awoke, and was not a little amazed to -find himself already high above the clouds. He sat upon the back of the -eastwind, which kept firm hold of him. They were so high in the air, -that the woods and fields, the rivers and sea, showed themselves as if -upon a large illustrated map. - -"Good-morning," said the eastwind; "thou mightest have slept a little -bit longer, for there is not much to see upon the flat country below -us, unless thou hast any pleasure in counting the churches, which stand -like dots of chalk upon the green board." - -They were the fields and meadows which he called the green board. - -"It was very ill-mannered that I did not say good-by to thy mother and -brothers," said the prince. - -"There is no blame when people are asleep!" said the eastwind; and with -that flew away faster than ever. One could have heard, as they went -over the woods, how the trees shook their leaves and branches; one -could have heard, on lakes and seas that they were passing over, for -the billows heaved up more loftily, and the great ships bowed down into -the water like sailing swans. - -Towards evening, when it grew dusk, it was curious to look down to -the great cities; the lights burned within them, now here, now there; -it was exactly like the piece of paper which children burn to see the -multitude of little stars in it, which they call people coming out of -church. The prince clapped his hands, but the eastwind told him not -to do so, but much better to keep fast hold; or else he might let him -fall, and then, perhaps, he would pitch upon a church spire. - -The eagle flew lightly through the dark wood, but the eastwind flew -still lighter; the Cossack on his little horse sped away over the -plain, but the prince sped on more rapidly by another mode. - -"Now thou canst see the Himalaya," said the eastwind; "they are the -highest mountains in Asia; we shall not be long before we come to the -Garden of Paradise!" - -With that they turned more southward, and perceived the fragrance of -spice and flowers. Figs and pomegranates grew wild, and the wild vine -hung with its clusters of blue and red grapes. There they both of them -alighted, stretched themselves on the tender grass, where the flowers -nodded, as if they would say,--"Welcome back again!" - -"Are we now in the Garden of Paradise?" asked the prince. - -"No, certainly not," replied the eastwind; "but we shall soon come -there. Dost thou see the winding field-path there, and the great cavern -where the vine leaves hang like rich green curtains? We shall go -through there. Wrap thee in thy cloak; here the sun burns, but one step -more and it is icy cold! The birds which fly past the cavern have the -one, outer wing, in the warm summer, and the other, inner one, in the -cold winter!" - -"Really! And that is the way to the Garden of Paradise!" said the -prince. - -They now went into the cave. Ha! how ice-cold it was; but that did -not last long, for the southwind spread out his wings, and they gave -the warmth of the brightest fire. Nay, what a cavern it was! The huge -masses of stone, from which the water dripped, hung above them in the -most extraordinary shapes; before long it grew so narrow that they were -obliged to creep upon hands and feet; again, and it expanded itself -high and wide, like the free air. It looked like a chapel of the dead, -with its silent organ pipes and organ turned to stone! - -"Then we go the way of the dead to the Garden of Paradise," said the -prince; but the eastwind replied not a word, but pointed onward, and -the most lovely blue light beamed towards them. The masses of stone -above them became more and more like a chiselled ceiling, and at last -were bright, like a white cloud in the moonshine. They now breathed the -most deliciously mild atmosphere, as if fresh from the mountains, and -as fragrant as the roses of the valley. - -A river flowed on as clear as the air itself, and the fishes were of -gold and silver; crimson eels, whose every movement seemed to emit blue -sparks of fire, played down in the water, and the broad leaf of the -waterlily had all the colors of the rainbow; the flower itself was an -orange-colored burning flame, to which the water gave nourishment, in -the same manner as the oil keeps the lamp continually burning. A firm -bridge of marble, as artistically and as exquisitely built as if it had -been of pearl and glass, led across the water to the Island of Bliss, -where the Garden of Paradise bloomed. - -The eastwind took the prince in his arms and carried him over. The -flowers and the leaves began the most exquisite song about his youth, -so incomparably beautiful as no human voice could sing. - -Were they palm trees or gigantic water plants which grew there? Trees -so large and succulent the prince had never seen. Long garlands of the -most wondrously formed twining plants, such as one only sees painted -in rich colors and gold upon the margins of old missals, or which -twined themselves through their initial letters, were thrown from tree -to tree. It was altogether the most lovely and fantastic assemblage of -birds, flowers, and graceful sweeping branches. In the grass just by -them was a flock of peacocks, with outspread glittering tails. Yes, it -was really so!--No, when the prince touched them he observed that they -were not animals, but plants; it was the large plantain, which has the -dazzling hues of the peacock's tail! Lions and tigers gambolled about, -like playful cats, between the green hedges, which sent forth an odor -like the blossom of the olive; and the lions and tigers were tame; the -wild wood-dove glittered like the most beautiful pearl, and with its -wings playfully struck the lion on the cheek; and the antelope, which -usually is so timid, stood and nodded with its head, as if it too -should like to join in the sport. - -Now came the Fairy of Paradise; her garments shone like the sun, -and her countenance was as gentle as that of a glad mother when she -rejoices over her child. She was youthful; and the most beautiful -girls attended her, each of whom had a beaming star in her hair. - -The eastwind gave her a written leaf from the phoenix, and her eyes -sparkled with joy; she took the prince by the hand, and led him into -her castle, the walls of which were colored like the most splendid leaf -of the tulip when held against the sun. The ceiling itself was a large -glittering flower, and the longer one gazed into it the deeper seemed -its cup. The prince stepped up to the window and looked through one of -the panes; there he saw the Tree of Knowledge, with the snake and Adam -and Eve standing close beside it. - -"Are they not driven out?" asked he; and the Fairy smiled, and -explained to him that upon every pane of glass had time burned in its -picture, but not as we are accustomed to see it,--no, here all was -living; the trees moved their leaves, and people came and went as in -reality. He looked through another pane, and there was Jacob's dream, -where the ladder reached up to heaven, and the angels with their large -wings ascended and descended upon it. Yes, every thing which had been -done in this world lived and moved in these panes of glass. Such -pictures as these could only be burnt in by time. - -The Fairy smiled, and led him into a large and lofty hall, the walls -of which seemed