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+The Project Gutenberg EBook of Boyhood in Norway, by Hjalmar Hjorth Boyesen
+
+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: Boyhood in Norway
+
+Author: Hjalmar Hjorth Boyesen
+
+Posting Date: July 23, 2008 [EBook #784]
+Release Date: January, 1997
+Last Updated: October 18, 2016
+
+Language: English
+
+Character set encoding: UTF-8
+
+*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK BOYHOOD IN NORWAY ***
+
+
+
+
+Produced by Charles Keller
+
+
+
+
+
+BOYHOOD IN NORWAY
+
+Stories Of Boy-Life In The Land Of The Midnight Sun
+
+By Hjalmar Hjorth Boyesen
+
+
+
+
+CONTENTS
+
+     THE BATTLE OF THE RAFTS
+     THE CLASH OF ARMS
+     BICEPS GRIMLUND’S CHRISTMAS VACATION
+     THE NIXY’S STRAIN
+     THE WONDER CHILD
+     “THE SONS OF THE VIKINGS”
+      PAUL JESPERSEN’S MASQUERADE
+     LADY CLARE  THE STORY OF A HORSE
+     BONNYBOY
+     THE CHILD OF LUCK
+     THE BEAR THAT HAD A BANK ACCOUNT
+
+
+
+
+
+THE BATTLE OF THE RAFTS
+
+
+
+
+I. THE ORIGIN OF THE WAR
+
+A deadly feud was raging among the boys of Numedale. The East-Siders
+hated the West-Siders, and thrashed them when they got a chance; and
+the West-Siders, when fortune favored them, returned the compliment
+with interest. It required considerable courage for a boy to venture,
+unattended by comrades, into the territory of the enemy; and no one took
+the risk unless dire necessity compelled him.
+
+The hostile parties had played at war so long that they had forgotten
+that it was play; and now were actually inspired with the emotions which
+they had formerly simulated. Under the leadership of their chieftains,
+Halvor Reitan and Viggo Hook, they held councils of war, sent out
+scouts, planned midnight surprises, and fought at times mimic battles. I
+say mimic battles, because no one was ever killed; but broken heads
+and bruised limbs many a one carried home from these engagements, and
+unhappily one boy, named Peer Oestmo, had an eye put out by an arrow.
+
+It was a great consolation to him that he became a hero to all the
+West-Siders and was promoted for bravery in the field to the rank of
+first lieutenant. He had the sympathy of all his companions in arms and
+got innumerable bites of apples, cancelled postage stamps, and colored
+advertising-labels in token of their esteem.
+
+But the principal effect of this first serious wound was to invest the
+war with a breathless and all-absorbing interest. It was now no longer
+“make believe,” but deadly earnest. Blood had flowed; insults had been
+exchanged in due order, and offended honor cried for vengeance.
+
+It was fortunate that the river divided the West-Siders from the
+East-Siders, or it would have been difficult to tell what might
+have happened. Viggo Hook, the West-Side general, was a handsome,
+high-spirited lad of fifteen, who was the last person to pocket an
+injury, as long as red blood flowed in his veins, as he was wont to
+express it. He was the eldest son of Colonel Hook of the regular army,
+and meant some day to be a Von Moltke or a Napoleon. He felt in his
+heart that he was destined for something great; and in conformity with
+this conviction assumed a superb behavior, which his comrades found very
+admirable.
+
+He had the gift of leadership in a marked degree, and established his
+authority by a due mixture of kindness and severity. Those boys whom he
+honored with his confidence were absolutely attached to him. Those whom,
+with magnificent arbitrariness, he punished and persecuted, felt meekly
+that they had probably deserved it; and if they had not, it was somehow
+in the game.
+
+There never was a more absolute king than Viggo, nor one more abjectly
+courted and admired. And the amusing part of it was that he was at heart
+a generous and good-natured lad, but possessed with a lofty ideal of
+heroism, which required above all things that whatever he said or did
+must be striking. He dramatized, as it were, every phrase he uttered and
+every act he performed, and modelled himself alternately after Napoleon
+and Wellington, as he had seen them represented in the old engravings
+which decorated the walls in his father’s study.
+
+He had read much about heroes of war, ancient and modern, and he lived
+about half his own life imagining himself by turns all sorts of grand
+characters from history or fiction.
+
+His costume was usually in keeping with his own conception of these
+characters, in so far as his scanty opportunities permitted. An old,
+broken sword of his father’s, which had been polished until it “flashed”
+ properly, was girded to a brass-mounted belt about his waist; an
+ancient, gold-braided, military cap, which was much too large, covered
+his curly head; and four tarnished brass buttons, displaying the Golden
+Lion of Norway, gave a martial air to his blue jacket, although the rest
+were plain horn.
+
+But quite independently of his poor trappings Viggo was to his comrades
+an august personage. I doubt if the Grand Vizier feels more flattered
+and gratified by the favor of the Sultan than little Marcus Henning did,
+when Viggo condescended to be civil to him.
+
+Marcus was small, round-shouldered, spindle-shanked, and freckle-faced.
+His hair was coarse, straight, and the color of maple sirup; his nose
+was broad and a little flattened at the point, and his clothes had a
+knack of never fitting him. They were made to grow in and somehow he
+never caught up with them, he once said, with no intention of being
+funny. His father, who was Colonel Hook’s nearest neighbor, kept a
+modest country shop, in which you could buy anything, from dry goods and
+groceries to shoes and medicines. You would have to be very ingenious to
+ask for a thing which Henning could not supply. The smell in the store
+carried out the same idea; for it was a mixture of all imaginable smells
+under the sun.
+
+Now, it was the chief misery of Marcus that, sleeping, as he did, in the
+room behind the store, he had become so impregnated with this curious
+composite smell that it followed him like an odoriferous halo, and
+procured him a number of unpleasant nicknames. The principal ingredient
+was salted herring; but there was also a suspicion of tarred ropes, plug
+tobacco, prunes, dried codfish, and oiled tarpaulin.
+
+It was not so much kindness of heart as respect for his own dignity
+which made Viggo refrain from calling Marcus a “Muskrat” or a
+“Smelling-Bottle.” And yet Marcus regarded this gracious forbearance on
+his part as the mark of a noble soul. He had been compelled to accept
+these offensive nicknames, and, finding rebellion vain, he had finally
+acquiesced in them.
+
+He never loved to be called a “Muskrat,” though he answered to the name
+mechanically. But when Viggo addressed him as “base minion,” in his
+wrath, or as “Sergeant Henning,” in his sunnier moods, Marcus felt
+equally complimented by both terms, and vowed in his grateful soul
+eternal allegiance and loyalty to his chief.
+
+He bore kicks and cuffs with the same admirable equanimity; never
+complained when he was thrown into a dungeon in a deserted pigsty for
+breaches of discipline of which he was entirely guiltless, and trudged
+uncomplainingly through rain and sleet and snow, as scout or spy, or
+what-not, at the behest of his exacting commander.
+
+It was all so very real to him that he never would have thought of
+doubting the importance of his mission. He was rather honored by the
+trust reposed in him, and was only intent upon earning a look or word of
+scant approval from the superb personage whom he worshipped.
+
+Halvor Reitan, the chief of the East-Siders, was a big, burly peasant
+lad, with a pimpled face, fierce blue eyes, and a shock of towy hair.
+But he had muscles as hard as twisted ropes, and sinews like steel.
+
+He had the reputation, of which he was very proud, of being the
+strongest boy in the valley, and though he was scarcely sixteen years
+old, he boasted that he could whip many a one of twice his years. He
+had, in fact, been so praised for his strength that he never neglected
+to accept, or even to create, opportunities for displaying it.
+
+His manner was that of a bully; but it was vanity and not malice which
+made him always spoil for a fight. He and Viggo Hook had attended
+the parson’s “Confirmation Class,” together, and it was there their
+hostility had commenced.
+
+Halvor, who conceived a dislike of the tall, rather dainty, and
+disdainful Viggo, with his aquiline nose and clear, aristocratic
+features, determined, as he expressed it, to take him down a peg or two;
+and the more his challenges were ignored the more persistent he grew in
+his insults.
+
+He dubbed Viggo “Missy.” He ran against him with such violence in the
+hall that he knocked his head against the wainscoting; he tripped him up
+on the stairs by means of canes and sticks; and he hired his partisans
+who sat behind Viggo to stick pins into him, while he recited his
+lessons. And when all these provocations proved unavailing he determined
+to dispense with any pretext, but simply thrash his enemy within an inch
+of his life at the first opportunity which presented itself. He grew to
+hate Viggo and was always aching to molest him.
+
+Halvor saw plainly enough that Viggo despised him, and refused to notice
+his challenges, not so much because he was afraid of him, as because he
+regarded himself as a superior being who could afford to ignore insults
+from an inferior, without loss of dignity.
+
+During recess the so-called “genteel boys,” who had better clothes and
+better manners than the peasant lads, separated themselves from the
+rest, and conversed or played with each other. No one will wonder
+that such behavior was exasperating to the poorer boys. I am far from
+defending Viggo’s behavior in this instance. He was here, as everywhere,
+the acknowledged leader; and therefore more cordially hated than the
+rest. It was the Roundhead hating the Cavalier; and the Cavalier making
+merry at the expense of the Roundhead.
+
+There was only one boy in the Confirmation Class who was doubtful as to
+what camp should claim him, and that was little Marcus Henning. He was
+a kind of amphibious animal who, as he thought, really belonged
+nowhere. His father was of peasant origin, but by his prosperity and his
+occupation had risen out of the class to which he was formerly attached,
+without yet rising into the ranks of the gentry, who now, as always,
+looked with scorn upon interlopers. Thus it came to pass that little
+Marcus, whose inclinations drew him toward Viggo’s party, was yet forced
+to associate with the partisans of Halvor Reitan.
+
+It was not a vulgar ambition “to pretend to be better than he was” which
+inspired Marcus with a desire to change his allegiance, but a deep,
+unreasoning admiration for Viggo Hook. He had never seen any one who
+united so many superb qualities, nor one who looked every inch as noble
+as he did.
+
+It did not discourage him in the least that his first approaches met
+with no cordial reception. His offer to communicate to Viggo where there
+was a hawk’s nest was coolly declined, and even the attractions of fox
+dens and rabbits’ burrows were valiantly resisted. Better luck he had
+with a pair of fan-tail pigeons, his most precious treasure, which Viggo
+rather loftily consented to accept, for, like most genteel boys in the
+valley, he was an ardent pigeon-fancier, and had long vainly importuned
+his father to procure him some of the rarer breeds.
+
+He condescended to acknowledge Marcus’s greeting after that, and to
+respond to his diffident “Good-morning” and “Good-evening,” and Marcus
+was duly grateful for such favors. He continued to woo his idol with
+raisins and ginger-snaps from the store, and other delicate attentions,
+and bore the snubs which often fell to his lot with humility and
+patience.
+
+But an event soon occurred which was destined to change the relations
+of the two boys. Halvor Reitan called a secret meeting of his partisans,
+among whom he made the mistake to include Marcus, and agreed with them
+to lie in ambush at the bend of the road, where it entered the forest,
+and attack Viggo Hook and his followers. Then, he observed, he would
+“make him dance a jig that would take the starch out of him.”
+
+The others declared that this would be capital fun, and enthusiastically
+promised their assistance. Each one selected his particular antipathy to
+thrash, though all showed a marked preference for Viggo, whom, however,
+for reason of politeness, they were obliged to leave to the chief. Only
+one boy sat silent, and made no offer to thrash anybody, and that was
+Marcus Henning.
+
+“Well, Muskrat,” cried Halvor Reitan, “whom are you going to take on
+your conscience?”
+
+“No one,” said Marcus.
+
+“Put the Muskrat in your pocket, Halvor,” suggested one of the boys; “he
+is so small, and he has got such a hard bullet head, you might use him
+as a club.”
+
+“Well, one thing is sure,” shouted Halvor, as a dark suspicion shot
+through his brain, “if you don’t keep mum, you will be a mighty sick
+coon the day after to-morrow.”
+
+Marcus made no reply, but got up quietly, pulled a rubber sling from
+his pocket, and began, with the most indifferent manner in the world,
+to shoot stones down the river. He managed during this exercise, which
+everybody found perfectly natural, to get out of the crowd, and, without
+seeming to have any purpose whatever, he continued to put a couple of
+hundred yards between himself and his companion.
+
+“Look a-here, Muskrat,” he heard Halvor cry, “you promised to keep mum.”
+
+Marcus, instead of answering, took to his heels and ran.
+
+“Boys, the scoundrel is going to betray us!” screamed the chief. “Now
+come, boys! We’ve got to catch him, dead or alive.”
+
+A volley of stones, big and little, was hurled after the fugitive, who
+now realizing his position ran for dear life. The stones hailed down
+round about him; occasionally one vicious missile would whiz past his
+ear, and send a cold shudder through him. The tramp of his pursuers
+sounded nearer and nearer, and his one chance of escape was to throw
+himself into the only boat, which he saw on this side of the river, and
+push out into the stream before he was overtaken.
+
+He had his doubts as to whether he could accomplish this, for the blood
+rushed and roared in his ears, the hill-side billowed under his feet,
+and it seemed as if the trees were all running a race in the opposite
+direction, in order to betray him to his enemies.
+
+A stone gave him a thump in the back, but though he felt a gradual heat
+spreading from the spot which it hit, he was conscious of no pain.
+
+Presently a larger missile struck him in the neck, and he heard a
+breathless snorting close behind him. That was the end; he gave himself
+up for lost, for those boys would have no mercy on him if they captured
+him.
+
+But in the next moment he heard a fall and an oath, and the voice was
+that of Halvor Reitan. He breathed a little more freely as he saw the
+river run with its swelling current at his feet. Quite mechanically,
+without clearly knowing what he did, he sprang into the boat, grabbed
+a boat-hook, and with three strong strokes pushed himself out into the
+deep water.
+
+At that instant a dozen of his pursuers reached the river bank, and
+he saw dimly their angry faces and threatening gestures, and heard the
+stones drop into the stream about him. Fortunately the river was partly
+dammed, in order to accumulate water for the many saw-mills under the
+falls. It would therefore have been no very difficult feat to paddle
+across, if his aching arms had had an atom of strength left in them. As
+soon as he was beyond the reach of flying stones he seated himself in
+the stern, took an oar, and after having bathed his throbbing forehead
+in the cold water, managed, in fifteen minutes, to make the further
+bank. Then he dragged himself wearily up the hill-side to Colonel Hook’s
+mansion, and when he had given his message to Viggo, fell into a dead
+faint.
+
+How could Viggo help being touched by such devotion? He had seen the
+race through a fieldglass from his pigeon-cot, but had been unable to
+make out its meaning, nor had he remotely dreamed that he was himself
+the cause of the cruel chase. He called his mother, who soon perceived
+that Marcus’s coat was saturated with blood in the back, and undressing
+him, she found that a stone, hurled by a sling, had struck him, slid a
+few inches along the rib, and had lodged in the fleshy part of his left
+side.
+
+A doctor was now sent for; the stone was cut out without difficulty,
+and Marcus was invited to remain as Viggo’s guest until he recovered.
+He felt so honored by this invitation that he secretly prayed he might
+remain ill for a month; but the wound showed an abominable readiness to
+heal, and before three days were past Marcus could not feign any ailment
+which his face and eye did not belie.
+
+He then, with a heavy heart, betook himself homeward, and installed
+himself once more among his accustomed smells behind the store, and
+pondered sadly on the caprice of the fate which had made Viggo a
+high-nosed, handsome gentleman, and him--Marcus Henning--an under-grown,
+homely, and unrefined drudge. But in spite of his failure to answer this
+question, there was joy within him at the thought that he had saved
+this handsome face of Viggo’s from disfigurement, and--who could
+know?--perhaps would earn a claim upon his gratitude.
+
+It was this series of incidents which led to the war between the
+East-Siders and the West-Siders. It was a mere accident that the
+partisans of Viggo Hook lived on the west side of the river, and those
+of Halvor Reitan mostly on the east side.
+
+Viggo, who had a chivalrous sense of fair play, would never have
+molested any one without good cause; but now his own safety, and, as he
+persuaded himself, even his life, was in danger, and he had no choice
+but to take measures in self-defence. He surrounded himself with a
+trusty body-guard, which attended him wherever he went. He sent little
+Marcus, in whom he recognized his most devoted follower, as scout into
+the enemy’s territory, and swelled his importance enormously by lending
+him his field-glass to assist him in his perilous observations.
+
+Occasionally an unhappy East-Sider was captured on the west bank of the
+river, court-martialed, and, with much solemnity, sentenced to death as
+a spy, but paroled for an indefinite period, until it should suit his
+judges to execute the sentence. The East-Siders, when they captured a
+West-Sider, went to work with less ceremony; they simply thrashed their
+captive soundly and let him run, if run he could.
+
+Thus months passed. The parson’s Confirmation Class ceased, and both the
+opposing chieftains were confirmed on the same day; but Viggo stood at
+the head of the candidates, while Halvor had his place at the bottom. [1]
+
+During the following winter the war was prosecuted with much zeal, and
+the West-Siders, in imitation of Robin Hood and his Merry Men, armed
+themselves with cross-bows, and lay in ambush in the underbrush, aiming
+their swift arrows against any intruder who ventured to cross the river.
+
+Nearly all the boys in the valley between twelve and sixteen became
+enlisted on the one side or the other, and there were councils of war,
+marches, and counter-marches without number, occasional skirmishes, but
+no decisive engagements. Peer Oestmo, to be sure, had his eye put out by
+an arrow, as has already been related, for the East-Siders were not slow
+to imitate the example of their enemies, in becoming expert archers.
+
+Marcus Henning was captured by a hostile outpost, and was being
+conducted to the abode of the chief, when, by a clever stratagem, he
+succeeded in making his escape.
+
+The East-Siders despatched, under a flag of truce, a most insulting
+caricature of General Viggo, representing him as a rooster that seemed
+on the point of bursting with an excess of dignity.
+
+These were the chief incidents of the winter, though there were many
+others of less consequence that served to keep the boys in a delightful
+state of excitement. They enjoyed the war keenly, though they pretended
+to themselves that they were being ill-used and suffered terrible
+hardships. They grumbled at their duties, brought complaints against
+their officers to the general, and did, in fact, all the things that
+real soldiers would have been likely to do under similar circumstances.
+
+
+
+
+II. THE CLASH OF ARMS
+
+When the spring is late in Norway, and the heat comes with a sudden
+rush, the mountain streams plunge with a tremendous noise down into the
+valleys, and the air is filled far and near with the boom and roar of
+rushing waters. The glaciers groan, and send their milk-white torrents
+down toward the ocean. The snow-patches in the forest glens look gray
+and soiled, and the pines perspire a delicious resinous odor which
+cheers the soul with the conviction that spring has come.
+
+But the peasant looks anxiously at the sun and the river at such times,
+for he knows that there is danger of inundation. The lumber, which
+the spring floods set afloat in enormous quantities, is carried by the
+rivers to the cities by the sea; there it is sorted according to
+the mark it bears, showing the proprietor, and exported to foreign
+countries.
+
+In order to prevent log-jams, which are often attended with terrible
+disasters, men are stationed night and day at the narrows of the rivers.
+The boys, to whom all excitement is welcome, are apt to congregate in
+large numbers at such places, assisting or annoying the watchers, riding
+on the logs, or teasing the girls who stand up on the hillside, admiring
+the daring feats of the lumbermen.
+
+It was on such a spring day, when the air was pungent with the smell
+of sprouting birch and pine, that General Viggo and his trusty army
+had betaken themselves to the cataract to share in the sport. They were
+armed with their bows, as usual, knowing that they were always liable
+to be surprised by their vigilant enemy. Nor were they in this instance
+disappointed, for Halvor Reitan, with fifty or sixty followers, was
+presently visible on the east side, and it was a foregone conclusion
+that if they met there would be a battle.
+
+The river, to be sure, separated them, but the logs were at times so
+densely packed that it was possible for a daring lad to run far out into
+the river, shoot his arrow and return to shore, leaping from log to log.
+The Reitan party was the first to begin this sport, and an arrow hit
+General Viggo’s hat before he gave orders to repel the assault.
+
+Cool and dignified as he was, he could not consent to skip and jump
+on the slippery logs, particularly as he had no experience in this
+difficult exercise, while the enemy apparently had much. Paying no heed
+to the jeers of the lumbermen, who supposed he was afraid, he drew his
+troops up in line and addressed them as follows:
+
+“Soldiers: You have on many previous occasions given me proof of your
+fidelity to duty and your brave and fearless spirit. I know that I can,
+now as always, trust you to shed glory upon our arms, and to maintain
+our noble fame and honorable traditions.
+
+“The enemy is before us. You have heard and seen his challenge. It
+behooves us to respond gallantly. To jump and skip like rabbits is
+unmilitary and unsoldierlike. I propose that each of us shall select two
+large logs, tie them together, procure, if possible, a boat-hook or an
+oar, and, sitting astride the logs, boldly push out into the river. If
+we can advance in a tolerably even line, which I think quite possible,
+we can send so deadly a charge into the ranks of our adversaries that
+they will be compelled to flee. Then we will land on the east side,
+occupy the heights, and rout our foe.
+
+“Now let each man do his duty. Forward, march!”
+
+The lumbermen, whose sympathies were with the East-Siders, found this
+performance highly diverting, but Viggo allowed himself in nowise to be
+disturbed by their laughter or jeers. He marched his troops down to
+the river-front, commanded “Rest arms!” and repeated once more his
+instructions; then, flinging off his coat and waistcoat, he seized a
+boat-hook and ran some hundred yards along the bank of the stream.
+
+The river-bed was here expanded to a wide basin, in which the logs
+floated lazily down to the cataract below. Trees and underbrush, which
+usually stood on dry land, were half-submerged in the yellow water,
+and the current gurgled slowly about their trunks with muddy foam and
+bubbles. Now and then a heap of lumber would get wedged in between the
+jutting rocks above the waterfall, and then the current slackened, only
+to be suddenly accelerated, when the exertions of the men had again
+removed the obstruction.
+
+It was an exciting spectacle to see these daring fellows leap from log
+to log, with birch-bark shoes on their feet. They would ride on a heap
+of lumber down to the very edge of the cataract, dexterously jump off
+at the critical moment, and after half a dozen narrow escapes, reach
+the shore, only to repeat the dangerous experiment, as soon as the next
+opportunity offered itself.
+
+It was the example of these hardy and agile lumbermen, trained from
+childhood to sport with danger, which inspired Viggo and his followers
+with a desire to show their mettle.
+
+“Sergeant Henning,” said the General to his ever-faithful shadow, “take
+a squad of five men with you, and cut steering-poles for those for whom
+boat-hooks cannot be procured. You will be the last to leave shore.
+Report to me if any one fails to obey orders.”
+
+“Shall be done, General,” Marcus responded, with a deferential military
+salute.
+
+“The bows, you understand, will be slung by the straps across the backs
+of the men, while they steer and push with their poles.”
+
+“Certainly, General,” said Marcus, with another salute.
+
+“You may go.”
+
+“All right, General,” answered Marcus, with a third salute.
+
+And now began the battle. The East-Siders, fearing that a stratagem was
+intended, when they saw the enemy moving up the stream, made haste to
+follow their example, capturing on their way every stray log that came
+along. They sent ineffectual showers of arrows into the water, while the
+brave General Viggo, striding two big logs which he had tied together
+with a piece of rope, and with a boat-hook in his hand, pushed proudly
+at the head of his army into the middle of the wide basin.
+
+Halvor Reitan was clever enough to see what it meant, and he was not
+going to allow the West-Siders to gain the heights above him, and attack
+him in the rear. He meant to prevent the enemy from landing, or, still
+better, he would meet him half-way, and drive him back to his own shore.
+
+The latter, though not the wiser course, was the plan which Halvor
+Reitan adopted. To have a tussle with the high-nosed Viggo in the middle
+of the basin, to dislodge him from his raft--that seemed to Halvor a
+delightful project. He knew that Viggo was a good swimmer, so he
+feared no dangerous consequences; and even if he had, it would not have
+restrained him. He was so much stronger than Viggo, and here was his
+much-longed-for opportunity.
+
+With great despatch he made himself a raft of two logs, and seating
+himself astride them, with his legs in the water, put off from shore. He
+shouted to his men to follow him, and they needed no urging. Viggo was
+now near the middle of the basin, with twenty or thirty picked archers
+close behind him. They fired volley after volley of arrows against the
+enemy, and twice drove him back to the shore.
+
+But Halvor Reitan, shielding his face with a piece of bark which he had
+picked up, pushed forward in spite of their onslaught, though one arrow
+knocked off his red-peaked cap, and another scratched his ear. Now he
+was but a dozen feet from his foe. He cared little for his bow now; the
+boat-hook was a far more effectual weapon.
+
+Viggo saw at a glance that he meant to pull his raft toward him, and,
+relying upon his greater strength, fling him into the water.
+
+His first plan would therefore be to fence with his own boat-hook, so as
+to keep his antagonist at a distance.
+
+When Halvor made the first lunge at the nose of his raft, he foiled the
+attempt with his own weapon, and managed dexterously to give the hostile
+raft a downward push, which increased the distance between them.
+
+“Take care, General!” said a respectful voice close to Viggo’s ear.
+“There is a small log jam down below, which is getting bigger every
+moment. When it is got afloat, it will be dangerous out here.”
+
+“What are you doing here, Sergeant?” asked the General, severely. “Did I
+not tell you to be the last to leave the shore?”
+
+“You did, General,” Marcus replied, meekly, “and I obeyed. But I have
+pushed to the front so as to be near you.”
+
+“I don’t need you, Sergeant,” Viggo responded, “you may go to the rear.”
+
+The booming of the cataract nearly drowned his voice and Marcus
+pretended not to hear it. A huge lumber mass was piling itself up among
+the rocks jutting out of the rapids, and a dozen men hanging like flies
+on the logs, sprang up and down with axes in their hands. They cut one
+log here and another there; shouted commands; and fell into the river
+amid the derisive jeers of the spectators; they scrambled out again and,
+dripping wet, set to work once more with a cheerful heart, to the mighty
+music of the cataract, whose thundering rhythm trembled and throbbed in
+the air.
+
+The boys who were steering their rafts against each other in the
+comparatively placid basin were too absorbed in their mimic battle to
+heed what was going on below. Halvor and Viggo were fighting desperately
+with their boat-hooks, the one attacking and the other defending himself
+with great dexterity. They scarcely perceived, in their excitement, that
+the current was dragging them slowly toward the cataract; nor did they
+note the warning cries of the men and women on the banks.
+
+Viggo’s blood was hot, his temples throbbed, his eyes flashed. He would
+show this miserable clown who had dared to insult him, that the trained
+skill of a gentleman is worth more than the rude strength of a bully.
+With beautiful precision he foiled every attack; struck Halvor’s
+boat-hook up and down, so that the water splashed about him, manoeuvring
+at the same time his own raft with admirable adroitness.
+
+Cheer upon cheer rent the air, after each of his successful sallies,
+and his comrades, selecting their antagonists from among the enemy, now
+pressed forward, all eager to bear their part in the fray.
+
+Splash! splash! splash! one East-Sider was dismounted, got an
+involuntary bath, but scrambled up on his raft again. The next time it
+was a West-Sider who got a ducking, but seemed none the worse for it.
+There was a yelling and a cheering, now from one side and now from the
+other, which made everyone forget that something was going on at that
+moment of greater importance than the mimic warfare of boys.
+
+All the interest of the contending parties was concentrated on the duel
+of their chieftains. It seemed now really that Halvor was getting the
+worst of it. He could not get close enough to use his brawny muscles;
+and in precision of aim and adroitness of movement he was not Viggo’s
+match.
+
+Again and again he thrust his long-handled boat-hook angrily against the
+bottom (for the flooded parts of the banks were very shallow), to push
+the raft forward, but every time Viggo managed to turn it sideward, and
+Halvor had to exert all his presence of mind to keep his seat. Wild with
+rage he sprang up on his slender raft and made a vicious lunge at his
+opponent, who warded the blow with such force that the handle of the
+boat-hook broke, and Halvor lost his balance and fell into the water.
+
+At this same instant a tremendous crash was heard from below, followed
+by a long rumble as of mighty artillery. A scream of horror went up
+from the banks, as the great lumber mass rolled down into the cataract,
+making a sudden suction which it seemed impossible that the unhappy boys
+could resist.
+
+The majority of both sides, seeing their danger, beat, by means of their
+boat-hooks, a hasty retreat, and as they were in shallow water were
+hauled ashore by the lumbermen, who sprang into the river to save them.
+
+When the clouds of spray had cleared away, only three figures were
+visible. Viggo, still astride of his raft, was fighting, not for his own
+life, but for that of his enemy, Halvor, who was struggling helplessly
+in the white rapids. Close behind his commander stood little Marcus on
+his raft, holding on, with one hand to the boat-hook which he had hewn,
+with all his might, into Viggo’s raft, and with the other grasping the
+branch of a half-submerged tree.
+
+“Save yourself, General!” he yelled, wildly. “Let go there. I can’t hold
+on much longer.”
+
+But Viggo did not heed. He saw nothing but the pale, frightened face
+of his antagonist, who might lose his life. With a desperate effort he
+flung his boat-hook toward him and succeeded this time in laying hold
+of the leather girdle about his waist. One hundred feet below yawned the
+foaming, weltering abyss, from which the white smoke ascended. If Marcus
+lost his grip, if the branch snapped no human power could save them;
+they were all dead men.
+
+By this time the people on the shore had discovered that three lives
+were hanging on the brink of eternity. Twenty men had waded waist-deep
+into the current and had flung a stout rope to the noble little fellow
+who was risking his own life for his friend.
+
+“Keep your hold, my brave lad!” they cried; “hold on another minute!”
+
+“Grab the rope!” screamed others.
+
+Marcus clinched his teeth, and his numb arms trembled, mist gathered
+in his eyes--his heart stood still. But with a clutch that seemed
+superhuman he held on. He had but one thought--Viggo, his chief! Viggo,
+his idol! Viggo, his general! He must save him or die with him. One end
+of the rope was hanging on the branch and was within easy reach; but he
+did not venture to seize it, lest the wrench caused by his motion might
+detach his hold on Viggo’s raft.
+
+Viggo, who just now was pulling Halvor out of the water, saw in an
+instant that he had by adding his weight to the raft, increased the
+chance of both being carried to their death. With quick resolution he
+plunged the beak of his own boat-hook into Marcus’s raft, and shouted to
+Halvor to save himself. The latter, taking in the situation at a glance,
+laid hold of the handle of the boat-hook and together they pulled up
+alongside of Marcus and leaped aboard his raft, whereupon Viggo’s raft
+drifted downward and vanished in a flash in the yellow torrent.
+
+At that very instant Marcus’s strength gave out; he relaxed his grip on
+the branch, which slid out of his hand, and they would inevitably have
+darted over the brink of the cataract if Viggo had not, with great
+adroitness, snatched the rope from the branch of the half-submerged
+tree.
+
+A wild shout, half a cheer, half a cry of relief, went up from the
+banks, as the raft with the three lads was slowly hauled toward the
+shore by the lumbermen who had thrown the rope.
+
+Halvor Reitan was the first to step ashore. But no joyous welcome
+greeted him from those whose sympathies had, a little while ago, been
+all on his side. He hung around uneasily for some minutes, feeling
+perhaps that he ought to say something to Viggo who had saved his life,
+but as he could not think of anything which did not seem foolish, he
+skulked away unnoticed toward the edge of the forest.
+
+But when Viggo stepped ashore, carrying the unconscious Marcus in his
+arms, how the crowd rushed forward to gaze at him, to press his hands,
+to call down God’s blessing upon him! He had never imagined that he was
+such a hero. It was Marcus, not he, to whom their ovation was due. But
+poor Marcus--it was well for him that he had fainted from over-exertion;
+for otherwise he would have fainted from embarrassment at the honors
+which would have been showered upon him.
+
+The West-Siders, marching two abreast, with their bows slung across
+their shoulders, escorted their general home, cheering and shouting as
+they went. When they were half-way up the hillside, Marcus opened his
+eyes, and finding himself so close to his beloved general, blushed
+crimson, scarlet, and purple, and all the other shades that an
+embarrassed blush is capable of assuming.
+
+“Please, General,” he stammered, “don’t bother about me.”
+
+Viggo had thought of making a speech exalting the heroism of his
+faithful follower. But he saw at a glance that his praise would be more
+grateful to Marcus, if he received it in private.
+
+When, however, the boys gave him a parting cheer, in front of his
+father’s mansion, he forgot his resolution, leaped up on the steps, and
+lifting the blushing Marcus above his head; called out:
+
+“Three cheers for the bravest boy in Norway!”
+
+
+
+
+BICEPS GRIMLUND’S CHRISTMAS VACATION
+
+
+
+
+I.
+
+The great question which Albert Grimlund was debating was fraught
+with unpleasant possibilities. He could not go home for the Christmas
+vacation, for his father lived in Drontheim, which is so far away from
+Christiania that it was scarcely worth while making the journey for
+a mere two-weeks’ holiday. Then, on the other hand, he had an old
+great-aunt who lived but a few miles from the city. She had, from
+conscientious motives, he feared, sent him an invitation to pass
+Christmas with her. But Albert had a poor opinion of Aunt Elsbeth.
+He thought her a very tedious person. She had a dozen cats, talked
+of nothing but sermons and lessons, and asked him occasionally, with
+pleasant humor, whether he got many whippings at school. She failed to
+comprehend that a boy could not amuse himself forever by looking at
+the pictures in the old family Bible, holding yarn, and listening to
+oft-repeated stories, which he knew by heart, concerning the doings and
+sayings of his grandfather. Aunt Elsbeth, after a previous experience
+with her nephew, had come to regard boys as rather a reprehensible kind
+of animal, who differed in many of their ways from girls, and altogether
+to the boys’ disadvantage.
+
+Now, the prospect of being “caged” for two weeks with this estimable
+lady was, as I said, not at all pleasant to Albert. He was sixteen years
+old, loved out-door sports, and had no taste for cats. His chief pride
+was his muscle, and no boy ever made his acquaintance without being
+invited to feel the size and hardness of his biceps. This was a standing
+joke in the Latin school, and Albert was generally known among his
+companions as “Biceps” Grimlund. He was not very tall for his age, but
+broad-shouldered and deep-chested, with something in his glance, his
+gait, and his manners which showed that he had been born and bred near
+the sea. He cultivated a weather-beaten complexion, and was particularly
+proud when the skin “peeled” on his nose, which it usually did in the
+summer-time, during his visits to his home in the extreme north. Like
+most blond people, when sunburnt, he was red, not brown; and this became
+a source of great satisfaction when he learned that Lord Nelson had
+the same peculiarity. Albert’s favorite books were the sea romances of
+Captain Marryat, whose “Peter Simple” and “Midshipman Easy” he held to
+be the noblest products of human genius. It was a bitter disappointment
+to him that his father forbade his going to sea and was educating him
+to be a “landlubber,” which he had been taught by his boy associates to
+regard as the most contemptible thing on earth.
+
+Two days before Christmas, Biceps Grimlund was sitting in his room,
+looking gloomily out of the window. He wished to postpone as long as
+possible his departure for Aunt Elsbeth’s country-place, for he foresaw
+that both he and she were doomed to a surfeit of each other’s company
+during the coming fortnight. At last he heaved a deep sigh and languidly
+began to pack his trunk. He had just disposed the dear Marryat books on
+top of his starched shirts, when he heard rapid footsteps on the stairs,
+and the next moment the door burst open, and his classmate, Ralph Hoyer,
+rushed breathlessly into the room.
+
+“Biceps,” he cried, “look at this! Here is a letter from my father, and
+he tells me to invite one of my classmates to come home with me for the
+vacation. Will you come? Oh, we shall have grand times, I tell you! No
+end of fun!”
+
+Albert, instead of answering, jumped up and danced a jig on the floor,
+upsetting two chairs and breaking the wash-pitcher.
+
+“Hurrah!” he cried, “I’m your man. Shake hands on it, Ralph! You have
+saved me from two weeks of cats and yarn and moping! Give us your paw! I
+never was so glad to see anybody in all my life.”
+
+And to prove it, he seized Ralph by the shoulders, gave him a vigorous
+whirl and forced him to join in the dance.
+
+“Now, stop your nonsense,” Ralph protested, laughing; “if you have so
+much strength to waste, wait till we are at home in Solheim, and you’ll
+have a chance to use it profitably.”
+
+Albert flung himself down on his old rep-covered sofa. It seemed to
+have some internal disorder, for its springs rattled and a vague musical
+twang indicated that something or other had snapped. It had seen much
+maltreatment, that poor old piece of furniture, and bore visible marks
+of it. When, after various exhibitions of joy, their boisterous delight
+had quieted down, both boys began to discuss their plans for the
+vacation.
+
+“But I fear my groom may freeze, down there in the street,” Ralph
+ejaculated, cutting short the discussion; “it is bitter cold, and he
+can’t leave the horses. Hurry up, now, old man, and I’ll help you pack.”
+
+It did not take them long to complete the packing. Albert sent a
+telegram to his father, asking permission to accept Ralph’s invitation;
+but, knowing well that the reply would be favorable, did not think
+it necessary to wait for it. With the assistance of his friend he
+now wrapped himself in two overcoats, pulled a pair of thick woollen
+stockings over the outside of his boots and a pair of fur-lined
+top-boots outside of these, girded himself with three long scarfs, and
+pulled his brown otter-skin cap down over his ears. He was nearly
+as broad as he was long, when he had completed these operations, and
+descended into the street where the big double-sleigh (made in the shape
+of a huge white swan) was awaiting them. They now called at Ralph’s
+lodgings, whence he presently emerged in a similar Esquimau costume,
+wearing a wolf-skin coat which left nothing visible except the tip of
+his nose and the steam of his breath. Then they started off merrily with
+jingling bells, and waved a farewell toward many a window, wherein were
+friends and acquaintances. They felt in so jolly a mood, that they could
+not help shouting their joy in the face of all the world, and crowing
+over all poor wretches who were left to spend the holidays in the city.
+
+
+
+
+II.
+
+Solheim was about twenty miles from the city, and it was nine o’clock in
+the evening when the boys arrived there. The moon was shining brightly,
+and the Milky Way, with its myriad stars, looked like a luminous mist
+across the vault of the sky. The aurora borealis swept down from the
+north with white and pink radiations which flushed the dark blue sky for
+an instant, and vanished. The earth was white, as far as the eye could
+reach--splendidly, dazzlingly white. And out of the white radiance rose
+the great dark pile of masonry called Solheim, with its tall chimneys
+and dormer-windows and old-fashioned gables. Round about stood the tall
+leafless maples and chestnut-trees, sparkling with frost and stretching
+their gaunt arms against the heavens. The two horses, when they swung
+up before the great front-door, were so white with hoar-frost that they
+looked shaggy like goats, and no one could tell what was their original
+color. Their breath was blown in two vapory columns from their nostrils
+and drifted about their heads like steam about a locomotive.
+
+The sleigh-bells had announced the arrival of the guests, and a great
+shout of welcome was heard from the hall of the house, which seemed
+alive with grownup people and children. Ralph jumped out of the sleigh,
+embraced at random half a dozen people, one of whom was his mother,
+kissed right and left, protesting laughingly against being smothered
+in affection, and finally managed to introduce his friend, who for the
+moment was feeling a trifle lonely.
+
+“Here, father,” he cried. “Biceps, this is my father; and, father, this
+is my Biceps----”
+
+“What stuff you are talking, boy,” his father exclaimed. “How can this
+young fellow be your biceps----”
+
+“Well, how can a man keep his senses in such confusion?” said the son
+of the house. “This is my friend and classmate, Albert Grimlund, alias
+Biceps Grimlund, and the strongest man in the whole school. Just feel
+his biceps, mother, and you’ll see.”
+
+“No, I thank you. I’ll take your word for it,” replied Mrs. Hoyer. “As
+I intend to treat him as a friend of my son should be treated, I hope he
+will not feel inclined to give me any proof of his muscularity.”
+
+When, with the aid of the younger children, the travellers had divested
+themselves of their various wraps and overcoats, they were ushered
+into the old-fashioned sitting-room. In one corner roared an enormous,
+many-storied, iron stove. It had a picture in relief, on one side, of
+Diana the Huntress, with her nymphs and baying hounds. In the middle of
+the room stood a big table, and in the middle of the table a big
+lamp, about which the entire family soon gathered. It was so cosey and
+homelike that Albert, before he had been half an hour in the room, felt
+gratefully the atmosphere of mutual affection which pervaded the house.
+It amused him particularly to watch the little girls, of whom there were
+six, and to observe their profound admiration for their big brother.
+Every now and then one of them, sidling up to him while he sat talking,
+would cautiously touch his ear or a curl of his hair; and if he deigned
+to take any notice of her, offering her, perhaps, a perfunctory kiss,
+her pride and pleasure were charming to witness.
+
+Presently the signal was given that supper was ready, and various savory
+odors, which escaped, whenever a door was opened, served to arouse the
+anticipations of the boys to the highest pitch. Now, if I did not have
+so much else to tell you, I should stop here and describe that supper.
+There were twenty-two people who sat down to it; but that was nothing
+unusual at Solheim, for it was a hospitable house, where every wayfarer
+was welcome, either to the table in the servants’ hall or to the
+master’s table in the dining-room.
+
+
+
+
+III.
+
+At the stroke of ten all the family arose, and each in turn kissed the
+father and mother good-night; whereupon Mr. Hoyer took the great lamp
+from the table and mounted the stairs, followed by his pack of noisy
+boys and girls. Albert and Ralph found themselves, with four smaller
+Hoyers, in an enormous low-ceiled room with many windows. In three
+corners stood huge canopied bedsteads, with flowered-chintz curtains and
+mountainous eiderdown coverings which swelled up toward the ceiling. In
+the middle of the wall, opposite the windows, a big iron stove, like
+the one in the sitting-room (only that it was adorned with a bunch of
+flowers, peaches, and grapes, and not with Diana and her nymphs), was
+roaring merrily, and sending a long red sheen from its draught-hole
+across the floor.
+
+Around the big warm stove the boys gathered (for it was positively
+Siberian in the region of the windows), and while undressing played
+various pranks upon each other, which created much merriment. But
+the most laughter was provoked at the expense of Finn Hoyer, a boy of
+fourteen, whose bare back his brother insisted upon exhibiting to his
+guest; for it was decorated with a facsimile of the picture on the
+stove, showing roses and luscious peaches and grapes in red relief.
+Three years before, on Christmas Eve, the boys had stood about the
+red-hot stove, undressing for their bath, and Finn, who was naked, had,
+in the general scrimmage to get first into the bath-tub, been
+pushed against the glowing iron, the ornamentation of which had been
+beautifully burned upon his back. He had to be wrapped in oil and cotton
+after that adventure, and he recovered in due time, but never quite
+relished the distinction he had acquired by his pictorial skin.
+
+It was long before Albert fell asleep; for the cold kept up a continual
+fusillade, as of musketry, during the entire night. The woodwork of the
+walls snapped and cracked with loud reports; and a little after midnight
+a servant came in and stuffed the stove full of birch-wood, until it
+roared like an angry lion. This roar finally lulled Albert to sleep, in
+spite of the startling noises about him.
+
+The next morning the boys were aroused at seven o’clock by a servant,
+who brought a tray with the most fragrant coffee and hot rolls. It was
+in honor of the guest that, in accordance with Norse custom, this
+early meal was served; and all the boys, carrying pillows and blankets,
+gathered on Albert’s and Ralph’s bed and feasted right royally. So it
+seemed to them, at least; for any break in the ordinary routine, be it
+ever so slight, is an event to the young. Then they had a pillow-fight,
+thawed at the stove the water in the pitchers (for it was frozen hard),
+and arrayed themselves to descend and meet the family at the nine
+o’clock breakfast. When this repast was at an end, the question arose
+how they were to entertain their guest, and various plans were proposed.
+But to all Ralph’s propositions his mother interposed the objection that
+it was too cold.
+
+“Mother is right,” said Mr. Hoyer; “it is so cold that ‘the chips jump
+on the hill-side.’ You’ll have to be content with indoor sports to-day.”
+
+“But, father, it is not more than twenty degrees below zero,” the boy
+demurred. “I am sure we can stand that, if we keep in motion. I have
+been out at thirty without losing either ears or nose.”
+
+He went to the window to observe the thermometer; but the dim daylight
+scarcely penetrated the fantastic frost-crystals, which, like a splendid
+exotic flora, covered the panes. Only at the upper corner, where the ice
+had commenced to thaw, a few timid sunbeams were peeping in, making the
+lamp upon the table seem pale and sickly. Whenever the door to the hall
+was opened a white cloud of vapor rolled in; and every one made haste
+to shut the door, in order to save the precious heat. The boys, being
+doomed to remain indoors, walked about restlessly, felt each other’s
+muscle, punched each other, and sometimes, for want of better
+employment, teased the little girls. Mr. Hoyer, seeing how miserable
+they were, finally took pity on them, and, after having thawed out
+a window-pane sufficiently to see the thermometer outside, gave his
+consent to a little expedition on skees [2] down to the river.
+
+And now, boys, you ought to have seen them! Now there was life in them!
+You would scarcely have dreamed that they were the same creatures who,
+a moment ago, looked so listless and miserable. What rollicking laughter
+and fun, while they bundled one another in scarfs, cardigan-jackets,
+fur-lined top-boots, and overcoats!
+
+“You had better take your guns along, boys,” said the father, as they
+stormed out through the front door; “you might strike a couple of
+ptarmigan, or a mountain-cock, over on the west side.”
+
+“I am going to take your rifle, if you’ll let me,” Ralph exclaimed. “I
+have a fancy we might strike bigger game than mountain-cock. I shouldn’t
+object to a wolf or two.”
+
+“You are welcome to the rifle,” said his father; “but I doubt whether
+you’ll find wolves on the ice so early in the day.”
+
+Mr. Hoyer took the rifle from its case, examined it carefully, and
+handed it to Ralph. Albert, who was a less experienced hunter than
+Ralph, preferred a fowling-piece to the rifle; especially as he had
+no expectation of shooting anything but ptarmigan. Powder-horns,
+cartridges, and shot were provided; and quite proudly the two friends
+started off on their skees, gliding over the hard crust of the snow,
+which, as the sun rose higher, was oversown with thousands of glittering
+gems. The boys looked like Esquimaux, with their heads bundled up in
+scarfs, and nothing visible except their eyes and a few hoary locks of
+hair which the frost had silvered.
+
+
+
+
+IV.
+
+“What was that?” cried Albert, startled by a sharp report which
+reverberated from the mountains. They had penetrated the forest on the
+west side, and ranged over the ice for an hour, in a vain search for
+wolves.
+
+“Hush,” said Ralph, excitedly; and after a moment of intent listening he
+added, “I’ll be drawn and quartered if it isn’t poachers!”
+
+“How do you know?”
+
+“These woods belong to father, and no one else has any right to hunt in
+them. He doesn’t mind if a poor man kills a hare or two, or a brace of
+ptarmigan; but these chaps are after elk; and if the old gentleman gets
+on the scent of elk-hunters, he has no more mercy than Beelzebub.”
+
+“How can you know that they are after elk?”
+
+“No man is likely to go to the woods for small game on a day like this.
+They think the cold protects them from pursuit and capture.”
+
+“What are you going to do about it?”
+
+“I am going to play a trick on them. You know that the sheriff, whose
+duty it is to be on the lookout for elk-poachers, would scarcely send
+out a posse when the cold is so intense. Elk, you know, are becoming
+very scarce, and the law protects them. No man is allowed to shoot more
+than one elf a year, and that one on his own property. Now, you and
+I will play deputy-sheriffs, and have those poachers securely in the
+lock-up before night.”
+
+“But suppose they fight?”
+
+“Then we’ll fight back.”
+
+Ralph was so aglow with joyous excitement at the thought of this
+adventure, that Albert had not the heart to throw cold water on his
+enthusiasm. Moreover, he was afraid of being thought cowardly by his
+friend if he offered objections. The recollection of Midshipman Easy
+and his daring pranks flashed through his brain, and he felt an
+instant desire to rival the exploits of his favorite hero. If only the
+enterprise had been on the sea he would have been twice as happy, for
+the land always seemed to him a prosy and inconvenient place for the
+exhibition of heroism.
+
+“But, Ralph,” he exclaimed, now more than ready to bear his part in
+the expedition, “I have only shot in my gun. You can’t shoot men with
+bird-shot.”
+
+“Shoot men! Are you crazy? Why, I don’t intend to shoot anybody.
+I only wish to capture them. My rifle is a breech-loader and has six
+cartridges. Besides, it has twice the range of theirs (for there isn’t
+another such rifle in all Odalen), and by firing one shot over their
+heads I can bring them to terms, don’t you see?”
+
+Albert, to be frank, did not see it exactly; but he thought it best to
+suppress his doubts. He scented danger in the air, and his blood bounded
+through his veins.
+
+“How do you expect to track them?” he asked, breathlessly.
+
+“Skee-tracks in the snow can be seen by a bat, born blind,” answered
+Ralph, recklessly.