transparent, and were covered with pictures, the one -more lovely than the other. These were the millions of the blessed, -and they smiled and sang so that all flowed together into one melody. -The uppermost were so small that they seemed less than the smallest -rosebud, when it looks like a pin-prick on paper. In the middle of -the hall stood a great tree with drooping luxuriant branches; golden -apples, large and small, hung like oranges among the green leaves. -It was the Tree of Knowledge; of the fruit of which Adam and Eve had -eaten. On every leaf hung a crimson drop of dew; it was as if the tree -wept tears of blood. - -"Let us now go into the boat," said the Fairy; "it will be refreshing -to us out upon the heaving water. The boat rocks, but does not move -from the place, and all the regions of the world pass before our eyes." - -And it was wonderful to see how the coast moved! There came the lofty, -snow-covered Alps, with clouds and dark pine trees; horns resounded -with such a deep melancholy, and peasants _jodelled_ sweetly in the -valleys. Now the banyan tree bowed its long depending branches over the -boat; black swans swam upon the water, and the strangest animals and -flowers showed themselves along the shores: this was Australia, the -fifth quarter of the world, which glided past, with its horizon bounded -by blue mountains. They heard the song of the priests, and saw the -savages dancing to the sound of the drum and bone-tubes. The pyramids -of Egypt now rose into the clouds; overturned pillars and sphinxes, -half buried in sand, sailed past them. The northern lights flamed above -the Hecla of the north; they were such magnificent fireworks as no one -could imitate. The prince was delighted, and in fact, he saw a hundred -times more than what we have related. - -"And may I always remain here?" asked he. - -"That depends upon thyself," replied the Fairy. "If thou do not, like -Adam, take of the forbidden thing, then thou mayest always remain here." - -"I shall not touch the apples upon the Tree of Knowledge," said the -prince; "here are a thousand fruits more beautiful than that. I should -never do as Adam did!" - -"Prove thyself, and if thou be not strong enough, then return with the -eastwind which brought thee; he is about to go back again, and will -not return here for a whole century. That time will pass to thee in -this place as if it were only a hundred minutes, but it is time enough -for temptation and sin. Every evening when I am about to leave thee, -I shall say to thee, 'Follow me!' and beckon to thee. But follow me -not, for with every step would the temptation become stronger, and thou -wouldst come into the hall where grows the Tree of Knowledge. I sleep -beneath its fragrant depending branches; if thou follow me, if thou -impress a kiss upon me, then will Paradise sink deep in the earth, and -it will be lost to thee. The sharp winds of the desert will howl around -thee, cold rain will fall upon thy hair, and sorrow and remorse will be -thy punishment!" - -"I will remain here!" said the prince; so the eastwind kissed his brow, -and said, "Be strong! and then we shall meet again here in a hundred -years!" - -The eastwind spread out his large wings, which shone like the harvest -moon in autumn, or the northern lights in the cold winter. - -"Farewell! farewell!" resounded from the flowers and the trees. The -storks and the pelicans flew after, in a line like a waving riband, and -accompanied him to the boundary of the Garden. - -"Now we begin our dance!" said the Fairy; "at the conclusion, when I -have danced with thee, thou wilt see that when the sun sets I shall -beckon to thee, and thou wilt hear me say, 'Follow me!' But do it not! -That is thy temptation--that is sin to thee! During a hundred years -I shall every evening repeat it. Every time that thou resistest the -temptation wilt thou gain more strength, till at length it will cease -to tempt thee. This evening is the first trial! Remember that I have -warned thee!" - -The Fairy led him into a great hall of white transparent lilies; in -each one the yellow stamina was a little golden harp, which rung with -clear and flute-like tones. The most beautiful maidens floated in the -dance, and sung how glorious was the gift of life; that they who were -purified by trial should never die, and that the Garden of Paradise -for them should bloom forever! - -The sun went down, the whole heaven became of gold, which gave to -the lilies the splendor of the most beautiful roses. The prince felt -a bliss within his heart such as he had never experienced before. -He looked, and the background of the hall opened, and the Tree of -Knowledge stood there with a splendor which dazzled his eyes. A song -resounded from it, low and delicious as the voice of his mother, and it -seemed as if she sung, "My child! my beloved child!" - -Then beckoned the Fairy, and said, "Follow, follow me!" - -He started towards her--he forgot his promise--forgot it all the first -evening! "Follow, follow me!" alone sounded in his heart. He paused -not--he hastened after her. - -"I will," said he; "there is really no sin in it! Why should I not do -so? I will see her! There is nothing lost if I only do not kiss her, -and that I will not do--for I have a firm will!" - -The Fairy put aside the green, depending branches of the Tree of -Knowledge, and the next moment was hidden from sight. - -"I have not sinned," said the prince, "and I will not!" He also put -aside the green, depending branches of the Tree of Knowledge, and -there sat the Fairy with her hands clasped, and the tears on her dark -eyelashes! - -"Weep not for me!" said he passionately. "There can be no sin in what -I have done; weep not!" and he kissed away her tears, and his lips -touched hers! - -At once a thunder crash was heard--a loud and deep thunder crash, and -all seemed hurled together! The beautiful, weeping Fairy, the Garden of -Paradise, sunk--sunk so deep--so deep!--and the prince saw it sink in -the deep night! Like a little gleaming star he saw it shining a long -way off! The coldness of death went through his limbs; he closed his -eyes, and lay long as if dead! - -The cold rain fell upon his face; the keen wind blew around his head; -his thoughts turned to the past. - -"What have I done!" sighed he; "I have sinned like Adam! Sinned, and I -have forfeited Paradise!" - -He opened his eyes; the star so far off, which had shone to him like -the sunken Paradise, he now saw was the morning star in heaven. - -He raised himself up, and was in the great wood near to the cave of the -winds; the old woman sat by his side, she looked angrily at him, and -lifted up her arm. - -"Already! the first time of trial!" said she: "I expected as much! Yes, -if thou wast a lad of mine, I would punish thee!" - -"Punishment will come!" said a strong old man, with a scythe in his -hand, and with large, black wings!--"I shall lay him in his coffin, but -not now. Let him return to the world, atone for his sin, and become -good in deed, and not alone in word. I shall come again; if he be then -good and pious, I will take him above the stars, where blooms the -Garden of Paradise; and he shall enter in at its beautiful pearl gates, -and be a dweller in it forever and ever; but if then his thoughts are -evil, and his heart full of sin, he will sink deeper than Paradise -seemed to sink--sink deeper, and that forever!