+
+They were now climbing up the wooded slope on the western side of the
+river. The crust of the frozen snow was strong enough to bear them;
+and as it was not glazed, but covered with an inch of hoar-frost, it
+retained the imprint of their feet with distinctness. They were obliged
+to carry their skees, on account both of the steepness of the slope and
+the density of the underbrush. Roads and paths were invisible under
+the white pall of the snow, and only the facility with which they could
+retrace their steps saved them from the fear of going astray. Through
+the vast forest a deathlike silence reigned; and this silence was not
+made up of an infinity of tiny sounds, like the silence of a summer
+day when the crickets whirr in the treetops and the bees drone in the
+clover-blossoms. No; this silence was dead, chilling, terrible. The huge
+pine-trees now and then dropped a load of snow on the heads of the bold
+intruders, and it fell with a thud, followed by a noiseless, glittering
+drizzle. As far as their eyes could reach, the monotonous colonnade
+of brown tree-trunks, rising out of the white waste, extended in all
+directions. It reminded them of the enchanted forest in “Undine,”
+ through which a man might ride forever without finding the end. It was
+a great relief when, from time to time, they met a squirrel out foraging
+for pine-cones or picking up a scanty living among the husks of last
+year’s hazel-nuts. He was lively in spite of the weather, and the
+faint noises of his small activities fell gratefully upon ears already
+ap-palled by the awful silence. Occasionally they scared up a brace
+of grouse that seemed half benumbed, and hopped about in a melancholy
+manner under the pines, or a magpie, drawing in its head and ruffling up
+its feathers against the cold, until it looked frowsy and disreputable.
+
+“Biceps,” whispered Ralph, who had suddenly discovered something
+interesting in the snow, “do you see that?”
+
+“Je-rusalem!” ejaculated Albert, with thoughtless delight, “it is a
+hoof-track!”
+
+“Hold your tongue, you blockhead,” warned his friend, too excited to be
+polite, “or you’ll spoil the whole business!”
+
+“But you asked me,” protested Albert, in a huff.
+
+“But I didn’t shout, did I?”
+
+Again the report of a shot tore a great rent in the wintry stillness and
+rang out with sharp reverberations.
+
+“We’ve got them,” said Ralph, examining the lock of his rifle. “That
+shot settles them.”
+
+“If we don’t look out, they may get us instead,” grumbled Albert, who
+was still offended.
+
+Ralph stood peering into the underbrush, his eyes as wild as those of
+an Indian, his nostrils dilated, and all his senses intensely awake. His
+companion, who was wholly unskilled in woodcraft, could see no cause for
+his agitation, and feared that he was yet angry. He did not detect the
+evidences of large game in the immediate neighborhood. He did not see,
+by the bend of the broken twigs and the small tufts of hair on the
+briar-bush, that an elk had pushed through that very copse within a few
+minutes; nor did he sniff the gamy odor with which the large beast had
+charged the air. In obedience to his friend’s gesture, he flung himself
+down on hands and knees and cautiously crept after him through the
+thicket. He now saw without difficulty a place where the elk had broken
+through the snow crust, and he could also detect a certain aimless
+bewilderment in the tracks, owing, no doubt, to the shot and the
+animal’s perception of danger on two sides. Scarcely had he crawled
+twenty feet when he was startled by a noise of breaking branches, and
+before he had time to cock his gun, he saw an enormous bull-elk tearing
+through the underbrush, blowing two columns of steam from his nostrils,
+and steering straight toward them. At the same instant Ralph’s rifle
+blazed away, and the splendid beast, rearing on its hind legs, gave a
+wild snort, plunged forward and rolled on its side in the snow. Quick
+as a flash the young hunter had drawn his knife, and, in accordance with
+the laws of the chase, had driven it into the breast of the animal. But
+the glance from the dying eyes--that glance, of which every elk-hunter
+can tell a moving tale--pierced the boy to the very heart! It was such
+a touching, appealing, imploring glance, so soft and gentle and
+unresentful.
+
+“Why did you harm me,” it seemed to say, “who never harmed any living
+thing--who claimed only the right to live my frugal life in the forest,
+digging up the frozen mosses under the snow, which no mortal creature
+except myself can eat?”
+
+The sanguinary instinct--the fever for killing, which every boy inherits
+from savage ancestors--had left Ralph, before he had pulled the knife
+from the bleeding wound. A miserable feeling of guilt stole over him.
+He never had shot an elk before; and his father, who was anxious to
+preserve the noble beasts from destruction, had not availed himself of
+his right to kill one for many years. Ralph had, indeed, many a time
+hunted rabbits, hares, mountain-cock, and capercaillie. But they had
+never destroyed his pleasure by arousing pity for their deaths; and he
+had always regarded himself as being proof against sentimental emotions.
+
+“Look here, Biceps,” he said, flinging the knife into the snow, “I wish
+I hadn’t killed that bull.”
+
+“I thought we were hunting for poachers,” answered Albert, dubiously;
+“and now we have been poaching ourselves.”
+
+“By Jiminy! So we have; and I never once thought of it,” cried the
+valiant hunter. “I am afraid we are off my father’s preserves too. It
+is well the deputy sheriffs are not abroad, or we might find ourselves
+decorated with iron bracelets before night.”
+
+“But what did you do it for?”
+
+“Well, I can’t tell. It’s in the blood, I fancy. The moment I saw the
+track and caught the wild smell, I forgot all about the poachers, and
+started on the scent like a hound.”
+
+The two boys stood for some minutes looking at the dead animal, not with
+savage exultation, but with a dim regret. The blood which was gushing
+from the wound in the breast froze in a solid lump the very moment it
+touched the snow, although the cold had greatly moderated since the
+morning.
+
+“I suppose we’ll have to skin the fellow,” remarked Ralph, lugubriously;
+“it won’t do to leave that fine carcass for the wolves to celebrate
+Christmas with.”
+
+“All right,” Albert answered, “I am not much of a hand at skinning, but
+I’ll do the best I can.”
+
+They fell to work rather reluctantly at the unwonted task, but had not
+proceeded far when they perceived that they had a full day’s job before
+them.
+
+“I’ve no talent for the butcher’s trade,” Ralph exclaimed in disgust,
+dropping his knife into the snow. “There’s no help for it, Biceps, we’ll
+have to bury the carcass, pile some logs on the top of it, and send a
+horse to drag it home to-morrow. If it were not Christmas Eve to-night
+we might take a couple of men along and shoot a dozen wolves or more.
+For there is sure to be pandemonium here before long, and a concert in
+G-flat that’ll curdle the marrow of your bones with horror.”
+
+“Thanks,” replied the admirer of Midshipman Easy, striking a reckless
+naval attitude. “The marrow of my bones is not so easily curdled. I’ve
+been on a whaling voyage, which is more than you have.”
+
+Ralph was about to vindicate his dignity by referring to his own valiant
+exploits, when suddenly his keen eyes detected a slight motion in the
+underbrush on the slope below.
+
+“Biceps,” he said, with forced composure, “those poachers are tracking
+us.”
+
+“What do you mean?” asked Albert, in vague alarm.
+
+“Do you see the top of that young birch waving?”
+
+“Well, what of that!”
+
+“Wait and see. It’s no good trying to escape. They can easily overtake
+us. The snow is the worst tell-tale under the sun.”
+
+“But why should we wish to escape? I thought we were going to catch
+them.”
+
+“So we were; but that was before we turned poachers ourselves. Now those
+fellows will turn the tables on us--take us to the sheriff and collect
+half the fine, which is fifty dollars, as informers.”
+
+“Je-rusalem!” cried Biceps, “isn’t it a beautiful scrape we’ve gotten
+into?”
+
+“Rather,” responded his friend, coolly.
+
+“But why meekly allow ourselves to be captured? Why not defend
+ourselves?”
+
+“My dear Biceps, you don’t know what you are talking about. Those
+fellows don’t mind putting a bullet into you, if you run. Now,
+I’d rather pay fifty dollars any day, than shoot a man even in
+self-defence.”
+
+“But they have killed elk too. We heard them shoot twice. Suppose we
+play the same game on them that they intend to play on us. We can play
+informers too, then we’ll at least be quits.”
+
+“Biceps, you are a brick! That’s a capital idea! Then let us start for
+the sheriff’s; and if we get there first, we’ll inform both on ourselves
+and on them. That’ll cancel the fine. Quick, now!”
+
+No persuasions were needed to make Albert bestir himself. He leaped
+toward his skees, and following his friend, who was a few rods ahead of
+him, started down the slope in a zigzag line, cautiously steering his
+way among the tree trunks. The boys had taken their departure none too
+soon; for they were scarcely five hundred yards down the declivity,
+when they heard behind them loud exclamations and oaths. Evidently the
+poachers had stopped to roll some logs (which were lying close by) over
+the carcass, probably meaning to appropriate it; and this gave the boys
+an advantage, of which they were in great need. After a few moments
+they espied an open clearing which sloped steeply down toward the river.
+Toward this Ralph had been directing his course; for although it was a
+venturesome undertaking to slide down so steep and rugged a hill, he was
+determined rather to break his neck than lower his pride, and become the
+laughing-stock of the parish.
+
+One more tack through alder copse and juniper jungle--hard indeed,
+and terribly vexatious--and he saw with delight the great open slope,
+covered with an unbroken surface of glittering snow. The sun (which at
+midwinter is but a few hours above the horizon) had set; and the stars
+were flashing forth with dazzling brilliancy. Ralph stopped, as he
+reached the clearing, to give Biceps an opportunity to overtake him; for
+Biceps, like all marine animals, moved with less dexterity on the dry
+land.
+
+“Ralph,” he whispered breathlessly, as he pushed himself up to his
+companion with a vigorous thrust of his skee-staff, “there are two awful
+chaps close behind us. I distinctly heard them speak.”
+
+“Fiddlesticks,” said Ralph; “now let us see what you are made of!
+Don’t take my track, or you may impale me like a roast pig on a spit.
+Now, ready!--one, two, three!”
+
+“Hold on there, or I shoot,” yelled a hoarse voice from out of the
+underbrush; but it was too late; for at the same instant the two boys
+slid out over the steep slope, and, wrapped in a whirl of loose snow,
+were scudding at a dizzying speed down the precipitous hill-side. Thump,
+thump, thump, they went, where hidden wood-piles or fences obstructed
+their path, and out they shot into space, but each time came down firmly
+on their feet, and dashed ahead with undiminished ardor. Their calves
+ached, the cold air whistled in their ears, and their eyelids became
+stiff and their sight half obscured with the hoar-frost that fringed
+their lashes. But onward they sped, keeping their balance with wonderful
+skill, until they reached the gentler slope which formed the banks of
+the great river. Then for the first time Ralph had an opportunity to
+look behind him, and he saw two moving whirls of snow darting downward,
+not far from his own track. His heart beat in his throat; for those
+fellows had both endurance and skill, and he feared that he was no match
+for them. But suddenly--he could have yelled with delight--the foremost
+figure leaped into the air, turned a tremendous somersault, and, coming
+down on his head, broke through the crust of the snow and vanished,
+while his skees started on an independent journey down the hill-side.
+He had struck an exposed fence-rail, which, abruptly checking his speed,
+had sent him flying like a rocket.
+
+The other poacher had barely time to change his course, so as to avoid
+the snag; but he was unable to stop and render assistance to his fallen
+comrade. The boys, just as they were shooting out upon the ice, saw by
+his motions that he was hesitating whether or not he should give up the
+chase. He used his staff as a brake for a few moments, so as to retard
+his speed; but discovering, perhaps, by the brightening starlight,
+that his adversaries were not full-grown men, he took courage, started
+forward again, and tried to make up for the time he had lost. If he
+could but reach the sheriff’s house before the boys did, he could have
+them arrested and collect the informer’s fee, instead of being himself
+arrested and fined as a poacher. It was a prize worth racing for! And,
+moreover, there were two elks, worth twenty-five dollars apiece, buried
+in the snow under logs. These also would belong to the victor! The
+poacher dashed ahead, straining every nerve, and reached safely the foot
+of the steep declivity. The boys were now but a few hundred yards ahead
+of him.
+
+“Hold on there,” he yelled again, “or I shoot!”
+
+He was not within range, but he thought he could frighten the youngsters
+into abandoning the race. The sheriff’s house was but a short distance
+up the river. Its tall, black chimneys could he seen looming up against
+the starlit sky. There was no slope now to accelerate their speed. They
+had to peg away for dear life, pushing themselves forward with their
+skee-staves, laboring like plough-horses, panting, snorting, perspiring.
+Ralph turned his head once more. The poacher was gaining upon them;
+there could be no doubt of it. He was within the range of Ralph’s rifle;
+and a sturdy fellow he was, who seemed good for a couple of miles yet.
+Should Ralph send a bullet over his head to frighten him? No; that
+might give the poacher an excuse for sending back a bullet with a less
+innocent purpose. Poor Biceps, he was panting and puffing in his heavy
+wraps like a steamboat! He did not once open his mouth to speak; but,
+exerting his vaunted muscle to the utmost, kept abreast of his friend,
+and sometimes pushed a pace or two ahead of him. But it cost him a
+mighty effort! And yet the poacher was gaining upon him! They could
+see the long broadside of windows in the sheriff’s mansion, ablaze with
+Christmas candles. They came nearer and nearer! The church-bells up on
+the bend were ringing in the festival. Five minutes more and they would
+be at their goal. Five minutes more! Surely they had strength enough
+left for that small space of time. So had the poacher, probably! The
+question was, which had the most. Then, with a short, sharp resonance,
+followed by a long reverberation, a shot rang out and a bullet whizzed
+past Ralph’s ear. It was the poacher who had broken the peace. Ralph,
+his blood boiling with wrath, came to a sudden stop, flung his rifle to
+his cheek and cried, “Drop that gun!”
+
+The poacher, bearing down with all his might on the skee-staff, checked
+his speed. In the meanwhile Albert hurried on, seeing that the issue of
+the race depended upon him.
+
+“Don’t force me to hurt ye!” shouted the poacher, threateningly, to
+Ralph, taking aim once more.
+
+“You can’t,” Ralph shouted back. “You haven’t another shot.”
+
+At that instant sounds of sleigh-bells and voices were heard, and half
+a dozen people, startled by the shot, were seen rushing out from the
+sheriff’s mansion. Among them was Mr. Bjornerud himself, with one of his
+deputies.
+
+“In the name of the law, I command you to cease,” he cried, when he
+saw down the two figures in menacing attitudes. But before he could say
+another word, some one fell prostrate in the road before him, gasping:
+
+“We have shot an elk; so has that man down on the ice. We give ourselves
+up.”
+
+Mr. Bjornerud, making no answer, leaped over the prostrate figure, and,
+followed by the deputy, dashed down upon the ice.
+
+“In the name of the law!” he shouted again, and both rifles were
+reluctantly lowered.
+
+“I have shot an elk,” cried Ralph, eagerly, “and this man is a poacher,
+we heard him shoot.”
+
+“I have killed an elk,” screamed the poacher, in the same moment, “and
+so has this fellow.”
+
+The sheriff was too astonished to speak. Never before, in his
+experience, had poachers raced for dear life to give themselves into
+custody. He feared that they were making sport of him; in that case,
+however, he resolved to make them suffer for their audacity.
+
+“You are my prisoners,” he said, after a moment’s hesitation. “Take them
+to the lock-up, Olsen, and handcuff them securely,” he added, turning to
+his deputy.
+
+There were now a dozen men--most of them guests and attendants of the
+sheriff’s household--standing in a ring about Ralph and the poacher.
+Albert, too, had scrambled to his feet and had joined his comrade.
+
+“Will you permit me, Mr. Sheriff,” said Ralph, making the officer his
+politest bow, “to send a message to my father, who is probably anxious
+about us?”
+
+“And who is your father, young man?” asked the sheriff, not unkindly;
+“I should think you were doing him an ill-turn in taking to poaching at
+your early age.”
+
+“My father is Mr. Hoyer, of Solheim,” said the boy, not without some
+pride in the announcement.
+
+“What--you rascal, you! Are you trying to, play pranks on an old man?”
+ cried the officer of the law, grasping Ralph cordially by the hand.
+“You’ve grown to be quite a man, since I saw you last. Pardon me for not
+recognizing the son of an old neighbor.”
+
+“Allow me to introduce to you my friend, Mr. Biceps--I mean, Mr. Albert
+Grimlund.”
+
+“Happy to make your acquaintance, Mr. Biceps Albert; and now you must
+both come and eat the Christmas porridge with us. I’ll send a messenger
+to Mr. Hoyer without delay.”
+
+The sheriff, in a jolly mood, and happy to have added to the number of
+his Christmas guests, took each of the two young men by the arm, as if
+he were going to arrest them, and conducted them through the spacious
+front hall into a large cosey room, where, having divested themselves of
+their wraps, they told the story of their adventure.
+
+“But, my dear sir,” Mr. Bjornerud exclaimed, “I don’t see how you
+managed to go beyond your father’s preserves. You know he bought of
+me the whole forest tract, adjoining his own on the south, about three
+months ago. So you were perfectly within your rights; for your father
+hasn’t killed an elk on his land for three years.”
+
+“If that is the case, Mr. Sheriff,” said Ralph, “I must beg of you to
+release the poor fellow who chased us. I don’t wish any informer’s fee,
+nor have I any desire to get him into trouble.”
+
+“I am sorry to say I can’t accommodate you,” Bjornerud replied. “This
+man is a notorious poacher and trespasser, whom my deputies have long
+been tracking in vain. Now that I have him I shall keep him. There’s no
+elk safe in Odalen so long as that rascal is at large.”
+
+“That may be; but I shall then turn my informer’s fee over to him, which
+will reduce his fine from fifty dollars to twenty-five dollars.”
+
+“To encourage him to continue poaching?”
+
+“Well, I confess I have a little more sympathy with poachers, since
+we came so near being poachers ourselves. It was only an accident that
+saved us!”
+
+
+
+
+THE NIXY’S STRAIN
+
+Little Nils had an idea that he wanted to be something great in the
+world, but he did not quite know how to set about it. He had always been
+told that, having been born on a Sunday, he was a luck-child, and that
+good fortune would attend him on that account in whatever he undertook.
+
+He had never, so far, noticed anything peculiar about himself, though,
+to be sure, his small enterprises did not usually come to grief, his
+snares were seldom empty, and his tiny stamping-mill, which he and his
+friend Thorstein had worked at so faithfully, was now making a merry
+noise over in the brook in the Westmo Glen, so that you could hear it a
+hundred yards away.
+
+The reason of this, his mother told him, according to the superstition
+of her people, was that the Nixy and the Hulder [3] and the gnomes
+favored him because he was a Sunday child. What was more, she assured
+him, that he would see them some day, and then, if he conducted himself
+cleverly, so as to win their favor, he would, by their aid, rise high in
+the world, and make his fortune.
+
+Now this was exactly what Nils wanted, and therefore he was not a
+little anxious to catch a glimpse of the mysterious creatures who had so
+whimsical a reason for taking an interest in him. Many and many a time
+he sat at the waterfall where the Nixy was said to play the harp every
+midsummer night, but although he sometimes imagined that he heard a
+vague melody trembling through the rush and roar of the water, and saw
+glimpses of white limbs flashing through the current, yet never did he
+get a good look at the Nixy.
+
+Though he roamed through the woods early and late, setting snares for
+birds and rabbits, and was ever on the alert for a sight of the Hulder’s
+golden hair and scarlet bodice, the tricksy sprite persisted in eluding
+him.
+
+He thought sometimes that he heard a faint, girlish giggle, full of
+teasing provocation and suppressed glee, among the underbrush, and once
+he imagined that he saw a gleam of scarlet and gold vanish in a dense
+alder copse.
+
+But very little good did that do him, when he could not fix the vision,
+talk with it face to face, and extort the fulfilment of the three
+regulation wishes.
+
+“I am probably not good enough,” thought Nils. “I know I am a selfish
+fellow, and cruel, too, some-times, to birds and beasts. I suppose she
+won’t have anything to do with me, as long as she isn’t satisfied with
+my behavior.”
+
+Then he tried hard to be kind and considerate; smiled at his little
+sister when she pulled his hair, patted Sultan, the dog, instead of
+kicking him, when he was in his way, and never complained or sulked when
+he was sent on errands late at night or in bad weather.
+
+But, strange to say, though the Nixy’s mysterious melody still sounded
+vaguely through the water’s roar, and the Hulder seemed to titter behind
+the tree-trunks and vanish in the underbrush, a real, unmistakable view
+was never vouchsafed to Nils, and the three wishes which were to make
+his fortune he had no chance of propounding.
+
+He had fully made up his mind what his wishes were to be, for he was
+determined not to be taken by surprise. He knew well the fate of
+those foolish persons in the fairy tales who offend their benevolent
+protectors by bouncing against them head foremost, as it were, with a
+greedy cry for wealth.
+
+Nils was not going to be caught that way. He would ask first for
+wisdom--that was what all right-minded heroes did--then for good repute
+among men, and lastly--and here was the rub--lastly he was inclined to
+ask for a five-bladed knife, like the one the parson’s Thorwald had got
+for a Christmas present.
+
+But he had considerable misgiving about the expediency of this last
+wish. If he had a fair renown and wisdom, might he not be able to get
+along without a five-bladed pocket-knife? But no; there was no help for
+it. Without that five-bladed pocket-knife neither wisdom nor fame would
+satisfy him. It would be the drop of gall in his cup of joy.
+
+After many days’ pondering, it occurred to him, as a way out of the
+difficulty, that it would, perhaps, not offend the Hulder if he asked,
+not for wealth, but for a moderate prosperity. If he were blessed with a
+moderate prosperity, he could, of course, buy a five-bladed pocket-knife
+with corkscrew and all other appurtenances, and still have something
+left over.
+
+He had a dreadful struggle with this question, for he was well aware
+that the proper things to wish were long life and happiness for his
+father and mother, or something in that line. But, though he wished his
+father and mother well, he could not make up his mind to forego his own
+precious chances on their account. Moreover, he consoled himself with
+the reflection that if he attained the goal of his own desires he could
+easily bestow upon them, of his bounty, a reasonable prospect of long
+life and happiness.
+
+You see Nils was by no means so good yet as he ought to be. He was
+clever enough to perceive that he had small chance of seeing the Hulder,
+as long as his heart was full of selfishness and envy and greed.
+
+For, strive as he might, he could not help feeling envious of the
+parson’s Thorwald, with his elaborate combination pocket-knife and his
+silver watch-chain, which he unfeelingly flaunted in the face of an
+admiring community. It was small consolation for Nils to know that there
+was no watch but only a key attached to it; for a silver watch-chain,
+even without a watch, was a sufficiently splendid possession to justify
+a boy in fording it over his less fortunate comrades.
+
+Nils’s father, who was a poor charcoal-burner, could never afford to
+make his son such a present, even if he worked until he was as black as
+a chimney-sweep. For what little money he earned was needed at once for
+food and clothes for the family; and there were times when they were
+obliged to mix ground birch-bark with their flour in order to make it
+last longer.
+
+It was easy enough for a rich man’s son to be good, Nils thought.
+
+It was small credit to him if he was not envious, having never known
+want and never gone to bed on birch-bark porridge. But for a poor boy
+not to covet all the nice things which would make life so pleasant, if
+he had them, seemed next to impossible.
+
+Still Nils kept on making good resolutions and breaking them, and then
+piecing them together again and breaking them anew.
+
+If it had not been for his desire to see the Hulder and the Nixy, and
+making them promise the fulfilment of the three wishes, he would have
+given up the struggle, and resigned himself to being a bad boy because
+he was born so. But those teasing glimpses of the Hulder’s scarlet
+bodice and golden hair, and the vague snatches of wondrous melody that
+rose from the cataract in the silent summer nights, filled his soul with
+an intense desire to see the whole Hulder, with her radiant smile and
+melancholy eyes, and to hear the whole melody plainly enough to be
+written down on paper and learned by heart.
+
+It was with this longing to repeat the few haunting notes that hummed in
+his brain that Nils went to the schoolmaster one day and asked him for
+the loan of his fiddle. But the schoolmaster, hearing that Nils could
+not play, thought his request a foolish one and refused.
+
+Nevertheless, that visit became an important event, and a turning-point
+in the boy’s life. For he was moved to confide in the schoolmaster, who
+was a kindly old man, and fond of clever boys; and he became interested
+in Nils. Though he regarded Nils’s desire to record the Nixy’s strains
+as absurd, he offered to teach him to play. There was good stuff in the
+lad, he thought, and when he had out-grown his fantastic nonsense, he
+might, very likely, make a good fiddler.
+
+Thus it came to pass that the charcoal-burner’s son learned to play
+the violin. He had not had half a dozen lessons before he set about
+imitating the Nixy’s notes which he had heard in the waterfall.
+
+“It was this way,” he said to the schoolmaster, pressing his ear against
+the violin, while he ran the bow lightly over the strings; “or rather it
+was this way,” making another ineffectual effort. “No, no, that wasn’t
+it, either. It’s no use, schoolmaster: I shall never be able to do it!”
+ he cried, flinging the violin on the table and rushing out of the door.
+
+When he returned the next day he was heartily ashamed of his impatience.
+To try to catch the Nixy’s notes after half a dozen lessons was, of
+course, an absurdity.
+
+The master told him simply to banish such folly from his brain, to apply
+himself diligently to his scales, and not to bother himself about the
+Nixy.
+
+That seemed to be sound advice and Nils accepted it with contrition.
+He determined never to repeat his silly experiment. But when the next
+midsummer night came, a wild yearning possessed him, and he stole out
+noiselessly into the forest, and sat down on a stone by the river,
+listening intently.
+
+For a long while he heard nothing but the monotonous boom of the water
+plunging into the deep. But, strangely enough, there was a vague, hushed
+rhythm in this thundering roar; and after a while he seemed to hear
+a faint strain, ravishingly sweet, which vibrated on the air for an
+instant and vanished.
+
+It seemed to steal upon his ear unawares, and the moment he
+listened, with a determination to catch it, it was gone. But sweet it
+was--inexpressibly sweet.
+
+Let the master talk as much as he liked, catch it he would and catch it
+he must. But he must acquire greater skill before he would be able to
+render something so delicate and elusive.
+
+Accordingly Nils applied himself with all his might and main to his
+music, in the intervals between his work.
+
+He was big enough now to accompany his father to the woods, and help
+him pile turf and earth on the heap of logs that were to be burned
+to charcoal. He did not see the Hulder face to face, though he was
+constantly on the watch for her; but once or twice he thought he saw a
+swift flash of scarlet and gold in the underbrush, and again and again
+he thought he heard her soft, teasing laughter in the alder copses.
+That, too, he imagined he might express in music; and the next time he
+got hold of the schoolmaster’s fiddle he quavered away on the fourth
+string, but produced nothing that had the remotest resemblance to
+melody, much less to that sweet laughter.
+
+He grew so discouraged that he could have wept. He had a wild impulse
+to break the fiddle, and never touch another as long as he lived. But he
+knew he could not live up to any such resolution. The fiddle was already
+too dear to him to be renounced for a momentary whim. But it was like an
+unrequited affection, which brought as much sorrow as joy.
+
+There was so much that Nils burned to express; but the fiddle refused to
+obey him, and screeched something utterly discordant, as it seemed, from
+sheer perversity.
+
+It occurred to Nils again, that unless the Nixy took pity on him and
+taught him that marvellous, airy strain he would never catch it. Would
+he then ever be good enough to win the favor of the Nixy?
+
+For in the fairy tales it is always the bad people who come to grief,
+while the good and merciful ones are somehow rewarded.
+
+It was evidently because he was yet far from being good enough that both
+Hulder and Nixy eluded him. Sunday child though he was, there seemed to
+be small chance that he would ever be able to propound his three wishes.
+
+Only now, the third wish was no longer a five-bladed pocket-knife, but
+a violin of so fine a ring and delicate modulation that it might render
+the Nixy’s strain.
+
+While these desires and fancies fought in his heart, Nils grew to be a
+young man; and he still was, what he had always been--a charcoal-burner.
+He went to the parson for half a year to prepare for confirmation; and
+by his gentleness and sweetness of disposition attracted not only the
+good man himself, but all with whom he came in contact. His answers were
+always thoughtful, and betrayed a good mind.
+
+He was not a prig, by any means, who held aloof from sport and play; he
+could laugh with the merriest, run a race with the swiftest, and try a
+wrestling match with the strongest.
+
+There was no one among the candidates for confirmation, that year, who
+was so well liked as Nils. Gentle as he was and soft-spoken, there was a
+manly spirit in him, and that always commands respect among boys.
+
+He received much praise from the pastor, and no one envied him the kind
+words that were addressed to him; for every one felt that they were
+deserved. But the thought in Nils’s mind during all the ceremony in the
+church and in the parsonage was this:
+
+“Now, perhaps, I shall be good enough to win the Nixy’s favor. Now I
+shall catch the wondrous strain.”
+
+It did not occur to him, in his eagerness, that such a reflection was
+out of place in church; nor was it, perhaps, for the Nixy’s strain was
+constantly associated in his mind with all that was best in him; with
+his highest aspirations, and his constant strivings for goodness and
+nobleness in thought and deed.
+
+It happened about this time that the old schoolmaster died, and in his
+will it was found that he had bequeathed his fiddle to Nils. He had very
+little else to leave, poor fellow; but if he had been a Croesus he could
+not have given his favorite pupil anything that would have delighted him
+more.
+
+Nils played now early and late, except when he was in the woods with his
+father. His fame went abroad through all the valley as the best fiddler
+in seven parishes round, and people often came from afar to hear
+him. There was a peculiar quality in his playing--something strangely
+appealing, that brought the tears to one’s eyes--yet so elusive that it
+was impossible to repeat or describe it.
+
+It was rumored among the villagers that he had caught the Nixy’s
+strain, and that it was that which touched the heart so deeply in his
+improvisations. But Nils knew well that he had not caught the Nixy’s
+strain; though a faint echo--a haunting undertone--of that vaguely
+remembered snatch of melody, heard now and then in the water’s roar,
+would steal at times into his music, when he was, perhaps, himself least
+aware of it.
+
+Invitations now came to him from far and wide to play at wedding and
+dancing parties and funerals. There was no feast complete without Nils;
+and soon this strange thing was noticed, that quarrels and brawls, which
+in those days were common enough in Norway, were rare wherever Nils
+played.
+
+It seemed as if his calm and gentle presence called forth all that
+was good in the feasters and banished whatever was evil. Such was his
+popularity that he earned more money by his fiddling in a week than his
+father had ever done by charcoal-burning in a month.
+
+A half-superstitious regard for him became general among the people;
+first, because it seemed impossible that any man could play as he did
+without the aid of some supernatural power; and secondly, because his
+gentle demeanor and quaint, terse sayings inspired them with admiration.
+It was difficult to tell by whom the name, Wise Nils, was first started,
+but it was felt by all to be appropriate, and it therefore clung to the
+modest fiddler, in spite of all his protests.
+
+Before he was twenty-five years old it became the fashion to go to him
+and consult him in difficult situations; and though he long shrank from
+giving advice, his reluctance wore away, when it became evident to him
+that he could actually benefit the people.
+
+There was nothing mysterious in his counsel. All he said was as clear
+and rational as the day-light. But the good folk were nevertheless
+inclined to attribute a higher authority to him; and would desist from
+vice or folly for his sake, when they would not for their own sake. It
+was odd, indeed: this Wise Nils, the fiddler, became a great man in the
+valley, and his renown went abroad and brought him visitors, seeking
+his counsel, from distant parishes. Rarely did anyone leave him
+disappointed, or at least without being benefited by his sympathetic
+advice.
+
+One summer, during the tourist season, a famous foreign musician came
+to Norway, accompanied by a rich American gentleman. While in his
+neighborhood, they heard the story of the rustic fiddler, and became
+naturally curious to see him.
+
+They accordingly went to his cottage, in order to have some sport with
+him, for they expected to find a vain and ignorant charlatan, inflated
+by the flattery of his more ignorant neighbors. But Nils received them
+with a simple dignity which quite disarmed them. They had come to mock;
+they stayed to admire. This peasant’s artless speech, made up of ancient
+proverbs and shrewd common-sense, and instinct with a certain sunny
+beneficence, impressed them wonderfully.
+
+And when, at their request, he played some of his improvisations, the
+renowned musician exclaimed that here was, indeed, a great artist lost
+to the world. In spite of the poor violin, there was a marvellously
+touching quality in the music; something new and alluring which had
+never been heard before.
+
+But Nils himself was not aware of it. Occasionally, while he played, the
+Nixy’s haunting strain would flit through his brain, or hover about it,
+where he could feel it, as it were, but yet be unable to catch it. This
+was his regret--his constant chase for those elusive notes that refused
+to be captured.
+
+But he consoled himself many a time with the reflection that it was
+the fiddle’s fault, not his own. With a finer instrument, capable of
+rendering more delicate shades of sound, he might yet surprise the
+Nixy’s strain, and record it unmistakably in black and white.
+
+The foreign musician and his American friend departed, but returned at
+the end of two weeks. They then offered to accompany Nils on a concert
+tour through all the capitals of Europe and the large cities of America,
+and to insure him a sum of money which fairly made him dizzy.
+
+Nils begged for time to consider, and the next day surprised them by
+declining the startling offer.
+
+He was a peasant, he said, and must remain a peasant. He belonged here
+in his native valley, where he could do good, and was happy in the
+belief that he was useful.
+
+Out in the great world, of which he knew nothing, he might indeed gather
+wealth, but he might lose his peace of mind, which was more precious
+than wealth. He was content with a moderate prosperity, and that he had
+already attained. He had enough, and more than enough, to satisfy his
+modest wants, and to provide those who were dear to him with reasonable
+comfort in their present condition of life.
+
+The strangers were amazed at a man’s thus calmly refusing a fortune that
+was within his easy grasp, for they did not doubt that Nils, with
+his entirely unconventional manner of playing, and yet with that
+extraordinary moving quality in his play, would become the rage both in
+Europe and America, as a kind of heaven-born, untutored genius, and fill
+both his own pockets and theirs with shekels.
+
+They made repeated efforts to persuade him, but it was all in vain. With
+smiling serenity, he told them that he had uttered his final decision.
+They then took leave of him, and a month after their departure there
+arrived from Germany a box addressed to Nils. He opened it with some
+trepidation, and it was found to contain a Cremona violin--a genuine
+Stradivarius.
+
+The moment Nils touched the strings with the bow, a thrill of rapture
+went through him, the like of which he had never experienced. The divine
+sweetness and purity of the tone that vibrated through those magic
+chambers resounded through all his being, and made him feel happy and
+exalted.
+
+It occurred to him, while he was coaxing the intoxicating music from his
+instrument, that tonight would be midsummer night. Now was his chance to
+catch the Nixy’s strain, for this exquisite violin would be capable of
+rendering the very chant of the archangels in the morning of time.
+
+To-night he would surprise the Nixy, and the divine strain should no
+more drift like a melodious mist through his brain; for at midsummer
+night the Nixy always plays the loudest, and then, if ever, is the time
+to learn what he felt must be the highest secret of the musical art.
+
+Hugging his Stradivarius close to his breast, to protect it from the
+damp night-air, Nils hurried through the birch woods down to the river.
+The moon was sailing calmly through a fleecy film of cloud, and a light
+mist hovered over the tops of the forest.
+
+The fiery afterglow of the sunset still lingered in the air, though the
+sun had long been hidden, but the shadows of the trees were gaunt and
+dark, as in the light of the moon.
+
+The sound of the cataract stole with a whispering rush through the
+underbrush, for the water was low at midsummer, and a good deal of it
+was diverted to the mill, which was working busily away, with its big
+water-wheel going round and round.
+
+Nils paused close to the mill, and peered intently into the rushing
+current; but nothing appeared. Then he stole down to the river-bank,
+where he seated himself on a big stone, barely out of reach of the
+spray, which blew in gusts from the cataract. He sat for a long while
+motionless, gazing with rapt intentness at the struggling, foaming
+rapids, but he saw or heard nothing.
+
+Then all of a sudden it seemed to him that the air began to vibrate
+faintly with a vague, captivating rhythm. Nils could hear his heart
+beat in his throat. With trembling eagerness he unwrapped the violin and
+raised it to his chin.
+
+Now, surely, there was a note. It belonged on the A string. No, not
+there. On the E string, perhaps. But no, not there, either.
+
+Look! What is that?
+
+A flash, surely, through the water of a beautiful naked arm.
+
+And there--no, not there--but somewhere from out of the gentle rush
+of the middle current there seemed to come to him a marvellous mist of
+drifting sound--ineffably, rapturously sweet!
+
+With a light movement Nils runs his bow over the strings, but not a
+ghost, not a semblance, can he reproduce of the swift, scurrying flight
+of that wondrous melody. Again and again he listens breathlessly, and
+again and again despair overwhelms him.
+
+Should he, then, never see the Nixy, and ask the fulfilment of his three
+wishes?
+
+Curiously enough, those three wishes which once were so great a part
+of his life had now almost escaped him. It was the Nixy’s strain he had
+been intent upon, and the wishes had lapsed into oblivion.
+
+And what were they, really, those three wishes, for the sake of which he
+desired to confront the Nixy?
+
+Well, the first--the first was--what was it, now? Yes, now at length he
+remembered. The first was wisdom.
+
+Well, the people called him Wise Nils now, so, perhaps, that wish was
+superfluous. Very likely he had as much wisdom as was good for him. At
+all events, he had refused to acquire more by going abroad to acquaint
+himself with the affairs of the great world.
+
+Then the second wish; yes, he could recall that. It was fame. It was odd
+indeed; that, too, he had refused, and what he possessed of it was as
+much, or even far more, than he desired. But when he called to mind the
+third and last of his boyish wishes, a moderate prosperity or a good
+violin--for that was the alternative--he had to laugh outright, for both
+the violin and the prosperity were already his.
+
+Nils lapsed into deep thought, as he sat there in the summer night, with
+the crowns of the trees above him and the brawling rapids swirling about
+him.
+
+Had not the Nixy bestowed upon him her best gift already in permitting
+him to hear that exquisite ghost of a melody, that shadowy, impalpable
+strain, which had haunted him these many years? In pursuing that he had
+gained the goal of his desires, till other things he had wished for had
+come to him unawares, as it were, and almost without his knowing it. And
+now what had he to ask of the Nixy, who had blessed him so abundantly?
+
+The last secret, the wondrous strain, forsooth, that he might imprison
+it in notes, and din it in the ears of an unappreciative multitude!
+Perhaps it were better, after all, to persevere forever in the quest,
+for what would life have left to offer him if the Nixy’s strain was
+finally caught, when all were finally attained, and no divine melody
+haunted the brain, beyond the powers even of a Stradivarius to lure from
+its shadowy realm?
+
+Nils walked home that night plunged in deep meditation. He vowed to
+himself that he would never more try to catch the Nixy’s strain. But the
+next day, when he seized the violin, there it was again, and, strive as
+he might, he could not forbear trying to catch it.
+
+Wise Nils is many years older now; has a good wife and several children,
+and is a happy man; but to this day, resolve as he will, he has never
+been able to abandon the effort to catch the Nixy’s strain. Sometimes he
+thinks he has half caught it, but when he tries to play it, it is always
+gone.
+
+
+
+
+THE WONDER CHILD
+
+
+
+
+I.
+
+A very common belief in Norway, as in many other lands, is that the
+seventh child of the seventh child can heal the sick by the laying on
+of hands. Such a child is therefore called a wonder child. Little Carina
+Holt was the seventh in a family of eight brothers and sisters, but she
+grew to be six years old before it became generally known that she was a
+wonder child. Then people came from afar to see her, bringing their sick
+with them; and morning after morning, as Mrs. Holt rolled up the shades,
+she found invalids, seated or standing in the snow, gazing with devout
+faith and anxious longing toward Carina’s window.
+
+It seemed a pity to send them away uncomforted, when the look and the
+touch cost Carina so little. But there was another fear that arose in
+the mother’s breast, and that was lest her child should be harmed by the
+veneration with which she was regarded, and perhaps come to believe that
+she was something more than a common mortal. What was more natural than
+that a child who was told by grown-up people that there was healing in
+her touch, should at last come to believe that she was something apart
+and extraordinary?
+
+It would have been a marvel, indeed, if the constant attention she
+attracted, and the pilgrimages that were made to her, had failed to make
+any impression upon her sensitive mind. Vain she was not, and it would
+have been unjust to say that she was spoiled. She had a tender nature,
+full of sympathy for sorrow and suffering. She was constantly giving
+away her shoes, her stockings, nay, even her hood and cloak, to poor
+little invalids, whose misery appealed to her merciful heart. It was
+of no use to scold her; you could no more prevent a stream from flowing
+than Carina from giving. It was a spontaneous yielding to an impulse
+that was too strong to be resisted.
+
+But to her father there was something unnatural in it; he would have
+preferred to have her frankly selfish, as most children are, not because
+he thought it lovely, but because it was childish and natural. Her
+unusual goodness gave him a pang more painful than ever the bad behavior
+of her brothers had occasioned. On the other hand, it delighted him to
+see her do anything that ordinary children did. He was charmed if she
+could be induced to take part in a noisy romp, play tag, or dress her
+dolls. But there followed usually after each outbreak of natural mirth a
+shy withdrawal into herself, a resolute and quiet retirement, as if she,
+were a trifle ashamed of her gayety. There was nothing morbid in these
+moods, no brooding sadness or repentance, but a touching solemnity, a
+serene, almost cheerful seriousness, which in one of her years seemed
+strange.
+
+Mr. Holt had many a struggle with himself as to how he should treat
+Carina’s delusion; and he made up his mind, at last, that it was his
+duty to do everything in his power to dispel and counteract it. When he
+happened to overhear her talking to her dolls one day, laying her hands
+upon them, and curing them of imaginary diseases, he concluded it was
+high time for him to act.
+
+He called Carina to him, remonstrated kindly with her, and forbade her
+henceforth to see the people who came to her for the purpose of
+being cured. But it distressed him greatly to see how reluctantly she
+consented to obey him.
+
+When Carina awoke the morning after this promise had been extorted from
+her, she heard the dogs barking furiously in the yard below. Her elder
+sister, Agnes, was standing half dressed before the mirror, holding the
+end of one blond braid between her teeth, while tying the other with
+a pink ribbon. Seeing that Carina was awake, she gave her a nod in the
+glass, and, removing her braid, observed that there evidently were sick
+pilgrims under the window. She could sympathize with Sultan and Hector,
+she averred, in their dislike of pilgrims.
+
+“Oh, I wish they would not come!” sighed Carina. “It will be so hard for
+me to send them away.”
+
+“I thought you liked curing people,” exclaimed Agnes.
+
+“I do, sister, but papa has made me promise never to do it again.”
+
+She arose and began to dress, her sister assisting her, chatting all the
+while like a gay little chirruping bird that neither gets nor expects an
+answer. She was too accustomed to Carina’s moods to be either annoyed
+or astonished; but she loved her all the same, and knew that her little
+ears were wide open, even though she gave no sign of listening.
+
+Carina had just completed her simple toilet when Guro, the chamber-maid,
+entered, and announced that there were some sick folk below who wished
+to see the wonder child.
+
+“Tell them I cannot see them,” answered Carina, with a tremulous voice;
+“papa does not permit me.”
+
+“But this man, Atle Pilot, has come from so far away in this dreadful
+cold,” pleaded Guro, “and his son is so very bad, poor thing; he’s lying
+down in the boat, and he sighs and groans fit to move a stone.”
+
+“Don’t! Don’t tell her that,” interposed Agnes, motioning to the girl to
+begone. “Don’t you see it is hard enough for her already?”
+
+There was something in the air, as the two sisters descended the stairs
+hand in hand, which foreboded calamity. The pastor had given out from
+the pulpit last Sunday that he would positively receive no invalids
+at his house; and he had solemnly charged every one to refrain from
+bringing their sick to his daughter. He had repeated this announcement
+again and again, and he was now very much annoyed at his apparent
+powerlessness to protect his child from further imposition. Loud and
+angry speech was heard in his office, and a noise as if the furniture
+were being knocked about. The two little girls remained standing on the
+stairs, each gazing at the other’s frightened face. Then there was a
+great bang, and a stalwart, elderly sailor came tumbling head foremost
+out into the hall. His cap was flung after him through the crack of the
+door. Agnes saw for an instant her father’s face, red and excited;
+and in his bearing there was something wild and strange, which was so
+different from his usual gentle and dignified appearance. The sailor
+stood for a while bewildered, leaning against the wall; then he stooped
+slowly and picked up his cap. But the moment he caught sight of Carina
+his embarrassment vanished, and his rough features were illuminated with
+an intense emotion.
+
+“Come, little miss, and help me,” he cried, in a hoarse, imploring
+whisper. “Halvor, my son--he is the only one God gave me--he is sick; he
+is going to die, miss, unless you take pity on him.”
+
+“Where is he?” asked Carina.
+
+“He’s down in the boat, miss, at the pier. But I’ll carry him up to you,
+if you like. We have been rowing half the night in the cold, and he is
+very low.”
+
+“No, no; you mustn’t bring him here,” said Agnes, seeing by Carina’s
+face that she was on the point of yielding. “Father would be so angry.”
+
+“He may kill me if he likes,” exclaimed the sailor, wildly. “It doesn’t
+matter to me. But Halvor he’s the only one I have, miss, and his mother
+died when he was born, and he is young, miss, and he will have many
+years to live, if you’ll only have mercy on him.”
+
+“But, you know, I shouldn’t dare, on papa’s account, to have you bring
+him here,” began Carina, struggling with her tears.
+
+“Ah, yes! Then you will go to him. God bless you for that!” cried the
+poor man, with agonized eagerness. And interpreting the assent he read
+in Carina’s eye, he caught her up in his arms, snatched a coat from a
+peg in the wall, and wrapping her in it, tore open the door. Carina made
+no outcry, and was not in the least afraid. She felt herself resting in
+two strong arms, warmly wrapped and borne away at a great speed over the
+snow. But Agnes, seeing her sister vanish in that sudden fashion, gave a
+scream which called her father to the door.
+
+“What has happened?” he asked. “Where is Carina?”
+
+“That dreadful Atle Pilot took her and ran away with her.”
+
+“Ran away with her?” cried the pastor in alarm. “How? Where?”
+
+“Down to the pier.”
+
+It was a few moments’ work for the terrified father to burst open the
+door, and with his velvet skull-cap on his head, and the skirts of his
+dressing-gown flying wildly about him, rush down toward the beach. He
+saw Atle Pilot scarcely fifty feet in advance of him, and shouted to him
+at the top of his voice. But the sailor only redoubled his speed, and
+darted out upon the pier, hugging tightly to his breast the precious
+burden he carried. So blindly did he rush ahead that the pastor expected
+to see him plunge headlong into the icy waves. But, as by a miracle,
+he suddenly checked himself, and grasping with one hand the flag-pole,
+swung around it, a foot or two above the black water, and regained his
+foothold upon the planks. He stood for an instant irresolute, staring
+down into a boat which lay moored to the end of the pier. What he saw
+resembled a big bundle, consisting of a sheepskin coat and a couple of
+horse blankets.
+
+“Halvor,” he cried, with a voice that shook with emotion, “I have
+brought her.”
+
+There was presently a vague movement under the horse-blankets, and after
+a minute’s struggle a pale yellowish face became visible. It was a young
+face--the face of a boy of fifteen or sixteen. But, oh, what suffering
+was depicted in those sunken eyes, those bloodless, cracked lips, and
+the shrunken yellow skin which clung in premature wrinkles about the
+emaciated features! An old and worn fur cap was pulled down over his
+ears, but from under its rim a few strands of blond hair were hanging
+upon his forehead.
+
+Atle had just disentangled Carina from her wrappings, and was about
+to descend the stairs to the water when a heavy hand seized him by the
+shoulder, and a panting voice shouted in his ear:
+
+“Give me back my child.”
+
+He paused, and turned his pathetically bewildered face toward the
+pastor. “You wouldn’t take him from me, parson,” he stammered,
+helplessly; “no, you wouldn’t. He’s the only one I’ve got.”
+
+“I don’t take him from you,” the parson thundered, wrathfully. “But what
+right have you to come and steal my child, because yours is ill?”
+
+“When life is at stake, parson,” said the pilot, imploringly, “one gets
+muddled about right and wrong. I’ll do your little girl no harm. Only
+let her lay her blessed hands upon my poor boy’s head, and he will be
+well.”
+
+“I have told you no, man, and I must put a stop to this stupid idolatry,
+which will ruin my child, and do you no good. Give her back to me, I
+say, at once.”
+
+The pastor held out his hand to receive Carina, who stared at him with
+large pleading eyes out of the grizzly wolf-skin coat.
+
+“Be good to him, papa,” she begged. “Only this once.”
+
+“No, child; no parleying now; come instantly.”
+
+And he seized her by main force, and tore her out of the pilot’s arms.
+But to his dying day he remembered the figure of the heart-broken man,
+as he stood outlined against the dark horizon, shaking his clinched
+fists against the sky, and crying out, in a voice of despair:
+
+“May God show you the same mercy on the Judgment Day as you have shown
+to me!”
+
+
+
+
+II.
+
+Six miserable days passed. The weather was stormy, and tidings of
+shipwreck and calamity filled the air. Scarcely a visitor came to the
+parsonage who had not some tale of woe to relate. The pastor, who was
+usually so gentle and cheerful, wore a dismal face, and it was easy to
+see that something was weighing on his mind.