--Farewell!" - -The prince arose--the old woman was gone--the cave of the winds was -nothing now but a hollow in the rock; he wondered how it had seemed so -large the night before; the morning star had set, and the sun shone -with a clear and cheerful light upon the little flowers and blades of -grass, which were heavy with the last night's rain; the birds sang, and -the bees hummed in the blossoms of the lime tree. The prince walked -home to his castle. He told his grandmother how he had been to the -Garden of Paradise, and what had happened to him there, and what the -old man with the black wings had said. - -"This will do thee more good than many book-lessons," said the old -grandmother; "never let it go out of thy memory!"--and the prince never -did. - - - - -A NIGHT IN THE KITCHEN. - - -Once upon a time, there was a bunch of brimstone matches, which were -exceedingly proud, because they were of high descent; their ancestral -tree, that is to say, the great fir tree, of which they were little -bits of chips, had been a great, old tree in the forest. The brimstone -matches now lay beside the kitchen fender, together with the tinder and -an old iron pot, and were speaking of their youth. - -"Yes, we were then on the green branch," said they; "then we were -really and truly on a green branch; every morning and evening we -drank diamond tea, that was the dew; every day we had sunshine, if -the sun shone, and all the little birds told us tales. We could very -well observe also, that we were rich; for the common trees were only -dressed in summer, but our family had a good stock of green clothing -both winter and summer. But then came the wood-cutters--that was a -great revolution, and our family was cut up root and branch; the main -head of the family, he took a place as mainmast in a magnificent ship, -which sailed round the world wherever it would; the other branches, -some took one place, and some took another; and we have now the post of -giving light to the common herd; and, therefore, high-born as we are, -are we now in the kitchen." - -"Yes, it was different with me," said the iron pot, when the matches -were silent; "as soon as ever I came into the world I was cleaned and -boiled many a time! I care for the solid, and am properly spoken of as -first in the house. My only pleasure is, as soon as dinner is over, to -lie clean and bright upon the shelf, and head a long row of comrades. -If I except the water-bucket, which now and then goes down in the yard, -we always live in-doors. Our only newsmonger is the coal-box; but it -talks so violently about government and the people!--yes, lately there -was an old pot, which, out of horror of it, fell down and broke to -pieces!" - -"Thou chatterest too much!" interrupted the tinder, and the steel -struck the flint until sparks came out. "Should we not have a merry -evening?" - -"Yes; let us talk about who is the most well-bred among us," said the -brimstone matches. - -"No, I don't think it right to talk about ourselves," said an earthen -jug; "let us have an evening's entertainment. I will begin; I will -tell something which everybody has experienced; people can do that so -seldom, and it is so pleasant. By the Baltic sea--" - -"That is a beautiful beginning!" said all the talkers; "it will -certainly be a history which we shall like." - -"Yes, then I passed my youth in a quiet family; the furniture was of -wood; the floors were scoured; they had clean curtains every fortnight." - -"How interestingly you tell it!" said the dusting-brush; "one can -immediately tell that the narrator is a lady, such a thread of purity -always runs through their relations." - -"Yes, that one can feel!" said the water-bucket, and made a little skip -of pleasure on the floor. - -And the earthen jug continued her story, and the end of it was like the -beginning. - -All the talkers shook for pleasure; and the dusting-brush took green -parsley leaves from the dust-heap, and crowned the jug; for he knew -that it would vex the others; and thinks he to himself, "If I crown her -to-day, she will crown me to-morrow!" - -"Now we will dance," said the fire-tongs; and began dancing. Yes, -indeed! and it is wonderful how he set one leg before the other; the -old shoehorn, which hung on a hook, jumped up to see it. "Perhaps I, -too, may get crowned," said the fire-tongs; and it was crowned. - -"They are only the rabble!" thought the brimstone matches. - -The tea-urn was then asked to sing; but it said it had got a cold, -and it could not sing unless it was boiling; but it was nothing but -an excuse, because it did not like to sing, unless it stood upon the -table, in grand company. - -In the window there sat an old pen, which the servant-girl was -accustomed to write with: there was nothing remarkable about it; it was -dipped deep into the ink-stand. "If the tea-urn will not sing," said -the pen, "then she can let it alone! Outside there hangs a nightingale -in a cage, which can sing, and which has not regularly learned any -thing; but we will not talk scandal this evening!" - -"I think it highly unbecoming," said the tea-kettle, which was the -kitchen singer, and half-sister to the tea-urn, "that such a foreign -bird should be listened to! Is it patriotic? I will let the coal-box -judge." - -"It only vexes me," said the coal-box; "it vexes me so much, that no -one can think! Is this a proper way to spend an evening? Would it not -be much better to put the house to rights? Every one go to his place, -and I will rule; that will produce a change!" - -"Yes, let us do something out of the common way!" said all the things -together. - -At that very moment the door opened. It was the servant-girl, and so -they all stood stock still; not a sound was heard; but there was not a -pot among them that did not know what they might have done, and how -genteel they were. - -"If I might have had my way," thought they, "then it would have been a -regularly merry evening!" - -The servant-girl took the brimstone matches, and put fire to them. -Bless us! how they sputtered and burst into a flame! - -"Now every one can see," thought they, "that we take the first rank! -What splendor we have! what brilliancy!"--and with that they were burnt -out. - - - - -LITTLE IDA'S FLOWERS. - - -"My poor flowers are quite dead," said little Ida. "They were so -beautiful last evening, and now all their leaves hang withered. How can -that be?" asked she from the student who sat on the sofa. She was very -fond of him, for he knew the most beautiful tales, and could cut out -such wonderful pictures; he could cut out hearts with little dancing -ladies in them; flowers he could cut out, and castles with doors that -would open. He was a very charming student. - -"Why do the flowers look so miserably to-day?" again asked she, and -showed him a whole bouquet of withered flowers. - -"Dost thou not know what ails them?" said the student; "the flowers -have been to a ball last night, and therefore they droop so." - -"But flowers cannot dance," said little Ida. - -"Yes, when it is dark, and we are all asleep, then they dance about -merrily; nearly every night they have a ball!" said the student. - -"Can no child go to the ball?" inquired Ida. - -"Yes," said the student, "little tiny daisies and lilies of the valley." - -"Where do the prettiest flowers dance?" asked little Ida. - -"Hast thou not," said the student, "gone out of the city gate to the -great castle where the king lives in summer, where there is a beautiful -garden, with a great many flowers in it? Thou hast certainly seen the -swans which come sailing to thee for little bits of bread. There is a -regular ball, thou mayst believe!" - -"I was in the garden yesterday with my mother," said Ida, "but all the -leaves were off the trees, and there were hardly any flowers at all! -Where are they? In summer I saw such a many." - -"They are gone into the castle," said the student. "Thou seest, as -soon as the king and all his court go away to the city, the flowers go -directly out of the garden into the castle, and are very merry. Thou -shouldst see them! The two most beautiful roses sit upon the throne, -and are king and queen; all the red cockscombs place themselves on -each side, and stand and bow, they are the chamberlains. Then all the -prettiest flowers come, and so there is a great ball; the blue violets -represent young midshipmen and cadets, they dance with hyacinths and -crocuses, which they call young ladies. The tulips and the great yellow -lilies, they are old ladies who look on, and see that the dancing goes -on properly, and that every thing is beautiful." - -"But is there nobody who gives the flowers any thing while they dance -in the king's castle?" asked little Ida. - -"There is nobody who rightly knows about it," said the student. "In the -summer season at night the old castle-steward goes regularly through -the castle; he has a great bunch of keys with him, but as soon as -ever the flowers hear the jingling of his keys, they are quite still, -hide themselves behind the long curtains, and peep out with their -little heads. 'I can smell flowers somewhere about,' says the old -castle-steward, 'but I cannot see them!'" - -"That is charming!" said little Ida, and clapped her hands; "but could -not I see the flowers?" - -"Yes," said the student, "only remember the next time thou art there to -peep in at the window, and then thou wilt see them. I did so one day; -there lay a tall yellow Turk's-cap lily on a sofa; that was a court -lady." - -"And can the flowers in the botanic garden go out there? Can they come -such a long way?" asked Ida. - -"Yes, that thou mayst believe," said the student; "for if they like -they can fly. Hast thou not seen the pretty butterflies, the red, and -yellow, and white ones, they look almost like flowers,--and so they -have been; they have grown on stalks high up in the air, and have shot -out leaves as if they were small wings, and so they fly, and when they -can support them well, then they have leave given them to fly about by -day. That thou must have seen thyself! But it is very possible that the -flowers in the botanic garden never have been into the king's castle, -nor know how merry they are there at night. And now, therefore, I will -tell thee something that will put the professor of botany who lives -beside the garden into a perplexity. Thou knowest him, dost thou not? -Next time thou goest into his garden, do thou tell one of the flowers -that there will be a great ball at the castle; it will tell it to its -neighbor, and it to the next, and so on till they all know, and then -they will all fly away. Then the professor will come into the garden, -and will not find a single flower, and he will not be able to imagine -what can have become of them." - -"But how can one flower tell another? flowers cannot talk," said little -Ida. - -"No, they cannot properly talk," replied the student, "and so they have -pantomime. Hast not thou seen when it blows a little the flowers nod -and move all their green leaves; that is just as intelligible as if -they talked." - -"Can the professor understand pantomime?" inquired Ida. - -"Yes, that thou mayst believe! He came one morning down into his -garden, and saw a tall yellow nettle pantomiming to a beautiful red -carnation, and it was all the same as if it had said, 'Thou art -so handsome, that I am very fond of thee!' The professor was not -pleased with that, and struck the nettle upon its leaves, which are -its fingers; but they stung him so, that from that time he has never -meddled with a nettle again." - -"That is delightful!" said little Ida, and laughed. - -"Is that the stuff to fill a child's mind with!" exclaimed the tiresome -chancellor, who was come in on a visit, and now sat on the sofa. He -could not bear the student, and always grumbled when he saw him cutting -out the beautiful and funny pictures,--now a man hanging on a gallows, -with a heart in his hand, because he had stolen hearts; and now an -old lady riding on a horse, with her husband sitting on her nose. The -cross old chancellor could not bear any of these, and always said as he -did now, "Is that the stuff to cram a child's head with! It is stupid -fancy!" - -But for all that, little Ida thought that what the student had told her -about the flowers was so charming, that she could not help thinking -of it. The flowers hung down their heads, because they had been at the -ball, and were quite worn out. So she took them away with her, to her -other playthings, which lay upon a pretty little table, the drawers of -which were all full of her fine things. In the doll's bed lay her doll, -Sophie, asleep; but for all that little Ida said to her, "Thou must -actually get up, Sophie, and be thankful to lie in the drawer to-night, -for the poor flowers are ill, and so they must lie in thy bed, and, -perhaps, they will then get well." - -With this she took up the doll, but it looked so cross, and did not say -a single word; for it was angry that it must be turned out of its bed. - -So Ida laid the flowers in the doll's bed, tucked them in very nicely, -and said, that now they must lie quite still, and she would go and get -tea ready for them, and they should get quite well again by to-morrow -morning; and then she drew the little curtains close round the bed, -that the sun might not blind them. - -All the evening long she could not help thinking about what the -student had told her; and then when she went to bed herself, she drew -back the curtains from the windows where her mother's beautiful flowers -stood, both hyacinths and tulips, and she whispered quite softly to -them, "I know that you will go to the ball to-night!" but the flowers -looked as if they did not understand a word which she said, and did not -move a leaf--but little Ida knew what she knew. - -When she was in bed, she lay for a long time thinking how delightful it -would be to see the beautiful flowers dancing in the king's castle. - -"Can my flowers actually have been there?" and with these words she -fell asleep. In the night she woke; she had been dreaming about the -flowers, and the student, who the chancellor said stuffed her head -with nonsense. It was quite silent in the chamber where Ida lay; the -night lamp was burning on the table, and her father and her mother were -asleep. - -"Are my flowers now lying in Sophie's bed?" said she to herself; "how -I should like to know!" She lifted herself up a little in bed, and -looked through the door, which stood ajar, and in that room lay the -flowers, and all her playthings. She listened, and it