+
+“May God show you the same mercy on the Judgment Day as you have shown
+to me!”
+
+These words rang constantly in his ears by night and by day. Had he
+not been right, according to the laws of God and man, in defending his
+household against the assaults of ignorance and superstition? Would
+he have been justified in sacrificing his own child, even if he could
+thereby save another’s? And, moreover, was it not all a wild, heathenish
+delusion, which it was his duty as a servant of God to stamp out and
+root out at all hazards? Yes, there could be no doubt of it; he had but
+exercised his legal right. He had done what was demanded of him by laws
+human and divine. He had nothing to reproach himself for. And yet, with
+a haunting persistency, the image of the despairing pilot praying God
+for vengeance stared at him from every dark corner, and in the very
+church bells, as they rang out their solemn invitation to the house
+of God, he seemed to hear the rhythm and cadence of the heart-broken
+father’s imprecation. In the depth of his heart there was a still small
+voice which told him that, say what he might, he had acted cruelly. If
+he put himself in Atle Pilot’s place, bound as he was in the iron bonds
+of superstition, how different the case would look? He saw himself, in
+spirit, rowing in a lonely boat through the stormy winter night to
+his pastor, bringing his only son, who was at the point of death, and
+praying that the pastor’s daughter might lay her hands upon him, as
+Christ had done to the blind, the halt, and the maimed. And his pastor
+received him with wrath, nay, with blows, and sent him away uncomforted.
+It was a hideous picture indeed, and Mr. Holt would have given years of
+his life to be rid of it.
+
+It was on the sixth day after Atle’s visit that the pastor, sitting
+alone in his study, called Carina to him. He had scarcely seen her
+during the last six days, or at least talked with her. Her sweet
+innocent spirit would banish the shadows that darkened his soul.
+
+“Carina,” he said, in his old affectionate way, “papa wants to see you.
+Come here and let me talk a little with you.”
+
+But could he trust his eyes? Carina, who formerly had run so eagerly
+into his arms, stood hesitating, as if she hoped to be excused.
+
+“Well, my little girl,” he asked, in a tone of apprehension, “don’t you
+want to talk with papa?”
+
+“I would rather wait till some other time, papa,” she managed to
+stammer, while her little face flushed with embarrassment.
+
+Mr. Holt closed the door silently, flung himself into a chair, and
+groaned. That was a blow from where he had least expected it. The child
+had judged him and found him wanting. His Carina, his darling, who had
+always been closest to his heart, no longer responded to his affection!
+Was the pilot’s prayer being fulfilled? Was he losing his own child in
+return for the one he had refused to save? With a pang in his breast,
+which was like an aching wound, he walked up and down on the floor and
+marvelled at his own blindness. He had erred indeed; and there was no
+hope that any chance would come to him to remedy the wrong.
+
+The twilight had deepened into darkness while he revolved this trouble
+in his mind. The night was stormy, and the limbs of the trees without
+were continually knocking and bumping against the walls of the house.
+The rusty weather-vane on the roof whined and screamed, and every now
+and then the sleet dashed against the window-panes like a handful of
+shot. The wind hurled itself against the walls, so that the timbers
+creaked and pulled at the shutters, banged stray doors in out-of-the-way
+garrets, and then, having accomplished its work, whirled away over the
+fields with a wild and dismal howl. The pastor sat listening mournfully
+to this tempestuous commotion. Once he thought he heard a noise as of a
+door opening near by him, and softly closing; but as he saw no one, he
+concluded it was his overwrought fancy that had played him a trick. He
+seated himself again in his easy-chair before the stove, which spread a
+dim light from its draught-hole into the surrounding gloom.
+
+While he sat thus absorbed in his meditations, he was startled at the
+sound of something resembling a sob. He arose to strike a light, but
+found that his match-safe was empty. But what was that? A step without,
+surely, and the groping of hands for the door-knob.
+
+“Who is there?” cried the pastor, with a shivering uneasiness.
+
+He sprang forward and opened the door. A broad figure, surmounted by a
+sou’wester, loomed up in the dark.
+
+“What do you want?” asked Mr. Holt, with forced calmness.
+
+“I want to know,” answered a gruff, hoarse voice, “if you’ll come to my
+son now, and help him into eternity?”
+
+The pastor recognized Atle Pilot’s voice, though it seemed harsher and
+hoarser than usual.
+
+“Sail across the fjord on a night like this?” he exclaimed.
+
+“That’s what I ask you.”
+
+“And the boy is dying, you say?”
+
+“Can’t last till morning.”
+
+“And has he asked for the sacrament?”
+
+The pilot stepped across the threshold and entered the room. He
+proceeded slowly to pull off his mittens; then looking up at the
+pastor’s face, upon which a vague sheen fell from the stove, he broke
+out:
+
+“Will you come or will you not? You wouldn’t help him to live; now will
+you help him to die?”
+
+The words, thrust forth with a slow, panting emphasis, hit the pastor
+like so many blows.
+
+“I will come,” he said, with solemn resolution. “Sit down till I get
+ready.”
+
+He had expected some expression of gratification or thanks, for Atle
+well knew what he had asked. It was his life the pastor risked, but
+this time in his calling as a physician, not of bodies, but of souls.
+It struck him, while he took leave of his wife, that there was something
+resentful and desperate in the pilot’s manner, so different from his
+humble pleading at their last meeting.
+
+As he embraced the children one by one, and kissed them, he missed
+Carina, but was told that she had probably gone to the cow-stable
+with the dairy-maid, who was her particular friend. So he left tender
+messages for her, and, summoning Atle, plunged out into the storm. A
+servant walked before him with a lantern, and lighted the way down to
+the pier, where the boat lay tossing upon the waves.
+
+“But, man,” cried the pastor, seeing that the boat was empty, “where are
+your boatmen?”
+
+“I am my own boatman,” answered Atle, gloomily. “You can hold the sheet,
+I the tiller.”
+
+Mr. Holt was ashamed of retiring now, when he had given his word.
+
+But it was with a sinking heart that he stepped into the frail skiff,
+which seemed scarcely more than a nutshell upon the tempestuous deep. He
+was on the point of asking his servant, unacquainted though he was
+with seamanship, to be the third man in the boat; but the latter,
+anticipating his intention, had made haste to betake himself away. To
+venture out into this roaring darkness, with no beacon to guide them,
+and scarcely a landmark discernible, was indeed to tempt Providence.
+
+But by the time he had finished this reflection, the pastor felt himself
+rushing along at a tremendous speed, and short, sharp commands rang in
+his ears, which instantly engrossed all his attention. To his eyes the
+sky looked black as ink, except for a dark-blue unearthly shimmer that
+now and then flared up from the north, trembled, and vanished. By this
+unsteady illumination it was possible to catch a momentary glimpse of
+a head, and a peak, and the outline of a mountain. The small sail was
+double-reefed, yet the boat careened so heavily that the water broke
+over the gunwale. The squalls beat down upon them with tumultuous
+roar and smoke, as of snow-drifts, in their wake; but the little boat,
+climbing the top of the waves and sinking into the dizzy black pits
+between them, sped fearlessly along and the pastor began to take heart.
+Then, with a fierce cutting distinctness, came the command out of the
+dark.
+
+“Pull out the reefs!”
+
+“Are you crazy, man?” shouted the pastor. “Do you want to sail straight
+into eternity?”
+
+“Pull out the reefs!” The command was repeated with wrathful emphasis.
+
+“Then we are dead men, both you and I.”
+
+“So we are, parson--dead men. My son lies dead at home, though you might
+have saved him. So, now, parson, we are quits.”
+
+With a fierce laugh he rose up, and still holding the tiller, stretched
+his hand to tear out the reefs. But at that instant, just as a quivering
+shimmer broke across the sky, something rose up from under the thwart
+and stood between them. Atle started back with a hoarse scream.
+
+“In Heaven’s name, child!” he cried. “Oh, God, have mercy upon me!”
+
+And the pastor, not knowing whether he saw a child or a vision, cried
+out in the same moment: “Carina, my darling! Carina, how came you here?”
+
+It was Carina, indeed; but the storm whirled her tiny voice away over
+the waves, and her father, folding her with one arm to his breast, while
+holding the sheet with the other, did not hear what she answered to his
+fervent exclamation. He only knew that her dear little head rested close
+to his heart, and that her yellow hair blew across his face.
+
+“I wanted to save that poor boy, papa,” were the only words that met his
+ears. But he needed no more to explain the mystery. It was Carina, who,
+repenting of her unkindness to him, had stolen into his study, while he
+sat in the dark, and there she had heard Atle Pilot’s message. Even if
+this boy was sick unto death, she might perhaps cure him, and make up
+for her father’s harshness. Thus reasoned the sage Carina; and she had
+gone secretly and prepared for the voyage, and battled with the storm,
+which again and again threw her down on her road to the pier. It was
+a miracle that she got safely into the boat, and stowed herself away
+snugly under the stern thwart.
+
+The clearing in the north gradually spread over the sky, and the
+storm abated. Soon they had the shore in view, and the lights of the
+fishermen’s cottages gleamed along the beach of the headland. Presently
+they ran into smoother water; a star or two flashed forth, and wide blue
+expanses appeared here and there on the vault of the sky. They spied the
+red lanterns marking the wharf, about which a multitude of boats lay,
+moored to stakes, and with three skilful tacks Atle made the harbor.
+It was here, standing on the pier, amid the swash and swirl of surging
+waters, that the pilot seized Carina’s tiny hand in his big and rough
+one.
+
+“Parson,” he said, with a breaking voice, “I was going to run afoul of
+you, and wreck myself with you; but this child, God bless her! she ran
+us both into port, safe and sound.”
+
+But Carina did not hear what he said, for she lay sweetly sleeping in
+her father’s arms.
+
+
+
+
+“THE SONS OF THE VIKINGS”
+
+
+
+
+I.
+
+When Hakon Vang said his prayers at night, he usually finished with
+these words: “And I thank thee, God, most of all, because thou madest me
+a Norseman, and not a German or an Englishman or a Swede.”
+
+To be a Norseman appears to the Norse boy a claim to distinction.
+
+God has made so many millions of Englishmen and Russians and Germans,
+that there can be no particular honor in being one of so vast a herd;
+while of Norsemen He has made only a small and select number, whom
+He looks after with special care; upon whom He showers such favors
+as poverty and cold (with a view to keeping them good and hardy), and
+remoteness from all the glittering temptations that beset the nations in
+whom He takes a less paternal interest. Thus at least reasons, in a dim
+way, the small boy in Norway; thus he is taught to reason by his parents
+and instructors.
+
+As for Hakon Vang, he strutted along the beach like a turkey-cock,
+whenever he thought of his glorious descent from the Vikings--those
+daring pirates that stole thrones and kingdoms, and mixed their red
+Norse blood in the veins of all the royal families of Europe. The
+teacher of history (who was what is called a Norse-Norseman) had on one
+occasion, with more patriotic zeal than discretion, undertaken to pick
+out those boys in his class who were of pure Norse descent; whose blood
+was untainted by any foreign admixture. The delighted pride of this
+small band made them an object of envy to all the rest of the school.
+Hakon, when his name was mentioned, felt as if he had added a yard to
+his height. Tears of joy started to his eyes; and to give vent to his
+overcharged feelings, he broke into a war-whoop; for which he received
+five black marks and was kept in at recess.
+
+But he minded that very little; all great men, he reflected, have had to
+suffer for their country.
+
+What Hakon loved above all things to study--nay, the only thing he loved
+to study--was the old Sagas, which are tales, poems, and histories
+of the deeds of the Norsemen in ancient times. With eleven of his
+classmates, who were about his own age and as Norse as himself, he
+formed a brotherhood which was called “The Sons of the Vikings.” They
+gave each other tremendously bloody surnames, in the style of the
+Sagas--names that reeked with gore and heroism. Hakon himself assumed
+the pleasing appellation “Skull-splitter,” and his classmate Frithjof
+Ronning was dubbed Vargr-i-Veum, which means Wolf-in-the-Temple. One Son
+of the Vikings was known as Ironbeard, another as Erling the Lop-Sided,
+a third as Thore the Hound, a fourth as Aslak Stone-Skull. But a serious
+difficulty, which came near disrupting the brotherhood, arose over these
+very names. It was felt that Hakon had taken an unfair advantage of the
+rest in selecting the bloodiest name at the outset (before anyone else
+had had an opportunity to choose), and there was a general demand that
+he should give it up and allow all to draw lots for it. But this Hakon
+stoutly refused to do; and declared that if anyone wanted his name he
+would have to fight for it, in good old Norse fashion.
+
+A holm-gang or duel was then arranged; that is, a ring was marked out
+with stones; the combatants stepped within it, and he who could drive
+his antagonist outside of the stone ring was declared to be the victor.
+Frithjof, who felt that he had a better claim to be named Skull-Splitter
+than Hakon, was the first to accept the challenge; but after a terrible
+combat was forced to bite the dust. His conqueror was, however, filled
+with such a glowing admiration of his valor (as combatants in the
+Sagas frequently are), that he proposed that they should swear eternal
+friendship and foster-brotherhood, and seal their compact, according to
+Norse custom, by the ceremony called “Mingling of Blood.” It is needless
+to say that this seemed to all the boys a most delightful proposition;
+and they entered upon the august rite with a deep sense of its
+solemnity.
+
+First a piece of sod, about twelve feet square, was carefully raised
+upon wooden stakes representing spears, so as to form a green roof over
+the foster-brothers. Then, sitting upon the black earth, where the turf
+had been removed, they bared their arms to the shoulder, and in the
+presence of his ten brethren, as witnesses, each swore that he would
+regard the other as his true brother and love him and treat him as such,
+and avenge his death if he survived him; in solemn testimony of which
+each drew a knife and opened a vein in his arm, letting their blood
+mingle and flow together. Hakon, however, in his heroic zeal, drove the
+knife into his flesh rather recklessly, and when the blood had flowed
+profusely for five minutes, he grew a trifle uneasy. Frithjof, after
+having bathed his arm in a neighboring brook, had no difficulty in
+stanching the blood, but the poor Skull-Splitter’s wound, in spite of
+cold water and bandages, kept pouring forth its warm current without
+sign of abatement. Hakon grew paler and paler, and would have burst into
+tears, if he had not been a “Son of the Vikings.” It would have been a
+relief to him, for the moment, not to have been a “Son of the Vikings.”
+ For he was terribly frightened, and thought surely he was going to bleed
+to death. The other Vikings, too, began to feel rather alarmed at such a
+prospect; and when Erling the Lop-Sided (the pastor’s son) proposed that
+they should carry Hakon to the doctor, no one made any objection. But
+the doctor unhappily lived so far away that Hakon might die before he
+got there.
+
+“Well, then,” said Wolf-in-the Temple, “let us take him to old
+Witch-Martha. She can stanch blood and do lots of other queer things.”
+
+“Yes, and that is much more Norse, too,” suggested Thore the Hound;
+“wise women learned physic and bandaged wounds in the olden time. Men
+were never doctors.”
+
+“Yes, Witch-Martha is just the right style,” said Erling the Lop-Sided
+down in his boots; for he had naturally a shrill voice and gave himself
+great pains to produce a manly bass.
+
+“We must make a litter to carry the Skull-Splitter on,” exclaimed Einar
+Bowstring-Twanger (the sheriff’s son); “he’ll never get to Witch-Martha
+alive if he is to walk.”
+
+This suggestion was favorably received, the boys set to work with a
+will, and in a few minutes had put together a litter of green twigs and
+branches. Hakon, who was feeling curiously light-headed and exhausted,
+allowed himself to be placed upon it in a reclining position; and its
+swinging motion, as his friends carried it along, nearly rocked him to
+sleep. The fear of death was but vaguely present to his mind; but his
+self-importance grew with every moment, as he saw his blood trickle
+through the leaves and drop at the roadside. He appeared to himself
+a brave Norse warrior who was being carried by his comrades from the
+battle-field, where he had greatly distinguished himself. And now to be
+going, to the witch who, by magic rhymes and incantations, was to stanch
+the ebbing stream of his life--what could be more delightful?
+
+
+
+
+II.
+
+Witch Martha lived in a small lonely cottage down by the river. Very few
+people ever went to see her in the day-time; but at night she often had
+visitors. Mothers who suspected that their children were changelings,
+whom the Trolds had put in the cradle, taking the human infants away;
+girls who wanted to “turn the hearts” of their lovers, and lovers who
+wanted to turn the hearts of the girls; peasants who had lost money
+or valuables and wanted help to trace the thief--these and many
+others sought secret counsel with Witch-Martha, and rarely went away
+uncomforted. She was an old weather-beaten woman with a deeply wrinkled,
+smoky-brown face, and small shrewd black eyes. The floor in her cottage
+was strewn with sand and fresh juniper twigs; from the rafters under
+the ceiling hung bunches of strange herbs; and in the windows were
+flower-pots with blooming plants in them.
+
+Martha was stooping at the hearth, blowing and puffing at the fire
+under her coffee-pot, when the Sons of the Vikings knocked at the door.
+Wolf-in-the-Temple was the man who took the lead; and when Witch-Martha
+opened the upper half of the door (she never opened both at the same
+time) she was not a little astonished to see the Captain’s son, Frithjof
+Ronning, staring up at her with an anxious face.
+
+“What cost thou want, lad?” she asked, gruffly; “thou hast gone astray
+surely, and I’ll show thee the way home.”
+
+“I am Wolf-in-the-Temple,” began Frithjof, thrusting out his chest, and
+raising his head proudly.
+
+“Dear me, you don’t say so!” exclaimed Martha.
+
+“My comrade and foster-brother Skull-Splitter has been wounded; and I
+want thee, old crone, to stanch his blood before he bleeds to death.”
+
+“Dear, dear me, how very strange!” ejaculated the Witch, and shook her
+aged head.
+
+She had been accustomed to extraordinary requests; but the language
+of this boy struck her as being something of the queerest she had yet
+heard.
+
+“Where is thy Skull-Splitter, lad?” she asked, looking at him dubiously.
+
+“Right here in the underbrush,” Wolf-in-the-Temple retorted, gallantly;
+“stir thy aged stumps now, and thou shalt be right royally rewarded.”
+
+He had learned from Walter Scott’s romances that this was the proper way
+to address inferiors, and he prided himself not a little on his jaunty
+condescension. Imagine then his surprise when the “old crone” suddenly
+turned on him with an angry scowl and said:
+
+“If thou canst not keep a civil tongue in thy head, I’ll bring a
+thousand plagues upon thee, thou umnannerly boy.”
+
+By this threat Wolf-in-the-Temple’s courage was sadly shaken. He knew
+Martha’s reputation as a witch, and had no desire to test in his own
+person whether rumor belied her.
+
+“Please, mum, I beg of you,” he said, with a sudden change of tone; “my
+friend Hakon Vang is bleeding to death; won’t you please help him?”
+
+“Thy friend Hakon Vang!” cried Martha, to whom that name was very
+familiar; “bring him in, as quick as thou canst, and I’ll do what I can
+for him.”
+
+Wolf-in-the-Temple put two fingers into his mouth and gave a loud
+shrill whistle, which was answered from the woods, and presently the
+small procession moved up to the door, carrying their wounded comrade
+between them. The poor Skull-Splitter was now as white as a sheet, and
+the drowsiness of his eyes and the laxness of his features showed that
+help came none too early. Martha, in hot haste, grabbed a bag of herbs,
+thrust it into a pot of warm water, and clapped it on the wound. Then
+she began to wag her head slowly to and fro, and crooned, to a soft and
+plaintive tune, words which sounded to the ears of the boys shudderingly
+strange:
+
+     “I conjure in water, I conjure in lead,
+     I conjure with herbs that grew o’er the dead;
+     I conjure with flowers that I plucked, without shoon,
+     When the ghosts were abroad, in the wane of the moon.
+     I conjure with spirits of earth and air
+     That make the wind sigh and cry in despair;
+     I conjure by him within sevenfold rings
+     That sits and broods at the roots of things.
+     I conjure by him who healeth strife,
+     Who plants and waters the germs of life.
+     I conjure, I conjure, I bid thee be still,
+     Thou ruddy stream, thou hast flowed thy fill!
+     Return to thy channel and nurture his life
+     Till his destined measure of years be rife.”
+
+
+She sang the last two lines with sudden energy; and when she removed
+her hand from the wound, the blood had ceased to flow. The poor
+Skull-Splitter was sleeping soundly; and his friends, shivering a little
+with mysterious fears, marched up and down whispering to one another.
+They set a guard of honor at the leafy couch of their wounded comrade;
+intercepted the green worms and other insects that kept dropping down
+upon him from the alder branches overhead, and brushed away the flies
+that would fain disturb his slumbers. They were all steeped to the core
+in old Norse heroism; and they enjoyed the situation hugely. All the
+life about them was half blotted out; they saw it but dimly. That light
+of youthful romance, which never was on sea or land, transformed all
+the common things that met their vision into something strange and
+wonderful. They strained their ears to catch the meaning of the song of
+the birds, so that they might learn from them the secrets of the future,
+as Sigurd the Volsung did, after he had slain the dragon, Fafnir. The
+woods round about them were filled with dragons and fabulous beasts,
+whose tracks they detected with the eyes of faith; and they started
+out every morning, during the all too brief vacation, on imaginary
+expeditions against imaginary monsters.
+
+When at the end of an hour the Skull-Splitter woke from his slumber,
+much refreshed, Witch-Martha bandaged his arm carefully, and Wolf-in-the
+Temple (having no golden arm-rings) tossed her, with magnificent
+superciliousness, his purse, which contained six cents. But she flung
+it back at him with such force that he had to dodge with more adroitness
+than dignity.
+
+“I’ll get my claws into thee some day, thou foolish lad,” she said,
+lifting her lean vulture-like hand with a threatening gesture.
+
+“No, please don’t, Martha, I didn’t mean anything,” cried the boy, in
+great alarm; “you’ll forgive me, won’t you, Martha?”
+
+“I’ll bid thee begone, and take thy foolish tongue along with thee,” she
+answered, in a mollified tone.
+
+And the Sons of the Vikings, taking the hint, shouldered the litter once
+more, and reached Skull-Splitter’s home in time for supper.
+
+
+
+
+III.
+
+The Sons of the Vikings were much troubled. Every heroic deed which they
+plotted had this little disadvantage, that they were in danger of going
+to jail for it. They could not steal cattle and horses, because they
+did not know what to do with them when they had got them; they could
+not sail away over the briny deep in search of fortune or glory, because
+they had no ships; and sail-boats were scarcely big enough for daring
+voyages to the blooming South which their ancestors had ravaged. The
+precious vacation was slipping away, and as yet they had accomplished
+nothing that could at all be called heroic. It was while the brotherhood
+was lamenting this fact that Wolf-in-the-Temple had a brilliant idea.
+He procured his father’s permission to invite his eleven companions to
+spend a day and a night at the Ronning saeter, or mountain dairy, far up
+in the highlands. The only condition Mr. Ronning made was that they were
+to be accompanied by his man, Brumle-Knute, who was to be responsible
+for their safety. But the boys determined privately to make Brumle-Knute
+their prisoner, in case he showed any disposition to spoil their sport.
+To spend a day and a night in the woods, to imagine themselves Vikings,
+and behave as they imagined Vikings would behave, was a prospect which
+no one could contemplate without the most delightful excitement. There,
+far away from sheriffs and pastors and maternal supervision, they might
+perhaps find the long-desired chance of performing their heroic deed.
+
+It was a beautiful morning early in August that the boys started from
+Strandholm, Mr. Ronning’s estate, accompanied by Brumle-Knute. The
+latter was a middle-aged, round-shouldered peasant, who had the habit of
+always talking to himself. To look at him you would have supposed that
+he was a rough and stupid fellow who would have quite enough to do in
+looking after himself. But the fact was, that Brumle-Knute was the best
+shot, the best climber--and altogether the most keen-eyed hunter in the
+whole valley. It was a saying that he could scent game so well that he
+never needed a dog; and that he could imitate to perfection the call of
+every game bird that inhabited the mountain glens. Sweet-tempered he was
+not; but so reliable, skilful, and vigilant, and moreover so thorough
+a woodsman, that the boys could well afford to put up with his gruff
+temper.
+
+The Sons of the Vikings were all mounted on ponies; and
+Wolf-in-the-Temple, who had been elected chieftain, led the troop.
+At his side rode Skull-Splitter, who was yet a trifle pale after his
+blood-letting, but brimming over with ambition to distinguish himself.
+They had all tied their trousers to their legs with leather thongs, in
+order to be perfectly “Old Norse;” and some of them had turned their
+plaids and summer overcoats inside out, displaying the gorgeous colors
+of the lining. Loosely attached about their necks and flying in the
+wind, these could easily serve for scarlet or purple cloaks wrought on
+Syrian looms. Most of the boys carried also wooden swords and shields,
+and the chief had a long loor or Alpine horn. Only the valiant
+Ironbeard, whose father was a military man, had a real sword and a real
+scabbard into the bargain. Wolf-in-the-Temple, and Erling the
+Lop-Sided, had each an old fowling-piece; and Brumle-Knute carried a
+double-barrelled rifle. This, to be sure, was not; quite historically
+correct; but firearms are so useful in the woods, even if they are not
+correct, that it was resolved not to notice the irregularity; for there
+were boars in the mountains, besides wolves and foxes and no end of
+smaller game.
+
+For an hour or more the procession rode, single file, up the steep and
+rugged mountain-paths; but the boys were all in high spirits and enjoyed
+themselves hugely. The mere fact that they were Vikings, on a daring
+foraging expedition into a neighboring kingdom, imparted a wonderful
+zest to everything they did and said. It might be foolish, but it was on
+that account none the less delightful. They sent out scouts to watch
+for the approach of an imaginary enemy; they had secret pass-words and
+signs; they swore (Viking style) by Thor’s hammer and by Odin’s eye.
+They talked appalling nonsense to each other with a delicious sentiment
+of its awful blood-curdling character. It was about noon when they
+reached the Strandholm saeter, which consisted of three turf-thatched
+log-cabins or chalets, surrounded by a green inclosure of half a dozen
+acres. The wide highland plain, eight or ten miles long, was bounded on
+the north and west by throngs of snow-hooded mountain peaks, which rose,
+one behind another, in glittering grandeur; and in the middle of the
+plain there were two lakes or tarns, connected by a river which was
+milky white where it entered the lakes and clear as crystal where it
+escaped.
+
+“Now, Vikings,” cried Wolf-in-the-Temple, when the boys had done justice
+to their dinner, “it behooves us to do valiant deeds, and to prove
+ourselves worthy of our fathers.”
+
+“Hear, hear,” shouted Ironbeard, who was fourteen years old and had a
+shadow of a moustache, “I am in for great deeds, hip, hip, hurrah!”
+
+“Hold your tongue when you hear me speak,” commanded the chieftain,
+loftily; “we will lie in wait at the ford, between the two tarns, and
+capture the travellers who pass that way. If perchance a princess from
+the neighboring kingdom pass, on the way to her dominions, we will hold
+her captive until her father, the king, comes to ransom her with heaps
+of gold in rings and fine garments and precious weapons.”
+
+“But what are we to do with her when we have caught her?” asked the
+Skull-Splitter, innocently.
+
+“We will keep her imprisoned in the empty saeter hut,”
+ Wolf-in-the-Temple responded. “Now, are you ready? We’ll leave the
+horses here on the croft, until our return.”
+
+The question now was to elude Brumle-Knute’s vigilance; for the Sons of
+the Vikings had good reasons for fearing that he might interfere with
+their enterprise. They therefore waited until Brumle-knute was invited
+by the dairymaid to sit down to dinner. No sooner had the door closed
+upon his stooping figure, than they stole out through a hole in the
+fence, crept on all-fours among the tangled dwarf-birches and the big
+gray boulders, and following close in the track of their leader, reached
+the ford between the lakes. There they observed two enormous heaps of
+stones known as the Parson and the Deacon; for it had been the custom
+from immemorial times for every traveller to fling a big stone as a
+“sacrifice” for good luck upon the Parson’s heap and a small stone
+upon the Deacon’s. Behind these piles of stone the boys hid themselves,
+keeping a watchful eye on the road and waiting for their chief’s signal
+to pounce upon unwary travellers. They lay for about fifteen minutes in
+expectant silence, and were on the point of losing their patience.
+
+“Look here, Wolf-in-the-Temple,” cried Erling the Lop-Sided, “you
+may think this is fun, but I don’t. Let us take the raft there and go
+fishing. The tarn is simply crowded with perch and bass.”
+
+“Hold your disrespectful tongue,” whispered the chief, warningly, “or
+I’ll discipline you so you’ll remember it till your dying day.”
+
+“Ho, ho!” laughed the rebel, jeeringly; “big words and fat pork don’t
+stick in the throat. Wait till I get you alone and we shall see who’ll
+be disciplined.”
+
+Erling had risen and was about to emerge from his hiding-place, when
+suddenly hoof-beats were heard, and a horse was seen approaching,
+carrying on its back a stalwart peasant lass, in whose lap a pretty
+little girl of twelve or thirteen was sitting.
+
+The former was clad in scarlet bodice, a black embroidered skirt, and
+a snowy-white kerchief was tied about her head. Her blonde hair hung in
+golden profusion down over her back and shoulders. The little girl
+was city-clad, and had a sweet and appealing face. She was chattering
+guilelessly with her companion, asking more questions than she could
+possibly expect to have answered. Nearer and nearer they came to the
+great stone heaps, dreaming of no harm.
+
+“And, Gunbjor,” the Skull-Splitter heard the little girl say, “you don’t
+really believe that there are trolds and fairies in the mountains, do
+you?”
+
+“Them as are wiser than I am have believed that,” was Gunbjor’s answer;
+“but we don’t hear so much about the trolds nowadays as they did when my
+granny was young. Then they took young girls into the mountain and----”
+
+Here came a wild, piercing yell, as the Sons of the Vikings rushed
+forward from behind the rocks, and with a terrible war-whoop swooped
+down upon the road. Wolf-in-the-Temple, who led the band, seized the
+horse by the bridle, and flourishing his sword threateningly, addressed
+the frightened peasant lass.
+
+“Is this, perchance, the Princess Kunigunde, the heir to the throne of
+my good friend, King Bjorn the Victorious?” he asked, with a magnificent
+air, seizing the trembling little girl by the wrist.
+
+“Nay,” Gunbjor answered, as soon as she could find her voice, “this is
+the Deacon’s Maggie, as is going to the saeter with me to spend Sunday.”
+
+“She cannot proceed on her way,” said the chieftain, decisively, “she is
+my prisoner.”
+
+Gunbjor, who had been frightened out of her wits by the small red- and
+blue-cloaked men, swarming among the stones, taking them to be trolds
+or fairies, now gradually recovered her senses. She recognized in Erling
+the Lop-Sided the well-known features of the parson’s son; and as
+soon as she had made this discovery she had no great difficulty in
+identifying the rest. “Never you fear, pet,” she said to the child in
+her lap, “these be bad boys as want to frighten us. I’ll give them a
+switching if they don’t look out.”
+
+“The Princess Kunigunde is my prisoner until it please her noble father
+to ransom her for ten pounds of silver,” repeated Wolf-in-the-Temple,
+putting his arm about little Maggie’s waist and trying to lift her from
+the saddle.
+
+“You keep yer hands off the child, or I’ll give you ten pounds of
+thrashing,” cried Gunbjor, angrily.
+
+“She shall be treated with the respect due to her rank,”
+ Wolf-in-the-Temple proceeded, loftily. “I give King Bjorn the Victorious
+three moons in which to bring me the ransom.”
+
+“And I’ll give you three boxes on the ear, and a cut with my whip, into
+the bargain, if you don’t let the horse alone, and take yer hands off
+the child.”
+
+“Vikings!” cried the chief, “lay hands on her! Tear her from the saddle!
+She has defied us! She deserves no mercy.”
+
+With a tremendous yell the boys rushed forward, brandishing their swords
+above their heads, and pulled Gunbjor from the saddle. But she held on
+to her charge with a vigorous clutch, and as soon as her feet touched
+the ground she began with her disengaged hand to lay about her, with
+her whip, in a way that proved extremely unpleasant. Wolf-in-the-Temple,
+against whom her assault was especially directed, received some bad cuts
+across his face, and Ironbeard was driven backward into the ford, where
+he fell, full length, and rose dripping wet and mortified. Thore the
+Hound got a thump in his head from Gunbjor’s stalwart elbows, and
+Skull-Splitter, who had more courage than discretion, was pitched
+into the water with no more ceremony than if he had been a superfluous
+kitten. The fact was--I cannot disguise it--within five minutes the
+whole valiant band of the Sons of the Vikings were routed by that
+terrible switch, wielded by the intrepid Gunbjor. When the last of her
+foes had bitten the dust, she calmly remounted her pony, and with the
+Deacon’s Maggie in her lap rode, at a leisurely pace, across the ford.
+
+“Good-by, lads,” she said, nodding her head at them over her shoulder;
+“ye needn’t be afraid. I won’t tell on you.”
+
+
+
+
+IV.
+
+To have been routed by a woman was a terrible humiliation to the valiant
+Sons of the Vikings. They were silent and moody during the evening,
+and sat staring into the big bonfire on the saeter green with stern and
+melancholy features. They had suffered defeat in battle, and it behooved
+them to avenge it. About nine o’clock they retired into their bunks
+in the log cabin, but no sooner was Brumle-Knute’s rhythmic snoring
+perceived than Wolf-in-the-Temple put his head out and called to
+his comrades to meet him in front of the house for a council of war.
+Instantly they scrambled out of their alcoves, pulled on their coats
+and trousers; and noiselessly stole out into the night. The sun was yet
+visible, but a red veil of fiery mist was drawn across his face; and
+a magic air of fairy-tales and strange unreality was diffused over
+mountains, plains and lakes. The river wound like a huge, blood-red
+serpent through the mountain pastures, and the snow-hooded peaks blazed
+with fiery splendor.
+
+The boys were quite stunned at the sight of such magnificence, and stood
+for some minutes gazing at the landscape, before giving heed to the
+summons of the chief.
+
+“Comrades,” said Wolf-in-the-Temple, solemnly, “what is life without
+honor?”
+
+There was not a soul present who could answer that conundrum, and after
+a fitting pause the chief was forced to answer it himself.
+
+“Life without honor, comrades,” he said, severely, “life--without honor
+is--nothing.”
+
+“Hear, hear!” cried Ironbeard; “good for you, old man!”
+
+“Silence!” thundered Wolf-in-the-Temple, “I must beg the gentlemen to
+observe the proprieties.”
+
+This tremendous phrase rarely failed to restore order, and the flippant
+Ironbeard was duly rebuked by the glances of displeasure which met him
+on all sides. But in the meanwhile the chief had lost the thread of his
+speech and could not recover it. “Vikings,” he resumed, clearing his
+throat vehemently, “we have been--that is to say--we have sustained----”
+
+“A thrashing,” supplied the innocent Skull-Splitter.
+
+But the awful stare which was fixed upon him convinced him that he
+had made a mistake; and he shrunk into an abashed silence. “We must do
+something to retrieve our honor,” continued the chief, earnestly; “we
+must--take steps--to to get upon our legs again,” he finished, blushing
+with embarrassment.
+
+“I would suggest that we get upon our legs first, and take the steps
+afterward,” remarked the flippant Ironbeard, with a sly wink at Thore
+the Hound.
+
+The chief held it to be beneath his dignity to notice this interruption,
+and after having gazed for a while in silence at the blood-red mountain
+peaks, he continued, more at his ease:
+
+“I propose, comrades, that we go on a bear hunt. Then, when we return
+with a bear-skin or two, our honor will be all right; no one will dare
+laugh at us. The brave boy-hunters will be the admiration and pride of
+the whole valley.”
+
+“But Brummle-Knute,” observed the Skull-Splitter; “do you think he will
+allow us to go bear-hunting?”
+
+“What do we care whether he allows us or not?” cried Wolf-in-the-Temple,
+scornfully; “he sleeps like a log; and I propose that we tie his hands
+and feet before we start.”
+
+This suggestion met with enthusiastic approval, and all the boys laughed
+heartily at the idea of Brumle-Knute waking up and finding himself tied
+with ropes, like a calf that is carried to market.
+
+“Now, comrades,” commanded the chief, with a flourish of his sword, “get
+to bed quickly. I’ll call you at four o’clock; we’ll then start to chase
+the monarch of the mountains.”
+
+The Sons of the Vikings scrambled into their bunks with great despatch;
+and though their beds consisted of pine twigs, covered with a coarse
+sheet, and a bat of straw for a pillow, they fell asleep without
+rocking, and slept more soundly than if they had rested on silken
+bolsters filled with eiderdown. Wolf-in-the-Temple was as good as his
+word, and waked them promptly at four o’clock; and their first task,
+after having filled their knapsacks with provisions, was to tie
+Brumle-Knute’s hands and feet with the most cunning slip-knots, which
+would tighten more, the more he struggled to unloose them. Ironbeard,
+who had served a year before the mast, was the contriver of this daring
+enterprise; and he did it so cleverly that Brumle-Knute never suspected
+that his liberty was being interfered with. He snorted a little and
+rubbed imaginary cobwebs from his face; but soon lapsed again into a
+deep, snoring unconsciousness.
+
+The faces of the Sons of the Vikings grew very serious as they started
+out on this dangerous expedition. There was more than one of them who
+would not have objected to remaining at home, but who feared to
+incur the charge of cowardice if he opposed the wishes of the rest.
+Wolf-in-the-Temple walked at the head of the column, as they hastened
+with stealthy tread out of the saeter inclosure, and steered their
+course toward the dense pine forest, the tops of which were visible
+toward the east, where the mountain sloped toward the valley. He
+carried his fowling-piece, loaded with shot, in his right hand, and a
+powder-horn and other equipments for the chase were flung across his
+shoulder. Erling the Lop-Sided was similarly armed, and Ironbeard,
+glorying in a real sword, unsheathed it every minute and let it flash
+in the sun. It was a great consolation to the rest of the Vikings to
+see these formidable weapons; for they were not wise enough to know that
+grown-up bears are not killed with shot, and that a fowling-piece is
+a good deal more dangerous than no weapon at all, in the hands of an
+inexperienced hunter.
+
+The sun, who had exchanged his flaming robe de nuit for the rosy colors
+of morning, was now shooting his bright shafts of light across the
+mountain plain, and cheering the hearts of the Sons of the Vikings. The
+air was fresh and cool; and it seemed a luxury to breathe it. It entered
+the lungs in a pure, vivifying stream like an elixir of life, and sent
+the blood dancing through the veins. It was impossible to mope in such
+air; and Ironbeard interpreted the general mood when he struck up the
+tune:
+
+     “We wander with joy on the far mountain path,
+     We follow the star that will guide us;”
+
+but before he had finished the third verse, it occurred to the chief
+that they were bear-hunters, and that it was very unsportsmanlike
+behavior to sing on the chase. For all that they were all very jolly,
+throbbing with excitement at the thought of the adventures which they
+were about to encounter; and concealing a latent spark of fear under an
+excess of bravado. At the end of an hour’s march they had reached the
+pine forest; and as they were all ravenously hungry they sat down
+upon the stones, where a clear mountain brook ran down the slope, and
+unpacked their provisions. Wolf-in-the-Temple had just helped himself,
+in old Norse fashion, to a slice of smoked ham, having slashed a piece
+off at random with his knife, when Erling the Lop-Sided observed that
+that ham had a very curious odor. Everyone had to test its smell; and
+they all agreed that it did have a singular flavor, though its taste was
+irreproachable.
+
+“It smells like a menagerie,” said the Skull-Splitter, as he handed it
+to Thore the Hound.
+
+“But the bread and the biscuit smell just the same,” said Thore the
+Hound; “in fact, it is the air that smells like a menagerie.”
+
+“Boys,” cried Wolf-in-the-Temple, “do you see that track in the mud?”
+
+“Yes; it is the track of a barefooted man,” suggested the innocent
+Skull-Splitter.
+
+Ironbeard and Erling the Lop-Sided flung themselves down among the
+stones and investigated the tracks; and they were no longer in doubt as
+to where the pungent wild odor came from, which they had attributed to
+the ham.
+
+“Boys,” said Erling, looking up with an excited face, “a she-bear with
+one or two cubs has been here within a few minutes.”
+
+“This is her drinking-place,” said Ironbeard: “the tracks are many and
+well-worn; if she hasn’t been here this morning, she is sure to come
+before long.”
+
+“We are in luck indeed,” Wolf-in-the-Temple observed, coolly; “we
+needn’t go far for our bear. He will be coming for us.”
+
+At that moment the note of an Alpine horn was heard; but it was
+impossible to determine how far it was away; for the echo took up the
+note and flung it back and forth with clear and strong reverberations
+from mountain to mountain.
+
+“It is Brumle-Knute who is calling us,” said Thore the Hound. “The
+dairymaid must have released him. Shall we answer?”
+
+“Never,” cried the chief, proudly; “I forbid you to answer. Here we have
+our heroic deed in sight, and I want no one to spoil it. If there is a
+coward among us, let him take to his heels; no one shall detain him.”
+
+There were perhaps several who would have liked to accept the
+invitation; but no one did. Skull-Splitter, by way of diversion, plumped
+backward into the brook, and sat down in the cool pool up to his waist.
+But nobody laughed at his mishap; because they had their minds full of
+more serious thoughts. Wolf-in-the-Temple, who had climbed up on a big
+moss-grown boulder, stood, gun in hand, and peered in among the bushes.
+
+“Boys,” he whispered, “drop down on your bellies--quick.”
+
+All, crowding behind a rock, obeyed, pushing themselves into position
+with hands and feet. With wildly beating hearts the Vikings gazed up
+among the gray wilderness of stone and underbrush, and first one, then
+another, caught sight of something brown and hairy that came toddling
+down toward them, now rolling like a ball of yarn, now turning a
+somersault, and now again pegging industriously along on four clumsy
+paws. It was the prettiest little bear cub that ever woke on its mossy
+lair in the woods. Now it came shuffling down in a boozy way to take its
+morning bath. It seemed but half awake; and Skull-Splitter imagined
+that it was a trifle cross, because its mother had waked it too early.
+Evidently it had made no toilet as yet, for bits of moss were
+sticking in its hair; and it yawned once or twice, and shook its
+head disgustedly. Skull-Splitter knew so well that feeling and could
+sympathize with the poor young cub. But Wolf-in-the-Temple, who watched
+it no less intently, was filled with quite different emotions. Here
+was his heroic deed, for which he had hungered so long. To shoot a
+bear--that was a deed worthy of a Norseman. One step more--then two--and
+then--up rose the bear cub on its hind legs and rubbed its eyes with
+its paws. Now he had a clean shot--now or never; and pulling the trigger
+Wolf-in-the-Temple blazed away and sent a handful of shot into the
+carcass of the poor little bear. Up jumped all the Sons of the Vikings
+from behind their stones, and, with a shout of triumph, ran up the path
+to where the cub was lying. It had rolled itself up into a brown ball,
+and whimpered like a child in pain. But at that very moment there came
+an ominous growl out of the underbrush, and a crackling and creaking of
+branches was heard which made the hearts of the boys stand still.
+
+“Erling,” cried Wolf-in-the-Temple, “hand me your gun, and load mine for
+me as quick as you can.”
+
+The words were scarcely out of his mouth when the head of a big brown
+she-bear became visible among the bushes. She paused in the path,
+where her cub was lying, turned him over with her paw, licked his face,
+grumbled with a low soothing tone, snuffed him all over and rubbed her
+nose against his snout. But unwarily she must have touched some sore
+spot; for the cub gave a sharp yelp of pain and writhed and whimpered
+as he looked up into his mother’s eyes, clumsily returning her caresses.
+The boys, half emerged from their hiding-places, stood watching this
+demonstration of affection not without sympathy; and Skull-Splitter,
+for one, heartily wished that the chief had not wounded the little
+bear. Quite ignorant as he was of the nature of bears, he allowed his
+compassion to get the better of his judgment. It seemed such a pity that
+the poor little beast should lie there and suffer with one eye put out
+and forty or fifty bits of lead distributed through its body. It would
+be much more merciful to put it out of its misery altogether. And
+accordingly when Erling the Lop-Sided handed him his gun to pass on to
+the chief, Skull-Splitter started forward, flung the gun to his cheek,
+and blazed away at the little bear once more, entirely heedless of
+consequences. It was a random, unskilful shot, which was about equally
+shared by the cub and its mother. And the latter was not in a mood to be
+trifled with. With an angry roar she rose on her hind legs and advanced
+against the unhappy Skull-Splitter with two uplifted paws. In another
+moment she would give him one of her vigorous “left-handers,” which
+would probably pacify him forever. Ironbeard gave a scream of terror
+and Thore the Hound broke down an alder-sapling in his excitement. But
+Wolf-in-the-Temple, remembering that he had sworn foster-brotherhood
+with this brave and foolish little lad, thought that now was the time to
+show his heroism. Here it was no longer play, but dead earnest. Down he
+leaped from his rock, and just as the she-bear was within a foot of the
+Skull-Splitter, he dealt her a blow in the head with the butt end of
+his gun which made the sparks dance before her eyes. She turned suddenly
+toward her new assailant, growling savagely, and scratched her ear with
+her paw. And Skull-Splitter, who had slipped on the pine needles and
+fallen, scrambled to his feet again, leaving his gun on the ground, and
+with a few aimless steps tumbled once more into the brook. Ironbeard,
+seeing that he was being outdone by his chief, was quick to seize the
+gun, and rushing forward dealt the she-bear another blow, which, instead
+of disabling her, only exasperated her further. She glared with her
+small bloodshot eyes now at the one, now at the other boy, as if in
+doubt which she would tackle first. It was an awful moment; one or the
+other might have saved himself by flight, but each was determined to
+stand his ground. Vikings could die, but never flee. With a furious
+growl the she-bear started toward her last assailant, lifting her
+terrible paw. Ironbeard backed a few steps, pointing his gun before him;
+and with benumbing force the paw descended upon the gun-barrel, striking
+it out of his hands.
+
+It seemed all of a sudden to the boy as if his arms were asleep up to
+the shoulders; he had a stinging sensation in his flesh and a humming in
+his ears, which made him fear that his last hour had come. If the bear
+renewed the attack now, he was utterly defenceless. He was not exactly
+afraid, but he was numb all over. It seemed to matter little what became
+of him.
+
+But now a strange thing happened. To his unutterable astonishment he saw
+the she-bear drop down on all fours and vent her rage on the gun, which,
+in a trice, was bent and broken into a dozen fragments. But in this
+diversion she was interrupted by Wolf-in-the-Temple, who hammered away
+again at her head with the heavy end of his weapon. Again she rose,
+and presented two rows of white teeth which looked as if they meant
+business. It was the chief’s turn now to meet his fate; and it was
+the more serious because his helper was disarmed and could give him no
+assistance. With a wildly thumping heart he raised the butt end of his
+gun and dashed forward, when as by a miracle a shot was heard--a sharp,
+loud shot that rumbled away with manifold reverberations among the
+mountains. In the same instant the huge brown bear tumbled forward,
+rolled over, with a gasping growl, and was dead.
+
+“O Brumle-Knute! Brumle-Knute!” yelled the boys in joyous chorus, as
+they saw their rescuer coming forward from behind the rocks, “how did you
+find us?”
+
+“I heard yer shots and I saw yer tracks,” said Brumle-Knute, dryly; “but
+when ye go bear-hunting another time ye had better load with bullets
+instead of bird-shot.”
+
+“But Brumle-Knute, we only wanted to shoot the little bear,” protested
+Wolf-in-the-Temple.
+
+“That may be,” Brumle-Knute replied; “but the big bears, they are a
+curiously unreasonable lot--they are apt to get mad when you fire at
+their little ones. Next time you must recollect to take the big bear
+into account.”
+
+I need not tell you that the Sons of the Vikings became great heroes
+when the rumor of their bear hunt was noised abroad through the valley.
+But, for all that, they determined to disband their brotherhood.
+Wolf-in-the-Temple expressed the sentiment of all when, at their last
+meeting, he made a speech, in which these words occurred:
+
+“Brothers, the world isn’t quite the same now as it was in the days
+when our Viking forefathers spread the terror of their name through the
+South. We are not so strong as they were, nor so hardy. When we mingle
+blood, we have to send for a surgeon. If we steal princesses we may go
+to jail for it--or--or--well--never mind--what else may happen. Heroism
+isn’t appreciated as once it was in this country; and I, for one, won’t
+try to be a hero any more. I resign my chieftainship now, when I can do
+it with credit. Let us all make our bows of adieu as bear hunters; and
+if we don’t do anything more in the heroic line it is not because we
+can’t, but because we won’t.”
+
+
+
+
+PAUL JESPERSEN’S MASQUERADE
+
+There was great excitement in the little Norse town, Bumlebro, because
+there was going to be a masquerade. Everybody was busy inventing the
+character which he was to represent, and the costume in which he was to
+represent it.
+
+Miss Amelia Norbeck, the apothecary’s daughter, had intended to be Marie
+Antoinette, but had to give it up because the silk stockings were too
+dear, although she had already procured the beauty-patches and the
+powdered wig.
+
+Miss Arctander, the judge’s daughter, was to be Night, in black tulle,
+spangled with silver stars, and Miss Hanna Broby was to be Morning, in
+white tulle and pink roses.
+
+There had never BEEN a masquerade in Bumlebro, and there would not have
+been one now, if it had not been for the enterprise of young Arctander
+and young Norbeck, who had just returned from the military academy in
+the capital, and were anxious to exhibit themselves to the young girls
+in their glory.
+
+Of course, they could not afford to be exclusive, for there were but
+twenty or thirty families in the town that laid any claims to gentility,
+and they had all to be invited in order to fill the hall and pay the
+bills. Thus it came to pass that Paul Jespersen, the book-keeper in the
+fish-exporting firm of Broby & Larsen, received a card, although, to be
+sure, there had been a long debate in the committee as to where the line
+should be drawn.
+
+Paul Jespersen was uncommonly elated when he read the invitation,
+which was written on a gilt-edged card, requesting the pleasure of
+Mr. Jespersen’s company at a bal masque Tuesday, January 3d, in the
+Association Hall.
+
+“The pleasure of his company!”
+
+Think of it! He felt so flattered that he blushed to the tips of his
+ears. It must have been Miss Clara Broby who had induced them to be so
+polite to him, for those insolent cadets, who only nodded patronizingly
+to him in response to his deferential greeting, would never have asked
+for “the pleasure of his company.”
+
+Having satisfied himself on this point, Paul went to call upon Miss
+Clara in the evening, in order to pay her some compliment and consult
+her in regard to his costume; but Miss Clara, as it happened, was much
+more interested in her own costume than in that of Mr. Jespersen, and
+offered no useful suggestions.
+
+“What character would you advise me to select, Mr. Jespersen?” she
+inquired, sweetly. “My sister Hanna, you know, is going to be Morning,
+so I can’t be that, and it seems to me Morning would have suited me just
+lovely.”
+
+“Go as Beauty,” suggested Mr. Jespersen, blushing at the thought of his
+audacity.
+
+“So I will, Mr. Jespersen,” she answered, laughing, “if you will go as
+the Beast.”
+
+Paul, being a simple-hearted fellow, failed to see any sarcasm in this,
+but interpreted it rather as a hint that Miss Clara desired his escort,
+as Beauty, of course, only would be recognizable in her proper character
+by the presence of the Beast.
+
+“I shall be delighted, Miss Clara,” he said, beaming with pleasure. “If
+you will be my Beauty, I’ll be your Beast.”
+
+Miss Clara did not know exactly how to take this, and was rather
+absent-minded during the rest of the interview. She had been chaffing
+Mr. Jespersen, of course, but she did not wish to be absolutely rude to
+him, because he was her father’s employee, and, as she often heard her
+father say, a very valuable and trustworthy young man.
+
+When Paul got home he began at once to ponder upon his character as
+Beast, and particularly as Miss Clara’s Beast. It occurred to him that
+his uncle, the furrier, had an enormous bear-skin, with head, eyes,
+claws, and all that was necessary, and without delay he went to try it
+on.
+
+His uncle, feeling that this event was somehow to redound to the credit
+of the family, agreed to make the necessary alterations at a trifling
+cost, and when the night of the masquerade arrived, Paul was so startled
+at his appearance that he would have run away from himself if such a
+thing had been possible. He had never imagined that he would make such a
+successful Beast.
+
+By an ingenious contrivance with a string, which he pulled with his
+hand, he was able to move his lower jaw, which, with its red tongue and
+terrible teeth, presented an awful appearance. By patching the skin
+a little behind, his head was made to fit comfortably into the bear’s
+head, and his mild blue eyes looked out of the holes from which the
+bear’s eyes had been removed. The skin was laced with thin leather
+thongs from the neck down, but the long, shaggy fur made the lacing
+invisible.
+
+Paul Jespersen practiced ursine behavior before the looking-glass
+for about half an hour. Then, being uncomfortably warm, he started
+down-stairs, and determined to walk to the Association Hall. He chuckled
+to himself at the thought of the sensation he would make, if he should
+happen to meet anybody on the road.
+
+Having never attended a masquerade before, he did not know that
+dressing-rooms were provided for the maskers, and, being averse to
+needless expenditure, he would as soon have thought of flying as of
+taking a carriage. There was, in fact, but one carriage on runners in
+the town, and that was already engaged by half a dozen parties.
+
+The moon was shining faintly upon the snow, and there was a sharp frost
+in the air when Paul Jespersen put his hairy head out of the street-door
+and reconnoitred the territory.
+
+There was not a soul to be seen, except an old beggar woman who was
+hobbling along, supporting herself with two sticks. Paul darted, as
+quickly as his unwieldly bulk would allow, into the middle of the
+street. He enjoyed intensely the fun of walking abroad in such a
+monstrous guise. He contemplated with boyish satisfaction his shadow
+which stretched, long and black and horrible, across the snow.
+
+It was a bit slippery, and he had to manoeuvre carefully in order to
+keep right side up. Presently he caught up with the beggar woman.
+
+“Good-evening!” he said.
+
+The old woman turned about, stared at him horror-stricken; then, as soon
+as she had collected her senses, took to her heels, yelling at the top
+of her voice. A big mastiff, who had just been let loose for the night,
+began to bark angrily in a back yard, and a dozen comrades responded
+from other yards, and came bounding into the street.
+
+“Hello!” thought Paul Jespersen. “Now look out for trouble.”
+
+He felt anything but hilarious when he saw the pack of angry dogs
+dancing and leaping about him, barking in a wildly discordant chorus.
+
+“Why, Hector, you fool, don’t you know me?” he said, coaxingly, to the
+judge’s mastiff. “And you, Sultan, old man! You ought to be ashamed
+of yourself! Here, Caro, that’s a good fellow! Come, now, don’t excite
+yourself!”
+
+But Hector, Sultan, and Caro were all proof against such blandishments,
+and as for Bismarck, the apothecary’s collie, he grew every moment more
+furious, and showed his teeth in a very uncomfortable fashion.
+
+To defend one’s self was not to be thought of, for what defence is
+possible to a sham bear against a dozen genuine dogs? Paul could use
+neither his teeth nor his claws to any purpose, while the dogs could use
+theirs, as he presently discovered, with excellent effect.
+
+He had just concluded to seek safety in flight, when suddenly he felt a
+bite in his left calf, and saw the brute Bismarck tug away at his leg
+as if it had been a mutton-chop. He had scarcely recovered from this
+surprise when he heard a sharp report, and a bullet whizzed away over
+his head, after having neatly put a hole through the right ear. Paul
+concluded, with reason, that things were getting serious.
+
+If he could only get hold of that blockhead, the judge’s groom, who was
+violating the law about fire-arms, he would give him an exhibition in
+athletics which he would not soon forget; but, being for the moment
+deprived of this pleasure, he knew of nothing better to do than to dodge
+through the nearest street-door, and implore the protection of the very
+first individual he might meet.
+
+It so happened that Paul selected the house of two middle-aged milliners
+for this experiment.
+
+Jemina and Malla Hansen were just seated at the table drinking tea with
+their one constant visitor, the post-office clerk, Mathias, when, all
+of a sudden, they heard a tremendous racket in the hall, and the furious
+barking of dogs.
+
+With a scream of fright, the two old maids jumyed up, dropping their
+precious tea-cups, and old Mathias, who had tipped his chair a little
+backward, lost his balance, and pointed his heels toward the ceiling.
+Before he had time to pick himself up the door was burst open and a
+great hairy monster sprang into the room.
+
+“Mercy upon us!” cried Jemina. “It is the devil!”
+
+But now came the worst of it all. The bear put his paw on his heart, and
+with the politest bow in the world, remarked:
+
+“Pardon me, ladies, if I intrude.”
+
+He had meant to say more, but his audience had vanished; only the flying
+tails of Mathias’s coat were seen, as he slammed the door on them, in
+his precipitate flight.
+
+“Police! police!” someone shouted out of the window of the adjoining
+room.
+
+Police! Now, with all due respect for the officers of the law, Paul
+Jespersen had no desire to meet them at the present moment. To be hauled
+up at the station-house and fined for street disorder--nay, perhaps be
+locked up for the night, if, as was more than likely, the captain of
+police was at the masquerade, was not at all to Paul’s taste. Anything
+rather than that! He would be the laughing stock of the whole town
+if, after his elaborate efforts, he were to pass the night in a cell,
+instead of dancing with Miss Clara Broby.
+
+Hearing the cry for police repeated, Paul looked about him for some
+means of escape. It occurred to him that he had seen a ladder in the
+hall leading up to the loft. There he could easily hide himself until
+the crowd had dispersed.
+
+Without further reflection, he rushed out through the door by which he
+had entered, climbed the ladder, thrust open a trap-door, and, to his
+astonishment, found himself under the wintry sky.
+
+The roof sloped steeply, and he had to balance carefully in order
+to avoid sliding down into the midst of the noisy mob of dogs and
+street-boys who were laying siege to the door.
+
+With the utmost caution he crawled along the roof-tree, trembling lest
+he should be discovered by some lynx-eyed villain in the throng of his
+pursuers. Happily, the broad brick chimney afforded him some shelter,
+of which he was quick to take advantage. Rolling himself up into the
+smallest possible compass, he sat for a long time crouching behind
+the chimney; while the police were rummaging under the beds and in the
+closets of the house, in the hope of finding him.
+
+He had, of course, carefully closed the trap-door by which he had
+reached the comparative safety of his present position; and he could
+not help chuckling to himself at the thought of having outwitted the
+officers of the law.
+
+The crowd outside, after having made night hideous by their whoops and
+yells, began, at the end of an hour, to grow weary; and the dogs
+being denied entrance to the house, concluded that they had no further
+business there, and slunk off to their respective kennels.
+
+The people, too, scattered, and only a few patient loiterers hung about
+the street door, hoping for fresh developments. It seemed useless to
+Paul to wait until these provoking fellows should take themselves away.
+They were obviously prepared to make a night of it, and time was no
+object to them.
+
+It was then that Paul, in his despair, resolved upon a daring stratagem.
+Mr. Broby’s house was in the same block as that of the Misses Hansen,
+only it was at the other end of the block. By creeping along the
+roof-trees of the houses, which, happily, differed but slightly in
+height, he could reach the Broby house, where, no doubt, Miss Clara was
+now waiting for him, full of impatience.
+
+He did not deliberate long before testing the practicability of this
+plan. The tanner Thoresen’s house was reached without accident, although
+he barely escaped being detected by a small boy who was amusing himself
+throwing snow-balls at the chimney. It was a slow and wearisome mode of
+locomotion--pushing himself forward on his belly; but, as long as the
+streets were deserted, it was a pretty safe one.
+
+He gave a start whenever he heard a dog bark; for the echoes of the
+ear-splitting concert they had given him were yet ringing in his brain.
+
+It was no joke being a bear, he thought, and if he had suspected that it
+was such a serious business, he would not so rashly have undertaken it.
+But now there was no way of getting out of it; for he had nothing on but
+his underclothes under the bear-skin.
+
+At last he reached the Broby house, and drew a sigh of relief at the
+thought that he was now at the end of his journey.
+
+He looked about him for a trap-door by which he could descend into the
+interior, but could find none. There was an inch of snow on the roof,
+glazed with frost: and if there was a trap-door, it was securely hidden.
+
+To jump or slide down was out of the question, for he would, in that
+case, risk breaking his neck. If he cried for help, the groom, who was
+always ready with his gun, might take a fancy to shoot at him; and that
+would be still more unpleasant. It was a most embarrassing situation.
+
+Paul’s eyes fell upon a chimney; and the thought flashed through his
+head that there was the solution of the difficulty. He observed that
+no smoke was coming out of it, so that he would run no risk of being
+converted into smoked ham during the descent.
+
+He looked down through the long, black tunnel. It was a great, spacious,
+old-fashioned chimney, and abundantly wide enough for his purpose.
+
+A pleasant sound of laughter and merry voices came to him from the
+kitchen below. It was evident the girls were having a frolic. So,
+without further ado, Paul Jespersen stuffed his great hairy bulk into
+the chimney and proceeded to let himself down.
+
+There were notches and iron rings in the brick wall, evidently put there
+for the convenience of the chimney-sweeps; and he found his task easier
+than he had anticipated. The soot, to be sure, blinded his eyes, but
+where there was nothing to be seen, that was no serious disadvantage.
+
+In fact, everything was going as smoothly as possible, when suddenly he
+heard a girl’s voice cry out:
+
+“Gracious goodness! what is that in the chimney?”
+
+“Probably the chimney-sweep,” a man’s voice answered.
+
+“Chimney-sweep at this time of night!”
+
+Paul, bracing himself against the walls, looked down and saw a cluster
+of anxious faces all gazing up toward him. A candle which one of the
+girls held in her hand showed him that the distance down to the hearth
+was but short; so, to make an end of their uncertainty, he dropped
+himself down--quietly, as he thought, but by the force of his fall
+blowing the ashes about in all directions.
+
+A chorus of terrified screams greeted him. One girl fainted, one leaped
+up on a table, and the rest made for the door.
+
+And there sat poor Paul, in the ashes on the hearth, utterly bewildered
+by the consternation he had occasioned. He picked himself up by and by,
+rubbed the soot out of his eyes with the backs of his paws, and crawled
+out upon the floor.
+
+He had just managed to raise himself upon his hind-legs, when an awful
+apparition became visible in the door, holding a candle. It was now
+Paul’s turn to be frightened. The person who stood before him bore a
+close resemblance to the devil.
+
+“What is all this racket about?” he cried, in a tone of authority.
+
+Paul felt instantly relieved, for the voice was that of his revered
+chief, Mr. Broby, who, he now recollected, was to figure at the
+masquerade as Mephistopheles. Behind him peeped forth the faces of his
+two daughters, one as Morning and the other as Spring.
+
+“May I ask what is the cause of this unseemly noise?” repeated Mr.
+Broby, advancing to the middle of the room. The light of his candle now
+fell upon the huge bear whom, after a slight start, he recognized as a
+masker.
+
+“Excuse me, Mr. Broby,” said Paul, “but Miss Clara did me the honor----”
+
+“Oh yes, papa,” Miss Clara interrupted him, stepping forth in all her
+glory of tulle and flowers; “it is Paul Jespersen, who was going to be
+my Beast.”
+
+“And it is you who have frightened my servants half out of their wits,
+Jespersen?” said Mr. Broby, laughing.
+
+“He tumbled down through the chimney, sir,” declared the cook, who had
+half-recovered from her fright.
+
+“Well,” said Mr. Broby, with another laugh, “I admit that was a trifle
+unconventional. Next time you call, Jespersen, you must come through the
+door.”
+
+He thought Jespersen had chosen to play a practical joke on the
+servants, and, though he did not exactly like it, he was in no mood for
+scolding. After having been carefully brushed and rolled in the snow,
+Paul offered his escort to Miss Clara; and she had not the heart to tell
+him that she was not at all Beauty, but Spring. And Paul was not enough
+of an expert to know the difference.
+
+
+
+
+LADY CLARE THE STORY OF A HORSE
+
+The king was dead, and among the many things he left behind him which
+his successor had no use for were a lot of fancy horses. There were
+long-barrelled English hunters, all legs and neck; there were Kentucky
+racers, graceful, swift, and strong; and two Arabian steeds, which had
+been presented to his late majesty by the Sultan of Turkey. To see the
+beautiful beasts prancing and plunging, as they were being led through
+the streets by grooms in the royal livery, was enough to make the blood
+dance in the veins of any lover of horse-flesh. And to think that they
+were being led ignominiously to the auction mart to be sold under the
+hammer--knocked down to the highest bidder! It was a sin and a shame
+surely! And they seemed to feel it themselves; and that was the reason
+they acted so obstreperously, sometimes lifting the grooms off their
+feet as they reared and snorted and struck sparks with their steel-shod
+hoofs from the stone pavement.
+
+Among the crowd of schoolboys who followed the equine procession,
+shrieking and yelling with glee and exciting the horses by their wanton
+screams, was a handsome lad of fourteen, named Erik Carstens. He had
+fixed his eyes admiringly on a coal-black, four-year-old mare, a mere
+colt, which brought up the rear of the procession. How exquisitely she
+was fashioned! How she danced over the ground with a light mazurka step,
+as if she were shod with gutta-percha and not with iron! And then she
+had a head so daintily shaped, small and spirited, that it was a joy to
+look at her. Erik, who, in spite of his youth, was not a bad judge of
+a horse, felt his heart beat like a trip-hammer, and a mighty yearning
+took possession of him to become the owner of that mare.
+
+Though he knew it was time for dinner he could not tear himself away,
+but followed the procession up one street and down another, until it
+stopped at the horse market. There a lot of jockeys and coarse-looking
+dealers were on hand; and an opportunity was afforded them to try the
+horses before the auction began. They forced open the mouths of the
+beautiful animals, examined their teeth, prodded them with whips to see
+if they were gentle, and poked them with their fingers or canes. But
+when a loutish fellow, in a brown corduroy suit, indulged in that
+kind of behavior toward the black mare she gave a resentful whinny
+and without further ado grabbed him with her teeth by the coat collar,
+lifted him up and shook him as if he had been a bag of straw. Then she
+dropped him in the mud, and raised her dainty head with an air as if to
+say that she held him to be beneath contempt. The fellow, however, was
+not inclined to put up with that kind of treatment. With a volley of
+oaths he sprang up and would have struck the mare in the mouth with his
+clinched fist, if Erik had not darted forward and warded off the blow.
+
+“How dare you strike that beautiful creature?” he cried, indignantly.
+
+“Hold your jaw, you gosling, or I’ll hit you instead,” retorted the man.
+
+But by that time one of the royal grooms had made his appearance and the
+brute did not dare carry out his threat. While the groom strove to quiet
+the mare, a great tumult arose in some other part of the market-place.
+There was a whinnying, plunging, rearing, and screaming, as if the whole
+field had gone mad. The black mare joined in the concert, and stood
+with her ears pricked up and her head raised in an attitude of panicky
+expectation. Quite fearlessly Erik walked up to her, patted her on the
+neck and spoke soothingly to her.
+
+“Look out,” yelled the groom, “or she’ll trample you to jelly!”
+
+But instead of that, the mare rubbed her soft nose against the boy’s
+cheek, with a low, friendly neighing, as if she wished to thank him for
+his gallant conduct. And at that moment Erik’s heart went out to that
+dumb creature with an affection which he had never felt toward any
+living thing before. He determined, whatever might happen, to bid on her
+and to buy her, whatever she might prove to be worth. He knew he had a
+few thousand dollars in the bank--his inheritance from his mother, who
+had died when he was a baby--and he might, perhaps, be able to persuade
+his father to sanction the purchase. At any rate, he would have some
+time to invent ways and means; for his father, Captain Carstens, was now
+away on the great annual drill, and would not return for some weeks.
+
+As a mere matter of form, he resolved to try the mare before bidding on
+her; and slipping a coin into the groom’s hand he asked for a saddle. It
+turned out, however, that all the saddles were in use, and Erik had no
+choice but to mount bareback.
+
+“Ride her on the snaffle. She won’t stand the curb,” shouted the groom,
+as the mare, after plunging to the right and to the left, darted through
+the gate to the track, and, after kicking up a vast deal of tan-bark,
+sped like a bullet down the race-course.
+
+“Good gracious, how recklessly that boy rides!” one jockey observed to
+another; “but he has got a good grip with his knees all the same.”
+
+“Yes, he sits like a daisy,” the second replied, critically; “but mind
+my word, Lady Clare will throw him yet. She never could stand anybody
+but the princess on her back: and that was the reason her Royal Highness
+was so fond of her. Mother of Moses, won’t there be a grand rumpus when
+she comes back again and finds Lady Clare gone! I should not like to be
+in the shoes of the man who has ordered Lady Clare under the hammer.”
+
+“But look at the lad! I told you Lady Clare wouldn’t stand no manner of
+nonsense from boys.”
+
+“She is kicking like a Trojan! She’ll make hash of him if he loses his
+seat.”
+
+“Yes, but he sticks like a burr. That’s a jewel of a lad, I tell ye. He
+ought to have been a jockey.”
+
+Up the track came Lady Clare, black as the ace of spades, acting like
+the Old Harry. Something had displeased her, obviously, and she held
+Erik responsible for it. Possibly she had just waked up to the fact
+that she, who had been the pet of a princess, was now being ridden by an
+ordinary commoner. At all events, she had made up her mind to get rid
+of the commoner without further ceremony. Putting her fine ears back and
+dilating her nostrils, she suddenly gave a snort and a whisk with her
+tail, and up went her heels toward the eternal stars--that is, if there
+had been any stars visible just then. Everybody’s heart stuck in his
+throat; for fleet-footed racers were speeding round and round, and the
+fellow who got thrown in the midst of all these trampling hoofs would
+have small chance of looking upon the sun again. People instinctively
+tossed their heads up to see how high he would go before coming down
+again; but, for a wonder, they saw nothing, except a cloud of dust mixed
+with tan-bark, and when that had cleared away they discovered the black
+mare and her rider, apparently on the best of terms, dashing up the
+track at a breakneck pace.
+
+Erik was dripping with perspiration when he dismounted, and Lady Clare’s
+glossy coat was flecked with foam. She was not aware, apparently, that
+if she had any reputation to ruin she had damaged it most effectually.
+Her behavior on the track and her treatment of the horse-dealer were by
+this time common property, and every dealer and fancier made a mental
+note that Lady Clare was the number in the catalogue which he would
+not bid on. All her beauty and her distinguished ancestry counted for
+nothing, as long as she had so uncertain a temper. Her sire, Potiphar,
+it appeared, had also been subject to the same infirmities of temper,
+and there was a strain of savagery in her blood which might crop out
+when you least expected it.
+
+Accordingly, when a dozen fine horses had been knocked down at good
+prices, and Lady Clare’s turn came, no one came forward to inspect her,
+and no one could be found to make a bid.
+
+“Well, well, gentlemen,” cried the auctioneer, “here we have a beautiful
+thoroughbred mare, the favorite mount of Her Royal Highness the
+Princess, and not a bid do I hear. She’s a beauty, gentlemen, sired
+by the famous Potiphar who won the Epsom Handicap and no end of minor
+stakes. Take a look at her, gentlemen! Did you ever see a horse before
+that was raven black from nose to tail? I reckon you never did. But such
+a horse is Lady Clare. The man who can find a single white hair on her
+can have her for a gift. Come forward, gentlemen, come forward. Who will
+start her--say at five hundred?”
+
+A derisive laugh ran through the crowd, and a voice was heard to cry,
+“Fifty.”
+
+“Fifty!” repeated the auctioneer, in a deeply grieved and injured tone;
+“fifty did you say, sir? Fifty? Did I hear rightly? I hope, for the sake
+of the honor of this fair city, that my ears deceived me.”
+
+Here came a long and impressive pause, during which the auctioneer,
+suddenly abandoning his dramatic manner, chatted familiarly with a
+gentleman who stood near him. The only one in the crowd whom he had
+impressed with the fact that the honor of the city was at stake in
+this sale was Erik Carstens. He had happily discovered a young and rich
+lieutenant of his father’s company, and was trying to persuade him to
+bid in the mare for him.
+
+“But, my dear boy,” Lieutenant Thicker exclaimed, “what do you suppose
+the captain will say to me if I aid and abet his son in defying the
+paternal authority?”
+
+“Oh, you needn’t bother about that,” Erik rejoined eagerly. “If father
+was at home, I believe he would allow me to buy this mare. But I am a
+minor yet, and the auctioneer would not accept my bid. Therefore I
+thought you might be kind enough to bid for me.”
+
+The lieutenant made no answer, but looked at the earnest face of the boy
+with unmistakable sympathy. The auctioneer assumed again an insulted,
+affronted, pathetically entreating or scornfully repelling tone,
+according as it suited his purpose; and the price of Lady Clare crawled
+slowly and reluctantly up from fifty to seventy dollars. There it
+stopped, and neither the auctioneer’s tears nor his prayers could
+apparently coax it higher.
+
+“Seventy dollars!” he cried, as if he were really too shocked to speak
+at all; “seven-ty dollars! Make it eighty! Oh, it is a sin and a shame,
+gentlemen, and the fair fame of this beautiful city is eternally ruined.
+It will become a wagging of the head and a byword among the
+nations. Sev-en-ty dollars!”--then hotly and indignantly--“seventy
+dollars!--fifth and last time, seventy dollars!”--here he raised his
+hammer threateningly--“seventy dollars!”
+
+“One hundred!” cried a high boyish voice, and in an instant every
+neck was craned and every eye was turned toward the corner where Erik
+Carstens was standing, half hidden behind the broad figure of Lieutenant
+Thicker.
+
+“Did I hear a hundred?” repeated the auctioneer, wonderingly. “May I ask
+who was the gentleman who said a hundred?”
+
+An embarrassing silence followed. Erik knew that if he acknowledged the
+bid he would suffer the shame of having it refused. But his excitement
+and his solicitude for the fair fame of his native city had carried him
+away so completely that the words had escaped from his lips before he
+was fully aware of their import.
+
+“May I ask,” repeated the wielder of the hammer, slowly and
+emphatically, “may I ask the gentleman who offered one hundred dollars
+for Lady Clare to come forward and give his name?”
+
+He now looked straight at Erik, who blushed to the edge of his hair,
+but did not stir from the spot. From sheer embarrassment he clutched the
+lieutenant’s arm, and almost pinched it.
+
+“Oh, I beg your pardon,” the officer exclaimed, addressing the
+auctioneer, as if he had suddenly been aroused from a fit of
+abstraction; “I made the bid of one hundred dollars, or--or--at any
+rate, I make it now.”
+
+The same performance, intended to force up the price, was repeated once
+more, but with no avail, and at the end of two minutes Lady Clare was
+knocked down to Lieutenant Thicker.
+
+“Now I have gone and done it like the blooming idiot that I am,”
+ observed the lieutenant, when Lady Clare was led into his stable by a
+liveried groom. “What an overhauling the captain will give me when he
+gets home.”
+
+“You need have no fear,” Erik replied. “I’ll sound father as soon as
+he gets home; and if he makes any trouble I’ll pay you that one hundred
+dollars, with interest, the day I come of age.”
+
+Well, the captain came home, and having long had the intention to
+present his son with a saddle-horse, he allowed himself to be cajoled
+into approving of the bargain. The mare was an exquisite creature,
+if ever there was one, and he could well understand how Erik had been
+carried away; Lieutenant Thicker, instead of being hauled over the
+coals, as he had expected, received thanks for his kind and generous
+conduct toward the son of his superior officer. As for Erik himself, he
+had never had any idea that a boy’s life could be so glorious as his was
+now. Mounted on that splendid, coal-black mare, he rode through the city
+and far out into the country at his father’s side; and never did it
+seem to him that he had loved his father so well as he did during
+these afternoon rides. The captain was far from suspecting that in that
+episode of the purchase of Lady Clare his own relation to his son had
+been at stake. Not that Erik would not have obeyed his father, even if
+he had turned out his rough side and taken the lieutenant to task for
+his kindness; but their relation would in that case have lacked the warm
+intimacy (which in nowise excludes obedience and respect) and that last
+touch of devoted admiration which now bound them together.
+
+That fine touch of sympathy in the captain’s disposition which had
+enabled him to smile indulgently at his son’s enthusiasm for the horse
+made the son doubly anxious not to abuse such kindness, and to do
+everything in his power to deserve the confidence which made his life
+so rich and happy. Though, as I have said, Captain Carstens lacked the
+acuteness to discover how much he owed to Lady Clare, he acknowledged
+himself in quite a different way her debtor. He had never really been
+aware what a splendid specimen of a boy his son was until he saw him
+on the back of that spirited mare, which cut up with him like the Old
+Harry, and yet never succeeded in flurrying, far less in unseating him.
+The captain felt a glow of affection warming his breast at the sight of
+this, and his pride in Erik’s horsemanship proved a consolation to him
+when the boy’s less distinguished performances at school caused him fret
+and worry.
+
+“A boy so full of pluck must amount to something, even if he does not
+take kindly to Latin,” he reflected many a time. “I am afraid I have
+made a mistake in having him prepared for college. In the army now,
+and particularly in the cavalry, he would make a reputation in twenty
+minutes.”
+
+And a cavalryman Erik might, perhaps, have become if his father had not
+been transferred to another post, and compelled to take up his residence
+in the country. It was nominally a promotion, but Captain Carstens was
+ill pleased with it, and even had some thought of resigning rather than
+give up his delightful city life, and move far northward into the region
+of cod and herring. However, he was too young a man to retire on a
+pension, as yet, and so he gradually reconciled himself to the thought,
+and sailed northward in the month of April with his son and his entire
+household. It had long been a question whether Lady Clare should make
+the journey with them; for Captain Carstens maintained that so high-bred
+an animal would be very sensitive to climatic changes and might even die
+on the way. Again, he argued that it was an absurdity to bring so fine
+a horse into a rough country, where the roads are poor and where nature,
+in mercy, provides all beasts with rough, shaggy coats to protect them
+from the cold. How would Lady Clare, with her glossy satin coat, her
+slender legs that pirouetted so daintily over the ground, and her
+exquisite head, which she carried so proudly--how would she look
+and what kind of figure would she cut among the shaggy, stunted,
+sedate-looking nags of the Sognefiord district? But the captain, though
+what he said was irrefutable, had to suspend all argument when he saw
+how utterly wretched Erik became at the mere thought of losing Lady
+Clare. So he took his chances; and, after having ordered blankets
+of three different thicknesses for three different kinds of weather,
+shipped the mare with the rest of his family for his new northern home.
+
+As the weather proved unusually mild during the northward voyage Lady
+Clare arrived in Sogn without accident or adventure. And never in all
+her life had she looked more beautiful than she did when she came off
+the steamer, and half the population of the valley turned out to see
+her. It is no use denying that she was as vain as any other professional
+beauty, and the way she danced and pirouetted on the gangplank, when
+Erik led her on to the pier, filled the rustics with amazement. They
+had come to look at the new captain and his family; but when Lady Clare
+appeared she eclipsed the rest of the company so completely that no one
+had eyes for anybody but her. As the sun was shining and the wind was
+mild, Erik had taken off her striped overcoat (which covered her from
+nose to tail), for he felt in every fibre of his body the sensation she
+was making, and blushed with pleasure as if the admiring exclamations
+had been intended for himself.
+
+“Look at that horse,” cried young and old, with eyes as big as saucers,
+pointing with their fingers at Lady Clare.
+
+“Handsome carcass that mare has,” remarked a stoutish man, who knew what
+he was talking about; “and head and legs to match.”
+
+“She beats your Valders-Roan all hollow, John Garvestad,” said a young
+tease who stood next to him in the crowd.
+
+“My Valders-Roan has never seen his match yet, and never will, according
+to my reckoning,” answered John Garvestad.
+
+“Ho! ho!” shouted the young fellow, with a mocking laugh; “that
+black mare is a hand taller at the very least, and I bet you she’s a
+high-flyer. She has got the prettiest legs I ever clapped eyes on.”
+
+“They’d snap like clay pipes in the mountains,” replied Garvestad,
+contemptuously.
+
+Erik, as he blushingly ascended the slope to his new home, leading Lady
+Clare by a halter, had no suspicion of the sentiments which she had
+aroused in John Garvestad’s breast. He was only blissfully conscious of
+the admiration she had excited; and he promised himself a good deal of
+fun in future in showing off his horsemanship. He took Lady Clare to
+the stable, where a new box-stall had been made for her, examined the
+premises carefully and nailed a board over a crevice in the wall where
+he suspected a draught. He instructed Anders, the groom, with emphatic
+and anxious repetitions regarding her care, showed him how to make Lady
+Clare’s bed, how to comb her mane, how to brush her (for she refused to
+endure currying), how to blanket her, and how to read the thermometer
+which he nailed to one of the posts of the stall. The latter proved to
+be a more difficult task than he had anticipated; and the worst of it
+was that he was not sure that Anders knew any more on the subject of his
+instruction at the end of the lesson than he had at the beginning. To
+make sure that he had understood him he asked him to enter the stall and
+begin the process of grooming. But no sooner had the unhappy fellow put
+his nose inside the door than Lady Clare laid back her ears in a very
+ugly fashion, and with a vicious whisk of her tail waltzed around and
+planted two hoof-marks in the door, just where the groom’s nose had that
+very instant vanished. A second and a third trial had similar results;
+and as the box-stall was new and of hard wood, Erik had no wish to see
+it further damaged.
+
+“I won’t have nothin’ to do with that hoss, that’s as certain as my name
+is Anders,” the groom declared; and Erik, knowing that persuasion would
+be useless, had henceforth to be his own groom. The fact was he could
+not help sympathizing with that fastidiousness of Lady Clare which made
+her object to be handled by coarse fingers and roughly curried, combed,
+and washed like a common plebeian nag. One does not commence life
+associating with a princess for nothing. Lady Clare, feeling in every
+nerve her high descent and breeding, had perhaps a sense of having come
+down in the world, and, like many another irrational creature of her
+sex, she kicked madly against fate and exhibited the unloveliest side
+of her character. But with all her skittishness and caprice she was
+steadfast in one thing, and that was her love for Erik. As the days went
+by in country monotony, he began to feel it as a privilege rather than
+a burden to have the exclusive care of her. The low, friendly neighing
+with which she always greeted him, as soon as he opened the stable-door,
+was as intelligible and dear to him as the warm welcome of a friend. And
+when with dainty alertness she lifted her small, beautiful head, over
+which the fine net-work of veins meandered, above the top of the stall,
+and rubbed her nose caressingly against his cheek, before beginning to
+snuff at his various pockets for the accustomed lump of sugar, he felt
+a glow of affection spread from his heart and pervade his whole being.
+Yes, he loved this beautiful animal with a devotion which, a year ago,
+he would scarcely have thought it possible to bestow upon a horse.
+No one could have persuaded him that Lady Clare had not a soul which
+(whether it was immortal or not) was, at all events, as distinct and
+clearly defined as that of any person with whom he was acquainted. She
+was to him a personality--a dear, charming friend, with certain
+defects of character (as who has not?) which were, however, more
+than compensated for by her devotion to him. She was fastidious,
+quick-tempered, utterly unreasonable where her feelings were involved;
+full of aristocratic prejudice, which only her sex could excuse; and
+whimsical, proud, and capricious. It was absurd, of course, to contend
+that these qualities were in themselves admirable; but, on the other
+hand, few of us would not consent to overlook them in a friend who loved
+us as well as Lady Clare loved Erik.
+
+The fame of Lady Clare spread through the parish like fire in withered
+grass. People came from afar to look at her, and departed full of wonder
+at her beauty. When the captain and his son rode together to church on
+Sunday morning, men, women, and children stood in rows at the roadside
+staring at the wonderful mare as if she had been a dromedary or a
+rhinoceros. And when she was tied in the clergyman’s stable a large
+number of the men ignored the admonition of the church bells and missed
+the sermon, being unable to tear themselves away from Lady Clare’s
+charms. But woe to him who attempted to take liberties with her; there
+were two or three horsy young men who had narrow escapes from bearing
+the imprint of her iron shoes for the rest of their days.
+
+That taught the others a lesson, and now Lady Clare suffered from no
+annoying familiarities, but was admired at a respectful distance, until
+the pastor, vexed at her rivalry with his sermon, issued orders to have
+the stable-door locked during service.
+
+There was one person besides the pastor who was ill pleased at the
+reputation Lady Clare was making. That was John Garvestad, the owner of
+Valders-Roan. John was the richest man in the parish, and always made
+a point of keeping fine horses. Valders-Roan, a heavily built, powerful
+horse, with a tremendous neck and chest and long tassels on his
+fetlocks, but rather squat in the legs, had hitherto held undisputed
+rank as the finest horse in all Sogn. By the side of Lady Clare he
+looked as a stout, good-looking peasant lad with coltish manners might
+have looked by the side of the daughter of a hundred earls.
+
+But John Garvestad, who was naturally prejudiced in favor of his
+own horse, could scarcely be blamed for failing to recognize her
+superiority. He knew that formerly, on Sundays, the men were wont to
+gather with admiring comment about Valders-Roan; while now they stood
+craning their necks, peering through the windows of the parson’s stable,
+in order to catch a glimpse of Lady Clare, and all the time Valders-Roan
+was standing tied to the fence, in full view of all, utterly neglected.
+This spectacle filled him with such ire that he hardly could control
+himself. His first impulse was to pick a quarrel with Erik; but a second
+and far brighter idea presently struck him. He would buy Lady Clare.
+Accordingly, when the captain and his son had mounted their horses
+and were about to start on their homeward way, Garvestad, putting
+Valders-Roan to his trumps, dug his heels into his sides and rode up
+with a great flourish in front of the churchyard gate.
+
+“How much will you take for that mare of yours, captain?” he asked, as
+he checked his charger with unnecessary vigor close to Lady Clare.
+
+“She is not mine to sell,” the captain replied. “Lady Clare belongs to
+my son.”
+
+“Well, what will you take for her, then?” Garvestad repeated,
+swaggeringly, turning to Erik.
+
+“Not all the gold in the world could buy her,” retorted Erik, warmly.
+
+Valders-Roan, unable to resist the charms of Lady Clare, had in the
+meanwhile been making some cautious overtures toward an acquaintance.
+He arched his mighty neck, rose on his hind legs, while his tremendous
+forehoofs were beating the air, and cut up generally--all for Lady
+Clare’s benefit.
+
+She, however, having regarded his performances for awhile with a mild
+and somewhat condescending interest, grew a little tired of them and
+looked out over the fiord, as a belle might do, with a suppressed yawn,
+when her cavalier fails to entertain her. Valders-Roan, perceiving the
+slight, now concluded to make more decided advances. So he put forward
+his nose until it nearly touched Lady Clare’s, as if he meant to kiss
+her. But that was more than her ladyship was prepared to put up with.
+Quick as a flash she flung herself back on her haunches, down went her
+ears, and hers was the angriest horse’s head that ever had been seen in
+that parish. With an indignant snort she wheeled around, kicking up a
+cloud of dust by the suddenness of the manoeuvre. A less skilled rider
+than Erik would inevitably have been thrown by two such unforeseen
+jerks; and the fact was he had all he could do to keep his seat.
+
+“Oho!” shouted Garvestad, “your mare shies; she’ll break your neck some
+day, as likely as not. You had better sell her before she gets you into
+trouble.”
+
+“But I shouldn’t like to have your broken neck on my conscience,” Erik
+replied; “if necks are to be broken by Lady Clare I should prefer to
+have it be my own.”
+
+The peasant was not clever enough to make out whether this was jest or
+earnest. With a puzzled frown he stared at the youth and finally broke
+out:
+
+“Then you won’t sell her at no price? Anyway, the day you change your
+mind don’t forget to notify John Garvestad. If it’s spondulix you are
+after, then here’s where there’s plenty of ‘em.”
+
+He slapped his left breast-pocket with a great swagger, looking around
+to observe the impression he was making on his audience; then, jerking
+the bridle violently, so as to make his horse rear, he rode off like
+Alexander on Bucephalus, and swung down upon the highway.
+
+It was but a few weeks after this occurrence that Captain Carstens and
+his son were invited to honor John Garvestad by their presence at his
+wedding. They were in doubt, at first, as to whether they ought to
+accept the invitation; for some unpleasant rumors had reached them,
+showing that Garvestad entertained unfriendly feelings toward them.
+He was an intensely vain man; and the thought that Erik Carstens had a
+finer horse than Valders-Roan left him no peace. He had been heard to
+say repeatedly that, if that high-nosed youth persisted in his refusal
+to sell the mare, he would discover his mistake when, perhaps, it would
+be too late to have it remedied. Whatever that meant, it sufficed to
+make both Erik and his father uneasy. But, on the other hand, it would
+be the worst policy possible, under such circumstances, to refuse
+the invitation. For that would be interpreted either as fear or as
+aristocratic exclusiveness; and the captain, while he was new in the
+district, was as anxious to avoid the appearance of the one as of the
+other. Accordingly he accepted the invitation and on the appointed day
+rode with his son into the wide yard of John Garvestad’s farm, stopping
+at the pump, where they watered their horses. It was early in
+the afternoon, and both the house and the barn were thronged with
+wedding-guests. From the sitting-room the strains of two fiddles were
+heard, mingled with the scraping and stamping of heavy feet.
+
+Another musical performance was in progress in the barn; and all over
+the yard elderly men and youths were standing in smaller and larger
+groups, smoking their pipes and tasting the beer-jugs, which were passed
+from hand to hand. But the moment Lady Clare was seen all interest in
+minor concerns ceased, and with one accord the crowd moved toward her,
+completely encircling her, and viewing her with admiring glances that
+appreciated all her perfections.
+
+“Did you ever see cleaner-shaped legs on a horse?” someone was heard
+to say, and instantly his neighbor in the crowd joined the chorus of
+praise, and added: “What a snap and spring there is in every bend of her
+knee and turn of her neck and flash of her eye!”
+
+It was while this chorus of admiration was being sung in all keys and
+tones of the whole gamut, that the bridegroom came out of the house, a
+little bit tipsy, perhaps, from the many toasts he had been obliged to
+drink, and bristling with pugnacity to the ends of his fingers and the
+tips of his hair. Every word of praise that he heard sounded in his ears
+like a jeer and an insult to himself. With ruthless thrusts he elbowed
+his way through the throng of guests and soon stood in front of the
+two horses, from which the captain and Erik had not yet had a chance
+to dismount. He returned their greeting with scant courtesy and plunged
+instantly into the matter which he had on his mind.
+
+“I reckon you have thought better of my offer by this time,” he said,
+with a surly swagger, to Erik. “What do you hold your mare at to-day?”
+
+“I thought we had settled that matter once for all,” the boy replied,
+quietly. “I have no more intention of selling Lady Clare now than I ever
+had.”
+
+“Then will ye trade her off for Valders-Roan?” ejaculated Garvestad,
+eagerly.
+
+“No, I won’t trade her for Valders-Roan or any other horse in creation.”
+
+“Don’t be cantankerous, now, young fellow, or you might repent of it.”
+
+“I am not cantankerous. But I beg of you kindly to drop this matter. I
+came here, at your invitation, as a guest at your wedding, not for the
+purpose of trading horses.”
+
+It was an incautious speech, and was interpreted by everyone present
+as a rebuke to the bridegroom for his violation of the rules of
+hospitality. The captain, anxious to avoid a row, therefore broke in, in
+a voice of friendly remonstrance: “My dear Mr. Garvestad, do let us drop
+this matter. If you will permit us, we should like to dismount and drink
+a toast to your health, wishing you a long life and much happiness.”
+
+“Ah, yes, I understand your smooth palaver,” the bridegroom growled
+between his teeth. “I have stood your insolence long enough, and, by
+jingo, I won’t stand it much longer. What will ye take for your mare,
+I say, or how much do you want to boot, if you trade her for
+Valders-Roan?”
+
+He shouted the last words with furious emphasis, holding his clinched
+fist up toward Erik, and glaring at him savagely.
+
+But now Lady Clare, who became frightened perhaps by the loud talk and
+violent gestures, began to rear and plunge, and by an unforeseen motion
+knocked against the bridegroom, so that he fell backward into the
+horse-trough under the pump, which was full of water. The wedding-guests
+had hardly time to realize what was happening when a great splash sent
+the water flying into their faces, and the burly form of John Garvestad
+was seen sprawling helplessly in the horse-trough. But then--then they
+realized it with a vengeance. And a laugh went up--a veritable storm
+of laughter--which swept through the entire crowd and re-echoed with a
+ghostly hilarity from the mountains. John Garvestad in the meanwhile
+had managed to pick himself out of the horse-trough, and while he stood
+snorting, spitting, and dripping, Captain Carstens and his son politely
+lifted their hats to him and rode away. But as they trotted out of the
+gate they saw their host stretch a big clinched fist toward them, and
+heard him scream with hoarse fury: “I’ll make ye smart for that some
+day, so help me God!”
+
+Lady Clare was not sent to the mountains in the summer, as are nearly
+all horses in the Norwegian country districts. She was left untethered
+in an enclosed home pasture about half a mile from the mansion. Here
+she grazed, rolled, kicked up her heels, and gambolled to her heart’s
+content. During the long, bright summer nights, when the sun scarcely
+dips beneath the horizon and reappears in an hour, clothed in the breezy
+garments of morning, she was permitted to frolic, race, and play all
+sorts of improvised games with a shaggy, little, plebeian three-year-old
+colt whom she had condescended to honor with her acquaintance. This
+colt must have had some fine feeling under his rough coat, for he never
+presumed in the least upon the acquaintance, being perhaps aware of the
+honor it conferred upon him. He allowed himself to be abused, ignored,
+or petted, as it might suit the pleasure of her royal highness, with a
+patient, even-tempered good-nature which was admirable. When Lady Clare
+(perhaps for fear of making him conceited) took no notice of him, he
+showed neither resentment nor surprise, but walked off with a sheepish
+shake of his head. Thus he slowly learned the lesson to make no
+exhibition of feeling at the sight of his superior; not to run up and
+greet her with a disrespectfully joyous whinny; but calmly wait for her
+to recognize him before appearing to be aware of her presence. It took
+Lady Clare several months to accustom Shag (for that was the colt’s
+name) to her ways. She taught him unconsciously the rudiments of good
+manners; but he proved himself docile, and when he once had been reduced
+to his proper place he proved a fairly acceptable companion.
+
+During the first and second week after John Garvestad’s wedding Erik
+had kept Lady Clare stabled, having a vague fear that the angry peasant
+might intend to do her harm. But she whinnied so pitifully through the
+long light nights that finally he allowed his compassion to get the
+better of his anxiety, and once more she was seen racing madly about
+the field with Shag, whom she always beat so ignominiously that she felt
+half sorry for him, and as a consolation allowed him gently to claw her
+mane with his teeth. This was a privilege which Shag could not fail to
+appreciate, though she never offered to return the favor by clawing him.
+At any rate, as soon as Lady Clare reappeared in the meadow Shag’s cup
+of bliss seemed to be full.
+
+A week passed in this way, nothing happened, and Erik’s vigilance was
+relaxed. He went to bed on the evening of July 10th with an easy mind,
+without the remotest apprehension of danger. The sun set about ten
+o’clock, and Lady Clare and Shag greeted its last departing rays with a
+whinny, accompanied by a wanton kickup from the rear--for whatever
+Lady Clare did Shag felt in honor bound to do, and was conscious of no
+disgrace in his abject and ape-like imitation. They had spent an hour,
+perhaps, in such delightful performances, when all of a sudden they were
+startled by a deep bass whinny, which rumbled and shook like distant
+thunder. Then came the tramp, tramp, tramp of heavy hoof-beats, which
+made the ground tremble. Lady Clare lifted her beautiful head and looked
+with fearless curiosity in the direction whence the sound came. Shag, of
+course, did as nearly as he could exactly the same. What they saw was
+a big roan horse with an enormous arched neck, squat feet, and
+long-tasselled fetlocks.
+
+Lady Clare had no difficulty in recognizing Valders-Roan. But how big
+and heavy and ominous he looked in the blood-red after-glow of the
+blood-red sunset. For the first time in her life Lady Clare felt a cold
+shiver of fear run through her. There was, happily, a fence between
+them, and she devoutly hoped that Valders-Roan was not a jumper. At that
+moment, however, two men appeared next to the huge horse, and Lady Clare
+heard the sound of breaking fence-rails. The deep hoarse whinny once
+more made the air shake, and it made poor Lady Clare shake too, for
+now she saw Valders-Roan come like a whirlwind over the field, and so
+powerful were his hoof-beats that a clod of earth which had stuck to one
+of his shoes shot like a bullet through the air.
+
+He looked so gigantic, so brimming with restrained strength, and somehow
+Lady Clare, as she stood quaking at the sight of him, had never seemed
+to herself so dainty, frail, and delicate as she seemed in this moment.
+She felt herself so entirely at his mercy; she was no match for him
+surely. Shag, anxious as ever to take his cue from her, had stationed
+himself at her side, and shook his head and whisked his tail in a
+non-committal manner. Now Valders-Roan had cleared the fence where the
+men had broken it down; then on he came again, tramp, tramp, tramp,
+until he was within half a dozen paces from Lady Clare. There he
+stopped, for back went Lady Clare’s pretty ears, while she threw herself
+upon her haunches in an attitude of defence. She was dimly aware that
+this was a foolish thing to do, but her inbred disdain and horror
+of everything rough made her act on instinct instead of reason.
+Valders-Roan, irritated by this uncalled-for action, now threw ceremony
+to the winds, and without further ado trotted up and rubbed his nose
+against hers. That was more than Lady Clare could stand. With an
+hysterical snort she flung herself about, and up flew her heels straight
+into the offending nose, inflicting considerable damage. Shag, being now
+quite clear that the programme was fight, whisked about in exactly the
+same manner, with as close an imitation of Lady Clare’s snort as he
+could produce, and a second pair of steel-shod heels came within a hair
+of reducing the enemy’s left nostril to the same condition as the right.
+But alas for the generous folly of youth! Shag had to pay dearly for
+that exhibition of devotion. Valders-Roan, enraged by this wanton
+insult, made a dash at Shag, and by the mere impetus of his huge bulk
+nearly knocked him senseless. The colt rolled over, flung all his four
+legs into the air, and as soon as he could recover his footing reeled
+sideways like a drunken man and made haste to retire to a safe distance.