seemed to her as -if some one was playing on the piano, which stood in that room, but so -softly and so sweetly as she had never heard before. - -"Now, certainly, all the flowers are dancing in there," said she; "O, -how I should like to go and see!" but she did not dare to get up, lest -she should wake her father and mother. "If they would only just come in -here!" said she; but the flowers did not come, and the music continued -to play so sweetly. She could not resist it any longer, for it was so -delightful; so she crept out of her little bed, and went, quite softly, -to the door, and peeped into the room. Nay! what a charming sight she -beheld! - -There was not any night lamp in that room, and yet it was quite light; -the moon shone through the window into the middle of the floor, and -it was almost as light as day. All the hyacinths and tulips stood -in two long rows along the floor; they were not any longer in the -window, where stood the empty pots. All the flowers were dancing so -beautifully, one round another, on the floor; they made a regular -chain, and took hold of one another's green leaves when they swung -round. But there sat at the piano a great yellow lily, which little Ida -had certainly seen in the summer, for she remembered very well that the -student had said, "Nay, how like Miss Lina it is!" and they had all -laughed at him. But now it seemed really to Ida as if the tall yellow -lily resembled the young lady, and that she, also, really did just as -if she were playing; now she laid her long yellow face on one side, now -on the other, and nodded the time to the charming music. Not one of -them observed little Ida. - -She now saw a large blue crocus spring upon the middle of the table -where the playthings lay, go straight to the doll's bed, and draw aside -the curtains, where lay the sick flowers; but they raised themselves up -immediately, and nodded one to another, as much as to say, that they -also would go with them and dance. The old snapdragon, whose under lip -was broken off, stood up and bowed to the pretty flowers, which did not -look poorly at all, and they hopped down among the others, and were -very merry. - -All at once it seemed as if something had fallen down from the table. -Ida looked towards it; it was the Easter-wand, which had heard the -flowers. It was also very pretty; upon the top of it was set a little -wax-doll, which had just such a broad hat upon its head as that which -the chancellor wore. The Easter-wand hopped about upon its three wooden -legs, and stamped quite loud, for it danced the mazurka; and there was -not one of the flowers which could dance that dance, because they were -so light and could not stamp. - -The wax-doll upon the Easter-wand seemed to become taller and stouter, -and whirled itself round above the paper flowers on the wand, and -exclaimed, quite loud, "Is that the nonsense to stuff a child's mind -with! It is stupid fancy!"--And the wax-doll was precisely like the -cross old chancellor with the broad hat, and looked just as yellow -and ill-tempered as he did; but the paper flowers knocked him on the -thin legs, and with that he shrunk together again, and became a little -tiny wax-doll. It was charming to see it! little Ida could hardly help -laughing. The Easter-wand continued to dance, and the chancellor was -obliged to dance too; it mattered not whether he made himself so tall -and big, or whether he were the little yellow wax-doll, with the great -black hat. Then came up the other flowers, especially those which had -lain in Sophie's bed, and so the Easter-rod left off dancing. - -At that very moment a great noise was heard within the drawer where -Ida's doll, Sophie, lay, with so many of her playthings; and with this -the snapdragon ran up to the corner of the table, lay down upon his -stomach, and opened the drawer a little bit. With this Sophie raised -herself up, and looked round her in astonishment. - -"There is a ball here!" said she, "and why has not anybody told me of -it?" - -"Wilt thou dance with me?" said the snapdragon. - -"Yes, thou art a fine one to dance with!" said she, and turned her back -upon him. So she seated herself upon the drawer, and thought that to -be sure some one of the flowers would come and engage her, but not one -came; so she coughed a little, hem! hem! hem! but for all that not one -came. The snapdragon danced alone, and that was not so very bad either! - -As now none of the flowers seemed to see Sophie, she let herself -drop heavily out of the drawer down upon the floor,--and that gave a -great alarum; all the flowers at once came running up and gathered -around her, inquiring if she had hurt herself; and they were all so -exceedingly kind to her, especially those which had lain in her bed. -But she had not hurt herself at all, and all Ida's flowers thanked her -for the beautiful bed, and they paid her so much attention, and took -her into the middle of the floor, where the moon shone, and danced with -her, while all the other flowers made a circle around them. Sophie was -now very much delighted; and she said they would be very welcome to her -bed, for that she had not the least objection to lie in the drawer. - -But the flowers said, "Thou shalt have as many thanks as if we used it, -but we cannot live so long! To-morrow we shall be quite dead; but now -tell little Ida," said they, "that she must bury us down in the garden, -where the canary-bird lies, and so we shall grow up again next summer, -and be much prettier than ever!" - -"No, you shall not die," said Sophie, and the flowers kissed her. At -that very moment the room door opened, and a great crowd of beautiful -flowers came dancing in. Ida could not conceive where they came from; -they must certainly have been all the flowers out of the king's castle. -First of all went two most magnificent roses, and they had little gold -crowns on; they were a king and a queen; then came the most lovely -gilliflowers and carnations, and they bowed first on this side and -then on that. They had brought music with them; great big poppies -and pionies blew upon peapods till they were red in the face. The -blue-bells and the little white convolvuluses rung as if they were -musical bells. It was charming music. Then there came in a many other -flowers, and they danced all together; the blue violets and the red -daisies, the anemones and the lilies of the valley; and all the flowers -kissed one another: it was delightful to see it! - -At last they all bade one another good-night, and little Ida also went -to her bed, where she dreamed about every thing that she had seen. - -The next morning, when she got up, she went as quickly as she could -to her little table, to see whether the flowers were there still; -she drew aside the curtains from the little bed;--yes, there they all -lay together, but they were quite withered, much more than yesterday. -Sophie lay in the drawer, where she had put her; she looked very sleepy. - -"Canst thou remember what thou hast to tell me?" said little Ida; but -Sophie looked quite stupid, and did not say one single word. - -"Thou art not at all good," said Ida, "and yet they all danced with -thee." - -So she took a little paper box, on which were painted beautiful birds, -and this she opened, and laid in it the dead flowers. - -"This shall be your