+
+Valders-Roan had now a clear field and could turn his undivided
+attention to Lady Clare. I am not sure that he had not made an example
+of Shag merely to frighten her. Bounding forward with his mighty chest
+expanded and the blood dripping from his nostrils, he struck out with
+a tremendous hind leg and would have returned Lady Clare’s blow with
+interest if she had not leaped high into the air. She had just managed
+by her superior alertness to dodge that deadly hoof, and was perhaps not
+prepared for an instant renewal of the attack. But she had barely gotten
+her four feet in contact with the sod when two rows of terrific teeth
+plunged into her withers. The pain was frightful, and with a long,
+pitiful scream Lady Clare sank down upon the ground, and, writhing with
+agony, beat the air with her hoofs. Shag, who had by this time recovered
+his senses, heard the noise of the battle, and, plucking up his courage,
+trotted bravely forward against the victorious Valders-Roan. He was so
+frightened that his heart shot up into his throat. But there lay Lady
+Clare mangled and bleeding. He could not leave her in the lurch, so
+forward he came, trembling, just as Lady Clare was trying to scramble
+to her feet. Led away by his sympathy Shag bent his head down toward
+her and thereby prevented her from rising. And in the same instant
+a stunning blow hit him straight in the forehead, a shower of sparks
+danced before his eyes, and then Shag saw and heard no more. A
+convulsive quiver ran through his body, then he stretched out his neck
+on the bloody grass, heaved a sigh, and died.
+
+Lady Clare, seeing Shag killed by the blow which had been intended for
+herself, felt her blood run cold. She was strongly inclined to run, for
+she could easily beat the heavy Valders-Roan at a race, and her fleet
+legs might yet save her. I cannot say whether it was a generous wrath at
+the killing of her humble champion or a mere blind fury which overcame
+this inclination. But she knew now neither pain nor fear. With a shrill
+scream she rushed at Valders-Roan, and for five minutes a whirling cloud
+of earth and grass and lumps of sod moved irregularly over the field,
+and tails, heads, and legs were seen flung and tossed madly about,
+while an occasional shriek of rage or of pain startled the night, and
+re-echoed with a weird resonance between the mountains.
+
+It was about five o’clock in the morning of July 11th, that Erik awoke,
+with a vague sense that something terrible had happened. His groom
+was standing at his bedside with a terrified face, doubtful whether to
+arouse his young master or allow him to sleep.
+
+“What has happened, Anders?” cried Erik, tumbling out of bed.
+
+“Lady Clare, sir----”
+
+“Lady Clare!” shouted the boy. “What about her? Has she been stolen?”
+
+“No, I reckon not,” drawled Anders.
+
+“Then she’s dead! Quick, tell me what you know or I shall go crazy!”
+
+“No; I can’t say for sure she’s dead either,” the groom stammered,
+helplessly.
+
+Erik, being too stunned with grief and pain, tumbled in a dazed fashion
+about the room, and scarcely knew how he managed to dress. He felt cold,
+shivery, and benumbed; and the daylight had a cruel glare in it which
+hurt his eyes. Accompanied by his groom, he hastened to the home
+pasture, and saw there the evidence of the fierce battle which had raged
+during the night. A long, black, serpentine track, where the sod had
+been torn up by furious hoof-beats, started from the dead carcass of the
+faithful Shag and moved with irregular breaks and curves up toward the
+gate that connected the pasture with the underbrush of birch and alder.
+Here the fence had been broken down, and the track of the fight suddenly
+ceased. A pool of blood had soaked into the ground, showing that one of
+the horses, and probably the victor, must have stood still for a while,
+allowing the vanquished to escape.
+
+Erik had no need of being told that the horse which had attacked Lady
+Clare was Valders-Roan; and though he would scarcely have been able to
+prove it, he felt positive that John Garvestad had arranged and probably
+watched the fight. Having a wholesome dread of jail, he had not dared to
+steal Lady Clare; but he had chosen this contemptible method to satisfy
+his senseless jealousy. It was all so cunningly devised as to baffle
+legal inquiry. Valders-Roan had gotten astray, and being a heavy beast,
+had broken into a neighbor’s field and fought with his filly, chasing
+her away into the mountains. That was the story he would tell, of
+course, and as there had been no witnesses present, there was no way of
+disproving it.
+
+Abandoning, however, for the time being all thought of revenge, Erik
+determined to bend all his energies to the recovery of Lady Clare. He
+felt confident that she had run away from her assailant, and was now
+roaming about in the mountains. He therefore organized a search party
+of all the male servants on the estate, besides a couple of volunteers,
+making in all nine. On the evening of the first day’s search they put up
+at a saeter or mountain chalet. Here they met a young man named Tollef
+Morud, who had once been a groom at John Garvestad’s. This man had a bad
+reputation; and as the idea occurred to some of them that he might know
+something about Lady Clare’s disappearance, they questioned him at great
+length, without, however, eliciting a single crumb of information.
+
+For a week the search was continued, but had finally to be given up.
+Weary, footsore, and heavy hearted, Erik returned home. His grief at the
+loss of Lady Clare began to tell on his health; and his perpetual plans
+for getting even with John Garvestad amounted almost to a mania, and
+caused his father both trouble and anxiety. It was therefore determined
+to send him to the military academy in the capital.
+
+Four or five years passed and Erik became a lieutenant. It was during
+the first year after his graduation from the military academy that he
+was invited to spend the Christmas holidays with a friend, whose parents
+lived on a fine estate about twenty miles from the city. Seated in their
+narrow sleighs, which were drawn by brisk horses, they drove merrily
+along, shouting to each other to make their voices heard above the
+jingling of the bells. About eight o’clock in the evening, when the moon
+was shining brightly and the snow sparkling, they turned in at a wayside
+tavern to order their supper. Here a great crowd of lumbermen had
+congregated, and all along the fences their overworked, half-broken-down
+horses stood, shaking their nose-bags. The air in the public room was so
+filled with the fumes of damp clothes and bad tobacco that Erik and his
+friend, while waiting for their meal, preferred to spend the time under
+the radiant sky. They were sauntering about, talking in a desultory
+fashion, when all of a sudden a wild, joyous whinny rang out upon the
+startled air.
+
+It came from a rusty, black, decrepit-looking mare hitched to a lumber
+sleigh which they had just passed. Erik, growing very serious, paused
+abruptly.
+
+A second whinny, lower than the first, but almost alluring and cajoling,
+was so directly addressed to Erik that he could not help stepping up to
+the mare and patting her on the nose.
+
+“You once had a horse you cared a great deal for, didn’t you?” his
+friend remarked, casually.
+
+“Oh, don’t speak about it,” answered Erik, in a voice that shook with
+emotion; “I loved Lady Clare as I never loved any creature in this
+world--except my father, of course,” he added, reflectively.
+
+But what was the matter with the old lumber nag? At the sound of the
+name Lady Clare she pricked up her ears, and lifted her head with a
+pathetic attempt at alertness. With a low, insinuating neighing she
+rubbed her nose against the lieutenant’s cheek. He had let his hand
+glide over her long, thin neck, when quite suddenly his fingers slid
+into a deep scar in the withers.
+
+“My God!” he cried, while the tears started to his eyes, “am I awake, or
+am I dreaming?”
+
+“What in the world is the matter?” inquired his comrade, anxiously.
+
+“It is Lady Clare! By the heavens, it is Lady Clare!”
+
+“That old ramshackle of a lumber nag whose every rib you can count
+through her skin is your beautiful thoroughbred?” ejaculated his friend,
+incredulously. “Come now, don’t be a goose.”
+
+“I’ll tell you of it some other time,” said Erik, quietly; “but there’s
+not a shadow of a doubt that this is Lady Clare.”
+
+Yes, strange as it may seem, it was indeed Lady Clare. But oh, who would
+have recognized in this skeleton, covered with a rusty-black skin and
+tousled mane and forelock in which chaff and dirt were entangled--who
+would have recognized in this drooping and rickety creature the proud,
+the dainty, the exquisite Lady Clare? Her beautiful tail, which had once
+been her pride, was now a mere scanty wisp; and a sharp, gnarled ridge
+running along the entire length of her back showed every vertebra of
+her spine through the notched and scarred skin. Poor Lady Clare, she had
+seen hard usage. But now the days of her tribulations are at an end.
+It did not take Erik long to find the half-tipsy lumberman who was
+Lady Clare’s owner; nor to agree with him on the price for which he was
+willing to part with her.
+
+There is but little more to relate. By interviews and correspondence
+with the different parties through whose hands the mare had passed,
+Erik succeeded in tracing her to Tollef Morud, the ex-groom of John
+Garvestad. On being promised immunity from prosecution, he was induced
+to confess that he had been hired by his former master to arrange the
+nocturnal fight between Lady Clare and Valders-Roan, and had been
+paid ten dollars for stealing the mare when she had been sufficiently
+damaged. John Garvestad had himself watched the fight from behind the
+fence, and had laughed fit to split his sides, until Valders-Roan seemed
+on the point of being worsted. Then he had interfered to separate them,
+and Tollef had led Lady Clare away, bleeding from a dozen wounds, and
+had hidden her in a deserted lumberman’s shed near the saeter where the
+searchers had overtaken him.
+
+Having obtained these facts, Erik took pains to let John Garvestad know
+that the chain of evidence against him was complete, and if he had had
+his own way he would not have rested until his enemy had suffered the
+full penalty of the law. But John Garvestad, suspecting what was in the
+young man’s mind, suddenly divested himself of his pride, and cringing
+dike a whipped dog, came and asked Erik’s pardon, entreating him not to
+prosecute.
+
+As for Lady Clare, she never recovered her lost beauty. A pretty
+fair-looking mare she became, to be sure, when good feeding and careful
+grooming had made her fat and glossy once more. A long and contented
+old age is, no doubt, in store for her. Having known evil days, she
+appreciates the blessings which the change in her fate has brought her.
+The captain declares she is the best-tempered and steadiest horse in his
+stable.
+
+
+
+
+BONNYBOY
+
+
+
+
+I.
+
+“Oh, you never will amount to anything, Bonnyboy!” said Bonnyboy’s
+father, when he had vainly tried to show him how to use a gouge; for
+Bonnyboy had just succeeded in gouging a piece out of his hand, and was
+standing helplessly, letting his blood drop on an engraving of Napoleon
+at Austerlitz, which had been sent to his father for framing. The
+trouble with Bonnyboy was that he was not only awkward--left-handed
+in everything he undertook, as his father put it--but he was so very
+good-natured that it was impossible to get angry with him. His large
+blue innocent eyes had a childlike wonder in them, when he had done
+anything particularly stupid, and he was so willing and anxious to
+learn, that his ill-success seemed a reason for pity rather than for
+wrath. Grim Norvold, Bonnyboy’s father, was by trade a carpenter, and
+handy as he was at all kinds of tinkering, he found it particularly
+exasperating to have a son who was so left-handed. There was scarcely
+anything Grim could not do. He could take a watch apart and put it
+together again; he could mend a harness if necessary; he could make a
+wagon; nay, he could even doctor a horse when it got spavin or glanders.
+He was a sort of jack-of-all-trades, and a very useful man in a valley
+where mechanics were few and transportation difficult. He loved work for
+its own sake, and was ill at ease when he had not a tool in his hand.
+The exercise of his skill gave him a pleasure akin to that which the
+fish feels in swimming, the eagle in soaring, and the lark in singing. A
+finless fish, a wingless eagle, or a dumb lark could not have been more
+miserable than Grim was when a succession of holidays, like Easter or
+Christmas, compelled him to be idle.
+
+When his son was born his chief delight was to think of the time when
+he should be old enough to handle a tool, and learn the secrets of his
+father’s trade. Therefore, from the time the boy was old enough to sit
+or to crawl in the shavings without getting his mouth and eyes full of
+sawdust, he gave him a place under the turning bench, and talked or sang
+to him while he worked. And Bonnyboy, in the meanwhile amused himself
+by getting into all sorts of mischief. If it had not been for the belief
+that a good workman must grow up in the atmosphere of the shop, Grim
+would have lost patience with his son and sent him back to his mother,
+who had better facilities for taking care of him. But the fact was he
+was too fond of the boy to be able to dispense with him, and he would
+rather bear the loss resulting from his mischief than miss his prattle
+and his pretty dimpled face.
+
+It was when the child was eighteen or nineteen months old that he
+acquired the name Bonnyboy. A woman of the neighborhood, who had called
+at the shop with some article of furniture which she wanted to have
+mended, discovered the infant in the act of investigating a pot of blue
+paint, with a part of which he had accidentally decorated his face.
+
+“Good gracious! what is that ugly thing you have got under your turning
+bench?” she cried, staring at the child in amazement.
+
+“No, he is not an ugly thing,” replied the father, with resentment; “he
+is a bonny boy, that’s what he is.”
+
+The woman, in order to mollify Grim, turned to the boy, and asked, with
+her sweetest manner, “What is your name, child?”
+
+“Bonny boy,” murmured the child, with a vaguely offended air--“bonny
+boy.”
+
+And from that day the name Bonnyboy clung to him.
+
+
+
+
+II.
+
+To teach Bonnyboy the trade of a carpenter was a task which would have
+exhausted the patience of all the saints in the calendar. If there was
+any possible way of doing a thing wrong, Bonnyboy would be sure to hit
+upon that way. When he was eleven years old he chopped off the third
+joint of the ring-finger on his right hand with a cutting tool while
+working the turning-lathe; and by the time he was fourteen it seemed a
+marvel to his father that he had any fingers left at all. But Bonnyboy
+persevered in spite of all difficulties, was always cheerful and of good
+courage, and when his father, in despair, exclaimed: “Well, you will
+never amount to anything, Bonnyboy,” he would look up with his slow,
+winning smile and say:
+
+“Don’t worry, father. Better luck next time.”
+
+“But, my dear boy, how can I help worrying, when you don’t learn
+anything by which you can make your living?”
+
+“Oh, well, father,” said Bonnyboy, soothingly (for he was beginning to
+feel sorry on his father’s account rather than on his own), “I wouldn’t
+bother about that if I were you. I don’t worry a bit. Something will
+turn up for me to do, sooner or later.”
+
+“But you’ll do it badly, Bonnyboy, and then you won’t get a second
+chance. And then, who knows but you may starve to death. You’ll chop
+off the fingers you have left; and when I am dead and can no longer look
+after you, I am very much afraid you’ll manage to chop off your head
+too.”
+
+“Well,” observed Bonnyboy, cheerfully, “in that case I shall not starve
+to death.”
+
+Grim had to laugh in spite of himself at the paternal way in which his
+son comforted him, as if he were the party to be pitied. Bonnyboy’s
+unfailing cheerfulness, which had its great charm, began to cause him
+uneasiness, because he feared it was but another form of stupidity. A
+cleverer boy would have been sorry for his mistakes and anxious about
+his own future. But Bonnyboy looked into the future with the serene
+confidence of a child, and nothing under the sun ever troubled him,
+except his father’s tendency to worry. For he was very fond of his
+father, and praised him as a paragon of skill and excellence. He
+lavished an abject admiration on everything he did and said. His
+dexterity in the use of tools, and his varied accomplishments as
+a watch-maker and a horse-doctor, filled Bonnyboy with ungrudging
+amazement. He knew it was a hopeless thing for him to aspire to rival
+such genius, and he took the thing philosophically, and did not aspire.
+
+It occurred to Grim one day, when Bonnyboy had made a most discouraging
+exhibition of his awkwardness, that it might be a good thing to ask the
+pastor’s advice in regard to him. The pastor had had a long experience
+in educating children, and his own, though they were not all clever,
+promised to turn out well. Accordingly Grim called at the parsonage, was
+well received, and returned home charged to the muzzle with good advice.
+The pastor lent him a book full of stories, and recommended him to read
+them to his son, and afterward question him about every single fact
+which each story contained. This the pastor had found to be a good way
+to develop the intellect of a backward boy.
+
+
+
+
+III.
+
+When Bonnyboy had been confirmed, the question again rose what was
+to become of him. He was now a tall young fellow, red-checked,
+broad-shouldered, and strong, and rather nice-looking. A slow,
+good-natured smile spread over his face when anyone spoke to him, and he
+had a way of flinging his head back, when the tuft of yellow hair which
+usually hung down over his forehead obscured his sight. Most people
+liked him, even though they laughed at him behind his back; but to his
+face nobody laughed, because his strength inspired respect. Nor did he
+know what fear was when he was roused; but that was probably, as people
+thought, because he did not know much of anything. At any rate, on a
+certain occasion he showed that there was a limit to his good-nature,
+and when that limit was reached, he was not as harmless a fellow as he
+looked.
+
+On the neighboring farm of Gimlehaug there was a wedding to which
+Grim and his son were invited. On the afternoon of the second wedding
+day--for peasant weddings in Norway are often celebrated for three
+days--a notorious bully named Ola Klemmerud took it into his head to
+have some sport with the big good-natured simpleton. So, by way of
+pleasantry, he pulled the tuft of hair which hung down upon Bonnyboy’s
+forehead.
+
+“Don’t do that,” said Bonnyboy.
+
+Ola Klemmerud chuckled, and the next time he passed Bonnyboy, pinched
+his ear.
+
+“If you do that again I sha’n’t like you,” cried Bonnyboy.
+
+The innocence of that remark made the people laugh, and the bully,
+seeing that their sympathy was on his side, was encouraged to continue
+his teasing. Taking a few dancing steps across the floor, he managed
+to touch Bonnyboy’s nose with the toe of his boot, which feat again was
+rewarded with a burst of laughter. The poor lad quietly blew his nose,
+wiped the perspiration off his brow with a red handkerchief, and said,
+“Don’t make me mad, Ola, or I might hurt you.”
+
+This speech struck the company as being immensely funny, and they
+laughed till the tears ran down their cheeks. At this moment Grim
+entered, and perceived at once that Ola Klemmerud was amusing the
+company at his son’s expense. He grew hot about his ears, clinched his
+teeth, and stared challengingly at the bully. The latter began to feel
+uncomfortable, but he could not stop at this point without turning the
+laugh against himself, and that he had not the courage to do. So in
+order to avoid rousing the father’s wrath, and yet preserving his own
+dignity, he went over to Bonnyboy, rumpled his hair with both his hands,
+and tweaked his nose. This appeared such innocent sport, according to
+his notion, that no rational creature could take offence at it. But
+Grim, whose sense of humor was probably defective, failed to see it in
+that light.
+
+“Let the boy alone,” he thundered.
+
+“Well, don’t bite my head off, old man,” replied Ola. “I haven’t hurt
+your fool of a boy. I have only been joking with him.”
+
+“I don’t think you are troubled with overmuch wit yourself, judging by
+the style of your jokes,” was Grim’s cool retort.
+
+The company, who plainly saw that Ola was trying to wriggle out of his
+difficulty, but were anxious not to lose an exciting scene, screamed
+with laughter again; but this time at the bully’s expense. The blood
+mounted to his head, and his anger got the better of his natural
+cowardice. Instead of sneaking off, as he had intended, he wheeled about
+on his heel and stood for a moment irresolute, clinching his fist in his
+pocket.
+
+“Why don’t you take your lunkhead of a son home to his mother, if he
+isn’t bright enough to understand fun!” he shouted.
+
+“Now let me see if you are bright enough to understand the same kind of
+fun,” cried Grim. Whereupon he knocked off Ola’s cap, rumpled his hair,
+and gave his nose such a pull that it was a wonder it did not come off.
+
+The bully, taken by surprise, tumbled a step backward, but recovering
+himself, struck Grim in the face with his clinched fist. At this
+moment. Bonnyboy, who had scarcely taken in the situation; jumped up and
+screamed, “Sit down, Ola Klemmerud, sit down!”
+
+The effect of this abrupt exclamation was so comical, that people nearly
+fell from their benches as they writhed and roared with laughter.
+
+Bonnyboy, who had risen to go to his father’s assistance, paused in
+astonishment in the middle of the floor. He could not comprehend, poor
+boy, why everything he said provoked such uncontrollable mirth. He
+surely had no intention of being funny.
+
+So, taken aback a little, he repeated to himself, half wonderingly, with
+an abrupt pause after each word, “Sit--down--Ola--Klemmerud--sit--down!”
+
+But Ola Klemmerud, instead of sitting down, hit Grim repeatedly about
+the face and head, and it was evident that the elder man, in spite
+of his strength, was not a match for him in alertness. This dawned
+presently upon Bonnyboy’s slow comprehension, and his good-natured smile
+gave way to a flush of excitement. He took two long strides across the
+floor, pushed his father gently aside, and stood facing his antagonist.
+He repeated once more his invitation to sit down; to which the latter
+responded with a slap which made the sparks dance before Bonnyboy’s
+eyes. Now Bonnyboy became really angry. Instead of returning the slap,
+he seized his enemy with a sudden and mighty grab by both his shoulders,
+lifted him up as if he were a bag of hay, and put him down on a chair
+with such force that it broke into splinters under him.
+
+“Will you now sit down?” said Bonnyboy.
+
+Nobody laughed this time, and the bully, not daring to rise, remained
+seated on the floor among the ruins of the chair. Thereupon, with
+imperturbable composure, Bonnyboy turned to his father, brushed off his
+coat with his hands and smoothed his disordered hair. “Now let us go
+home, father,” he said, and taking the old man’s arm he walked out of
+the room. But hardly had he crossed the threshold before the astonished
+company broke into cheering.
+
+“Good for you, Bonnyboy!” “Well done, Bonnyboy!” “You are a bully boy,
+Bonnyboy!” they cried after him.
+
+But Bonnyboy strode calmly along, quite unconscious of his triumph, and
+only happy to have gotten his father out of the room safe and sound.
+For a good while they walked on in silence. Then, when the effect of
+the excitement had begun to wear away, Grim stopped in the path, gazed
+admiringly at his son, and said, “Well, Bonnyboy, you are a queer
+fellow.”
+
+“Oh, yes,” answered Bonnyboy, blushing with embarrassment (for though he
+did not comprehend the remark, he felt the approving gaze); “but then,
+you know, I asked him to sit down, and he wouldn’t.”
+
+“Bless your innocent heart!” murmured his father, as he gazed at
+Bonnyboy’s honest face with a mingling of affection and pity.
+
+
+
+
+IV.
+
+When Bonnyboy was twenty years old his father gave up, once for all, his
+attempt to make a carpenter of him. A number of saw-mills had been built
+during the last years along the river down in the valley, and the old
+rapids had been broken up into a succession of mill-dams, one above the
+other. At one of these saw-mills Bonnyboy sought work, and was engaged
+with many others as a mill hand. His business was to roll the logs on
+to the little trucks that ran on rails, and to push them up to the saws,
+where they were taken in charge by another set of men, who fastened and
+watched them while they were cut up into planks. Very little art was,
+indeed, required for this simple task; but strength was required, and of
+this Bonnyboy had enough and to spare. He worked with a will from early
+morn till dewy eve, and was happy in the thought that he had at last
+found something that he could do. It made the simple-hearted fellow
+proud to observe that he was actually gaining his father’s regard; or,
+at all events, softening the disappointment which, in a vague way, he
+knew that his dulness must have caused him. If, occasionally, he was
+hurt by a rolling log, he never let any one know it; but even though
+his foot was a mass of agony every time he stepped on it, he would march
+along as stiffly as a soldier. It was as if he felt his father’s eye
+upon him long before he saw him.
+
+There was a curious kind of sympathy between them which expressed
+itself, on the father’s part, in a need to be near his son. But he
+feared to avow any such weakness, knowing that Bonnyboy would interpret
+it as distrust of his ability to take care of himself, and a desire to
+help him if he got into trouble. Grim, therefore, invented all kinds of
+transparent pretexts for paying visits to the saw-mills. And when he saw
+Bonnyboy, conscious that his eye was resting upon him, swinging his axe
+so that the chips flew about his ears, and the perspiration rained from
+his brow, a dim anxiety often took possession of him, though he could
+give no reason for it. That big brawny fellow, with the frame of a man
+and the brain of a child, with his guileless face and his guileless
+heart, strangely moved his compassion. There was something almost
+beautiful about him, his father thought; but he could not have told what
+it was; nor would he probably have found any one else that shared his
+opinion. That frank and genial gaze of Bonnyboy’s, which expressed
+goodness of heart but nothing else, seemed to Grim an “open sesame”
+ to all hearts; and that unawakened something which goes so well with
+childhood, but not with adult age, filled him with tenderness and a
+vague anxiety. “My poor lad,” he would murmur to himself, as he caught
+sight of Bonnyboy’s big perspiring face, with the yellow tuft of hair
+hanging down over his forehead, “clever you are not; but you have that
+which the cleverest of us often lack.”
+
+
+
+
+V.
+
+There were sixteen saw-mills in all, and the one at which Bonnyboy was
+employed was the last of the series. They were built on little terraces
+on both banks of the river, and every four of them were supplied with
+power from an artificial dam, in which the water was stored in time of
+drought, and from which it escaped in a mill-race when required for use.
+These four dams were built of big stones, earthwork, and lumber,
+faced with smooth planks, over which a small quantity of water usually
+drizzled into the shallow river-bed. Formerly, before the power was
+utilized, this slope had been covered with seething and swirling
+rapids--a favorite resort of the salmon, which leaped high in the
+spring, and were caught in the box-traps that hung on long beams over
+the water. Now the salmon had small chance of shedding their spawn in
+the cool, bright mountain pools, for they could not leap the dams, and
+if by chance one got into the mill-race, it had a hopeless struggle
+against a current that would have carried an elephant off his feet.
+Bonnyboy, who more than once had seen the beautiful silvery fish spring
+right on to the millwheel, and be flung upon the rocks, had wished that
+he had understood the language of the fishes, so that he might tell them
+how foolish such proceedings were. But merciful though he was, he had
+been much discouraged when, after having put them back into the river,
+they had promptly repeated the experiment.
+
+There were about twenty-five or thirty men employed at the mill where
+Bonnyboy earned his bread in the sweat of his brow, and he was, on the
+whole, on good terms with all of them. They did, to be sure, make fun of
+him occasionally; but sometimes he failed to understand it, and at other
+times he made clumsy but good-humored attempts to repay their gibes
+in kind. They took good care, however, not to rouse his wrath, for the
+reputation he had acquired by his treatment of Ola Klemmerud made them
+afraid to risk a collision.
+
+This was the situation when the great floods of 188- came, and
+introduced a spice of danger into Bonnyboy’s monotonous life. The
+mill-races were now kept open night and day, and yet the water burst
+like a roaring cascade over the tops of dams, and the river-bed was
+filled to overflowing with a swiftly-hurrying tawny torrent, which
+filled the air with its rush and swash, and sent hissing showers of
+spray flying through the tree-tops. Bonnyboy and a gang of twenty men
+were working as they had never worked before in their lives, under the
+direction of an engineer, who had been summoned by the mill-owner to
+strengthen the dams; for if but one of them burst, the whole tremendous
+volume of water would be precipitated upon the valley, and the village
+by the lower falls and every farm within half a mile of the river-banks
+would be swept out of existence. Guards were stationed all the way up
+the river to intercept any stray lumber that might be afloat. For if
+a log jam were added to the terrific strain of the flood, there would
+surely be no salvation possible. Yet in spite of all precautions, big
+logs now and then came bumping against the dams, and shot with wild
+gyrations and somersaults down into the brown eddies below.
+
+The engineer, who was standing on the top of a log pile, had shouted
+until he was hoarse, and gesticulated with his cane until his arms were
+lame, but yet there was a great deal to do before he could go to bed
+with an easy conscience. Bonnyboy and his comrades, who had had by far
+the harder part of the task, were ready to drop with fatigue. It was
+now eight o’clock in the evening, and they had worked since six in the
+morning, and had scarcely had time to swallow their scant rations. Some
+of them began to grumble, and the engineer had to coax and threaten them
+to induce them to persevere for another hour. The moon was just rising
+behind the mountain ridges, and the beautiful valley lay, with its green
+fields, sprouting forests, and red-painted farm-houses, at Bonnyboy’s
+feet. It was terrible to think that perhaps destruction was to overtake
+those happy and peaceful homes, where men had lived and died for many
+hundred years. Bonnyboy could scarcely keep back the tears when this
+fear suddenly came over him. Was it not strange that, though they knew
+that danger was threatening, they made not the slightest effort to save
+themselves? In the village below men were still working in their
+forges, whose chimneys belched forth fiery smoke, and the sound of their
+hammer-blows could be heard above the roar of the river. Women were
+busy with their household tasks; some boys were playing in the streets,
+damming up the gutters and shrieking with joy when their dams broke. A
+few provident souls had driven their cattle to the neighboring hills;
+but neither themselves nor their children had they thought it necessary
+to remove. The fact was, nobody believed that the dams would break, as
+they had not imagination enough to foresee what would happen if the dams
+did break.
+
+Bonnyboy was wet to the skin, and his knees were a trifle shaky from
+exhaustion. He had been cutting down an enormous mast-tree, which was
+needed for a prop to the dam, and had hauled it down with two horses,
+one of which was a half-broken gray colt, unused to pulling in a team.
+To restrain this frisky animal had required all Bonnyboy’s strength,
+and he stood wiping his brow with the sleeve of his shirt. Just at that
+moment a terrified yell sounded from above: “Run for your lives! The
+upper dam is breaking!”
+
+The engineer from the top of the log-pile cast a swift glance up the
+valley, and saw at once from the increasing volume of water that the
+report was true.
+
+“Save yourselves, lads!” he screamed. “Run to the woods!”
+
+And suiting his action to his words, he tumbled down from the log pile,
+and darted up the hill-side toward the forest. The other men, hearing
+the wild rush and roar above them, lost no time in following his
+example. Only Bonnyboy, slow of comprehension as always, did not obey.
+Suddenly there flared up a wild resolution in his face. He pulled out
+his knife, cut the traces, and leaped upon the colt’s back. Lashing
+the beast, and shouting at the top of his voice, he dashed down the
+hill-side at a break-neck pace.
+
+“The dam is breaking!” he roared. “Run for the woods!”
+
+He glanced anxiously behind him to see if the flood was overtaking him.
+A great cloud of spray was rising against the sky, and he heard the
+yells of men and the frenzied neighing of horses through the thunderous
+roar. But happily there was time. The dam was giving way gradually,
+and had not yet let loose the tremendous volume of death and desolation
+which it held enclosed within its frail timbers. The colt, catching the
+spirit of excitement in the air, flew like the wind, leaving farm after
+farm behind it, until it reached the village.
+
+“The dam is breaking! Run for your lives!” cried Bonnyboy, with a
+rousing clarion yell which rose above all other poises; and up and down
+the valley the dread tidings spread like wildfire. In an instant all was
+in wildest commotion. Terrified mothers, with babes in their arms, came
+bursting out of the houses, and little girls, hugging kittens or
+cages with canary-birds, clung weeping to their skirts; shouting men,
+shrieking women, crying children, barking dogs, gusty showers sweeping
+from nowhere down upon the distracted fugitives, and above all the
+ominous, throbbing, pulsating roar as of a mighty chorus of cataracts.
+It came nearer and nearer. It filled the great vault of the sky with a
+rush as of colossal wing-beats. Then there came a deafening creaking
+and crashing; then a huge brownish-white rolling wall, upon which the
+moonlight gleamed for an instant, and then the very trump of doom--a
+writhing, brawling, weltering chaos of cattle, dogs, men, lumber,
+houses, barns, whirling and struggling upon the destroying flood.
+
+
+
+
+VI.
+
+It was the morning after the disaster. The sun rose red and threatening,
+circled with a ring of fiery mist. People encamped upon the hill-side
+greeted each other as on the morn of resurrection. For many were found
+among the living who were being mourned as dead. Mothers hugged their
+children with tearful joy, thanking God that they had been spared; and
+husbands who had heard through the night the agonized cries of their
+drowning wives, finding them at dawn safe and sound, felt as if they had
+recovered them from the very gates of death. When all were counted, it
+was ascertained that but very few of the villagers had been overtaken by
+the flood. The timely warning had enabled all to save themselves, except
+some who in their eagerness to rescue their goods had lingered too long.
+Impoverished most of them were by the loss of their houses and cattle.
+The calamity was indeed overwhelming. But when they considered how much
+greater the disaster would have been if the flood had come upon them
+unheralded, they felt that they had cause for gratitude in the midst of
+their sorrow. And who was it that brought the tidings that snatched them
+from the jaws of death? Well, nobody knew. He rode too fast. And each
+was too much startled by the message to take note of the messenger. But
+who could he possibly have been? An angel from Heaven, perhaps sent by
+God in His mercy. That was indeed more than likely. The belief was at
+once accepted that the rescuer was an angel from heaven. But just then
+a lumberman stepped forward who had worked at the mill and said: “It was
+Bonnyboy, Grim Carpenter’s son. I saw him jump on his gray colt.”
+
+Bonnyboy, Grim Carpenter’s son. It couldn’t be possible. But the
+lumberman insisted that it was, and they had to believe him, though,
+of course, it was a disappointment. But where was Bonnyboy? He deserved
+thanks, surely. And, moreover, that gray colt was a valuable animal. It
+was to be hoped that it was not drowned.
+
+The water had now subsided, though it yet overflowed the banks; so that
+trees, bent and splintered by the terrific force of the flood, grew far
+out in the river. The foul dams had all been swept away, and the tawny
+torrent ran again with tumultuous rapids in its old channel. Of the
+mills scarcely a vestige was left except slight cavities in the banks,
+and a few twisted beams clinging to the rocks where they had stood. The
+ruins of the village, with jagged chimneys and broken walls, loomed
+out of a half-inundated meadow, through which erratic currents were
+sweeping. Here and there lay a dead cow or dog, and in the branches of
+a maple-tree the carcasses of two sheep were entangled. In this marshy
+field a stooping figure was seen wading about, as if in search of
+something. The water broke about his knees, and sometimes reached up to
+his waist. He stood like one dazed, and stared into the brown swirling
+torrent. Now he poked something with his boat-hook, now bent down and
+purled some dead thing out of a copse of shrubbery in which it had
+been caught. The sun rose higher in the sky, and the red vapors were
+scattered. But still the old man trudged wearily about, with the stony
+stare in his eyes, searching for him whom he had lost. One company after
+another now descended from the hill-sides, and from the high-lying farms
+which had not been reached by the flood came wagons with provisions and
+clothes, and men and women eager and anxious to help. They shouted to
+the old man in the submerged field, and asked what he was looking for.
+But he only shook his head, as if he did not understand.
+
+“Why, that is old Grim the carpenter,” said someone. “Has anybody seen
+Bonnyboy?”
+
+But no one had seen Bonnyboy.
+
+“Do you want help?” they shouted to Grim; but they got no answer.
+
+Hour after hour old Grim trudged about in the chilly water searching
+for his son. Then, about noon, when he had worked his way far down the
+river, he caught sight of something which made his heart stand still. In
+a brown pool, in which a half-submerged willow-tree grew, he saw a large
+grayish shape which resembled a horse. He stretched out the boat-hook
+and rolled it over. Dumbly, fearlessly, he stood staring into the pool.
+There lay his son--there lay Bonnyboy stark and dead.
+
+The cold perspiration broke out upon Grim’s brow, and his great breast
+labored. Slowly he stooped down, drew the dead body out of the water,
+and tenderly laid it across his knees. He stared into the sightless
+eyes, and murmuring a blessing, closed them. There was a large
+discolored spot on the forehead, as of a bruise. Grim laid his hand
+softly upon it, and stroked away the yellow tuft of hair.
+
+“My poor lad,” he said, while the tears coursed down his wrinkled
+cheeks, “you had a weak head, but your heart, Bonnyboy--your heart was
+good.”
+
+
+
+
+THE CHILD OF LUCK
+
+
+
+
+I.
+
+A sunny-tempered little fellow was Hans, and his father declared that he
+had brought luck with him when he came into the world.
+
+“He was such a handsome baby when he was born,” said Inga, his mother;
+“but you would scarcely believe it now, running about as he does in
+forest and field, tearing his clothes and scratching his face.”
+
+Now, it was true, as Hans’s mother said, that he did often tear his
+clothes; and as he had an indomitable curiosity, and had to investigate
+everything that came in his way, it was also no uncommon thing for him
+to come home with his face stung or scratched.
+
+“Why must you drag that child with you wherever you go, Nils?” the
+mother complained to Hans’s father, when the little boy was brought to
+her in such a disreputable condition. “Why can’t you leave him at home?
+What other man do you know who carries a six-year-old little fellow
+about with him in rain and shine, storm and quiet?
+
+“Well,” Nils invariably answered, “I like him and he likes me. He brings
+me luck.”
+
+This was a standing dispute between Nils and Inga, his wife, and they
+never came to an agreement. She knew as well as her husband that before
+little Hans was born there was want and misery in their cottage.
+But from the hour the child lifted up its tiny voice, announcing its
+arrival, there had been prosperity and contentment. Their luck had
+turned, Nils said, and it was the child that had turned it. They had
+been married for four years, and though they had no one to provide for
+but themselves, they scarcely managed to keep body and soul together.
+All sorts of untoward things happened. Now a tree which he was cutting
+down fell upon Nils and laid him up for a month; now he got water on his
+knee from a blow he received while rolling logs into the chute; now the
+pig died which was to have provided them with salt pork for the winter,
+and the hens took to the bush, and laid their eggs where nobody except
+the rats and the weasels could find them. But since little Hans had come
+and put an end to all these disasters, his father had a superstitious
+feeling that he could not bear to have him away from him. Therefore
+every morning when he started out for the forest or the river he carried
+Hans on his shoulder. And the little boy sat there, smiling proudly and
+waving his hand to his mother, who stood in the door looking longingly
+after him.
+
+“Hello, little chap!” cried the lumbermen, when they saw him.
+“Good-morning to you and good luck!”
+
+They always cheered up, however bad the weather was, when they saw
+little Hans, for nobody could look at his sunny little face without
+feeling something like a ray of sunlight stealing into his heart.
+Hans had a smile and a wave of his hand for everybody. He knew all the
+lumbermen by name, and they knew him.
+
+They sang as they swung the axe or the boat-hook, and the work went
+merrily when little Hans sat on the top of the log pile and shouted to
+them. But if by chance he was absent for a day or two they missed him.
+No songs were heard, but harsh words, and not infrequently quarrels.
+Now, nobody believed, of course, that little Hans was such a wizard that
+he could make people feel and behave any better than it was in their
+nature to do; but sure it was--at least the lumbermen insisted that it
+was so--there was joy and good-tempered mirth wherever that child went,
+and life seemed a little sadder and poorer to those who knew him when he
+was away.
+
+No one will wonder that Nils sometimes boasted of his little son.
+
+He told not once, but a hundred times, as they sat about the camp-fire
+eating their dinner, that little Hans was a child of luck, and that
+no misfortune could happen while he was near. Lumbermen are naturally
+superstitious, and though perhaps at first they may have had their
+doubts, they gradually came to accept the statement without question.
+They came to regard it as a kind of right to have little Hans sit on the
+top of the log pile when they worked, or running along the chute, while
+the wild-cat strings of logs shot down the steep slide with lightning
+speed. They were not in the least afraid lest the logs should jump the
+chute, as they had often done before, killing or maiming the unhappy man
+that came too near. For was not little Hans’s life charmed, so that no
+harm could befall him?
+
+Now, it happened that Inga, little Hans’s mother, came one day to the
+river to see how he was getting on. Nils was then standing on a raft
+hooking the floating logs with his boat-hook, while the boy was watching
+him from the shore, shouting to him, throwing chips into the water, and
+amusing himself as best he could. It was early in May, and the river
+was swollen from recent thaws. Below the cataract where the lumbermen
+worked, the broad, brown current moved slowly along with sluggish whirls
+and eddies; but the raft was moored by chains to the shore, so that it
+was in no danger of getting adrift. It was capital fun to see the logs
+come rushing down the slide, plunging with a tremendous splash into the
+river, and then bob up like live things after having bumped against the
+bottom. Little Hans clapped his hands and yelled with delight when a
+string of three or four came tearing along in that way, and dived, one
+after the other, headlong into the water.
+
+“Catch that one, papa!” he cried; “that is a good big fellow. He dived
+like a man, he did. He has washed the dirt off his snout now; that was
+the reason he took such a big plunge.”
+
+Nils never failed to reach his boat-hook after the log little Hans
+indicated, for he liked to humor him, and little Hans liked to be
+humored. He had an idea that he was directing his father’s work, and
+Nils invented all sorts of innocent devices to flatter little Hans’s
+dignity, and make him think himself indispensable. It was of no use,
+therefore, for poor Inga to beg little Hans to go home with her. He had
+so much to do, he said, that he couldn’t. He even tried to tear himself
+away from his mother when she took him by the arm and remonstrated with
+him. And then and there the conviction stole upon Inga that her child
+did not love her. She was nothing to him compared to what his father
+was. And was it right for Nils thus to rob her of the boy’s affection?
+Little Hans could scarcely be blamed for loving his father better; for
+love is largely dependent upon habit, and Nils had been his constant
+companion since he was a year old. A bitter sense of loneliness and loss
+overcame the poor wife as she stood on the river-bank pleading with her
+child, and finding that she annoyed instead of moving him.
+
+“Won’t you come home with mamma, little Hans?” she asked, tearfully.
+“The kitten misses you very much; it has been mewing for you all the
+morning.”
+
+“No,” said little Hans, thrusting his hands into his pockets, and
+turning about with a manly stride; “we are going to have the lumber
+inspector here to-day? and then papa’s big raft is going down the
+river.”
+
+“But this dreadful noise, dear; how can you stand it? And the logs
+shooting down that slide and making such a racket. And these great piles
+of lumber, Hans--think, if they should tumble down and kill you!”
+
+“Oh, I’m not afraid, mamma,” cried Hans, proudly; and, to show his
+fearlessness, he climbed up the log pile, and soon stood on the top of
+it, waving his cap and shouting.
+
+“Oh, do come down, child--do come down!” begged Inga, anxiously.
+
+She had scarcely uttered the words when she heard a warning shout from
+the slope above, and had just time to lift her eyes, when she saw a
+big black object dart past her, strike the log pile, and break with
+a deafening crash. A long confused rumble of rolling logs followed,
+terrified voices rent the air, and, above it all, the deep and steady
+roar of the cataract. She saw, as through a fog, little Hans, serene and
+smiling as ever, borne down on the top of the rolling lumber, now rising
+up and skipping from log to log, now clapping his hands and screaming
+with pleasure, and then suddenly vanishing in the brown writhing river.
+His laughter was still ringing in her ears; the poor child, he did
+not realize his danger. The rumbling of falling logs continued with
+terrifying persistence. Splash! splash! splash! they went, diving by
+twos, by fours, and by dozens at the very spot where her child had
+vanished. But where was little Hans? Oh, where was he? It was all so
+misty, so unreal and confused. She could not tell whether little Hans
+was among the living or among the dead. But there, all of a sudden, his
+head popped up in the middle of the river; and there was another head
+close to his--it was that of his father! And round about them other
+heads bobbed up; for all the lumbermen who were on the raft had plunged
+into the water with Nils when they saw that little Hans was in danger. A
+dozen more were running down the slope as fast as their legs could carry
+them; and they gave a tremendous cheer when they saw little Hans’s face
+above the water. He looked a trifle pale and shivery, and he gave a
+funny little snort, so that the water spurted from his nose. He had lost
+his hat, but he did not seem to be hurt. His little arms clung tightly
+about his father’s neck, while Nils, dodging the bobbing logs, struck
+out with all his might for the shore. And when he felt firm bottom under
+his feet, and came stumbling up through the shallow water, looking like
+a drowned rat, what a welcome he received from the lumbermen! They all
+wanted to touch little Hans and pat his cheek, just to make sure that it
+was really he.
+
+“It was wonderful indeed,” they said, “that he ever came up out of that
+horrible jumble of pitching and diving logs. He is a child of luck, if
+ever there was one.”
+
+Not one of them thought of the boy’s mother, and little Hans himself
+scarcely thought of her, elated as he was at the welcome he received
+from the lumbermen. Poor Inga stood dazed, struggling with a horrible
+feeling, seeing her child passed from one to the other, while she
+herself claimed no share in him. Somehow the thought stung her. A sudden
+clearness burst upon her; she rushed forward, with a piercing scream,
+snatched little Hans from his father’s arms, and hugging his wet little
+shivering form to her breast, fled like a deer through the underbrush.
+
+From that day little Hans was not permitted to go to the river. It was
+in vain that Nils pleaded and threatened. His wife acted so unreasonably
+when that question was broached that he saw it was useless to discuss
+it. She seized little Hans as a tigress might seize her young, and held
+him tightly clasped, as if daring anybody to take him away from her.
+Nils knew it would require force to get his son back again, and that he
+was not ready to employ. But all joy seemed to have gone out of his
+life since he had lost the daily companionship of little Hans. His work
+became drudgery; and all the little annoyances of life, which formerly
+he had brushed away as one brushes a fly from his nose, became burdens
+and calamities. The raft upon which he had expended so much labor went
+to pieces during a sudden rise of the river the night after little
+Hans’s adventure, and three days later Thorkel Fossen was killed
+outright by a string of logs that jumped the chute.
+
+“It isn’t the same sort of place since you took little Hans away,”
+ the lumbermen would often say to Nils. “There’s no sort of luck in
+anything.”
+
+Sometimes they taunted him with want of courage, and called him
+a “night-cap” and a “hen-pecked coon,” all of which made Nils
+uncomfortable. He made two or three attempts to persuade his wife to
+change her mind in regard to little Hans, but the last time she got so
+frightened that she ran out of the house and hid in the cow stable with
+the boy, crouching in an empty stall, and crying as if her heart would
+break, when little Hans escaped and betrayed her hiding-place. The boy,
+in fact, sympathized with his father, and found his confinement at home
+irksome. The companionship of the cat had no more charm for him; and
+even the brindled calf, which had caused such an excitement when he
+first arrived, had become an old story. Little Halls fretted, was
+mischievous for want of better employment, and gave his mother no end
+of trouble. He longed for the gay and animated life at the river, and he
+would have run away if he had not been watched. He could not imagine how
+the lumbermen could be getting on without him. It seemed to him that all
+work must come to a stop when he was no longer sitting on the top of the
+log piles, or standing on the bank throwing chips into the water.
+
+Now, as a matter of fact, they were not getting on very well at the
+river without little Hans. The luck had deserted them, the lumbermen
+said; and whatever mishaps they had, they attributed to the absence of
+little Hans. They came to look with ill-suppressed hostility at Nils,
+whom they regarded as responsible for their misfortunes. For they could
+scarcely believe that he was quite in earnest in his desire for the
+boy’s return, otherwise they could not comprehend how his wife could
+dare to oppose him. The weather was stormy, and the mountain brook which
+ran along the slide concluded to waste no more labor in carving out a
+bed for itself in the rock, when it might as well be using the slide
+which it found ready made. And one fine day it broke into the slide and
+half filled it, so that the logs, when they were started down the steep
+incline, sent the water flying, turned somersaults, stood on end, and
+played no end of dangerous tricks which no one could foresee. Several
+men were badly hurt by beams shooting like rockets through the air, and
+old Mads Furubakken was knocked senseless and carried home for dead.
+Then the lumbermen held a council, and made up their minds to get little
+Hans by fair means or foul. They thought first of sending a delegation
+of four or five men that very morning, but finally determined to march
+up to Nils’s cottage in a body and demand the boy. There were twenty
+of them at the very least, and the tops of their long boat-hooks, which
+they carried on their shoulders, were seen against the green forest
+before they were themselves visible.
+
+Nils, who was just out of bed, was sitting on the threshold smoking
+his pipe and pitching a ball to little Hans, who laughed with delight
+whenever he caught it. Inga was bustling about inside the house,
+preparing breakfast, which was to consist of porridge, salt herring,
+and baked potatoes. It had rained during the night, and the sky was yet
+overcast, but the sun was struggling to break through the cloud-banks. A
+couple of thrushes in the alder-bushes about the cottage were rejoicing
+at the change in the weather, and Nils was listening to their song and
+to his son’s merry prattle, when he caught sight of the twenty lumbermen
+marching up the hillside. He rose, with some astonishment, and went to
+meet them. Inga, hearing their voices, came to the door, and seeing the
+many men, snatched up little Hans, and with a wildly palpitating heart
+ran into the cottage, bolting the door behind her. She had a vague
+foreboding that this unusual visit meant something hostile to herself,
+and she guessed that Nils had been only the spokesman of his comrades
+in demanding so eagerly the return of the boy to the river. She believed
+all their talk about his luck to be idle nonsense; but she knew that
+Nils had unwittingly spread this belief, and that the lumbermen were
+convinced that little Hans was their good genius, whose presence averted
+disaster. Distracted with fear and anxiety, she stood pressing her ear
+against the crack in the door, and sometimes peeping out to see what
+measures she must take for the child’s safety. Would Nils stand by her,
+or would he desert her? But surely--what was Nils thinking about? He was
+extending his hand to each of the men, and receiving them kindly.
+
+Next he would be inviting them to come in and take little Hans. She saw
+one of the men--Stubby Mons by name--step forward, and she plainly heard
+him say:
+
+“We miss the little chap down at the river, Nils. The luck has been
+against us since he left.”