pretty coffin," said she, "and when my Norwegian -cousins come, they shall go with me and bury you, down in the garden, -that next summer you may grow up again, and be lovelier than ever!" - -The Norwegian cousins were two lively boys, who were called Jonas and -Adolph; their father had given them two new cross-bows, and these they -brought with them to show to Ida. She told them about the poor flowers -which were dead, and so they got leave to bury them. The two boys went -first, with their cross-bows on their shoulders; and little Ida came -after, with the dead flowers in the pretty little box. Down in the -garden they dug a little grave. Ida kissed the flowers, and then put -them in their box, down into the earth, and Jonas and Adolph stood with -their cross-bows above the grave, for they had neither arms nor cannon. - - - - -THE CONSTANT TIN SOLDIER. - - -There were, once upon a time, five-and-twenty tin soldiers; they were -all brothers, for they were born of an old tin spoon. They held their -arms in their hands, and their faces were all alike; their uniform was -red and blue, and very beautiful. The very first word which they heard -in this world, when the lid was taken off the box in which they lay, -was, "Tin soldiers!" This was the exclamation of a little boy, who -clapped his hands as he said it. They had been given to him, for it was -his birthday, and he now set them out on the table. The one soldier was -just exactly like another; there was only one of them that was a little -different; he had only one leg, for he had been the last that was made, -and there was not quite tin enough; yet he stood just as firmly upon -his one leg as they did upon their two, and he was exactly the one who -became remarkable. - -Upon the table on which he had set them out, there stood many other -playthings; but that which was most attractive to the eye, was a pretty -little castle of pasteboard. One could look through the little windows -as if into the rooms. Outside stood little trees, and round about it a -little mirror, which was to look like a lake; swans of wax swam upon -this, and were reflected in it. It was altogether very pretty; but the -prettiest thing of all was the little young lady who stood at the open -castle door, for she was a dancer; and she lifted one of her legs so -high in the air, that the tin soldier might almost have fancied that -she had only one leg, like himself. - -"That is a wife for me!" thought he, "but she is a great lady; -she lives in a castle, I in nothing but a box; and then we are -five-and-twenty of us, there is no room for her! Yet I must make her -acquaintance!" - -And so he set himself behind a snuff-box, which stood on the table, and -from thence he could very plainly see the pretty little lady, which -remained standing upon one leg, without ever losing her balance. - -That continued all the evening, and then the other tin soldiers were -put into their box, and the people of the house went to bed. The -playthings now began to amuse themselves; they played at company -coming, at fighting, and at having a ball. The tin soldiers rattled -about in their box, for they wanted to be with the rest of the things, -but they could not get the box lid off. The nutcrackers knocked about -the gingerbread nuts, and the slate-pencil laughed with the slate; it -was so entertaining that the canary-bird awoke, and began to chatter -with them also, but she chattered in verse. The only two which did not -move from their place were the tin soldier and the little dancing lady. -She kept herself so upright, standing on the point of her toe, with -both her arms extended; and he stood just as steadily upon his one leg, -and his eyes did not move from her for one moment. - -It now struck twelve o'clock, and crash! up sprang the lid of the -snuff-box, but there was no snuff in it; no, there was a little black -imp--it was a jack-in-the-box. - -"Tin soldier!" said the imp, "keep thy eyes to thyself!" - -But the tin soldier pretended that he did not hear. - -"Yes, we shall see in the morning!" said the imp. - -And now it was the next morning, and the children got up, and they set -the tin soldier in the window,--and either it was the imp, or else it -was a sudden gust of wind, but the casement burst open, and out went -the tin soldier, head foremost, down from the third story! It was a -horrible fall, he turned head over heels, and remained standing with -his one leg up in the air, and with his bayonet down among the stones -of a sink. - -The maid-servant and the little boy went down directly to seek for him, -but although they almost trod upon him, still they could not see him. -If the tin soldier had only shouted out, "Here I am!" they would have -found him; but he did not think it would be becoming in him to shout -out when he had his uniform on. - -It now began to rain; one drop fell heavier than another; it was a -regular shower. When it was over there came up two street boys. - -"Look here!" said one of them, "here lies a tin soldier. He shall have -a sail!" - -So they made a boat of a newspaper, and set the tin soldier in it, and -now he sailed down the kennel; the two lads ran, one on each side, and -clapped their hands. Dear me! what billows there were in the uneven -kennel, and what a torrent there was, for it had poured down with rain! -The paper boat rocked up and down, and whirled round so fast! The tin -soldier must have trembled, but he showed no fear at all, he never -changed his countenance, and stood holding his weapon in his hand. - -Just then the boat was driven under a large arch of the kennel, and it -was as dark to the tin soldier as if he had been in his box. - -"Where am I now come to?" thought he; "yes, yes, it is all that imp's -doing! Ah! if the little dancing lady were only in the boat, I would -not mind if it were twice as dark!" - -At that moment up came a great big water-rat, which lived under the -kennel's archway. - -"Have you a passport?" asked the rat. "Out with your passport!" - -But the tin soldier said not a word, and stood stock still, shouldering -his arms. The boat shot past, and the rat came after. Ha! how he set -his teeth, and cried to the sticks and the straws,-- - -"Stop him! stop him! he has not paid the toll! He has not shown his -passport!" - -But the stream got stronger and stronger. The tin soldier could already -see daylight at the end of the tunnel, but at the same time he heard a -roaring sound, which might well have made a bolder man than he tremble. -Only think! where the tunnel ended, the water of the kennel was poured -down into a great canal; which would be, for him, just as dangerous as -for us to sail down a great waterfall! - -He was now come so near to it that he could no longer stand upright. -The boat drove on; the tin soldier held himself as stiff as he could; -nobody could have said of him that he winked with an eye. The boat -whirled round three times, and filled with water to the very edge--it -must sink! The tin soldier stood up to his neck in water! Deeper and -deeper sank the boat, the paper grew softer and softer! Now went the -water above the soldier's head!