+
+“Well, Mons,” Nils answered, “I miss the little chap as much as any of
+you; perhaps more. But my wife--she’s got a sort of crooked notion that
+the boy won’t come home alive if she lets him go to the river. She got a
+bad scare last time, and it isn’t any use arguing with her.”
+
+“But won’t you let us talk to her, Nils?” one of the lumbermen proposed.
+“It is a tangled skein, and I don’t pretend to say that I can straighten
+it out. But two men have been killed and one crippled since the little
+chap was taken away. And in the three years he was with us no untoward
+thing happened. Now that speaks for itself, Nils, doesn’t it?”
+
+“It does, indeed,” said Nils, with an air of conviction.
+
+“And you’ll let us talk to your wife, and see if we can’t make her
+listen to reason,” the man urged.
+
+“You are welcome to talk to her as much as you like,” Nils replied,
+knocking out his pipe on the heel of his boot; “but I warn you that
+she’s mighty cantankerous.”
+
+He rose slowly, and tried to open the door. It was locked. “Open, Inga,”
+ he said, a trifle impatiently; “there are some men here who want to see
+you.”
+
+
+
+
+II.
+
+Inga sat crouching on the hearth, hugging little Hans to her bosom. She
+shook and trembled with fear, let her eyes wander around the walls, and
+now and then moaned at the thought that now they would take little Hans
+away from her.
+
+“Why don’t you open the door for papa?” asked little Hans, wonderingly.
+
+Ah, he too was against her! All the world was against her! And her
+husband was in league with her enemies!
+
+“Open, I say!” cried Nils, vehemently. “What do you mean by locking the
+door when decent people come to call upon us?”
+
+Should she open the door or should she not? Holding little Hans in her
+arms, she rose hesitatingly, and stretched out her hand toward the
+bolt. But all of a sudden, in a paroxysm of fear, she withdrew her hand,
+turned about, and fled with the child through the back door. The alder
+bushes grew close up to the walls of the cottage, and by stooping a
+little she managed to remain unobserved. Her greatest difficulty was
+to keep little Hans from shouting to his father, and she had to put her
+hand over his mouth to keep him quiet; for the boy, who had heard the
+voices without, could not understand why he should not be permitted to
+go out and converse with his friends the lumbermen. The wild eyes and
+agitated face of his mother distressed him, and the little showers of
+last night’s rain which the trees shook down upon him made him shiver.
+
+“Why do you run so, mamma?” he asked, when she removed her hand from his
+mouth.
+
+“Because the bad men want to take you away from me, Hans,” she answered,
+panting.
+
+“Those were not bad men, mamma,” the boy ejaculated. “That was Stubby
+Mons and Stuttering Peter and Lars Skin-breeches. They don’t, want to
+hurt me.”
+
+He expected that his mamma would be much relieved at receiving this
+valuable information, and return home without delay. But she still
+pressed on, flushed and panting, and cast the same anxious glances
+behind her.
+
+In the meanwhile Nils and his guests had entirely lost their patience.
+Finding his persuasions of no avail, the former began to thump at the
+door with the handle of his axe, and receiving no response, he climbed
+up to the window and looked in. To his amazement there was no one in the
+room. Thinking that Inga might have gone to the cow-stable, he ran to
+the rear of the cottage, and called her name. Still no answer.
+
+“Hans,” he cried, “where are you?”
+
+But Hans, too, was as if spirited away. It scarcely occurred to Nils,
+until he had searched the cow-stable and the house in vain, that his
+wife had fled from the harmless lumbermen. Then the thought shot through
+his brain that possibly she was not quite right in her head; that this
+fixed idea that everybody wanted to take her child away from her had
+unsettled her reason. Nils grew hot and cold in the same moment as this
+dreadful apprehension took lodgement in his mind. Might she not, in
+her confused effort to save little Hans, do him harm? In the blind and
+feverish terror which possessed her might she not rush into the water,
+or leap over a precipice? Visions of little Hans drowning, or whirled
+into the abyss in his mother’s arms, crowded his fancy as he walked
+back to the lumbermen, and told them that neither his wife nor child was
+anywhere to be found.
+
+“I would ask ye this, lads,” he said, finally: “if you would help me
+search for them. For Inga--I reckon she is a little touched in the upper
+story--she has gone off with the boy, and I can’t get on without little
+Hans any more than you can.”
+
+The men understood the situation at a glance, and promised their aid.
+They had all looked upon Inga as “high-strung” and “queer,” and it did
+not surprise them to hear that she had been frightened out of her wits
+at their request for the loan of little Hans. Forming a line, with a
+space of twenty feet between each man, they began to beat the bush,
+climbing the steep slope toward the mountains. Inga, pausing for an
+instant, and peering out between the tree trunks, saw the alder bushes
+wave as they broke through the underbrush. She knew now that she was
+pursued. Tired she was, too, and the boy grew heavier for every step
+that she advanced. And yet if she made him walk, he might run away from
+her. If he heard his father’s voice, he would be certain to answer. Much
+perplexed, she looked about her for a hiding-place.
+
+For, as the men would be sure to overtake her, her only safety was in
+hiding. With tottering knees she stumbled along, carrying the heavy
+child, grabbing hold of the saplings for support, and yet scarcely
+keeping from falling. The cold perspiration broke from her brow and a
+strange faintness overcame her.
+
+“You will have to walk, little Hans,” she said, at last. “But if you run
+away from me, dear, I shall lie down here and die.”
+
+Little Hans promised that he would not run away, and for five minutes
+they walked up a stony path which looked like the abandoned bed of a
+brook.
+
+“You hurt my hand, mamma,” whimpered the boy, “you squeeze so hard.”
+
+She would have answered, but just then she heard the voices of the
+lumbermen scarcely fifty paces away. With a choking sensation and a
+stitch in her side she pressed on, crying out in spirit for the hills to
+hide her and the mountains to open their gates and receive her. Suddenly
+she stood before a rocky wall some eighty or a hundred feet high. She
+could go no farther. Her strength was utterly exhausted. There was a
+big boulder lying at the base of the rock, and a spreading juniper half
+covered it. Knowing that in another minute she would be discovered,
+she flung herself down behind the boulder, though the juniper needles
+scratched her face, and pulled little Hans down at her side. But,
+strange to say, little Hans fell farther than she had calculated, and
+utterly-vanished from sight. She heard a muffled cry, and reaching her
+hand in the direction where he had fallen, caught hold of his arm. A
+strong, wild smell beat against her, and little Hans, as he was pulled
+out, was enveloped in a most unpleasant odor. But odor or no odor, here
+was the very hiding-place she had been seeking. A deserted wolf’s den,
+it was, probably--at least she hoped it was deserted; for if it was not,
+she might be confronted with even uglier customers than the lumbermen.
+But she had no time for debating the question, for she saw the head of
+Stubby Mons emerging from the leaves, and immediately behind him came
+Stuttering Peter, with his long boat-hook. Quick as a flash she slipped
+into the hole, and dragged Hans after her. The juniper-bush entirely
+covered the entrance. She could see everyone who approached, without
+being seen. Unhappily, the boy too caught sight of Stubby Mons, and
+called him by name. The lumberman stopped and pricked up his ears.
+
+“Did you hear anybody call?” he asked his companion.
+
+“N-n-n-n-aw, I d-d-d-d-didn’t,” answered Stuttering Peter. “There b-be
+lots of qu-qu-qu-qu-eer n-noises in the w-w-w-woods.”
+
+Little Hans heard every word that they spoke, and he would have
+cried out again, if it hadn’t appeared such great fun to be playing
+hide-and-go-seek with the lumbermen. He had a delicious sense of being
+well hidden, and had forgotten everything except the zest of the game.
+Most exciting it became when Stubby Mons drew the juniper-bush aside and
+peered eagerly behind the boulder. Inga’s heart stuck in her throat;
+she felt sure that in the next instant they would be discovered. And as
+ill-luck would have it, there was something alive scrambling about her
+feet and tugging at her skirts. Suddenly she felt a sharp bite, but
+clinched her teeth, and uttered no sound. When her vision again cleared,
+the juniper branch had rebounded into its place, and the face of Stubby
+Mons was gone. She drew a deep breath of relief, but yet did not dare to
+emerge from the den. For one, two, three tremulous minutes she remained
+motionless, feeling all the while that uncomfortable sensation of living
+things about her.
+
+At last she could endure it no longer. Thrusting little Hans before her,
+she crawled out of the hole, and looked back into the small cavern. As
+soon as her eyes grew accustomed to the twilight she uttered a cry of
+amazement, for out from her skirts jumped a little gray furry object,
+and two frisky little customers of the same sort were darting about
+among the stones and tree-roots. The truth dawned upon her, and it
+chilled her to the marrow of her bones. The wolf’s den was not deserted.
+The old folks were only out hunting, and the shouting and commotion of
+the searching party had probably prevented them from returning in time
+to look after their family. She seized little Hans by the hand, and
+once more dragged him away over the rough path. He soon became tired and
+fretful, and in spite of all her entreaties began to shout lustily for
+his father. But the men were now so far away that they could not
+hear him. He complained of hunger; and when presently they came to a
+blueberry patch, she flung herself down on the heather and allowed him
+to pick berries. She heard cow-bells and sheep-bells tinkling round
+about her, and concluded that she could not be far from the saeters,
+or mountain dairies. That was fortunate, indeed, for she would not have
+liked to sleep in the woods with wolves and bears prowling about her.
+
+She was just making an effort to rise from the stone upon which she
+was sitting, when the big, good-natured face of a cow broke through the
+leaves and stared at her. There was again help in need. She approached
+the cow, patted it, and calling little Hans, bade him sit down in the
+heather and open his mouth. He obeyed rather wonderingly, but perceived
+his mother’s intent when she knelt at his side and began to milk
+into his mouth. It seemed to him that he had never tasted anything so
+delicious as this fresh rich milk, fragrant with the odor of the woods
+and the succulent mountain grass. When his hunger was satisfied, he fell
+again to picking berries, while Inga refreshed herself with milk in the
+same simple fashion. After having rested a full hour, she felt strong
+enough to continue her journey; and hearing the loor, or Alpine horn,
+re-echoing among the mountains, she determined to follow the sound.
+It was singular what luck attended her in the midst of her misfortune.
+Perhaps it was, after all, no idle tale that little Hans was a child of
+luck; and she had done the lumbermen injustice in deriding their faith
+in him. Perhaps there was some guiding Providence in all that had
+happened, destined in the end to lead little Hans to fortune and glory.
+Much encouraged by this thought, she stooped over him and kissed him;
+then took his hand and trudged along over logs and stones, through
+juniper and bramble bushes.
+
+“Mamma,” said little Hans, “where are you going?”
+
+“I am going to the saeter,” she answered; “where you have wanted so
+often to go.”
+
+“Then why don’t you follow the cows? They are going there too.”
+
+Surely that child had a marvellous mind! She smiled down upon him and
+nodded. By following the cows they arrived in twenty minutes at a neat
+little log cabin, from which the smoke curled up gayly into the clear
+air.
+
+The dairy-maids who spent the summer there tending the cattle both fell
+victims to the charms of little Hans, and offered him and his mother
+their simple hospitality. They told of the lumbermen who had passed
+the saeter huts, and inquired for her; but otherwise they respected her
+silence, and made no attempt to pry into her secrets. The next morning
+she started, after a refreshing sleep, westward toward the coast, where
+she hoped in some way to find a passage to America. For if little Hans
+was really born under a lucky star--which fact she now could scarcely
+doubt--then America was the place for him. There he might rise to become
+President, or a judge, or a parson, or something or other; while in
+Norway he would never be anything but a lumberman like his father. Inga
+had a well-to-do sister, who was a widow, in the nearest town, and she
+would borrow enough money from her to pay their passage to New York.
+
+
+It was early in July when little Hans and his mother arrived in New
+York. The latter had repented bitterly of her rashness in stealing her
+child from his father, and under a blind impulse traversing half the
+globe in a wild-goose chase after fortune. The world was so much bigger
+than she in her quiet valley had imagined; and, what was worse, it wore
+such a cold and repellent look, and was so bewildering and noisy. Inga
+had been very sea-sick during the voyage; and after she stepped ashore
+from the tug that brought her to Castle Garden, the ground kept heaving
+and swelling under her feet, and made her dizzy and miserable. She had
+been very wicked, she was beginning to think, and deserved punishment;
+and if it had not been for a vague and adventurous faith in the great
+future that was in store for her son, she would have been content
+to return home, do penance for her folly, and beg her husband’s
+forgiveness. But, in the first place, she had no money to pay for a
+return ticket; and, secondly, it would be a great pity to deprive little
+Hans of the Presidency and all the grandeur that his lucky star might
+here bring him.
+
+Inga was just contemplating this bright vision of Hans’s future, when
+she found herself passing through a gate, at which a clerk was seated.
+
+“What is your name?” he asked, through an interpreter.
+
+“Inga Olsdatter Pladsen.”
+
+“Age?”
+
+“Twenty-eight a week after Michaelmas.”
+
+“Single or married?”
+
+“Married.”
+
+“Where is your husband?”
+
+“In Norway.”
+
+“Are you divorced from him?”
+
+“Divorced--I! Why, no! Who ever heard of such a thing?”
+
+Inga grew quite indignant at the thought of her being divorced. A
+dozen other questions were asked, at each of which her embarrassment
+increased. When, finally, she declared that she had no money, no
+definite destination, and no relatives or friends in the country, the
+examination was cut short, and after an hour’s delay and a wearisome
+cross-questioning by different officials, she was put on board the tug,
+and returned to the steamer in which she had crossed the ocean. Four
+dreary days passed; then there was a tremendous commotion on deck:
+blowing of whistles, roaring of steam, playing of bands, bumping of
+trunks and boxes, and finally the steady pulsation of the engines as the
+big ship stood out to sea. After nine days of discomfort in the stuffy
+steerage and thirty-six hours of downright misery while crossing the
+stormy North Sea, Inga found herself once more in the land of her
+birth. Full of humiliation and shame she met her husband at the
+railroad station, and prepared herself for a deluge of harsh words and
+reproaches. But instead of that he patted her gently on the head, and
+clasped little Hans in his arms and kissed him. They said very little
+to each other as they rode homeward in the cars; but little Hans had a
+thousand things to tell, and his father was delighted to hear them. In
+the evening, when they had reached their native valley, and the boy was
+asleep, Inga plucked up courage and said, “Nils, it is all a mistake
+about little Hans’s luck.”
+
+“Mistake! Why, no,” cried Nils. “What greater luck could he have than to
+be brought safely home to his father?”
+
+Inga had indeed hoped for more; but she said nothing. Nevertheless,
+fate still had strange things in store for little Hans. The story of
+his mother’s flight to and return from America was picked up by some
+enterprising journalist, who made a most touching romance of it.
+Hundreds of inquiries regarding little Hans poured in upon the pastor
+and the postmaster; and offers to adopt him, educate him, and I know not
+what else, were made to his parents. But Nils would hear of no adoption;
+nor would he consent to any plan that separated him from the boy. When,
+however, he was given a position as superintendent of a lumber yard in
+the town, and prosperity began to smile upon him, he sent little Hans
+to school, and as Hans was a clever boy, he made the most of his
+opportunities.
+
+And now little Hans is indeed a very big Hans, but a child of luck he is
+yet; for I saw him referred to the other day in the newspapers as one of
+the greatest lumber dealers, and one of the noblest, most generous, and
+public-spirited men in Norway.
+
+
+
+
+THE BEAR THAT HAD A BANK ACCOUNT
+
+
+
+
+I.
+
+You may not believe it, but the bear I am going to tell you about really
+had a bank account! He lived in the woods, as most bears do; but he
+had a reputation which extended over all Norway and more than half of
+England. Earls and baronets came every summer, with repeating-rifles
+of the latest patent, and plaids and field-glasses and portable
+cooking-stoves, intent upon killing him. But Mr. Bruin, whose only
+weapons were a pair of paws and a pair of jaws, both uncommonly good of
+their kind, though not patented, always managed to get away unscathed;
+and that was sometimes more than the earls and the baronets did.
+
+One summer the Crown Prince of Germany came to Norway. He also heard of
+the famous bear that no one could kill, and made up his mind that he was
+the man to kill it. He trudged for two days through bogs, and climbed
+through glens and ravines, before he came on the scent of a bear, and a
+bear’s scent, you may know, is strong, and quite unmistakable. Finally
+he discovered some tracks in the moss, like those of a barefooted man,
+or, I should rather say, perhaps, a man-footed bear. The Prince was
+just turning the corner of a projecting rock, when he saw a huge, shaggy
+beast standing on its hind legs, examining in a leisurely manner the
+inside of a hollow tree, while a swarm of bees were buzzing about its
+ears. It was just hauling out a handful of honey, and was smiling with
+a grewsome mirth, when His Royal Highness sent it a bullet right in the
+breast, where its heart must have been, if it had one. But, instead of
+falling down flat, as it ought to have done, out of deference to the
+Prince, it coolly turned its back, and gave its assailant a disgusted
+nod over its shoulder as it trudged away through the underbrush.
+The attendants ranged through the woods and beat the bushes in all
+directions, but Mr. Bruin was no more to be seen that afternoon. It was
+as if he had sunk into the earth; not a trace of him was to be found by
+either dogs or men.
+
+From that time forth the rumor spread abroad that this Gausdale Bruin
+(for that was the name by which he became known) was enchanted. It was
+said that he shook off bullets as a duck does water; that he had the
+evil eye, and could bring misfortune to whomsoever he looked upon.
+The peasants dreaded to meet him, and ceased to hunt him. His size was
+described as something enormous, his teeth, his claws, and his eyes as
+being diabolical beyond human conception. In the meanwhile Mr. Bruin had
+it all his own way in the mountains, killed a young bull or a fat heifer
+for his dinner every day or two, chased in pure sport a herd of sheep
+over a precipice; and as for Lars Moe’s bay mare Stella, he nearly
+finished her, leaving his claw-marks on her flank in a way that spoiled
+her beauty forever.
+
+Now Lars Moe himself was too old to hunt; and his nephew was--well, he
+was not old enough. There was, in fact, no one in the valley who was of
+the right age to hunt this Gausdale Bruin. It was of no use that Lars
+Moe egged on the young lads to try their luck, shaming them, or offering
+them rewards, according as his mood might happen to be. He was the
+wealthiest man in the valley, and his mare Stella had been the apple of
+his eye. He felt it as a personal insult that the bear should have dared
+to molest what belonged to him, especially the most precious of all his
+possessions. It cut him to the heart to see the poor wounded beauty,
+with those cruel scratches on her thigh, and one stiff, aching leg done
+up in oil and cotton. When he opened the stable-door, and was greeted
+by Stella’s low, friendly neighing, or when she limped forward in her
+box-stall and put her small, clean-shaped head on his shoulder, then
+Lars Moe’s heart swelled until it seemed on the point of breaking. And
+so it came to pass that he added a codicil to his will, setting aside
+five hundred dollars of his estate as a reward to the man who, within
+six years, should kill the Gausdale Bruin.
+
+Soon after that, Lars Moe died, as some said, from grief and chagrin;
+though the physician affirmed that it was of rheumatism of the heart.
+At any rate, the codicil relating to the enchanted bear was duly read
+before the church door, and pasted, among other legal notices, in the
+vestibules of the judge’s and the sheriff’s offices. When the executors
+had settled up the estate, the question arose in whose name or to whose
+credit should be deposited the money which was to be set aside for the
+benefit of the bear-slayer. No one knew who would kill the bear, or if
+any one would kill it. It was a puzzling question.
+
+“Why, deposit it to the credit of the bear,” said a jocose executor;
+“then, in the absence of other heirs, his slayer will inherit it. That
+is good old Norwegian practice, though I don’t know whether it has ever
+been the law.”
+
+“All right,” said the other executors, “so long as it is understood who
+is to have the money, it does not matter.”
+
+And so an amount equal to $500 was deposited in the county bank to the
+credit of the Gausdale Bruin. Sir Barry Worthington, Bart., who came
+abroad the following summer for the shooting, heard the story, and
+thought it a good one. So, after having vainly tried to earn the prize
+himself, he added another $500 to the deposit, with the stipulation that
+he was to have the skin.
+
+But his rival for parliamentary honors, Robert Stapleton, Esq., the
+great iron-master, who had come to Norway chiefly to outshine Sir Barry,
+determined that he was to have the skin of that famous bear, if any one
+was to have it, and that, at all events, Sir Barry should not have
+it. So Mr. Stapleton added $750 to the bear’s bank account, with the
+stipulation that the skin should come to him.
+
+Mr. Bruin, in the meanwhile, as if to resent this unseemly contention
+about his pelt, made worse havoc among the herds than ever, and
+compelled several peasants to move their dairies to other parts of the
+mountains, where the pastures were poorer, but where they would be free
+from his depredations. If the $1,750 in the bank had been meant as
+a bribe or a stipend for good behavior, such as was formerly paid to
+Italian brigands, it certainly could not have been more demoralizing
+in its effect; for all agreed that, since Lars Moe’s death, Bruin
+misbehaved worse than ever.
+
+
+
+
+II.
+
+There was an odd clause in Lars Moe’s will besides the codicil relating
+to the bear. It read:
+
+“I hereby give and bequeath to my daughter Unna, or, in case of her
+decease, to her oldest living issue, my bay mare Stella, as a token that
+I have forgiven her the sorrow she caused me by her marriage.”
+
+It seemed incredible that Lars Moe should wish to play a practical joke
+(and a bad one at that) on his only child, his daughter Unna, because
+she had displeased him by her marriage. Yet that was the common opinion
+in the valley when this singular clause became known. Unna had married
+Thorkel Tomlevold, a poor tenant’s son, and had refused her cousin, the
+great lumber-dealer, Morten Janson, whom her father had selected for a
+son-in-law.
+
+She dwelt now in a tenant’s cottage, northward in the parish; and her
+husband, who was a sturdy and fine-looking fellow, eked out a living
+by hunting and fishing. But they surely had no accommodations for a
+broken-down, wounded, trotting mare, which could not even draw a plough.
+It is true Unna, in the days of her girlhood, had been very fond of the
+mare, and it is only charitable to suppose that the clause, which was
+in the body of the will, was written while Stella was in her prime,
+and before she had suffered at the paws of the Gausdale Bruin. But even
+granting that, one could scarcely help suspecting malice aforethought in
+the curious provision. To Unna the gift was meant to say, as plainly as
+possible, “There, you see what you have lost by disobeying your father!
+If you had married according to his wishes, you would have been able to
+accept the gift, while now you are obliged to decline it like a beggar.”
+
+But if it was Lars Moe’s intention to convey such a message to his
+daughter, he failed to take into account his daughter’s spirit. She
+appeared plainly but decently dressed at the reading of the will, and
+carried her head not a whit less haughtily than was her wont in her
+maiden days. She exhibited no chagrin when she found that Janson was
+her father’s heir and that she was disinherited. She even listened with
+perfect composure to the reading of the clause which bequeathed to her
+the broken-down mare.
+
+It at once became a matter of pride with her to accept her girlhood’s
+favorite, and accept it she did! And having borrowed a side-saddle, she
+rode home, apparently quite contented. A little shed, or lean-to, was
+built in the rear of the house, and Stella became a member of Thorkel
+Tomlevold’s family. Odd as it may seem, the fortunes of the family took
+a turn for the better from the day she arrived; Thorkel rarely came home
+without big game, and in his traps he caught more than any three other
+men in all the parish.
+
+“The mare has brought us luck,” he said to his wife. “If she can’t
+plough, she can at all events pull the sleigh to church; and you have as
+good a right as any one to put on airs, if you choose.”
+
+“Yes, she has brought us blessing,” replied Unna, quietly; “and we are
+going to keep her till she dies of old age.”
+
+To the children Stella became a pet, as much as if she had been a dog
+or a cat. The little boy Lars climbed all over her, and kissed her
+regularly good-morning when she put her handsome head in through the
+kitchen-door to get her lump of sugar. She was as gentle as a lamb and
+as intelligent as a dog. Her great brown eyes, with their soft, liquid
+look, spoke as plainly as words could speak, expressing pleasure when
+she was patted; and the low neighing with which she greeted the little
+boy, when she heard his footsteps in the door, was to him like the voice
+of a friend.
+
+He grew to love this handsome and noble animal as he had loved nothing
+on earth except his father and mother.
+
+As a matter of course he heard a hundred times the story of Stella’s
+adventure with the terrible Gausdale bear. It was a story that never
+lost its interest, that seemed to grow more exciting the oftener it
+was told. The deep scars of the bear’s claws in Stella’s thigh were
+curiously examined, and each time gave rise to new questions. The mare
+became quite a heroic character, and the suggestion was frequently
+discussed between Lars and his little sister Marit, whether Stella might
+not be an enchanted princess who was waiting for some one to cut off
+her head, so that she might show herself in her glory. Marit thought the
+experiment well worth trying, but Lars had his doubts, and was unwilling
+to take the risk; yet if she brought luck, as his mother said, then she
+certainly must be something more than an ordinary horse.
+
+Stella had dragged little Lars out of the river when he fell overboard
+from the pier; and that, too, showed more sense than he had ever known a
+horse to have.
+
+There could be no doubt in his mind that Stella was an enchanted
+princess. And instantly the thought occurred to him that the dreadful
+enchanted bear with the evil eye was the sorcerer, and that, when he was
+killed, Stella would resume her human guise. It soon became clear to him
+that he was the boy to accomplish this heroic deed; and it was equally
+plain to him that he must keep his purpose secret from all except Marit,
+as his mother would surely discourage him from engaging in so perilous
+an enterprise. First of all, he had to learn how to shoot; and his
+father, who was the best shot in the valley, was very willing to teach
+him. It seemed quite natural to Thorkel that a hunter’s son should take
+readily to the rifle; and it gave him great satisfaction to see how true
+his boy’s aim was, and how steady his hand.
+
+“Father,” said Lars one day, “you shoot so well, why haven’t you ever
+tried to kill the Gausdale Bruin that hurt Stella so badly?”
+
+“Hush, child! you don’t know what you are talking about,” answered his
+father; “no leaden bullet will harm that wicked beast.”
+
+“Why not?”
+
+“I don’t like to talk about it--but it is well known that he is
+enchanted.”
+
+“But will he then live for ever? Is there no sort of bullet that will
+kill him?” asked the boy.
+
+“I don’t know. I don’t want to have anything to do with witchcraft,”
+ said Thorkel.
+
+The word “witchcraft” set the boy to thinking, and he suddenly
+remembered that he had been warned not to speak to an old woman named
+Martha Pladsen, because she was a witch. Now, she was probably the very
+one who could tell him what he wanted to know. Her cottage lay close
+up under the mountain-side, about two miles from his home. He did not
+deliberate long before going to seek this mysterious person, about
+whom the most remarkable stories were told in the valley. To his
+astonishment, she received him kindly, gave him a cup of coffee with
+rock candy, and declared that she had long expected him. The bullet
+which was to slay the enchanted bear had long been in her possession;
+and she would give it to him if he would promise to give her the beast’s
+heart.
+
+He did not have to be asked twice for that; and off he started gayly
+with his prize in his pocket. It was rather an odd-looking bullet,
+made of silver, marked with a cross on one side and with a lot of queer
+illegible figures on the other. It seemed to burn in his pocket, so
+anxious was he to start out at once to release the beloved Stella from
+the cruel enchantment. But Martha had said that the bear could only
+be killed when the moon was full; and until the moon was full he
+accordingly had to bridle his impatience.
+
+
+
+
+III.
+
+It was a bright morning in January, and, as it happened, Lars’s
+fourteenth birthday. To his great delight, his mother had gone down to
+the judge’s to sell some ptarmigans, and his father had gone to fell
+some timber up in the glen. Accordingly he could secure the rifle
+without being observed. He took an affectionate good-by of Stella,
+who rubbed her soft nose against his own, playfully pulled at his
+coat-collar, and blew her sweet, warm breath into his face. Lars was a
+simple-hearted boy, in spite of his age, and quite a child at heart.
+He had lived so secluded from all society, and breathed so long the
+atmosphere of fairy tales, that he could see nothing at all absurd
+in what he was about to undertake. The youngest son in the story-book
+always did just that sort of thing, and everybody praised and admired
+him for it. Lars meant, for once, to put the story-book hero into the
+shade. He engaged little Marit to watch over Stella while he was gone,
+and under no circumstances to betray him--all of which Marit solemnly
+promised.
+
+With his rifle on his shoulder and his skees on his feet, Lars glided
+slowly along over the glittering surface of the snow, for the mountain
+was steep, and he had to zigzag in long lines before he reached the
+upper heights, where the bear was said to have his haunts. The place
+where Bruin had his winter den had once been pointed out to him, and
+he remembered yet how pale his father was, when he found that he had
+strayed by chance into so dangerous a neighborhood. Lars’s heart, too,
+beat rather uneasily as he saw the two heaps of stones, called “The
+Parson” and “The Deacon,” and the two huge fir-trees which marked the
+dreaded spot. It had been customary from immemorial time for each person
+who passed along the road to throw a large stone on the Parson’s heap,
+and a small one on the Deacon’s; but since the Gausdale Bruin had gone
+into winter quarters there, the stone heaps had ceased to grow.
+
+Under the great knotted roots of the fir-trees there was a hole, which
+was more than half-covered with snow; and it was noticeable that there
+was not a track of bird or beast to be seen anywhere around it. Lars,
+who on the way had been buoyed up by the sense of his heroism, began
+now to feel strangely uncomfortable. It was so awfully hushed and still
+round about him; not the scream of a bird--not even the falling of a
+broken bough was to be heard. The pines stood in lines and in clumps,
+solemn, like a funeral procession, shrouded in sepulchral white. Even if
+a crow had cawed it would have been a relief to the frightened boy--for
+it must be confessed that he was a trifle frightened--if only a little
+shower of snow had fallen upon his head from the heavily laden branches,
+he would have been grateful for it, for it would have broken the spell
+of this oppressive silence.
+
+There could be no doubt of it; inside, under those tree-roots slept
+Stella’s foe--the dreaded enchanted beast who had put the boldest
+of hunters to flight, and set lords and baronets by the ears for the
+privilege of possessing his skin. Lars became suddenly aware that it
+was a foolhardy thing he had undertaken, and that he had better betake
+himself home. But then, again, had not Witch-Martha said that she had
+been waiting for him; that he was destined by fate to accomplish this
+deed, just as the youngest son had been in the story-book. Yes, to be
+sure, she had said that; and it was a comforting thought.
+
+Accordingly, having again examined his rifle, which he had carefully
+loaded with the silver bullet before leaving home, he started boldly
+forward, climbed up on the little hillock between the two trees, and
+began to pound it lustily with the butt-end of his gun. He listened
+for a moment tremulously, and heard distinctly long, heavy sighs from
+within.
+
+His heart stood still. The bear was awake! Soon he would have to face
+it! A minute more elapsed; Lars’s heart shot up into his throat. He
+leaped down, placed himself in front of the entrance to the den, and
+cocked his rifle. Three long minutes passed. Bruin had evidently gone to
+sleep again. Wild with excitement, the boy rushed forward and drove his
+skee-staff straight into the den with all his might. A sullen growl was
+heard, like a deep and menacing thunder. There could be no doubt that
+now the monster would take him to task for his impertinence.
+
+Again the boy seized his rifle; and his nerves, though tense as
+stretched bow-strings, seemed suddenly calm and steady. He lifted the
+rifle to his cheek, and resolved not to shoot until he had a clear aim
+at heart or brain. Bruin, though Lars could hear him rummaging within,
+was in no hurry to come out, But he sighed and growled uproariously,
+and presently showed a terrible, long-clawed paw, which he thrust out
+through his door and then again withdrew. But apparently it took him a
+long while to get his mind clear as to the cause of the disturbance;
+for fully five minutes had elapsed when suddenly a big tuft of moss
+was tossed out upon the snow, followed by a cloud of dust and an angry
+creaking of the tree-roots.
+
+Great masses of snow were shaken from the swaying tops of the firs, and
+fell with light thuds upon the ground. In the face of this unexpected
+shower, which entirely hid the entrance to the den, Lars was obliged to
+fall back a dozen paces; but, as the glittering drizzle cleared away,
+he saw an enormous brown beast standing upon its hind legs, with widely
+distended jaws. He was conscious of no fear, but of a curious numbness
+in his limbs, and strange noises, as of warning shouts and cries,
+filling his ears.
+
+Fortunately, the great glare of the sun-smitten snow dazzled Bruin; he
+advanced slowly, roaring savagely, but staring rather blindly before
+him out of his small, evil-looking eyes. Suddenly, when he was but a few
+yards distant, he raised his great paw, as if to rub away the cobwebs
+that obscured his sight.
+
+It was the moment for which the boy had waited. Now he had a clear aim!
+Quickly he pulled the trigger; the shot reverberated from mountain to
+mountain, and in the same instant the huge brown bulk rolled in the
+snow, gave a gasp, and was dead! The spell was broken! The silver bullet
+had pierced his heart. There was a curious unreality about the whole
+thing to Lars. He scarcely knew whether he was really himself or the
+hero of the fairy-tale.
+
+All that was left for him to do now was to go home and marry Stella, the
+delivered princess.
+
+The noises about him seemed to come nearer and nearer; and now they
+sounded like human voices. He looked about him, and to his amazement
+saw his father and Marit, followed by two wood-cutters, who, with
+raised axes, were running toward him. Then he did not know exactly what
+happened; but he felt himself lifted up by two strong arms, and tears
+fell hot and fast upon his face.
+
+“My boy! my boy!” said the voice in his ears, “I expected to find you
+dead.”
+
+“No, but the bear is dead,” said Lars, innocently.
+
+“I didn’t mean to tell on you, Lars,” cried Marit, “but I was so afraid,
+and then I had to.”
+
+The rumor soon filled the whole valley that the great Gausdale Bruin was
+dead, and that the boy Lars Tomlevold had killed him. It is needless to
+say that Lars Tomlevold became the parish hero from that day. He did not
+dare to confess in the presence of all this praise and wonder that at
+heart he was bitterly disappointed; for when he came home, throbbing
+with wild expectancy, there stood Stella before the kitchen door,
+munching a piece of bread; and when she hailed him with a low whinny, he
+burst into tears. But he dared not tell any one why he was weeping.
+
+This story might have ended here, but it has a little sequel. The $1,750
+which Bruin had to his credit in the bank had increased to $2,290;
+and it was all paid to Lars. A few years later, Martin Janson, who had
+inherited the estate of Moe from old Lars, failed in consequence of his
+daring forest speculations, and young Lars was enabled to buy the farm
+at auction at less than half its value. Thus he had the happiness to
+bring his mother back to the place of her birth, of which she had been
+wrongfully deprived; and Stella, who was now twenty-one years old,
+occupied once more her handsome box-stall, as in the days of her glory.
+And although she never proved to be a princess, she was treated as if
+she were one, during the few years that remained to her.
+
+
+
+
+
+[Footnote 1: In Norway confirmation is always preceded by a public examination of
+the candidates in the aisle of the church. The order in which they are
+arranged is supposed to indicate their attainments, but does, as a rule,
+indicate the rank and social position of their parents.]
+
+[Footnote 2: Norwegian snow-shoes.]
+
+[Footnote 3: The genius of cattle, represented as a beautiful maiden disfigured
+by a heifer’s tail, which she is always trying to hide, though often
+unsuccessfully.]
+
+
+
+
+
+End of Project Gutenberg’s Boyhood in Norway, by Hjalmar Hjorth Boyesen
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+<html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" lang="en">
+  <head>
+    <title>
+      Boyhood in Norway, by Hjalmar Hjorth Boyesen
+    </title>
+    <style type="text/css" xml:space="preserve">
+
+    body { margin:5%; background:#faebd0; text-align:justify}
+    P { text-indent: 1em; margin-top: .25em; margin-bottom: .25em; }
+    H1,H2,H3,H4,H5,H6 { text-align: center; margin-left: 15%; margin-right: 15%; }
+    hr  { width: 50%; text-align: center;}
+    .foot { margin-left: 20%; margin-right: 20%; text-align: justify; text-indent: -3em; font-size: 90%; }
+    blockquote {font-size: 97%; font-style: italic; margin-left: 10%; margin-right: 10%;}
+    .mynote    {background-color: #DDE; color: #000; padding: .5em; margin-left: 10%; margin-right: 10%; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 95%;}
+    .toc       { margin-left: 10%; margin-bottom: .75em;}
+    .toc2      { margin-left: 20%;}
+    div.fig    { display:block; margin:0 auto; text-align:center; }
+    div.middle { margin-left: 20%; margin-right: 20%; text-align: justify; }
+    .figleft   {float: left; margin-left: 0%; margin-right: 1%;}
+    .figright  {float: right; margin-right: 0%; margin-left: 1%;}
+    .pagenum   {display:inline; font-size: 70%; font-style:normal;
+               margin: 0; padding: 0; position: absolute; right: 1%;
+               text-align: right;}
+    pre        { font-style: italic; font-size: 90%; margin-left: 10%;}
+
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+  <body>
+<pre xml:space="preserve">
+
+The Project Gutenberg EBook of Boyhood in Norway, by Hjalmar Hjorth Boyesen
+
+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: Boyhood in Norway
+
+Author: Hjalmar Hjorth Boyesen
+
+Release Date: July 23, 2008 [EBook #784]
+Last Updated: October 18, 2016
+
+Language: English
+
+Character set encoding: UTF-8
+
+*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK BOYHOOD IN NORWAY ***
+
+
+
+
+Produced by Charles Keller, and David Widger
+
+
+
+
+
+</pre>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <h1>
+      BOYHOOD IN NORWAY
+    </h1>
+    <h2>
+      Stories Of Boy-Life In The Land Of The Midnight Sun
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      <br />
+    </p>
+    <h2>
+      By Hjalmar Hjorth Boyesen
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      <br /> <br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <br /> <br />
+    </p>
+    <blockquote>
+      <p class="toc">
+        <big><b>CONTENTS</b></big>
+      </p>
+      <p>
+        <br />
+      </p>
+      <p class="toc">
+        <a href="#link2H_4_0001"> <b>THE BATTLE OF THE RAFTS</b> </a>
+      </p>
+      <p class="toc">
+        <a href="#link2H_4_0002"> I. THE ORIGIN OF THE WAR </a>
+      </p>
+      <p class="toc">
+        <a href="#link2H_4_0003"> II. THE CLASH OF ARMS </a>
+      </p>
+      <p>
+        <br />
+      </p>
+      <p class="toc">
+        <a href="#link2H_4_0004"> <b>BICEPS GRIMLUND&rsquo;S CHRISTMAS VACATION</b>
+        </a>
+      </p>
+      <p class="toc">
+        <a href="#link2H_4_0005"> I. </a>
+      </p>
+      <p class="toc">
+        <a href="#link2H_4_0006"> II. </a>
+      </p>
+      <p class="toc">
+        <a href="#link2H_4_0007"> III. </a>
+      </p>
+      <p class="toc">
+        <a href="#link2H_4_0008"> IV. </a>
+      </p>
+      <p>
+        <br />
+      </p>
+      <p class="toc">
+        <a href="#link2H_4_0009"> <b>THE NIXY&rsquo;S STRAIN</b> </a>
+      </p>
+      <p>
+        <br />
+      </p>
+      <p class="toc">
+        <a href="#link2H_4_0010"> <b>THE WONDER CHILD</b> </a>
+      </p>
+      <p class="toc">
+        <a href="#link2H_4_0011"> I. </a>
+      </p>
+      <p class="toc">
+        <a href="#link2H_4_0012"> II. </a>
+      </p>
+      <p>
+        <br />
+      </p>
+      <p class="toc">
+        <a href="#link2H_4_0013"> <b>"THE SONS OF THE VIKINGS"</b> </a>
+      </p>
+      <p class="toc">
+        <a href="#link2H_4_0014"> I. </a>
+      </p>
+      <p class="toc">
+        <a href="#link2H_4_0015"> II. </a>
+      </p>
+      <p class="toc">
+        <a href="#link2H_4_0016"> III. </a>
+      </p>
+      <p class="toc">
+        <a href="#link2H_4_0017"> IV. </a>
+      </p>
+      <p>
+        <br />
+      </p>
+      <p class="toc">
+        <a href="#link2H_4_0018"> <b>PAUL JESPERSEN&rsquo;S MASQUERADE</b> </a>
+      </p>
+      <p>
+        <br />
+      </p>
+      <p class="toc">
+        <a href="#link2H_4_0019"> <b>LADY CLARE THE STORY OF A HORSE</b> </a>
+      </p>
+      <p>
+        <br />
+      </p>
+      <p class="toc">
+        <a href="#link2H_4_0020"> <b>BONNYBOY</b> </a>
+      </p>
+      <p class="toc">
+        <a href="#link2H_4_0021"> I. </a>
+      </p>
+      <p class="toc">
+        <a href="#link2H_4_0022"> II. </a>
+      </p>
+      <p class="toc">
+        <a href="#link2H_4_0023"> III. </a>
+      </p>
+      <p class="toc">
+        <a href="#link2H_4_0024"> IV. </a>
+      </p>
+      <p class="toc">
+        <a href="#link2H_4_0025"> V. </a>
+      </p>
+      <p class="toc">
+        <a href="#link2H_4_0026"> VI. </a>
+      </p>
+      <p>
+        <br />
+      </p>
+      <p class="toc">
+        <a href="#link2H_4_0027"> <b>THE CHILD OF LUCK</b> </a>
+      </p>
+      <p class="toc">
+        <a href="#link2H_4_0028"> I. </a>
+      </p>
+      <p class="toc">
+        <a href="#link2H_4_0029"> II. </a>
+      </p>
+      <p>
+        <br />
+      </p>
+      <p class="toc">
+        <a href="#link2H_4_0030"> <b>THE BEAR THAT HAD A BANK ACCOUNT</b> </a>
+      </p>
+      <p class="toc">
+        <a href="#link2H_4_0031"> I. </a>
+      </p>
+      <p class="toc">
+        <a href="#link2H_4_0032"> II. </a>
+      </p>
+      <p class="toc">
+        <a href="#link2H_4_0033"> III. </a>
+      </p>
+    </blockquote>
+    <p>
+      <br /> <br />
+    </p>
+    <hr />
+    <p>
+      <br /> <br /> <a name="link2H_4_0001" id="link2H_4_0001">
+      <!--  H2 anchor --> </a> <br /><br />
+    </p>
+    <h2>
+      THE BATTLE OF THE RAFTS
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0002" id="link2H_4_0002">
+      <!--  H2 anchor --> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      I. THE ORIGIN OF THE WAR
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      A deadly feud was raging among the boys of Numedale. The East-Siders hated
+      the West-Siders, and thrashed them when they got a chance; and the
+      West-Siders, when fortune favored them, returned the compliment with
+      interest. It required considerable courage for a boy to venture,
+      unattended by comrades, into the territory of the enemy; and no one took
+      the risk unless dire necessity compelled him.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The hostile parties had played at war so long that they had forgotten that
+      it was play; and now were actually inspired with the emotions which they
+      had formerly simulated. Under the leadership of their chieftains, Halvor
+      Reitan and Viggo Hook, they held councils of war, sent out scouts, planned
+      midnight surprises, and fought at times mimic battles. I say mimic
+      battles, because no one was ever killed; but broken heads and bruised
+      limbs many a one carried home from these engagements, and unhappily one
+      boy, named Peer Oestmo, had an eye put out by an arrow.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It was a great consolation to him that he became a hero to all the
+      West-Siders and was promoted for bravery in the field to the rank of first
+      lieutenant. He had the sympathy of all his companions in arms and got
+      innumerable bites of apples, cancelled postage stamps, and colored
+      advertising-labels in token of their esteem.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      But the principal effect of this first serious wound was to invest the war
+      with a breathless and all-absorbing interest. It was now no longer &ldquo;make
+      believe,&rdquo; but deadly earnest. Blood had flowed; insults had been exchanged
+      in due order, and offended honor cried for vengeance.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It was fortunate that the river divided the West-Siders from the
+      East-Siders, or it would have been difficult to tell what might have
+      happened. Viggo Hook, the West-Side general, was a handsome, high-spirited
+      lad of fifteen, who was the last person to pocket an injury, as long as
+      red blood flowed in his veins, as he was wont to express it. He was the
+      eldest son of Colonel Hook of the regular army, and meant some day to be a
+      Von Moltke or a Napoleon. He felt in his heart that he was destined for
+      something great; and in conformity with this conviction assumed a superb
+      behavior, which his comrades found very admirable.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He had the gift of leadership in a marked degree, and established his
+      authority by a due mixture of kindness and severity. Those boys whom he
+      honored with his confidence were absolutely attached to him. Those whom,
+      with magnificent arbitrariness, he punished and persecuted, felt meekly
+      that they had probably deserved it; and if they had not, it was somehow in
+      the game.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      There never was a more absolute king than Viggo, nor one more abjectly
+      courted and admired. And the amusing part of it was that he was at heart a
+      generous and good-natured lad, but possessed with a lofty ideal of
+      heroism, which required above all things that whatever he said or did must
+      be striking. He dramatized, as it were, every phrase he uttered and every
+      act he performed, and modelled himself alternately after Napoleon and
+      Wellington, as he had seen them represented in the old engravings which
+      decorated the walls in his father&rsquo;s study.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He had read much about heroes of war, ancient and modern, and he lived
+      about half his own life imagining himself by turns all sorts of grand
+      characters from history or fiction.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      His costume was usually in keeping with his own conception of these
+      characters, in so far as his scanty opportunities permitted. An old,
+      broken sword of his father&rsquo;s, which had been polished until it &ldquo;flashed&rdquo;
+       properly, was girded to a brass-mounted belt about his waist; an ancient,
+      gold-braided, military cap, which was much too large, covered his curly
+      head; and four tarnished brass buttons, displaying the Golden Lion of
+      Norway, gave a martial air to his blue jacket, although the rest were
+      plain horn.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      But quite independently of his poor trappings Viggo was to his comrades an
+      august personage. I doubt if the Grand Vizier feels more flattered and
+      gratified by the favor of the Sultan than little Marcus Henning did, when
+      Viggo condescended to be civil to him.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Marcus was small, round-shouldered, spindle-shanked, and freckle-faced.