--he thought of the little dancing lady, -whom he should never see more, and it rung in the tin soldier's ear,-- - - "Fare thee well, thou man of war! - Death with thee is dealing!" - -The paper now went in two, and the tin soldier fell through; and at -that moment was swallowed by a large fish! - -Nay, how dark it was now in there! It was darker than in the kennel -archway, and much narrower. But the tin soldier was steadfast to his -duty; and he lay there, shouldering his arms. The fish twisted about, -and made the most horrible sort of movements; at last it became quite -still; a flash of lightning seemed to go through it. Light shone quite -bright, and some one shouted aloud, "Tin soldier!" - -The fish had been caught, taken to market, sold, and brought into the -kitchen, where the servant-girl cut it up with a great knife. She -took the soldier, who was as alive as ever, between her two fingers, -and carried it into the parlor, where she showed them all what a -remarkable little man had been travelling about in the stomach of the -fish! But the tin soldier was not proud. They set him upon the table, -and there--Nay, how wonderfully things happen in this world!--the tin -soldier was in the self-same room he had been in before; he saw the -self-same child, and the self-same playthings on the table; the grand -castle, with the pretty little dancing lady standing at the door. She -was standing still upon one leg, with the other raised; she also was -constant. It quite affected the tin soldier, he was ready to shed tin -tears, only that would not have been becoming in him. He looked at her, -and she looked at him, but neither of them said a word. - -At that very moment one of the little boys took up the tin soldier, and -threw it into the stove. There was no reason for his doing so; it must -certainly have been the jack-in-the-box that was the cause of it. - -The tin soldier stood amid the flames, and felt a great heat, but -whether it was actual fire, or love, he knew not. All color was quite -gone out of him; whether from his long journeying, or whether from -care, there is no saying. He looked at the little dancing lady, and -she looked at him; he felt that he was melting away, but for all that, -he stood shouldering his arms. With that the door of the room suddenly -opened, and a draught of wind carried away the dancer. Like a sylph she -flew into the stove to the tin soldier; became, all at once, flame, -and was gone! The tin soldier melted to a little lump; and when the -servant, the next day, was carrying out the ashes, she found him like -a little tin heart: of the dancing lady, on the contrary, there was -nothing but the ground on which she had stood, and that was burned as -black as a coal. - - - - -THE STORKS. - - -Upon the last house in a little town there stood a stork's nest. The -stork-mother sat in the nest, with her four young ones, which stuck out -their heads, with their little black beaks, for their beaks had not yet -become red. Not far off, upon the ridge of the house roof, stood the -stork-father, as stiffly and proudly as possible; he had tucked up one -leg under him, for though that was rather inconvenient, still he was -standing as sentinel. One might have fancied that he was carved out of -wood, he stood so stock still. - -"It looks, certainly, very consequential," thought he to himself, "that -my wife should have a sentinel to her nest! Nobody need know that I am -her husband; they will think, of course, that I commanded the sentinel -to stand here. It looks so very proper!" And having thus thought, he -continued to stand on one leg. - -A troop of little boys were playing down in the street below, and when -they saw the storks, the boldest lad amongst them began to sing, and -at last they all sang together, that old rhyme about the storks, which -the children in Denmark sing; but they sang it now, because it had just -come into their heads:-- - - "Stork, stork on one leg, - Fly home to thy egg; - Mrs. Stork she sits at home, - With four great, big young ones; - The eldest shall be hung, - The second have its neck wrung; - The third shall be burned to death, - The fourth shall be murdered!" - -"Only hear what those lads sing!" said the little storks; "they sing -that we shall be hanged and burned!" - -"Do not vex yourselves about that," said the stork-mother; "don't -listen to them, and then it does not matter." - -But the boys continued to sing, and they pointed with their fingers -to the stork; there was one boy, however, among them, and his name was -Peter, and he said that it was a sin to make fun of the storks, and he -would not do it. - -The stork-mother consoled her young ones thus: "Don't annoy yourselves -about that. Look how funnily your father stands on one leg!" - -"We are so frightened!" said the young ones, and buried their heads -down in the nest. - -The next day, when the children assembled again to play, they saw the -storks, and they began their verse:-- - - "The second have its neck wrung; - The third shall be burned to death!" - -"Shall we be hanged and burned?" asked the young storks. - -"No, certainly not!" said the mother. "You will learn to fly; I will -exercise you; and so we shall take you out into the meadows, and go a -visiting to the frogs, that make courtesies to us in the water; they -sing--'koax! koax!' and so we eat them up; that is a delight!" - -"And how so?" asked the young storks. - -"All the storks which are in the whole country assemble," said the -mother, "and so the autumn manoeuvres begin; every one must be clever -at flying; that is of great importance, for those that cannot fly are -pecked to death by the general, with his beak; and, therefore, it is -well to learn something before the exercise begins." - -"And so we really may be murdered! as the boys said; and hark! now they -are singing it again." - -"Listen to me, and not to them!" said the stork-mother. "After the -great manoeuvre, we fly away to the warm countries--O, such a long -way off, over mountains and woods! We fly to Egypt, where there are -three-cornered stone houses, which go up in a point above the clouds; -they are called pyramids, and are older than any stork can tell. There -is a river which overflows its banks, and so the country becomes all -mud. One goes in the mud, and eats frogs." - -"O!" said all the young ones. - -"Yes, that is so delightful! One does nothing at all but eat, all day -long; and whilst we are so well off, in this country there is not a -single green leaf upon the trees; here it is, then, so cold; and the -very clouds freeze into pieces, and fall down in little white rags!" - -That was the snow which she meant, but she could not explain it more -intelligibly. - -"Will it freeze the naughty boys into bits?" asked the young ones. - -"No, it will not freeze them into bits, but it will pretty nearly do -so; and they will be obliged to sit in dark rooms and cough. You, on -the contrary, all that time, can be flying about in the warm countries, -where there are flowers and warm sunshine!" - -Some time had now passed, and the young ones were so large that they -could stand up in the nest and look about them, and the stork-father -came flying every day with nice little frogs and snails, and all the -stork-delicacies which he could find. O, it was extraordinary what -delicious morsels he got for them. He stretched out his head, clattered -with his beak, as if it had been a little rattle, and thus he told them -tales about the marshes. - -"Listen to me; now you must learn to fly," said the stork-mother, one -day; and so all the four young ones were obliged to get out of the -nest upon the ridge of the house; and how dizzy they were; how they -balanced themselves with their wings, and for all that were very near -falling! - -"Look at me," said the mother, "you must hold your heads thus! and thus -must you set your wings! Now! one, two! one, two! This it is which must -help you out into the world!" - -With this she flew a little way, and the young ones made a little -clumsy hop--bump!