+      His hair was coarse, straight, and the color of maple sirup; his nose was
+      broad and a little flattened at the point, and his clothes had a knack of
+      never fitting him. They were made to grow in and somehow he never caught
+      up with them, he once said, with no intention of being funny. His father,
+      who was Colonel Hook&rsquo;s nearest neighbor, kept a modest country shop, in
+      which you could buy anything, from dry goods and groceries to shoes and
+      medicines. You would have to be very ingenious to ask for a thing which
+      Henning could not supply. The smell in the store carried out the same
+      idea; for it was a mixture of all imaginable smells under the sun.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Now, it was the chief misery of Marcus that, sleeping, as he did, in the
+      room behind the store, he had become so impregnated with this curious
+      composite smell that it followed him like an odoriferous halo, and
+      procured him a number of unpleasant nicknames. The principal ingredient
+      was salted herring; but there was also a suspicion of tarred ropes, plug
+      tobacco, prunes, dried codfish, and oiled tarpaulin.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It was not so much kindness of heart as respect for his own dignity which
+      made Viggo refrain from calling Marcus a &ldquo;Muskrat&rdquo; or a &ldquo;Smelling-Bottle.&rdquo;
+       And yet Marcus regarded this gracious forbearance on his part as the mark
+      of a noble soul. He had been compelled to accept these offensive
+      nicknames, and, finding rebellion vain, he had finally acquiesced in them.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He never loved to be called a &ldquo;Muskrat,&rdquo; though he answered to the name
+      mechanically. But when Viggo addressed him as &ldquo;base minion,&rdquo; in his wrath,
+      or as &ldquo;Sergeant Henning,&rdquo; in his sunnier moods, Marcus felt equally
+      complimented by both terms, and vowed in his grateful soul eternal
+      allegiance and loyalty to his chief.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He bore kicks and cuffs with the same admirable equanimity; never
+      complained when he was thrown into a dungeon in a deserted pigsty for
+      breaches of discipline of which he was entirely guiltless, and trudged
+      uncomplainingly through rain and sleet and snow, as scout or spy, or
+      what-not, at the behest of his exacting commander.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It was all so very real to him that he never would have thought of
+      doubting the importance of his mission. He was rather honored by the trust
+      reposed in him, and was only intent upon earning a look or word of scant
+      approval from the superb personage whom he worshipped.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Halvor Reitan, the chief of the East-Siders, was a big, burly peasant lad,
+      with a pimpled face, fierce blue eyes, and a shock of towy hair. But he
+      had muscles as hard as twisted ropes, and sinews like steel.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He had the reputation, of which he was very proud, of being the strongest
+      boy in the valley, and though he was scarcely sixteen years old, he
+      boasted that he could whip many a one of twice his years. He had, in fact,
+      been so praised for his strength that he never neglected to accept, or
+      even to create, opportunities for displaying it.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      His manner was that of a bully; but it was vanity and not malice which
+      made him always spoil for a fight. He and Viggo Hook had attended the
+      parson&rsquo;s &ldquo;Confirmation Class,&rdquo; together, and it was there their hostility
+      had commenced.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Halvor, who conceived a dislike of the tall, rather dainty, and disdainful
+      Viggo, with his aquiline nose and clear, aristocratic features,
+      determined, as he expressed it, to take him down a peg or two; and the
+      more his challenges were ignored the more persistent he grew in his
+      insults.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He dubbed Viggo &ldquo;Missy.&rdquo; He ran against him with such violence in the hall
+      that he knocked his head against the wainscoting; he tripped him up on the
+      stairs by means of canes and sticks; and he hired his partisans who sat
+      behind Viggo to stick pins into him, while he recited his lessons. And
+      when all these provocations proved unavailing he determined to dispense
+      with any pretext, but simply thrash his enemy within an inch of his life
+      at the first opportunity which presented itself. He grew to hate Viggo and
+      was always aching to molest him.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Halvor saw plainly enough that Viggo despised him, and refused to notice
+      his challenges, not so much because he was afraid of him, as because he
+      regarded himself as a superior being who could afford to ignore insults
+      from an inferior, without loss of dignity.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      During recess the so-called &ldquo;genteel boys,&rdquo; who had better clothes and
+      better manners than the peasant lads, separated themselves from the rest,
+      and conversed or played with each other. No one will wonder that such
+      behavior was exasperating to the poorer boys. I am far from defending
+      Viggo&rsquo;s behavior in this instance. He was here, as everywhere, the
+      acknowledged leader; and therefore more cordially hated than the rest. It
+      was the Roundhead hating the Cavalier; and the Cavalier making merry at
+      the expense of the Roundhead.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      There was only one boy in the Confirmation Class who was doubtful as to
+      what camp should claim him, and that was little Marcus Henning. He was a
+      kind of amphibious animal who, as he thought, really belonged nowhere. His
+      father was of peasant origin, but by his prosperity and his occupation had
+      risen out of the class to which he was formerly attached, without yet
+      rising into the ranks of the gentry, who now, as always, looked with scorn
+      upon interlopers. Thus it came to pass that little Marcus, whose
+      inclinations drew him toward Viggo&rsquo;s party, was yet forced to associate
+      with the partisans of Halvor Reitan.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It was not a vulgar ambition &ldquo;to pretend to be better than he was&rdquo; which
+      inspired Marcus with a desire to change his allegiance, but a deep,
+      unreasoning admiration for Viggo Hook. He had never seen any one who
+      united so many superb qualities, nor one who looked every inch as noble as
+      he did.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It did not discourage him in the least that his first approaches met with
+      no cordial reception. His offer to communicate to Viggo where there was a
+      hawk&rsquo;s nest was coolly declined, and even the attractions of fox dens and
+      rabbits&rsquo; burrows were valiantly resisted. Better luck he had with a pair
+      of fan-tail pigeons, his most precious treasure, which Viggo rather
+      loftily consented to accept, for, like most genteel boys in the valley, he
+      was an ardent pigeon-fancier, and had long vainly importuned his father to
+      procure him some of the rarer breeds.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He condescended to acknowledge Marcus&rsquo;s greeting after that, and to
+      respond to his diffident &ldquo;Good-morning&rdquo; and &ldquo;Good-evening,&rdquo; and Marcus was
+      duly grateful for such favors. He continued to woo his idol with raisins
+      and ginger-snaps from the store, and other delicate attentions, and bore
+      the snubs which often fell to his lot with humility and patience.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      But an event soon occurred which was destined to change the relations of
+      the two boys. Halvor Reitan called a secret meeting of his partisans,
+      among whom he made the mistake to include Marcus, and agreed with them to
+      lie in ambush at the bend of the road, where it entered the forest, and
+      attack Viggo Hook and his followers. Then, he observed, he would &ldquo;make him
+      dance a jig that would take the starch out of him.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The others declared that this would be capital fun, and enthusiastically
+      promised their assistance. Each one selected his particular antipathy to
+      thrash, though all showed a marked preference for Viggo, whom, however,
+      for reason of politeness, they were obliged to leave to the chief. Only
+      one boy sat silent, and made no offer to thrash anybody, and that was
+      Marcus Henning.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Well, Muskrat,&rdquo; cried Halvor Reitan, &ldquo;whom are you going to take on your
+      conscience?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;No one,&rdquo; said Marcus.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Put the Muskrat in your pocket, Halvor,&rdquo; suggested one of the boys; &ldquo;he
+      is so small, and he has got such a hard bullet head, you might use him as
+      a club.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Well, one thing is sure,&rdquo; shouted Halvor, as a dark suspicion shot
+      through his brain, &ldquo;if you don&rsquo;t keep mum, you will be a mighty sick coon
+      the day after to-morrow.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Marcus made no reply, but got up quietly, pulled a rubber sling from his
+      pocket, and began, with the most indifferent manner in the world, to shoot
+      stones down the river. He managed during this exercise, which everybody
+      found perfectly natural, to get out of the crowd, and, without seeming to
+      have any purpose whatever, he continued to put a couple of hundred yards
+      between himself and his companion.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Look a-here, Muskrat,&rdquo; he heard Halvor cry, &ldquo;you promised to keep mum.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Marcus, instead of answering, took to his heels and ran.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Boys, the scoundrel is going to betray us!&rdquo; screamed the chief. &ldquo;Now
+      come, boys! We&rsquo;ve got to catch him, dead or alive.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      A volley of stones, big and little, was hurled after the fugitive, who now
+      realizing his position ran for dear life. The stones hailed down round
+      about him; occasionally one vicious missile would whiz past his ear, and
+      send a cold shudder through him. The tramp of his pursuers sounded nearer
+      and nearer, and his one chance of escape was to throw himself into the
+      only boat, which he saw on this side of the river, and push out into the
+      stream before he was overtaken.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He had his doubts as to whether he could accomplish this, for the blood
+      rushed and roared in his ears, the hill-side billowed under his feet, and
+      it seemed as if the trees were all running a race in the opposite
+      direction, in order to betray him to his enemies.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      A stone gave him a thump in the back, but though he felt a gradual heat
+      spreading from the spot which it hit, he was conscious of no pain.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Presently a larger missile struck him in the neck, and he heard a
+      breathless snorting close behind him. That was the end; he gave himself up
+      for lost, for those boys would have no mercy on him if they captured him.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      But in the next moment he heard a fall and an oath, and the voice was that
+      of Halvor Reitan. He breathed a little more freely as he saw the river run
+      with its swelling current at his feet. Quite mechanically, without clearly
+      knowing what he did, he sprang into the boat, grabbed a boat-hook, and
+      with three strong strokes pushed himself out into the deep water.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      At that instant a dozen of his pursuers reached the river bank, and he saw
+      dimly their angry faces and threatening gestures, and heard the stones
+      drop into the stream about him. Fortunately the river was partly dammed,
+      in order to accumulate water for the many saw-mills under the falls. It
+      would therefore have been no very difficult feat to paddle across, if his
+      aching arms had had an atom of strength left in them. As soon as he was
+      beyond the reach of flying stones he seated himself in the stern, took an
+      oar, and after having bathed his throbbing forehead in the cold water,
+      managed, in fifteen minutes, to make the further bank. Then he dragged
+      himself wearily up the hill-side to Colonel Hook&rsquo;s mansion, and when he
+      had given his message to Viggo, fell into a dead faint.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      How could Viggo help being touched by such devotion? He had seen the race
+      through a fieldglass from his pigeon-cot, but had been unable to make out
+      its meaning, nor had he remotely dreamed that he was himself the cause of
+      the cruel chase. He called his mother, who soon perceived that Marcus&rsquo;s
+      coat was saturated with blood in the back, and undressing him, she found
+      that a stone, hurled by a sling, had struck him, slid a few inches along
+      the rib, and had lodged in the fleshy part of his left side.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      A doctor was now sent for; the stone was cut out without difficulty, and
+      Marcus was invited to remain as Viggo&rsquo;s guest until he recovered. He felt
+      so honored by this invitation that he secretly prayed he might remain ill
+      for a month; but the wound showed an abominable readiness to heal, and
+      before three days were past Marcus could not feign any ailment which his
+      face and eye did not belie.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He then, with a heavy heart, betook himself homeward, and installed
+      himself once more among his accustomed smells behind the store, and
+      pondered sadly on the caprice of the fate which had made Viggo a
+      high-nosed, handsome gentleman, and him&mdash;Marcus Henning&mdash;an
+      under-grown, homely, and unrefined drudge. But in spite of his failure to
+      answer this question, there was joy within him at the thought that he had
+      saved this handsome face of Viggo&rsquo;s from disfigurement, and&mdash;who
+      could know?&mdash;perhaps would earn a claim upon his gratitude.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It was this series of incidents which led to the war between the
+      East-Siders and the West-Siders. It was a mere accident that the partisans
+      of Viggo Hook lived on the west side of the river, and those of Halvor
+      Reitan mostly on the east side.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Viggo, who had a chivalrous sense of fair play, would never have molested
+      any one without good cause; but now his own safety, and, as he persuaded
+      himself, even his life, was in danger, and he had no choice but to take
+      measures in self-defence. He surrounded himself with a trusty body-guard,
+      which attended him wherever he went. He sent little Marcus, in whom he
+      recognized his most devoted follower, as scout into the enemy&rsquo;s territory,
+      and swelled his importance enormously by lending him his field-glass to
+      assist him in his perilous observations.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Occasionally an unhappy East-Sider was captured on the west bank of the
+      river, court-martialed, and, with much solemnity, sentenced to death as a
+      spy, but paroled for an indefinite period, until it should suit his judges
+      to execute the sentence. The East-Siders, when they captured a West-Sider,
+      went to work with less ceremony; they simply thrashed their captive
+      soundly and let him run, if run he could.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Thus months passed. The parson&rsquo;s Confirmation Class ceased, and both the
+      opposing chieftains were confirmed on the same day; but Viggo stood at the
+      head of the candidates, while Halvor had his place at the bottom. <a
+      href="#linknote-1" name="linknoteref-1" id="linknoteref-1"><small>1</small></a>
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      During the following winter the war was prosecuted with much zeal, and the
+      West-Siders, in imitation of Robin Hood and his Merry Men, armed
+      themselves with cross-bows, and lay in ambush in the underbrush, aiming
+      their swift arrows against any intruder who ventured to cross the river.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Nearly all the boys in the valley between twelve and sixteen became
+      enlisted on the one side or the other, and there were councils of war,
+      marches, and counter-marches without number, occasional skirmishes, but no
+      decisive engagements. Peer Oestmo, to be sure, had his eye put out by an
+      arrow, as has already been related, for the East-Siders were not slow to
+      imitate the example of their enemies, in becoming expert archers.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Marcus Henning was captured by a hostile outpost, and was being conducted
+      to the abode of the chief, when, by a clever stratagem, he succeeded in
+      making his escape.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The East-Siders despatched, under a flag of truce, a most insulting
+      caricature of General Viggo, representing him as a rooster that seemed on
+      the point of bursting with an excess of dignity.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      These were the chief incidents of the winter, though there were many
+      others of less consequence that served to keep the boys in a delightful
+      state of excitement. They enjoyed the war keenly, though they pretended to
+      themselves that they were being ill-used and suffered terrible hardships.
+      They grumbled at their duties, brought complaints against their officers
+      to the general, and did, in fact, all the things that real soldiers would
+      have been likely to do under similar circumstances.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0003" id="link2H_4_0003">
+      <!--  H2 anchor --> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      II. THE CLASH OF ARMS
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      When the spring is late in Norway, and the heat comes with a sudden rush,
+      the mountain streams plunge with a tremendous noise down into the valleys,
+      and the air is filled far and near with the boom and roar of rushing
+      waters. The glaciers groan, and send their milk-white torrents down toward
+      the ocean. The snow-patches in the forest glens look gray and soiled, and
+      the pines perspire a delicious resinous odor which cheers the soul with
+      the conviction that spring has come.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      But the peasant looks anxiously at the sun and the river at such times,
+      for he knows that there is danger of inundation. The lumber, which the
+      spring floods set afloat in enormous quantities, is carried by the rivers
+      to the cities by the sea; there it is sorted according to the mark it
+      bears, showing the proprietor, and exported to foreign countries.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In order to prevent log-jams, which are often attended with terrible
+      disasters, men are stationed night and day at the narrows of the rivers.
+      The boys, to whom all excitement is welcome, are apt to congregate in
+      large numbers at such places, assisting or annoying the watchers, riding
+      on the logs, or teasing the girls who stand up on the hillside, admiring
+      the daring feats of the lumbermen.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It was on such a spring day, when the air was pungent with the smell of
+      sprouting birch and pine, that General Viggo and his trusty army had
+      betaken themselves to the cataract to share in the sport. They were armed
+      with their bows, as usual, knowing that they were always liable to be
+      surprised by their vigilant enemy. Nor were they in this instance
+      disappointed, for Halvor Reitan, with fifty or sixty followers, was
+      presently visible on the east side, and it was a foregone conclusion that
+      if they met there would be a battle.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The river, to be sure, separated them, but the logs were at times so
+      densely packed that it was possible for a daring lad to run far out into
+      the river, shoot his arrow and return to shore, leaping from log to log.
+      The Reitan party was the first to begin this sport, and an arrow hit
+      General Viggo&rsquo;s hat before he gave orders to repel the assault.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cool and dignified as he was, he could not consent to skip and jump on the
+      slippery logs, particularly as he had no experience in this difficult
+      exercise, while the enemy apparently had much. Paying no heed to the jeers
+      of the lumbermen, who supposed he was afraid, he drew his troops up in
+      line and addressed them as follows:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Soldiers: You have on many previous occasions given me proof of your
+      fidelity to duty and your brave and fearless spirit. I know that I can,
+      now as always, trust you to shed glory upon our arms, and to maintain our
+      noble fame and honorable traditions.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;The enemy is before us. You have heard and seen his challenge. It
+      behooves us to respond gallantly. To jump and skip like rabbits is
+      unmilitary and unsoldierlike. I propose that each of us shall select two
+      large logs, tie them together, procure, if possible, a boat-hook or an
+      oar, and, sitting astride the logs, boldly push out into the river. If we
+      can advance in a tolerably even line, which I think quite possible, we can
+      send so deadly a charge into the ranks of our adversaries that they will
+      be compelled to flee. Then we will land on the east side, occupy the
+      heights, and rout our foe.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Now let each man do his duty. Forward, march!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The lumbermen, whose sympathies were with the East-Siders, found this
+      performance highly diverting, but Viggo allowed himself in nowise to be
+      disturbed by their laughter or jeers. He marched his troops down to the
+      river-front, commanded &ldquo;Rest arms!&rdquo; and repeated once more his
+      instructions; then, flinging off his coat and waistcoat, he seized a
+      boat-hook and ran some hundred yards along the bank of the stream.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The river-bed was here expanded to a wide basin, in which the logs floated
+      lazily down to the cataract below. Trees and underbrush, which usually
+      stood on dry land, were half-submerged in the yellow water, and the
+      current gurgled slowly about their trunks with muddy foam and bubbles. Now
+      and then a heap of lumber would get wedged in between the jutting rocks
+      above the waterfall, and then the current slackened, only to be suddenly
+      accelerated, when the exertions of the men had again removed the
+      obstruction.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It was an exciting spectacle to see these daring fellows leap from log to
+      log, with birch-bark shoes on their feet. They would ride on a heap of
+      lumber down to the very edge of the cataract, dexterously jump off at the
+      critical moment, and after half a dozen narrow escapes, reach the shore,
+      only to repeat the dangerous experiment, as soon as the next opportunity
+      offered itself.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It was the example of these hardy and agile lumbermen, trained from
+      childhood to sport with danger, which inspired Viggo and his followers
+      with a desire to show their mettle.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Sergeant Henning,&rdquo; said the General to his ever-faithful shadow, &ldquo;take a
+      squad of five men with you, and cut steering-poles for those for whom
+      boat-hooks cannot be procured. You will be the last to leave shore. Report
+      to me if any one fails to obey orders.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Shall be done, General,&rdquo; Marcus responded, with a deferential military
+      salute.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;The bows, you understand, will be slung by the straps across the backs of
+      the men, while they steer and push with their poles.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Certainly, General,&rdquo; said Marcus, with another salute.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;You may go.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;All right, General,&rdquo; answered Marcus, with a third salute.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      And now began the battle. The East-Siders, fearing that a stratagem was
+      intended, when they saw the enemy moving up the stream, made haste to
+      follow their example, capturing on their way every stray log that came
+      along. They sent ineffectual showers of arrows into the water, while the
+      brave General Viggo, striding two big logs which he had tied together with
+      a piece of rope, and with a boat-hook in his hand, pushed proudly at the
+      head of his army into the middle of the wide basin.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Halvor Reitan was clever enough to see what it meant, and he was not going
+      to allow the West-Siders to gain the heights above him, and attack him in
+      the rear. He meant to prevent the enemy from landing, or, still better, he
+      would meet him half-way, and drive him back to his own shore.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The latter, though not the wiser course, was the plan which Halvor Reitan
+      adopted. To have a tussle with the high-nosed Viggo in the middle of the
+      basin, to dislodge him from his raft&mdash;that seemed to Halvor a
+      delightful project. He knew that Viggo was a good swimmer, so he feared no
+      dangerous consequences; and even if he had, it would not have restrained
+      him. He was so much stronger than Viggo, and here was his much-longed-for
+      opportunity.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      With great despatch he made himself a raft of two logs, and seating
+      himself astride them, with his legs in the water, put off from shore. He
+      shouted to his men to follow him, and they needed no urging. Viggo was now
+      near the middle of the basin, with twenty or thirty picked archers close
+      behind him. They fired volley after volley of arrows against the enemy,
+      and twice drove him back to the shore.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      But Halvor Reitan, shielding his face with a piece of bark which he had
+      picked up, pushed forward in spite of their onslaught, though one arrow
+      knocked off his red-peaked cap, and another scratched his ear. Now he was
+      but a dozen feet from his foe. He cared little for his bow now; the
+      boat-hook was a far more effectual weapon.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Viggo saw at a glance that he meant to pull his raft toward him, and,
+      relying upon his greater strength, fling him into the water.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      His first plan would therefore be to fence with his own boat-hook, so as
+      to keep his antagonist at a distance.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      When Halvor made the first lunge at the nose of his raft, he foiled the
+      attempt with his own weapon, and managed dexterously to give the hostile
+      raft a downward push, which increased the distance between them.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Take care, General!&rdquo; said a respectful voice close to Viggo&rsquo;s ear. &ldquo;There
+      is a small log jam down below, which is getting bigger every moment. When
+      it is got afloat, it will be dangerous out here.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;What are you doing here, Sergeant?&rdquo; asked the General, severely. &ldquo;Did I
+      not tell you to be the last to leave the shore?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;You did, General,&rdquo; Marcus replied, meekly, &ldquo;and I obeyed. But I have
+      pushed to the front so as to be near you.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t need you, Sergeant,&rdquo; Viggo responded, &ldquo;you may go to the rear.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The booming of the cataract nearly drowned his voice and Marcus pretended
+      not to hear it. A huge lumber mass was piling itself up among the rocks
+      jutting out of the rapids, and a dozen men hanging like flies on the logs,
+      sprang up and down with axes in their hands. They cut one log here and
+      another there; shouted commands; and fell into the river amid the derisive
+      jeers of the spectators; they scrambled out again and, dripping wet, set
+      to work once more with a cheerful heart, to the mighty music of the
+      cataract, whose thundering rhythm trembled and throbbed in the air.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The boys who were steering their rafts against each other in the
+      comparatively placid basin were too absorbed in their mimic battle to heed
+      what was going on below. Halvor and Viggo were fighting desperately with
+      their boat-hooks, the one attacking and the other defending himself with
+      great dexterity. They scarcely perceived, in their excitement, that the
+      current was dragging them slowly toward the cataract; nor did they note
+      the warning cries of the men and women on the banks.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Viggo&rsquo;s blood was hot, his temples throbbed, his eyes flashed. He would
+      show this miserable clown who had dared to insult him, that the trained
+      skill of a gentleman is worth more than the rude strength of a bully. With
+      beautiful precision he foiled every attack; struck Halvor&rsquo;s boat-hook up
+      and down, so that the water splashed about him, manoeuvring at the same
+      time his own raft with admirable adroitness.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Cheer upon cheer rent the air, after each of his successful sallies, and
+      his comrades, selecting their antagonists from among the enemy, now
+      pressed forward, all eager to bear their part in the fray.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Splash! splash! splash! one East-Sider was dismounted, got an involuntary
+      bath, but scrambled up on his raft again. The next time it was a
+      West-Sider who got a ducking, but seemed none the worse for it. There was
+      a yelling and a cheering, now from one side and now from the other, which
+      made everyone forget that something was going on at that moment of greater
+      importance than the mimic warfare of boys.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      All the interest of the contending parties was concentrated on the duel of
+      their chieftains. It seemed now really that Halvor was getting the worst
+      of it. He could not get close enough to use his brawny muscles; and in
+      precision of aim and adroitness of movement he was not Viggo&rsquo;s match.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Again and again he thrust his long-handled boat-hook angrily against the
+      bottom (for the flooded parts of the banks were very shallow), to push the
+      raft forward, but every time Viggo managed to turn it sideward, and Halvor
+      had to exert all his presence of mind to keep his seat. Wild with rage he
+      sprang up on his slender raft and made a vicious lunge at his opponent,
+      who warded the blow with such force that the handle of the boat-hook
+      broke, and Halvor lost his balance and fell into the water.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      At this same instant a tremendous crash was heard from below, followed by
+      a long rumble as of mighty artillery. A scream of horror went up from the
+      banks, as the great lumber mass rolled down into the cataract, making a
+      sudden suction which it seemed impossible that the unhappy boys could
+      resist.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The majority of both sides, seeing their danger, beat, by means of their
+      boat-hooks, a hasty retreat, and as they were in shallow water were hauled
+      ashore by the lumbermen, who sprang into the river to save them.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      When the clouds of spray had cleared away, only three figures were
+      visible. Viggo, still astride of his raft, was fighting, not for his own
+      life, but for that of his enemy, Halvor, who was struggling helplessly in
+      the white rapids. Close behind his commander stood little Marcus on his
+      raft, holding on, with one hand to the boat-hook which he had hewn, with
+      all his might, into Viggo&rsquo;s raft, and with the other grasping the branch
+      of a half-submerged tree.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Save yourself, General!&rdquo; he yelled, wildly. &ldquo;Let go there. I can&rsquo;t hold
+      on much longer.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      But Viggo did not heed. He saw nothing but the pale, frightened face of
+      his antagonist, who might lose his life. With a desperate effort he flung
+      his boat-hook toward him and succeeded this time in laying hold of the
+      leather girdle about his waist. One hundred feet below yawned the foaming,
+      weltering abyss, from which the white smoke ascended. If Marcus lost his
+      grip, if the branch snapped no human power could save them; they were all
+      dead men.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      By this time the people on the shore had discovered that three lives were
+      hanging on the brink of eternity. Twenty men had waded waist-deep into the
+      current and had flung a stout rope to the noble little fellow who was
+      risking his own life for his friend.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Keep your hold, my brave lad!&rdquo; they cried; &ldquo;hold on another minute!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Grab the rope!&rdquo; screamed others.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Marcus clinched his teeth, and his numb arms trembled, mist gathered in
+      his eyes&mdash;his heart stood still. But with a clutch that seemed
+      superhuman he held on. He had but one thought&mdash;Viggo, his chief!
+      Viggo, his idol! Viggo, his general! He must save him or die with him. One
+      end of the rope was hanging on the branch and was within easy reach; but
+      he did not venture to seize it, lest the wrench caused by his motion might
+      detach his hold on Viggo&rsquo;s raft.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Viggo, who just now was pulling Halvor out of the water, saw in an instant
+      that he had by adding his weight to the raft, increased the chance of both
+      being carried to their death. With quick resolution he plunged the beak of
+      his own boat-hook into Marcus&rsquo;s raft, and shouted to Halvor to save
+      himself. The latter, taking in the situation at a glance, laid hold of the
+      handle of the boat-hook and together they pulled up alongside of Marcus
+      and leaped aboard his raft, whereupon Viggo&rsquo;s raft drifted downward and
+      vanished in a flash in the yellow torrent.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      At that very instant Marcus&rsquo;s strength gave out; he relaxed his grip on
+      the branch, which slid out of his hand, and they would inevitably have
+      darted over the brink of the cataract if Viggo had not, with great
+      adroitness, snatched the rope from the branch of the half-submerged tree.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      A wild shout, half a cheer, half a cry of relief, went up from the banks,
+      as the raft with the three lads was slowly hauled toward the shore by the
+      lumbermen who had thrown the rope.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Halvor Reitan was the first to step ashore. But no joyous welcome greeted
+      him from those whose sympathies had, a little while ago, been all on his
+      side. He hung around uneasily for some minutes, feeling perhaps that he
+      ought to say something to Viggo who had saved his life, but as he could
+      not think of anything which did not seem foolish, he skulked away
+      unnoticed toward the edge of the forest.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      But when Viggo stepped ashore, carrying the unconscious Marcus in his
+      arms, how the crowd rushed forward to gaze at him, to press his hands, to
+      call down God&rsquo;s blessing upon him! He had never imagined that he was such
+      a hero. It was Marcus, not he, to whom their ovation was due. But poor
+      Marcus&mdash;it was well for him that he had fainted from over-exertion;
+      for otherwise he would have fainted from embarrassment at the honors which
+      would have been showered upon him.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The West-Siders, marching two abreast, with their bows slung across their
+      shoulders, escorted their general home, cheering and shouting as they
+      went. When they were half-way up the hillside, Marcus opened his eyes, and
+      finding himself so close to his beloved general, blushed crimson, scarlet,
+      and purple, and all the other shades that an embarrassed blush is capable
+      of assuming.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Please, General,&rdquo; he stammered, &ldquo;don&rsquo;t bother about me.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Viggo had thought of making a speech exalting the heroism of his faithful
+      follower. But he saw at a glance that his praise would be more grateful to
+      Marcus, if he received it in private.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      When, however, the boys gave him a parting cheer, in front of his father&rsquo;s
+      mansion, he forgot his resolution, leaped up on the steps, and lifting the
+      blushing Marcus above his head; called out:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Three cheers for the bravest boy in Norway!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0004" id="link2H_4_0004">
+      <!--  H2 anchor --> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      BICEPS GRIMLUND&rsquo;S CHRISTMAS VACATION
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0005" id="link2H_4_0005">
+      <!--  H2 anchor --> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      I.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      The great question which Albert Grimlund was debating was fraught with
+      unpleasant possibilities. He could not go home for the Christmas vacation,
+      for his father lived in Drontheim, which is so far away from Christiania
+      that it was scarcely worth while making the journey for a mere two-weeks&rsquo; 
+      holiday. Then, on the other hand, he had an old great-aunt who lived but a
+      few miles from the city. She had, from conscientious motives, he feared,
+      sent him an invitation to pass Christmas with her. But Albert had a poor
+      opinion of Aunt Elsbeth. He thought her a very tedious person. She had a
+      dozen cats, talked of nothing but sermons and lessons, and asked him
+      occasionally, with pleasant humor, whether he got many whippings at
+      school. She failed to comprehend that a boy could not amuse himself
+      forever by looking at the pictures in the old family Bible, holding yarn,
+      and listening to oft-repeated stories, which he knew by heart, concerning
+      the doings and sayings of his grandfather. Aunt Elsbeth, after a previous
+      experience with her nephew, had come to regard boys as rather a
+      reprehensible kind of animal, who differed in many of their ways from
+      girls, and altogether to the boys&rsquo; disadvantage.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Now, the prospect of being &ldquo;caged&rdquo; for two weeks with this estimable lady
+      was, as I said, not at all pleasant to Albert. He was sixteen years old,
+      loved out-door sports, and had no taste for cats. His chief pride was his
+      muscle, and no boy ever made his acquaintance without being invited to
+      feel the size and hardness of his biceps. This was a standing joke in the
+      Latin school, and Albert was generally known among his companions as
+      &ldquo;Biceps&rdquo; Grimlund. He was not very tall for his age, but broad-shouldered
+      and deep-chested, with something in his glance, his gait, and his manners
+      which showed that he had been born and bred near the sea. He cultivated a
+      weather-beaten complexion, and was particularly proud when the skin
+      &ldquo;peeled&rdquo; on his nose, which it usually did in the summer-time, during his
+      visits to his home in the extreme north. Like most blond people, when
+      sunburnt, he was red, not brown; and this became a source of great
+      satisfaction when he learned that Lord Nelson had the same peculiarity.
+      Albert&rsquo;s favorite books were the sea romances of Captain Marryat, whose
+      &ldquo;Peter Simple&rdquo; and &ldquo;Midshipman Easy&rdquo; he held to be the noblest products of
+      human genius. It was a bitter disappointment to him that his father
+      forbade his going to sea and was educating him to be a &ldquo;landlubber,&rdquo; which
+      he had been taught by his boy associates to regard as the most
+      contemptible thing on earth.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Two days before Christmas, Biceps Grimlund was sitting in his room,
+      looking gloomily out of the window. He wished to postpone as long as
+      possible his departure for Aunt Elsbeth&rsquo;s country-place, for he foresaw
+      that both he and she were doomed to a surfeit of each other&rsquo;s company
+      during the coming fortnight. At last he heaved a deep sigh and languidly
+      began to pack his trunk. He had just disposed the dear Marryat books on
+      top of his starched shirts, when he heard rapid footsteps on the stairs,
+      and the next moment the door burst open, and his classmate, Ralph Hoyer,
+      rushed breathlessly into the room.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Biceps,&rdquo; he cried, &ldquo;look at this! Here is a letter from my father, and he
+      tells me to invite one of my classmates to come home with me for the
+      vacation. Will you come? Oh, we shall have grand times, I tell you! No end
+      of fun!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Albert, instead of answering, jumped up and danced a jig on the floor,
+      upsetting two chairs and breaking the wash-pitcher.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Hurrah!&rdquo; he cried, &ldquo;I&rsquo;m your man. Shake hands on it, Ralph! You have
+      saved me from two weeks of cats and yarn and moping! Give us your paw! I
+      never was so glad to see anybody in all my life.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      And to prove it, he seized Ralph by the shoulders, gave him a vigorous
+      whirl and forced him to join in the dance.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Now, stop your nonsense,&rdquo; Ralph protested, laughing; &ldquo;if you have so much
+      strength to waste, wait till we are at home in Solheim, and you&rsquo;ll have a
+      chance to use it profitably.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Albert flung himself down on his old rep-covered sofa. It seemed to have
+      some internal disorder, for its springs rattled and a vague musical twang
+      indicated that something or other had snapped. It had seen much
+      maltreatment, that poor old piece of furniture, and bore visible marks of
+      it. When, after various exhibitions of joy, their boisterous delight had
+      quieted down, both boys began to discuss their plans for the vacation.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;But I fear my groom may freeze, down there in the street,&rdquo; Ralph
+      ejaculated, cutting short the discussion; &ldquo;it is bitter cold, and he can&rsquo;t
+      leave the horses. Hurry up, now, old man, and I&rsquo;ll help you pack.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      It did not take them long to complete the packing. Albert sent a telegram
+      to his father, asking permission to accept Ralph&rsquo;s invitation; but,
+      knowing well that the reply would be favorable, did not think it necessary
+      to wait for it. With the assistance of his friend he now wrapped himself
+      in two overcoats, pulled a pair of thick woollen stockings over the
+      outside of his boots and a pair of fur-lined top-boots outside of these,
+      girded himself with three long scarfs, and pulled his brown otter-skin cap
+      down over his ears. He was nearly as broad as he was long, when he had
+      completed these operations, and descended into the street where the big
+      double-sleigh (made in the shape of a huge white swan) was awaiting them.
+      They now called at Ralph&rsquo;s lodgings, whence he presently emerged in a
+      similar Esquimau costume, wearing a wolf-skin coat which left nothing
+      visible except the tip of his nose and the steam of his breath. Then they
+      started off merrily with jingling bells, and waved a farewell toward many
+      a window, wherein were friends and acquaintances. They felt in so jolly a
+      mood, that they could not help shouting their joy in the face of all the
+      world, and crowing over all poor wretches who were left to spend the
+      holidays in the city.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0006" id="link2H_4_0006">
+      <!--  H2 anchor --> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      II.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      Solheim was about twenty miles from the city, and it was nine o&rsquo;clock in
+      the evening when the boys arrived there. The moon was shining brightly,
+      and the Milky Way, with its myriad stars, looked like a luminous mist
+      across the vault of the sky. The aurora borealis swept down from the north
+      with white and pink radiations which flushed the dark blue sky for an
+      instant, and vanished. The earth was white, as far as the eye could reach&mdash;splendidly,
+      dazzlingly white. And out of the white radiance rose the great dark pile
+      of masonry called Solheim, with its tall chimneys and dormer-windows and
+      old-fashioned gables. Round about stood the tall leafless maples and
+      chestnut-trees, sparkling with frost and stretching their gaunt arms
+      against the heavens. The two horses, when they swung up before the great
+      front-door, were so white with hoar-frost that they looked shaggy like
+      goats, and no one could tell what was their original color. Their breath
+      was blown in two vapory columns from their nostrils and drifted about
+      their heads like steam about a locomotive.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The sleigh-bells had announced the arrival of the guests, and a great
+      shout of welcome was heard from the hall of the house, which seemed alive
+      with grownup people and children. Ralph jumped out of the sleigh, embraced
+      at random half a dozen people, one of whom was his mother, kissed right
+      and left, protesting laughingly against being smothered in affection, and
+      finally managed to introduce his friend, who for the moment was feeling a
+      trifle lonely.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Here, father,&rdquo; he cried. &ldquo;Biceps, this is my father; and, father, this is
+      my Biceps&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;What stuff you are talking, boy,&rdquo; his father exclaimed. &ldquo;How can this
+      young fellow be your biceps&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Well, how can a man keep his senses in such confusion?&rdquo; said the son of
+      the house. &ldquo;This is my friend and classmate, Albert Grimlund, alias Biceps
+      Grimlund, and the strongest man in the whole school. Just feel his biceps,
+      mother, and you&rsquo;ll see.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;No, I thank you. I&rsquo;ll take your word for it,&rdquo; replied Mrs. Hoyer. &ldquo;As I
+      intend to treat him as a friend of my son should be treated, I hope he
+      will not feel inclined to give me any proof of his muscularity.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      When, with the aid of the younger children, the travellers had divested
+      themselves of their various wraps and overcoats, they were ushered into
+      the old-fashioned sitting-room. In one corner roared an enormous,
+      many-storied, iron stove. It had a picture in relief, on one side, of
+      Diana the Huntress, with her nymphs and baying hounds. In the middle of
+      the room stood a big table, and in the middle of the table a big lamp,
+      about which the entire family soon gathered. It was so cosey and homelike
+      that Albert, before he had been half an hour in the room, felt gratefully
+      the atmosphere of mutual affection which pervaded the house. It amused him
+      particularly to watch the little girls, of whom there were six, and to
+      observe their profound admiration for their big brother. Every now and
+      then one of them, sidling up to him while he sat talking, would cautiously
+      touch his ear or a curl of his hair; and if he deigned to take any notice
+      of her, offering her, perhaps, a perfunctory kiss, her pride and pleasure
+      were charming to witness.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Presently the signal was given that supper was ready, and various savory
+      odors, which escaped, whenever a door was opened, served to arouse the
+      anticipations of the boys to the highest pitch. Now, if I did not have so
+      much else to tell you, I should stop here and describe that supper. There
+      were twenty-two people who sat down to it; but that was nothing unusual at
+      Solheim, for it was a hospitable house, where every wayfarer was welcome,
+      either to the table in the servants&rsquo; hall or to the master&rsquo;s table in the
+      dining-room.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0007" id="link2H_4_0007">
+      <!--  H2 anchor --> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      III.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      At the stroke of ten all the family arose, and each in turn kissed the
+      father and mother good-night; whereupon Mr. Hoyer took the great lamp from
+      the table and mounted the stairs, followed by his pack of noisy boys and
+      girls. Albert and Ralph found themselves, with four smaller Hoyers, in an
+      enormous low-ceiled room with many windows. In three corners stood huge
+      canopied bedsteads, with flowered-chintz curtains and mountainous
+      eiderdown coverings which swelled up toward the ceiling. In the middle of
+      the wall, opposite the windows, a big iron stove, like the one in the
+      sitting-room (only that it was adorned with a bunch of flowers, peaches,
+      and grapes, and not with Diana and her nymphs), was roaring merrily, and
+      sending a long red sheen from its draught-hole across the floor.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Around the big warm stove the boys gathered (for it was positively
+      Siberian in the region of the windows), and while undressing played
+      various pranks upon each other, which created much merriment. But the most
+      laughter was provoked at the expense of Finn Hoyer, a boy of fourteen,
+      whose bare back his brother insisted upon exhibiting to his guest; for it
+      was decorated with a facsimile of the picture on the stove, showing roses
+      and luscious peaches and grapes in red relief. Three years before, on
+      Christmas Eve, the boys had stood about the red-hot stove, undressing for
+      their bath, and Finn, who was naked, had, in the general scrimmage to get
+      first into the bath-tub, been pushed against the glowing iron, the
+      ornamentation of which had been beautifully burned upon his back. He had
+      to be wrapped in oil and cotton after that adventure, and he recovered in
+      due time, but never quite relished the distinction he had acquired by his
+      pictorial skin.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It was long before Albert fell asleep; for the cold kept up a continual
+      fusillade, as of musketry, during the entire night. The woodwork of the
+      walls snapped and cracked with loud reports; and a little after midnight a
+      servant came in and stuffed the stove full of birch-wood, until it roared
+      like an angry lion. This roar finally lulled Albert to sleep, in spite of
+      the startling noises about him.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The next morning the boys were aroused at seven o&rsquo;clock by a servant, who
+      brought a tray with the most fragrant coffee and hot rolls. It was in
+      honor of the guest that, in accordance with Norse custom, this early meal
+      was served; and all the boys, carrying pillows and blankets, gathered on
+      Albert&rsquo;s and Ralph&rsquo;s bed and feasted right royally. So it seemed to them,
+      at least; for any break in the ordinary routine, be it ever so slight, is
+      an event to the young. Then they had a pillow-fight, thawed at the stove
+      the water in the pitchers (for it was frozen hard), and arrayed themselves
+      to descend and meet the family at the nine o&rsquo;clock breakfast. When this
+      repast was at an end, the question arose how they were to entertain their
+      guest, and various plans were proposed. But to all Ralph&rsquo;s propositions
+      his mother interposed the objection that it was too cold.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Mother is right,&rdquo; said Mr. Hoyer; &ldquo;it is so cold that &lsquo;the chips jump on
+      the hill-side.&rsquo; You&rsquo;ll have to be content with indoor sports to-day.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;But, father, it is not more than twenty degrees below zero,&rdquo; the boy
+      demurred. &ldquo;I am sure we can stand that, if we keep in motion. I have been
+      out at thirty without losing either ears or nose.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      He went to the window to observe the thermometer; but the dim daylight
+      scarcely penetrated the fantastic frost-crystals, which, like a splendid
+      exotic flora, covered the panes. Only at the upper corner, where the ice
+      had commenced to thaw, a few timid sunbeams were peeping in, making the
+      lamp upon the table seem pale and sickly. Whenever the door to the hall
+      was opened a white cloud of vapor rolled in; and every one made haste to
+      shut the door, in order to save the precious heat. The boys, being doomed
+      to remain indoors, walked about restlessly, felt each other&rsquo;s muscle,
+      punched each other, and sometimes, for want of better employment, teased
+      the little girls. Mr. Hoyer, seeing how miserable they were, finally took
+      pity on them, and, after having thawed out a window-pane sufficiently to
+      see the thermometer outside, gave his consent to a little expedition on
+      skees <a href="#linknote-2" name="linknoteref-2" id="linknoteref-2"><small>2</small></a>
+      down to the river.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      And now, boys, you ought to have seen them! Now there was life in them!
+      You would scarcely have dreamed that they were the same creatures who, a
+      moment ago, looked so listless and miserable. What rollicking laughter and
+      fun, while they bundled one another in scarfs, cardigan-jackets, fur-lined
+      top-boots, and overcoats!
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;You had better take your guns along, boys,&rdquo; said the father, as they
+      stormed out through the front door; &ldquo;you might strike a couple of
+      ptarmigan, or a mountain-cock, over on the west side.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I am going to take your rifle, if you&rsquo;ll let me,&rdquo; Ralph exclaimed. &ldquo;I
+      have a fancy we might strike bigger game than mountain-cock. I shouldn&rsquo;t
+      object to a wolf or two.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;You are welcome to the rifle,&rdquo; said his father; &ldquo;but I doubt whether
+      you&rsquo;ll find wolves on the ice so early in the day.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Mr. Hoyer took the rifle from its case, examined it carefully, and handed
+      it to Ralph. Albert, who was a less experienced hunter than Ralph,
+      preferred a fowling-piece to the rifle; especially as he had no
+      expectation of shooting anything but ptarmigan. Powder-horns, cartridges,
+      and shot were provided; and quite proudly the two friends started off on
+      their skees, gliding over the hard crust of the snow, which, as the sun
+      rose higher, was oversown with thousands of glittering gems. The boys
+      looked like Esquimaux, with their heads bundled up in scarfs, and nothing
+      visible except their eyes and a few hoary locks of hair which the frost
+      had silvered.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0008" id="link2H_4_0008">
+      <!--  H2 anchor --> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      IV.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;What was that?&rdquo; cried Albert, startled by a sharp report which
+      reverberated from the mountains. They had penetrated the forest on the
+      west side, and ranged over the ice for an hour, in a vain search for
+      wolves.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Hush,&rdquo; said Ralph, excitedly; and after a moment of intent listening he
+      added, &ldquo;I&rsquo;ll be drawn and quartered if it isn&rsquo;t poachers!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;How do you know?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;These woods belong to father, and no one else has any right to hunt in
+      them. He doesn&rsquo;t mind if a poor man kills a hare or two, or a brace of
+      ptarmigan; but these chaps are after elk; and if the old gentleman gets on
+      the scent of elk-hunters, he has no more mercy than Beelzebub.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;How can you know that they are after elk?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;No man is likely to go to the woods for small game on a day like this.
+      They think the cold protects them from pursuit and capture.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;What are you going to do about it?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I am going to play a trick on them. You know that the sheriff, whose duty
+      it is to be on the lookout for elk-poachers, would scarcely send out a
+      posse when the cold is so intense. Elk, you know, are becoming very
+      scarce, and the law protects them. No man is allowed to shoot more than
+      one elf a year, and that one on his own property. Now, you and I will play
+      deputy-sheriffs, and have those poachers securely in the lock-up before
+      night.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;But suppose they fight?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Then we&rsquo;ll fight back.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Ralph was so aglow with joyous excitement at the thought of this
+      adventure, that Albert had not the heart to throw cold water on his
+      enthusiasm. Moreover, he was afraid of being thought cowardly by his
+      friend if he offered objections. The recollection of Midshipman Easy and
+      his daring pranks flashed through his brain, and he felt an instant desire
+      to rival the exploits of his favorite hero. If only the enterprise had
+      been on the sea he would have been twice as happy, for the land always
+      seemed to him a prosy and inconvenient place for the exhibition of
+      heroism.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;But, Ralph,&rdquo; he exclaimed, now more than ready to bear his part in the
+      expedition, &ldquo;I have only shot in my gun. You can&rsquo;t shoot men with
+      bird-shot.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Shoot men! Are you crazy? Why, I don&rsquo;t intend to shoot anybody. I only
+      wish to capture them. My rifle is a breech-loader and has six cartridges.
+      Besides, it has twice the range of theirs (for there isn&rsquo;t another such
+      rifle in all Odalen), and by firing one shot over their heads I can bring
+      them to terms, don&rsquo;t you see?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Albert, to be frank, did not see it exactly; but he thought it best to
+      suppress his doubts. He scented danger in the air, and his blood bounded
+      through his veins.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;How do you expect to track them?&rdquo; he asked, breathlessly.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Skee-tracks in the snow can be seen by a bat, born blind,&rdquo; answered
+      Ralph, recklessly.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      They were now climbing up the wooded slope on the western side of the
+      river. The crust of the frozen snow was strong enough to bear them; and as
+      it was not glazed, but covered with an inch of hoar-frost, it retained the
+      imprint of their feet with distinctness. They were obliged to carry their
+      skees, on account both of the steepness of the slope and the density of
+      the underbrush. Roads and paths were invisible under the white pall of the
+      snow, and only the facility with which they could retrace their steps
+      saved them from the fear of going astray. Through the vast forest a
+      deathlike silence reigned; and this silence was not made up of an infinity
+      of tiny sounds, like the silence of a summer day when the crickets whirr
+      in the treetops and the bees drone in the clover-blossoms. No; this
+      silence was dead, chilling, terrible. The huge pine-trees now and then
+      dropped a load of snow on the heads of the bold intruders, and it fell
+      with a thud, followed by a noiseless, glittering drizzle. As far as their
+      eyes could reach, the monotonous colonnade of brown tree-trunks, rising
+      out of the white waste, extended in all directions. It reminded them of
+      the enchanted forest in &ldquo;Undine,&rdquo; through which a man might ride forever
+      without finding the end. It was a great relief when, from time to time,
+      they met a squirrel out foraging for pine-cones or picking up a scanty
+      living among the husks of last year&rsquo;s hazel-nuts. He was lively in spite
+      of the weather, and the faint noises of his small activities fell
+      gratefully upon ears already ap-palled by the awful silence. Occasionally
+      they scared up a brace of grouse that seemed half benumbed, and hopped
+      about in a melancholy manner under the pines, or a magpie, drawing in its
+      head and ruffling up its feathers against the cold, until it looked frowsy
+      and disreputable.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Biceps,&rdquo; whispered Ralph, who had suddenly discovered something
+      interesting in the snow, &ldquo;do you see that?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Je-rusalem!&rdquo; ejaculated Albert, with thoughtless delight, &ldquo;it is a
+      hoof-track!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Hold your tongue, you blockhead,&rdquo; warned his friend, too excited to be
+      polite, &ldquo;or you&rsquo;ll spoil the whole business!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;But you asked me,&rdquo; protested Albert, in a huff.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;But I didn&rsquo;t shout, did I?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Again the report of a shot tore a great rent in the wintry stillness and
+      rang out with sharp reverberations.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;We&rsquo;ve got them,&rdquo; said Ralph, examining the lock of his rifle. &ldquo;That shot
+      settles them.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;If we don&rsquo;t look out, they may get us instead,&rdquo; grumbled Albert, who was
+      still offended.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Ralph stood peering into the underbrush, his eyes as wild as those of an
+      Indian, his nostrils dilated, and all his senses intensely awake. His
+      companion, who was wholly unskilled in woodcraft, could see no cause for
+      his agitation, and feared that he was yet angry. He did not detect the
+      evidences of large game in the immediate neighborhood. He did not see, by
+      the bend of the broken twigs and the small tufts of hair on the
+      briar-bush, that an elk had pushed through that very copse within a few
+      minutes; nor did he sniff the gamy odor with which the large beast had
+      charged the air. In obedience to his friend&rsquo;s gesture, he flung himself
+      down on hands and knees and cautiously crept after him through the
+      thicket. He now saw without difficulty a place where the elk had broken
+      through the snow crust, and he could also detect a certain aimless
+      bewilderment in the tracks, owing, no doubt, to the shot and the animal&rsquo;s
+      perception of danger on two sides. Scarcely had he crawled twenty feet
+      when he was startled by a noise of breaking branches, and before he had
+      time to cock his gun, he saw an enormous bull-elk tearing through the
+      underbrush, blowing two columns of steam from his nostrils, and steering
+      straight toward them. At the same instant Ralph&rsquo;s rifle blazed away, and
+      the splendid beast, rearing on its hind legs, gave a wild snort, plunged
+      forward and rolled on its side in the snow. Quick as a flash the young
+      hunter had drawn his knife, and, in accordance with the laws of the chase,
+      had driven it into the breast of the animal. But the glance from the dying
+      eyes&mdash;that glance, of which every elk-hunter can tell a moving tale&mdash;pierced
+      the boy to the very heart! It was such a touching, appealing, imploring
+      glance, so soft and gentle and unresentful.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Why did you harm me,&rdquo; it seemed to say, &ldquo;who never harmed any living
+      thing&mdash;who claimed only the right to live my frugal life in the
+      forest, digging up the frozen mosses under the snow, which no mortal
+      creature except myself can eat?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The sanguinary instinct&mdash;the fever for killing, which every boy
+      inherits from savage ancestors&mdash;had left Ralph, before he had pulled
+      the knife from the bleeding wound. A miserable feeling of guilt stole over
+      him. He never had shot an elk before; and his father, who was anxious to
+      preserve the noble beasts from destruction, had not availed himself of his
+      right to kill one for many years. Ralph had, indeed, many a time hunted
+      rabbits, hares, mountain-cock, and capercaillie. But they had never
+      destroyed his pleasure by arousing pity for their deaths; and he had
+      always regarded himself as being proof against sentimental emotions.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Look here, Biceps,&rdquo; he said, flinging the knife into the snow, &ldquo;I wish I
+      hadn&rsquo;t killed that bull.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I thought we were hunting for poachers,&rdquo; answered Albert, dubiously; &ldquo;and
+      now we have been poaching ourselves.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;By Jiminy! So we have; and I never once thought of it,&rdquo; cried the valiant
+      hunter. &ldquo;I am afraid we are off my father&rsquo;s preserves too. It is well the
+      deputy sheriffs are not abroad, or we might find ourselves decorated with
+      iron bracelets before night.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;But what did you do it for?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Well, I can&rsquo;t tell. It&rsquo;s in the blood, I fancy. The moment I saw the
+      track and caught the wild smell, I forgot all about the poachers, and
+      started on the scent like a hound.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The two boys stood for some minutes looking at the dead animal, not with
+      savage exultation, but with a dim regret. The blood which was gushing from
+      the wound in the breast froze in a solid lump the very moment it touched
+      the snow, although the cold had greatly moderated since the morning.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I suppose we&rsquo;ll have to skin the fellow,&rdquo; remarked Ralph, lugubriously;
+      &ldquo;it won&rsquo;t do to leave that fine carcass for the wolves to celebrate
+      Christmas with.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;All right,&rdquo; Albert answered, &ldquo;I am not much of a hand at skinning, but
+      I&rsquo;ll do the best I can.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      They fell to work rather reluctantly at the unwonted task, but had not
+      proceeded far when they perceived that they had a full day&rsquo;s job before
+      them.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I&rsquo;ve no talent for the butcher&rsquo;s trade,&rdquo; Ralph exclaimed in disgust,
+      dropping his knife into the snow. &ldquo;There&rsquo;s no help for it, Biceps, we&rsquo;ll
+      have to bury the carcass, pile some logs on the top of it, and send a
+      horse to drag it home to-morrow. If it were not Christmas Eve to-night we
+      might take a couple of men along and shoot a dozen wolves or more. For
+      there is sure to be pandemonium here before long, and a concert in G-flat
+      that&rsquo;ll curdle the marrow of your bones with horror.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Thanks,&rdquo; replied the admirer of Midshipman Easy, striking a reckless
+      naval attitude. &ldquo;The marrow of my bones is not so easily curdled. I&rsquo;ve
+      been on a whaling voyage, which is more than you have.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Ralph was about to vindicate his dignity by referring to his own valiant
+      exploits, when suddenly his keen eyes detected a slight motion in the
+      underbrush on the slope below.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Biceps,&rdquo; he said, with forced composure, &ldquo;those poachers are tracking
+      us.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;What do you mean?&rdquo; asked Albert, in vague alarm.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Do you see the top of that young birch waving?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Well, what of that!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Wait and see. It&rsquo;s no good trying to escape. They can easily overtake us.