--there lay they, for their bodies were heavy. - -"I cannot fly!" said one of the young ones; "it's no use my trying!" -and crept up to the nest again. - -"Wilt thou be frozen to death here, when winter comes?" asked the -mother. "Shall the boys come and hang thee, and burn thee, and wring -thy neck? Shall I go and call them?" - -"O, no!" said the young stork; and so hopped again on the roof, like -the others. - -On the third day after that it could regularly fly a little, and so -they thought that they could now rest awhile in the air. They tried to -do so, but--bump!--there they tumbled, and so they were obliged to -flutter their wings again. - -The boys were now down in the street once more, and sung their rhyme:-- - - "Stork, stork, fly." - -"Shall not we fly down and peck their eyes out?" said the young ones. - -"No, let them be," said the mother, "and listen to me, that is far -wiser. One, two, three! Now we fly round, higher than ever! One, two, -three! Now to the left of the chimney!--see, that was very well done! -and the last stroke of the wings was so beautiful and correct, that I -will give you leave to go down to the marsh with me, to-morrow! There -will come a great number of pleasant stork-families there, with their -children; let me have the happiness of seeing that mine are the nicest, -and that they can make a bow and courtesy; that looks so well, and -gains respect!" - -"But shall we not have revenge on the naughty boys?" inquired the young -storks. - -"Let them sing what they like!" said the mother; "you will fly amid the -clouds, go to the land of the pyramids, when they must freeze, and -neither have a green leaf left, nor a sweet apple!" - -"Yes, but we will be revenged!" whispered they one to another, and then -went out again to exercise. - -Of all the boys in the street there was not one who sung the jeering -rhymes about the storks so much as he who first began it; and he was a -very little one, and was not more than six years old. The young storks -thought to be sure that he must be a hundred years old, for he was so -much larger than either their mother or their father; and they, poor -things, knew nothing about how old children and great men might be. All -their revenge, they determined, should be taken upon this boy; he was -the first to begin, and he it was who always sang. The young storks -were very much irritated, and the more they were determined on revenge, -the less they said of it to their mother. Their mother, they thought, -would at last grant their wishes, but they would leave it till the last -day they were in the country. - -"We must see how you conduct yourselves in the great manoeuvre," -said the mother; "if you fail in that, then the general will run you -through with his beak, and then the boys will be right in one way, at -least. Now let us see." - -"Yes, thou shalt see!" said the young ones; and so they took great -pains and practised every day, and flew so beautifully and so lightly -that it was charming to see them. - -Now came the autumn; and all the storks began to assemble to fly away -into the warm countries, while we have winter. That was a manoeuvre! -Over wood and town went they, just to see how they could fly. The young -storks performed so expertly that they could discern very well both -frogs and snakes. That was the very best test of skill. "Frogs and -snakes, therefore, they should eat;" and they did so. - -"Now let us have revenge," said they. - -"Leave off talking of revenge," said the mother. "Listen to me, which -is a great deal better. Do not you remember the good little boy who -said, when the others sung, 'that it was a sin to make fun of the -storks?' let us reward him, that is better than having revenge." - -"Yes, let us reward him," said the young storks. - -"He shall have, next summer, a nice little sister, such a beautiful -little sister as never was seen!--Will not that be a reward for him?" -said the mother. - -"It will," said the young ones; "a sweet little sister he shall have!" - -"And as he is called Peter," continued the mother, "so shall you also -be called Peter altogether." - -And that which she said was done. The little boy had the loveliest -of little sisters next year; and, from that time, all the storks in -Denmark were called Peter; and so are they to this day. - - - - -TRANSCRIBER'S NOTES - - -Obvious spelling, typographical and punctuation errors have been -corrected after careful comparison with other occurrences within the -text and consultation of external sources. - - Italic text is denoted by _underscores_. - The oe ligature has been expanded (phoenix; manoeuvre). - - Archaic spelling retained: - Pg 29 et al. 'pionies' for peonies. - Pg 45 et al. 'courtesied' for curtsied. - Pg 88. 'good-by' for goodbye. - Pg 120. 'alarum' for alarm. - Spacing retained in all occurrences of 'any thing', - 'every thing', 'every where' and 'every one'. - - Changes for consistency: - Pg 10. 'green wood' changed to 'green-wood'. - Pg 16 et al. Changed 'tin-soldier' to 'tin soldier'. - Pg 48. 'rose-leaf' changed to 'rose leaf'. - Pg 50. 'field-mouse' changed to 'fieldmouse'. - Pg 116. 'night-lamp' changed to 'night lamp'. - Pg 130. 'servant girl' changed to 'servant-girl'. - - Other notes and changes: - TITLE. Author's name is misspelled 'ANDERSON'; changed to 'ANDERSEN'. - TOC. Accents added for consistency (OLE LUCKOIE). - TOC. Removed comma, 'AT NIGHT,' to 'AT NIGHT'. - Pg 14. Single quote ' changed to "; 'do thou ask!'' to 'do thou ask!"'. - Pg 25. 'is caled' changed to 'is called'. - Pg 25. 'Huzzar' changed to 'Hussar'. - Pg 54. 'crysanthemum' changed to 'chrysanthemum'. - Pg 95. German form of yodelled 'jodelled' retained. - Pg 95. 'Hecla' retained, but probably meant to be 'Hekla'. - Pg 110. Single quote ' changed to "; ''Thou seest' to '"Thou seest'. - Pg 121. 'anemonies' changed to 'anemones'. - - - - - -End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Wonderful Stories for Children, by -Hans Christian Andersen - -*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK WONDERFUL STORIES FOR CHILDREN *** - -***** This file should be named 43600.txt or 43600.zip ***** -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: - http://www.gutenberg.org/4/3/6/0/43600/ - -Produced by Dianna Adair, John Campbell and the Online -Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This -file was produced from images generously made available -by The Internet Archive) - - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions -will be renamed. - -Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no -one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation -(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without -permission and without paying copyright royalties. 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