+      The snow is the worst tell-tale under the sun.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;But why should we wish to escape? I thought we were going to catch them.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;So we were; but that was before we turned poachers ourselves. Now those
+      fellows will turn the tables on us&mdash;take us to the sheriff and
+      collect half the fine, which is fifty dollars, as informers.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Je-rusalem!&rdquo; cried Biceps, &ldquo;isn&rsquo;t it a beautiful scrape we&rsquo;ve gotten
+      into?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Rather,&rdquo; responded his friend, coolly.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;But why meekly allow ourselves to be captured? Why not defend ourselves?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;My dear Biceps, you don&rsquo;t know what you are talking about. Those fellows
+      don&rsquo;t mind putting a bullet into you, if you run. Now, I&rsquo;d rather pay
+      fifty dollars any day, than shoot a man even in self-defence.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;But they have killed elk too. We heard them shoot twice. Suppose we play
+      the same game on them that they intend to play on us. We can play
+      informers too, then we&rsquo;ll at least be quits.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Biceps, you are a brick! That&rsquo;s a capital idea! Then let us start for the
+      sheriff&rsquo;s; and if we get there first, we&rsquo;ll inform both on ourselves and
+      on them. That&rsquo;ll cancel the fine. Quick, now!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      No persuasions were needed to make Albert bestir himself. He leaped toward
+      his skees, and following his friend, who was a few rods ahead of him,
+      started down the slope in a zigzag line, cautiously steering his way among
+      the tree trunks. The boys had taken their departure none too soon; for
+      they were scarcely five hundred yards down the declivity, when they heard
+      behind them loud exclamations and oaths. Evidently the poachers had
+      stopped to roll some logs (which were lying close by) over the carcass,
+      probably meaning to appropriate it; and this gave the boys an advantage,
+      of which they were in great need. After a few moments they espied an open
+      clearing which sloped steeply down toward the river. Toward this Ralph had
+      been directing his course; for although it was a venturesome undertaking
+      to slide down so steep and rugged a hill, he was determined rather to
+      break his neck than lower his pride, and become the laughing-stock of the
+      parish.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      One more tack through alder copse and juniper jungle&mdash;hard indeed,
+      and terribly vexatious&mdash;and he saw with delight the great open slope,
+      covered with an unbroken surface of glittering snow. The sun (which at
+      midwinter is but a few hours above the horizon) had set; and the stars
+      were flashing forth with dazzling brilliancy. Ralph stopped, as he reached
+      the clearing, to give Biceps an opportunity to overtake him; for Biceps,
+      like all marine animals, moved with less dexterity on the dry land.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Ralph,&rdquo; he whispered breathlessly, as he pushed himself up to his
+      companion with a vigorous thrust of his skee-staff, &ldquo;there are two awful
+      chaps close behind us. I distinctly heard them speak.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Fiddlesticks,&rdquo; said Ralph; &ldquo;now let us see what you are made of! Don&rsquo;t
+      take my track, or you may impale me like a roast pig on a spit. Now,
+      ready!&mdash;one, two, three!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Hold on there, or I shoot,&rdquo; yelled a hoarse voice from out of the
+      underbrush; but it was too late; for at the same instant the two boys slid
+      out over the steep slope, and, wrapped in a whirl of loose snow, were
+      scudding at a dizzying speed down the precipitous hill-side. Thump, thump,
+      thump, they went, where hidden wood-piles or fences obstructed their path,
+      and out they shot into space, but each time came down firmly on their
+      feet, and dashed ahead with undiminished ardor. Their calves ached, the
+      cold air whistled in their ears, and their eyelids became stiff and their
+      sight half obscured with the hoar-frost that fringed their lashes. But
+      onward they sped, keeping their balance with wonderful skill, until they
+      reached the gentler slope which formed the banks of the great river. Then
+      for the first time Ralph had an opportunity to look behind him, and he saw
+      two moving whirls of snow darting downward, not far from his own track.
+      His heart beat in his throat; for those fellows had both endurance and
+      skill, and he feared that he was no match for them. But suddenly&mdash;he
+      could have yelled with delight&mdash;the foremost figure leaped into the
+      air, turned a tremendous somersault, and, coming down on his head, broke
+      through the crust of the snow and vanished, while his skees started on an
+      independent journey down the hill-side. He had struck an exposed
+      fence-rail, which, abruptly checking his speed, had sent him flying like a
+      rocket.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The other poacher had barely time to change his course, so as to avoid the
+      snag; but he was unable to stop and render assistance to his fallen
+      comrade. The boys, just as they were shooting out upon the ice, saw by his
+      motions that he was hesitating whether or not he should give up the chase.
+      He used his staff as a brake for a few moments, so as to retard his speed;
+      but discovering, perhaps, by the brightening starlight, that his
+      adversaries were not full-grown men, he took courage, started forward
+      again, and tried to make up for the time he had lost. If he could but
+      reach the sheriff&rsquo;s house before the boys did, he could have them arrested
+      and collect the informer&rsquo;s fee, instead of being himself arrested and
+      fined as a poacher. It was a prize worth racing for! And, moreover, there
+      were two elks, worth twenty-five dollars apiece, buried in the snow under
+      logs. These also would belong to the victor! The poacher dashed ahead,
+      straining every nerve, and reached safely the foot of the steep declivity.
+      The boys were now but a few hundred yards ahead of him.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Hold on there,&rdquo; he yelled again, &ldquo;or I shoot!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      He was not within range, but he thought he could frighten the youngsters
+      into abandoning the race. The sheriff&rsquo;s house was but a short distance up
+      the river. Its tall, black chimneys could he seen looming up against the
+      starlit sky. There was no slope now to accelerate their speed. They had to
+      peg away for dear life, pushing themselves forward with their skee-staves,
+      laboring like plough-horses, panting, snorting, perspiring. Ralph turned
+      his head once more. The poacher was gaining upon them; there could be no
+      doubt of it. He was within the range of Ralph&rsquo;s rifle; and a sturdy fellow
+      he was, who seemed good for a couple of miles yet. Should Ralph send a
+      bullet over his head to frighten him? No; that might give the poacher an
+      excuse for sending back a bullet with a less innocent purpose. Poor
+      Biceps, he was panting and puffing in his heavy wraps like a steamboat! He
+      did not once open his mouth to speak; but, exerting his vaunted muscle to
+      the utmost, kept abreast of his friend, and sometimes pushed a pace or two
+      ahead of him. But it cost him a mighty effort! And yet the poacher was
+      gaining upon him! They could see the long broadside of windows in the
+      sheriff&rsquo;s mansion, ablaze with Christmas candles. They came nearer and
+      nearer! The church-bells up on the bend were ringing in the festival. Five
+      minutes more and they would be at their goal. Five minutes more! Surely
+      they had strength enough left for that small space of time. So had the
+      poacher, probably! The question was, which had the most. Then, with a
+      short, sharp resonance, followed by a long reverberation, a shot rang out
+      and a bullet whizzed past Ralph&rsquo;s ear. It was the poacher who had broken
+      the peace. Ralph, his blood boiling with wrath, came to a sudden stop,
+      flung his rifle to his cheek and cried, &ldquo;Drop that gun!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The poacher, bearing down with all his might on the skee-staff, checked
+      his speed. In the meanwhile Albert hurried on, seeing that the issue of
+      the race depended upon him.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Don&rsquo;t force me to hurt ye!&rdquo; shouted the poacher, threateningly, to Ralph,
+      taking aim once more.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;You can&rsquo;t,&rdquo; Ralph shouted back. &ldquo;You haven&rsquo;t another shot.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      At that instant sounds of sleigh-bells and voices were heard, and half a
+      dozen people, startled by the shot, were seen rushing out from the
+      sheriff&rsquo;s mansion. Among them was Mr. Bjornerud himself, with one of his
+      deputies.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;In the name of the law, I command you to cease,&rdquo; he cried, when he saw
+      down the two figures in menacing attitudes. But before he could say
+      another word, some one fell prostrate in the road before him, gasping:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;We have shot an elk; so has that man down on the ice. We give ourselves
+      up.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Mr. Bjornerud, making no answer, leaped over the prostrate figure, and,
+      followed by the deputy, dashed down upon the ice.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;In the name of the law!&rdquo; he shouted again, and both rifles were
+      reluctantly lowered.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I have shot an elk,&rdquo; cried Ralph, eagerly, &ldquo;and this man is a poacher, we
+      heard him shoot.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I have killed an elk,&rdquo; screamed the poacher, in the same moment, &ldquo;and so
+      has this fellow.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The sheriff was too astonished to speak. Never before, in his experience,
+      had poachers raced for dear life to give themselves into custody. He
+      feared that they were making sport of him; in that case, however, he
+      resolved to make them suffer for their audacity.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;You are my prisoners,&rdquo; he said, after a moment&rsquo;s hesitation. &ldquo;Take them
+      to the lock-up, Olsen, and handcuff them securely,&rdquo; he added, turning to
+      his deputy.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      There were now a dozen men&mdash;most of them guests and attendants of the
+      sheriff&rsquo;s household&mdash;standing in a ring about Ralph and the poacher.
+      Albert, too, had scrambled to his feet and had joined his comrade.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Will you permit me, Mr. Sheriff,&rdquo; said Ralph, making the officer his
+      politest bow, &ldquo;to send a message to my father, who is probably anxious
+      about us?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;And who is your father, young man?&rdquo; asked the sheriff, not unkindly; &ldquo;I
+      should think you were doing him an ill-turn in taking to poaching at your
+      early age.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;My father is Mr. Hoyer, of Solheim,&rdquo; said the boy, not without some pride
+      in the announcement.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;What&mdash;you rascal, you! Are you trying to, play pranks on an old
+      man?&rdquo; cried the officer of the law, grasping Ralph cordially by the hand.
+      &ldquo;You&rsquo;ve grown to be quite a man, since I saw you last. Pardon me for not
+      recognizing the son of an old neighbor.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Allow me to introduce to you my friend, Mr. Biceps&mdash;I mean, Mr.
+      Albert Grimlund.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Happy to make your acquaintance, Mr. Biceps Albert; and now you must both
+      come and eat the Christmas porridge with us. I&rsquo;ll send a messenger to Mr.
+      Hoyer without delay.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The sheriff, in a jolly mood, and happy to have added to the number of his
+      Christmas guests, took each of the two young men by the arm, as if he were
+      going to arrest them, and conducted them through the spacious front hall
+      into a large cosey room, where, having divested themselves of their wraps,
+      they told the story of their adventure.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;But, my dear sir,&rdquo; Mr. Bjornerud exclaimed, &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t see how you managed
+      to go beyond your father&rsquo;s preserves. You know he bought of me the whole
+      forest tract, adjoining his own on the south, about three months ago. So
+      you were perfectly within your rights; for your father hasn&rsquo;t killed an
+      elk on his land for three years.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;If that is the case, Mr. Sheriff,&rdquo; said Ralph, &ldquo;I must beg of you to
+      release the poor fellow who chased us. I don&rsquo;t wish any informer&rsquo;s fee,
+      nor have I any desire to get him into trouble.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I am sorry to say I can&rsquo;t accommodate you,&rdquo; Bjornerud replied. &ldquo;This man
+      is a notorious poacher and trespasser, whom my deputies have long been
+      tracking in vain. Now that I have him I shall keep him. There&rsquo;s no elk
+      safe in Odalen so long as that rascal is at large.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;That may be; but I shall then turn my informer&rsquo;s fee over to him, which
+      will reduce his fine from fifty dollars to twenty-five dollars.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;To encourage him to continue poaching?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Well, I confess I have a little more sympathy with poachers, since we
+      came so near being poachers ourselves. It was only an accident that saved
+      us!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0009" id="link2H_4_0009">
+      <!--  H2 anchor --> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      THE NIXY&rsquo;S STRAIN
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      Little Nils had an idea that he wanted to be something great in the world,
+      but he did not quite know how to set about it. He had always been told
+      that, having been born on a Sunday, he was a luck-child, and that good
+      fortune would attend him on that account in whatever he undertook.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He had never, so far, noticed anything peculiar about himself, though, to
+      be sure, his small enterprises did not usually come to grief, his snares
+      were seldom empty, and his tiny stamping-mill, which he and his friend
+      Thorstein had worked at so faithfully, was now making a merry noise over
+      in the brook in the Westmo Glen, so that you could hear it a hundred yards
+      away.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The reason of this, his mother told him, according to the superstition of
+      her people, was that the Nixy and the Hulder <a href="#linknote-3"
+       name="linknoteref-3" id="linknoteref-3"><small>3</small></a> and the
+      gnomes favored him because he was a Sunday child. What was more, she
+      assured him, that he would see them some day, and then, if he conducted
+      himself cleverly, so as to win their favor, he would, by their aid, rise
+      high in the world, and make his fortune.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Now this was exactly what Nils wanted, and therefore he was not a little
+      anxious to catch a glimpse of the mysterious creatures who had so
+      whimsical a reason for taking an interest in him. Many and many a time he
+      sat at the waterfall where the Nixy was said to play the harp every
+      midsummer night, but although he sometimes imagined that he heard a vague
+      melody trembling through the rush and roar of the water, and saw glimpses
+      of white limbs flashing through the current, yet never did he get a good
+      look at the Nixy.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Though he roamed through the woods early and late, setting snares for
+      birds and rabbits, and was ever on the alert for a sight of the Hulder&rsquo;s
+      golden hair and scarlet bodice, the tricksy sprite persisted in eluding
+      him.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He thought sometimes that he heard a faint, girlish giggle, full of
+      teasing provocation and suppressed glee, among the underbrush, and once he
+      imagined that he saw a gleam of scarlet and gold vanish in a dense alder
+      copse.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      But very little good did that do him, when he could not fix the vision,
+      talk with it face to face, and extort the fulfilment of the three
+      regulation wishes.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I am probably not good enough,&rdquo; thought Nils. &ldquo;I know I am a selfish
+      fellow, and cruel, too, some-times, to birds and beasts. I suppose she
+      won&rsquo;t have anything to do with me, as long as she isn&rsquo;t satisfied with my
+      behavior.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Then he tried hard to be kind and considerate; smiled at his little sister
+      when she pulled his hair, patted Sultan, the dog, instead of kicking him,
+      when he was in his way, and never complained or sulked when he was sent on
+      errands late at night or in bad weather.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      But, strange to say, though the Nixy&rsquo;s mysterious melody still sounded
+      vaguely through the water&rsquo;s roar, and the Hulder seemed to titter behind
+      the tree-trunks and vanish in the underbrush, a real, unmistakable view
+      was never vouchsafed to Nils, and the three wishes which were to make his
+      fortune he had no chance of propounding.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He had fully made up his mind what his wishes were to be, for he was
+      determined not to be taken by surprise. He knew well the fate of those
+      foolish persons in the fairy tales who offend their benevolent protectors
+      by bouncing against them head foremost, as it were, with a greedy cry for
+      wealth.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Nils was not going to be caught that way. He would ask first for wisdom&mdash;that
+      was what all right-minded heroes did&mdash;then for good repute among men,
+      and lastly&mdash;and here was the rub&mdash;lastly he was inclined to ask
+      for a five-bladed knife, like the one the parson&rsquo;s Thorwald had got for a
+      Christmas present.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      But he had considerable misgiving about the expediency of this last wish.
+      If he had a fair renown and wisdom, might he not be able to get along
+      without a five-bladed pocket-knife? But no; there was no help for it.
+      Without that five-bladed pocket-knife neither wisdom nor fame would
+      satisfy him. It would be the drop of gall in his cup of joy.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      After many days&rsquo; pondering, it occurred to him, as a way out of the
+      difficulty, that it would, perhaps, not offend the Hulder if he asked, not
+      for wealth, but for a moderate prosperity. If he were blessed with a
+      moderate prosperity, he could, of course, buy a five-bladed pocket-knife
+      with corkscrew and all other appurtenances, and still have something left
+      over.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He had a dreadful struggle with this question, for he was well aware that
+      the proper things to wish were long life and happiness for his father and
+      mother, or something in that line. But, though he wished his father and
+      mother well, he could not make up his mind to forego his own precious
+      chances on their account. Moreover, he consoled himself with the
+      reflection that if he attained the goal of his own desires he could easily
+      bestow upon them, of his bounty, a reasonable prospect of long life and
+      happiness.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      You see Nils was by no means so good yet as he ought to be. He was clever
+      enough to perceive that he had small chance of seeing the Hulder, as long
+      as his heart was full of selfishness and envy and greed.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      For, strive as he might, he could not help feeling envious of the parson&rsquo;s
+      Thorwald, with his elaborate combination pocket-knife and his silver
+      watch-chain, which he unfeelingly flaunted in the face of an admiring
+      community. It was small consolation for Nils to know that there was no
+      watch but only a key attached to it; for a silver watch-chain, even
+      without a watch, was a sufficiently splendid possession to justify a boy
+      in fording it over his less fortunate comrades.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Nils&rsquo;s father, who was a poor charcoal-burner, could never afford to make
+      his son such a present, even if he worked until he was as black as a
+      chimney-sweep. For what little money he earned was needed at once for food
+      and clothes for the family; and there were times when they were obliged to
+      mix ground birch-bark with their flour in order to make it last longer.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It was easy enough for a rich man&rsquo;s son to be good, Nils thought.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It was small credit to him if he was not envious, having never known want
+      and never gone to bed on birch-bark porridge. But for a poor boy not to
+      covet all the nice things which would make life so pleasant, if he had
+      them, seemed next to impossible.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Still Nils kept on making good resolutions and breaking them, and then
+      piecing them together again and breaking them anew.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      If it had not been for his desire to see the Hulder and the Nixy, and
+      making them promise the fulfilment of the three wishes, he would have
+      given up the struggle, and resigned himself to being a bad boy because he
+      was born so. But those teasing glimpses of the Hulder&rsquo;s scarlet bodice and
+      golden hair, and the vague snatches of wondrous melody that rose from the
+      cataract in the silent summer nights, filled his soul with an intense
+      desire to see the whole Hulder, with her radiant smile and melancholy
+      eyes, and to hear the whole melody plainly enough to be written down on
+      paper and learned by heart.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It was with this longing to repeat the few haunting notes that hummed in
+      his brain that Nils went to the schoolmaster one day and asked him for the
+      loan of his fiddle. But the schoolmaster, hearing that Nils could not
+      play, thought his request a foolish one and refused.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Nevertheless, that visit became an important event, and a turning-point in
+      the boy&rsquo;s life. For he was moved to confide in the schoolmaster, who was a
+      kindly old man, and fond of clever boys; and he became interested in Nils.
+      Though he regarded Nils&rsquo;s desire to record the Nixy&rsquo;s strains as absurd,
+      he offered to teach him to play. There was good stuff in the lad, he
+      thought, and when he had out-grown his fantastic nonsense, he might, very
+      likely, make a good fiddler.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Thus it came to pass that the charcoal-burner&rsquo;s son learned to play the
+      violin. He had not had half a dozen lessons before he set about imitating
+      the Nixy&rsquo;s notes which he had heard in the waterfall.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;It was this way,&rdquo; he said to the schoolmaster, pressing his ear against
+      the violin, while he ran the bow lightly over the strings; &ldquo;or rather it
+      was this way,&rdquo; making another ineffectual effort. &ldquo;No, no, that wasn&rsquo;t it,
+      either. It&rsquo;s no use, schoolmaster: I shall never be able to do it!&rdquo; he
+      cried, flinging the violin on the table and rushing out of the door.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      When he returned the next day he was heartily ashamed of his impatience.
+      To try to catch the Nixy&rsquo;s notes after half a dozen lessons was, of
+      course, an absurdity.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The master told him simply to banish such folly from his brain, to apply
+      himself diligently to his scales, and not to bother himself about the
+      Nixy.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      That seemed to be sound advice and Nils accepted it with contrition. He
+      determined never to repeat his silly experiment. But when the next
+      midsummer night came, a wild yearning possessed him, and he stole out
+      noiselessly into the forest, and sat down on a stone by the river,
+      listening intently.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      For a long while he heard nothing but the monotonous boom of the water
+      plunging into the deep. But, strangely enough, there was a vague, hushed
+      rhythm in this thundering roar; and after a while he seemed to hear a
+      faint strain, ravishingly sweet, which vibrated on the air for an instant
+      and vanished.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It seemed to steal upon his ear unawares, and the moment he listened, with
+      a determination to catch it, it was gone. But sweet it was&mdash;inexpressibly
+      sweet.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Let the master talk as much as he liked, catch it he would and catch it he
+      must. But he must acquire greater skill before he would be able to render
+      something so delicate and elusive.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Accordingly Nils applied himself with all his might and main to his music,
+      in the intervals between his work.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He was big enough now to accompany his father to the woods, and help him
+      pile turf and earth on the heap of logs that were to be burned to
+      charcoal. He did not see the Hulder face to face, though he was constantly
+      on the watch for her; but once or twice he thought he saw a swift flash of
+      scarlet and gold in the underbrush, and again and again he thought he
+      heard her soft, teasing laughter in the alder copses. That, too, he
+      imagined he might express in music; and the next time he got hold of the
+      schoolmaster&rsquo;s fiddle he quavered away on the fourth string, but produced
+      nothing that had the remotest resemblance to melody, much less to that
+      sweet laughter.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He grew so discouraged that he could have wept. He had a wild impulse to
+      break the fiddle, and never touch another as long as he lived. But he knew
+      he could not live up to any such resolution. The fiddle was already too
+      dear to him to be renounced for a momentary whim. But it was like an
+      unrequited affection, which brought as much sorrow as joy.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      There was so much that Nils burned to express; but the fiddle refused to
+      obey him, and screeched something utterly discordant, as it seemed, from
+      sheer perversity.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It occurred to Nils again, that unless the Nixy took pity on him and
+      taught him that marvellous, airy strain he would never catch it. Would he
+      then ever be good enough to win the favor of the Nixy?
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      For in the fairy tales it is always the bad people who come to grief,
+      while the good and merciful ones are somehow rewarded.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It was evidently because he was yet far from being good enough that both
+      Hulder and Nixy eluded him. Sunday child though he was, there seemed to be
+      small chance that he would ever be able to propound his three wishes.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Only now, the third wish was no longer a five-bladed pocket-knife, but a
+      violin of so fine a ring and delicate modulation that it might render the
+      Nixy&rsquo;s strain.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      While these desires and fancies fought in his heart, Nils grew to be a
+      young man; and he still was, what he had always been&mdash;a
+      charcoal-burner. He went to the parson for half a year to prepare for
+      confirmation; and by his gentleness and sweetness of disposition attracted
+      not only the good man himself, but all with whom he came in contact. His
+      answers were always thoughtful, and betrayed a good mind.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He was not a prig, by any means, who held aloof from sport and play; he
+      could laugh with the merriest, run a race with the swiftest, and try a
+      wrestling match with the strongest.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      There was no one among the candidates for confirmation, that year, who was
+      so well liked as Nils. Gentle as he was and soft-spoken, there was a manly
+      spirit in him, and that always commands respect among boys.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He received much praise from the pastor, and no one envied him the kind
+      words that were addressed to him; for every one felt that they were
+      deserved. But the thought in Nils&rsquo;s mind during all the ceremony in the
+      church and in the parsonage was this:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Now, perhaps, I shall be good enough to win the Nixy&rsquo;s favor. Now I shall
+      catch the wondrous strain.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      It did not occur to him, in his eagerness, that such a reflection was out
+      of place in church; nor was it, perhaps, for the Nixy&rsquo;s strain was
+      constantly associated in his mind with all that was best in him; with his
+      highest aspirations, and his constant strivings for goodness and nobleness
+      in thought and deed.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It happened about this time that the old schoolmaster died, and in his
+      will it was found that he had bequeathed his fiddle to Nils. He had very
+      little else to leave, poor fellow; but if he had been a Croesus he could
+      not have given his favorite pupil anything that would have delighted him
+      more.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Nils played now early and late, except when he was in the woods with his
+      father. His fame went abroad through all the valley as the best fiddler in
+      seven parishes round, and people often came from afar to hear him. There
+      was a peculiar quality in his playing&mdash;something strangely appealing,
+      that brought the tears to one&rsquo;s eyes&mdash;yet so elusive that it was
+      impossible to repeat or describe it.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It was rumored among the villagers that he had caught the Nixy&rsquo;s strain,
+      and that it was that which touched the heart so deeply in his
+      improvisations. But Nils knew well that he had not caught the Nixy&rsquo;s
+      strain; though a faint echo&mdash;a haunting undertone&mdash;of that
+      vaguely remembered snatch of melody, heard now and then in the water&rsquo;s
+      roar, would steal at times into his music, when he was, perhaps, himself
+      least aware of it.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Invitations now came to him from far and wide to play at wedding and
+      dancing parties and funerals. There was no feast complete without Nils;
+      and soon this strange thing was noticed, that quarrels and brawls, which
+      in those days were common enough in Norway, were rare wherever Nils
+      played.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It seemed as if his calm and gentle presence called forth all that was
+      good in the feasters and banished whatever was evil. Such was his
+      popularity that he earned more money by his fiddling in a week than his
+      father had ever done by charcoal-burning in a month.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      A half-superstitious regard for him became general among the people;
+      first, because it seemed impossible that any man could play as he did
+      without the aid of some supernatural power; and secondly, because his
+      gentle demeanor and quaint, terse sayings inspired them with admiration.
+      It was difficult to tell by whom the name, Wise Nils, was first started,
+      but it was felt by all to be appropriate, and it therefore clung to the
+      modest fiddler, in spite of all his protests.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Before he was twenty-five years old it became the fashion to go to him and
+      consult him in difficult situations; and though he long shrank from giving
+      advice, his reluctance wore away, when it became evident to him that he
+      could actually benefit the people.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      There was nothing mysterious in his counsel. All he said was as clear and
+      rational as the day-light. But the good folk were nevertheless inclined to
+      attribute a higher authority to him; and would desist from vice or folly
+      for his sake, when they would not for their own sake. It was odd, indeed:
+      this Wise Nils, the fiddler, became a great man in the valley, and his
+      renown went abroad and brought him visitors, seeking his counsel, from
+      distant parishes. Rarely did anyone leave him disappointed, or at least
+      without being benefited by his sympathetic advice.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      One summer, during the tourist season, a famous foreign musician came to
+      Norway, accompanied by a rich American gentleman. While in his
+      neighborhood, they heard the story of the rustic fiddler, and became
+      naturally curious to see him.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      They accordingly went to his cottage, in order to have some sport with
+      him, for they expected to find a vain and ignorant charlatan, inflated by
+      the flattery of his more ignorant neighbors. But Nils received them with a
+      simple dignity which quite disarmed them. They had come to mock; they
+      stayed to admire. This peasant&rsquo;s artless speech, made up of ancient
+      proverbs and shrewd common-sense, and instinct with a certain sunny
+      beneficence, impressed them wonderfully.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      And when, at their request, he played some of his improvisations, the
+      renowned musician exclaimed that here was, indeed, a great artist lost to
+      the world. In spite of the poor violin, there was a marvellously touching
+      quality in the music; something new and alluring which had never been
+      heard before.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      But Nils himself was not aware of it. Occasionally, while he played, the
+      Nixy&rsquo;s haunting strain would flit through his brain, or hover about it,
+      where he could feel it, as it were, but yet be unable to catch it. This
+      was his regret&mdash;his constant chase for those elusive notes that
+      refused to be captured.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      But he consoled himself many a time with the reflection that it was the
+      fiddle&rsquo;s fault, not his own. With a finer instrument, capable of rendering
+      more delicate shades of sound, he might yet surprise the Nixy&rsquo;s strain,
+      and record it unmistakably in black and white.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The foreign musician and his American friend departed, but returned at the
+      end of two weeks. They then offered to accompany Nils on a concert tour
+      through all the capitals of Europe and the large cities of America, and to
+      insure him a sum of money which fairly made him dizzy.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Nils begged for time to consider, and the next day surprised them by
+      declining the startling offer.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He was a peasant, he said, and must remain a peasant. He belonged here in
+      his native valley, where he could do good, and was happy in the belief
+      that he was useful.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Out in the great world, of which he knew nothing, he might indeed gather
+      wealth, but he might lose his peace of mind, which was more precious than
+      wealth. He was content with a moderate prosperity, and that he had already
+      attained. He had enough, and more than enough, to satisfy his modest
+      wants, and to provide those who were dear to him with reasonable comfort
+      in their present condition of life.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The strangers were amazed at a man&rsquo;s thus calmly refusing a fortune that
+      was within his easy grasp, for they did not doubt that Nils, with his
+      entirely unconventional manner of playing, and yet with that extraordinary
+      moving quality in his play, would become the rage both in Europe and
+      America, as a kind of heaven-born, untutored genius, and fill both his own
+      pockets and theirs with shekels.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      They made repeated efforts to persuade him, but it was all in vain. With
+      smiling serenity, he told them that he had uttered his final decision.
+      They then took leave of him, and a month after their departure there
+      arrived from Germany a box addressed to Nils. He opened it with some
+      trepidation, and it was found to contain a Cremona violin&mdash;a genuine
+      Stradivarius.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The moment Nils touched the strings with the bow, a thrill of rapture went
+      through him, the like of which he had never experienced. The divine
+      sweetness and purity of the tone that vibrated through those magic
+      chambers resounded through all his being, and made him feel happy and
+      exalted.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It occurred to him, while he was coaxing the intoxicating music from his
+      instrument, that tonight would be midsummer night. Now was his chance to
+      catch the Nixy&rsquo;s strain, for this exquisite violin would be capable of
+      rendering the very chant of the archangels in the morning of time.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      To-night he would surprise the Nixy, and the divine strain should no more
+      drift like a melodious mist through his brain; for at midsummer night the
+      Nixy always plays the loudest, and then, if ever, is the time to learn
+      what he felt must be the highest secret of the musical art.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Hugging his Stradivarius close to his breast, to protect it from the damp
+      night-air, Nils hurried through the birch woods down to the river. The
+      moon was sailing calmly through a fleecy film of cloud, and a light mist
+      hovered over the tops of the forest.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The fiery afterglow of the sunset still lingered in the air, though the
+      sun had long been hidden, but the shadows of the trees were gaunt and
+      dark, as in the light of the moon.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The sound of the cataract stole with a whispering rush through the
+      underbrush, for the water was low at midsummer, and a good deal of it was
+      diverted to the mill, which was working busily away, with its big
+      water-wheel going round and round.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Nils paused close to the mill, and peered intently into the rushing
+      current; but nothing appeared. Then he stole down to the river-bank, where
+      he seated himself on a big stone, barely out of reach of the spray, which
+      blew in gusts from the cataract. He sat for a long while motionless,
+      gazing with rapt intentness at the struggling, foaming rapids, but he saw
+      or heard nothing.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Then all of a sudden it seemed to him that the air began to vibrate
+      faintly with a vague, captivating rhythm. Nils could hear his heart beat
+      in his throat. With trembling eagerness he unwrapped the violin and raised
+      it to his chin.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Now, surely, there was a note. It belonged on the A string. No, not there.
+      On the E string, perhaps. But no, not there, either.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Look! What is that?
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      A flash, surely, through the water of a beautiful naked arm.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      And there&mdash;no, not there&mdash;but somewhere from out of the gentle
+      rush of the middle current there seemed to come to him a marvellous mist
+      of drifting sound&mdash;ineffably, rapturously sweet!
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      With a light movement Nils runs his bow over the strings, but not a ghost,
+      not a semblance, can he reproduce of the swift, scurrying flight of that
+      wondrous melody. Again and again he listens breathlessly, and again and
+      again despair overwhelms him.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Should he, then, never see the Nixy, and ask the fulfilment of his three
+      wishes?
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Curiously enough, those three wishes which once were so great a part of
+      his life had now almost escaped him. It was the Nixy&rsquo;s strain he had been
+      intent upon, and the wishes had lapsed into oblivion.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      And what were they, really, those three wishes, for the sake of which he
+      desired to confront the Nixy?
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Well, the first&mdash;the first was&mdash;what was it, now? Yes, now at
+      length he remembered. The first was wisdom.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Well, the people called him Wise Nils now, so, perhaps, that wish was
+      superfluous. Very likely he had as much wisdom as was good for him. At all
+      events, he had refused to acquire more by going abroad to acquaint himself
+      with the affairs of the great world.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Then the second wish; yes, he could recall that. It was fame. It was odd
+      indeed; that, too, he had refused, and what he possessed of it was as
+      much, or even far more, than he desired. But when he called to mind the
+      third and last of his boyish wishes, a moderate prosperity or a good
+      violin&mdash;for that was the alternative&mdash;he had to laugh outright,
+      for both the violin and the prosperity were already his.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Nils lapsed into deep thought, as he sat there in the summer night, with
+      the crowns of the trees above him and the brawling rapids swirling about
+      him.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Had not the Nixy bestowed upon him her best gift already in permitting him
+      to hear that exquisite ghost of a melody, that shadowy, impalpable strain,
+      which had haunted him these many years? In pursuing that he had gained the
+      goal of his desires, till other things he had wished for had come to him
+      unawares, as it were, and almost without his knowing it. And now what had
+      he to ask of the Nixy, who had blessed him so abundantly?
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The last secret, the wondrous strain, forsooth, that he might imprison it
+      in notes, and din it in the ears of an unappreciative multitude! Perhaps
+      it were better, after all, to persevere forever in the quest, for what
+      would life have left to offer him if the Nixy&rsquo;s strain was finally caught,
+      when all were finally attained, and no divine melody haunted the brain,
+      beyond the powers even of a Stradivarius to lure from its shadowy realm?
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Nils walked home that night plunged in deep meditation. He vowed to
+      himself that he would never more try to catch the Nixy&rsquo;s strain. But the
+      next day, when he seized the violin, there it was again, and, strive as he
+      might, he could not forbear trying to catch it.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Wise Nils is many years older now; has a good wife and several children,
+      and is a happy man; but to this day, resolve as he will, he has never been
+      able to abandon the effort to catch the Nixy&rsquo;s strain. Sometimes he thinks
+      he has half caught it, but when he tries to play it, it is always gone.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0010" id="link2H_4_0010">
+      <!--  H2 anchor --> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      THE WONDER CHILD
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0011" id="link2H_4_0011">
+      <!--  H2 anchor --> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      I.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      A very common belief in Norway, as in many other lands, is that the
+      seventh child of the seventh child can heal the sick by the laying on of
+      hands. Such a child is therefore called a wonder child. Little Carina Holt
+      was the seventh in a family of eight brothers and sisters, but she grew to
+      be six years old before it became generally known that she was a wonder
+      child. Then people came from afar to see her, bringing their sick with
+      them; and morning after morning, as Mrs. Holt rolled up the shades, she
+      found invalids, seated or standing in the snow, gazing with devout faith
+      and anxious longing toward Carina&rsquo;s window.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It seemed a pity to send them away uncomforted, when the look and the
+      touch cost Carina so little. But there was another fear that arose in the
+      mother&rsquo;s breast, and that was lest her child should be harmed by the
+      veneration with which she was regarded, and perhaps come to believe that
+      she was something more than a common mortal. What was more natural than
+      that a child who was told by grown-up people that there was healing in her
+      touch, should at last come to believe that she was something apart and
+      extraordinary?
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It would have been a marvel, indeed, if the constant attention she
+      attracted, and the pilgrimages that were made to her, had failed to make
+      any impression upon her sensitive mind. Vain she was not, and it would
+      have been unjust to say that she was spoiled. She had a tender nature,
+      full of sympathy for sorrow and suffering. She was constantly giving away
+      her shoes, her stockings, nay, even her hood and cloak, to poor little
+      invalids, whose misery appealed to her merciful heart. It was of no use to
+      scold her; you could no more prevent a stream from flowing than Carina
+      from giving. It was a spontaneous yielding to an impulse that was too
+      strong to be resisted.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      But to her father there was something unnatural in it; he would have
+      preferred to have her frankly selfish, as most children are, not because
+      he thought it lovely, but because it was childish and natural. Her unusual
+      goodness gave him a pang more painful than ever the bad behavior of her
+      brothers had occasioned. On the other hand, it delighted him to see her do
+      anything that ordinary children did. He was charmed if she could be
+      induced to take part in a noisy romp, play tag, or dress her dolls. But
+      there followed usually after each outbreak of natural mirth a shy
+      withdrawal into herself, a resolute and quiet retirement, as if she, were
+      a trifle ashamed of her gayety. There was nothing morbid in these moods,
+      no brooding sadness or repentance, but a touching solemnity, a serene,
+      almost cheerful seriousness, which in one of her years seemed strange.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Mr. Holt had many a struggle with himself as to how he should treat
+      Carina&rsquo;s delusion; and he made up his mind, at last, that it was his duty
+      to do everything in his power to dispel and counteract it. When he
+      happened to overhear her talking to her dolls one day, laying her hands
+      upon them, and curing them of imaginary diseases, he concluded it was high
+      time for him to act.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He called Carina to him, remonstrated kindly with her, and forbade her
+      henceforth to see the people who came to her for the purpose of being
+      cured. But it distressed him greatly to see how reluctantly she consented
+      to obey him.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      When Carina awoke the morning after this promise had been extorted from
+      her, she heard the dogs barking furiously in the yard below. Her elder
+      sister, Agnes, was standing half dressed before the mirror, holding the
+      end of one blond braid between her teeth, while tying the other with a
+      pink ribbon. Seeing that Carina was awake, she gave her a nod in the
+      glass, and, removing her braid, observed that there evidently were sick
+      pilgrims under the window. She could sympathize with Sultan and Hector,
+      she averred, in their dislike of pilgrims.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Oh, I wish they would not come!&rdquo; sighed Carina. &ldquo;It will be so hard for
+      me to send them away.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I thought you liked curing people,&rdquo; exclaimed Agnes.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I do, sister, but papa has made me promise never to do it again.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      She arose and began to dress, her sister assisting her, chatting all the
+      while like a gay little chirruping bird that neither gets nor expects an
+      answer. She was too accustomed to Carina&rsquo;s moods to be either annoyed or
+      astonished; but she loved her all the same, and knew that her little ears
+      were wide open, even though she gave no sign of listening.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Carina had just completed her simple toilet when Guro, the chamber-maid,
+      entered, and announced that there were some sick folk below who wished to
+      see the wonder child.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Tell them I cannot see them,&rdquo; answered Carina, with a tremulous voice;
+      &ldquo;papa does not permit me.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;But this man, Atle Pilot, has come from so far away in this dreadful
+      cold,&rdquo; pleaded Guro, &ldquo;and his son is so very bad, poor thing; he&rsquo;s lying
+      down in the boat, and he sighs and groans fit to move a stone.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Don&rsquo;t! Don&rsquo;t tell her that,&rdquo; interposed Agnes, motioning to the girl to
+      begone. &ldquo;Don&rsquo;t you see it is hard enough for her already?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      There was something in the air, as the two sisters descended the stairs
+      hand in hand, which foreboded calamity. The pastor had given out from the
+      pulpit last Sunday that he would positively receive no invalids at his
+      house; and he had solemnly charged every one to refrain from bringing
+      their sick to his daughter. He had repeated this announcement again and
+      again, and he was now very much annoyed at his apparent powerlessness to
+      protect his child from further imposition. Loud and angry speech was heard
+      in his office, and a noise as if the furniture were being knocked about.
+      The two little girls remained standing on the stairs, each gazing at the
+      other&rsquo;s frightened face. Then there was a great bang, and a stalwart,
+      elderly sailor came tumbling head foremost out into the hall. His cap was
+      flung after him through the crack of the door. Agnes saw for an instant
+      her father&rsquo;s face, red and excited; and in his bearing there was something
+      wild and strange, which was so different from his usual gentle and
+      dignified appearance. The sailor stood for a while bewildered, leaning
+      against the wall; then he stooped slowly and picked up his cap. But the
+      moment he caught sight of Carina his embarrassment vanished, and his rough
+      features were illuminated with an intense emotion.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Come, little miss, and help me,&rdquo; he cried, in a hoarse, imploring
+      whisper. &ldquo;Halvor, my son&mdash;he is the only one God gave me&mdash;he is
+      sick; he is going to die, miss, unless you take pity on him.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Where is he?&rdquo; asked Carina.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;He&rsquo;s down in the boat, miss, at the pier. But I&rsquo;ll carry him up to you,
+      if you like. We have been rowing half the night in the cold, and he is
+      very low.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;No, no; you mustn&rsquo;t bring him here,&rdquo; said Agnes, seeing by Carina&rsquo;s face
+      that she was on the point of yielding. &ldquo;Father would be so angry.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;He may kill me if he likes,&rdquo; exclaimed the sailor, wildly. &ldquo;It doesn&rsquo;t
+      matter to me. But Halvor he&rsquo;s the only one I have, miss, and his mother
+      died when he was born, and he is young, miss, and he will have many years
+      to live, if you&rsquo;ll only have mercy on him.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;But, you know, I shouldn&rsquo;t dare, on papa&rsquo;s account, to have you bring him
+      here,&rdquo; began Carina, struggling with her tears.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Ah, yes! Then you will go to him. God bless you for that!&rdquo; cried the poor
+      man, with agonized eagerness. And interpreting the assent he read in
+      Carina&rsquo;s eye, he caught her up in his arms, snatched a coat from a peg in
+      the wall, and wrapping her in it, tore open the door. Carina made no
+      outcry, and was not in the least afraid. She felt herself resting in two
+      strong arms, warmly wrapped and borne away at a great speed over the snow.
+      But Agnes, seeing her sister vanish in that sudden fashion, gave a scream
+      which called her father to the door.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;What has happened?&rdquo; he asked. &ldquo;Where is Carina?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;That dreadful Atle Pilot took her and ran away with her.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Ran away with her?&rdquo; cried the pastor in alarm. &ldquo;How? Where?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Down to the pier.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      It was a few moments&rsquo; work for the terrified father to burst open the
+      door, and with his velvet skull-cap on his head, and the skirts of his
+      dressing-gown flying wildly about him, rush down toward the beach. He saw
+      Atle Pilot scarcely fifty feet in advance of him, and shouted to him at
+      the top of his voice. But the sailor only redoubled his speed, and darted
+      out upon the pier, hugging tightly to his breast the precious burden he
+      carried. So blindly did he rush ahead that the pastor expected to see him
+      plunge headlong into the icy waves. But, as by a miracle, he suddenly
+      checked himself, and grasping with one hand the flag-pole, swung around
+      it, a foot or two above the black water, and regained his foothold upon
+      the planks. He stood for an instant irresolute, staring down into a boat
+      which lay moored to the end of the pier. What he saw resembled a big
+      bundle, consisting of a sheepskin coat and a couple of horse blankets.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Halvor,&rdquo; he cried, with a voice that shook with emotion, &ldquo;I have brought
+      her.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      There was presently a vague movement under the horse-blankets, and after a
+      minute&rsquo;s struggle a pale yellowish face became visible. It was a young
+      face&mdash;the face of a boy of fifteen or sixteen. But, oh, what
+      suffering was depicted in those sunken eyes, those bloodless, cracked
+      lips, and the shrunken yellow skin which clung in premature wrinkles about
+      the emaciated features! An old and worn fur cap was pulled down over his
+      ears, but from under its rim a few strands of blond hair were hanging upon
+      his forehead.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Atle had just disentangled Carina from her wrappings, and was about to
+      descend the stairs to the water when a heavy hand seized him by the
+      shoulder, and a panting voice shouted in his ear:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Give me back my child.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      He paused, and turned his pathetically bewildered face toward the pastor.
+      &ldquo;You wouldn&rsquo;t take him from me, parson,&rdquo; he stammered, helplessly; &ldquo;no,
+      you wouldn&rsquo;t. He&rsquo;s the only one I&rsquo;ve got.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t take him from you,&rdquo; the parson thundered, wrathfully. &ldquo;But what
+      right have you to come and steal my child, because yours is ill?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;When life is at stake, parson,&rdquo; said the pilot, imploringly, &ldquo;one gets
+      muddled about right and wrong. I&rsquo;ll do your little girl no harm. Only let
+      her lay her blessed hands upon my poor boy&rsquo;s head, and he will be well.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I have told you no, man, and I must put a stop to this stupid idolatry,
+      which will ruin my child, and do you no good. Give her back to me, I say,
+      at once.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The pastor held out his hand to receive Carina, who stared at him with
+      large pleading eyes out of the grizzly wolf-skin coat.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Be good to him, papa,&rdquo; she begged. &ldquo;Only this once.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;No, child; no parleying now; come instantly.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      And he seized her by main force, and tore her out of the pilot&rsquo;s arms. But
+      to his dying day he remembered the figure of the heart-broken man, as he
+      stood outlined against the dark horizon, shaking his clinched fists
+      against the sky, and crying out, in a voice of despair:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;May God show you the same mercy on the Judgment Day as you have shown to
+      me!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0012" id="link2H_4_0012">
+      <!--  H2 anchor --> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      II.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      Six miserable days passed. The weather was stormy, and tidings of
+      shipwreck and calamity filled the air. Scarcely a visitor came to the
+      parsonage who had not some tale of woe to relate. The pastor, who was
+      usually so gentle and cheerful, wore a dismal face, and it was easy to see
+      that something was weighing on his mind.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;May God show you the same mercy on the Judgment Day as you have shown to
+      me!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      These words rang constantly in his ears by night and by day. Had he not
+      been right, according to the laws of God and man, in defending his
+      household against the assaults of ignorance and superstition? Would he
+      have been justified in sacrificing his own child, even if he could thereby
+      save another&rsquo;s? And, moreover, was it not all a wild, heathenish delusion,
+      which it was his duty as a servant of God to stamp out and root out at all
+      hazards? Yes, there could be no doubt of it; he had but exercised his
+      legal right. He had done what was demanded of him by laws human and
+      divine. He had nothing to reproach himself for. And yet, with a haunting
+      persistency, the image of the despairing pilot praying God for vengeance
+      stared at him from every dark corner, and in the very church bells, as
+      they rang out their solemn invitation to the house of God, he seemed to
+      hear the rhythm and cadence of the heart-broken father&rsquo;s imprecation. In
+      the depth of his heart there was a still small voice which told him that,
+      say what he might, he had acted cruelly. If he put himself in Atle Pilot&rsquo;s
+      place, bound as he was in the iron bonds of superstition, how different
+      the case would look? He saw himself, in spirit, rowing in a lonely boat
+      through the stormy winter night to his pastor, bringing his only son, who
+      was at the point of death, and praying that the pastor&rsquo;s daughter might
+      lay her hands upon him, as Christ had done to the blind, the halt, and the
+      maimed. And his pastor received him with wrath, nay, with blows, and sent
+      him away uncomforted. It was a hideous picture indeed, and Mr. Holt would
+      have given years of his life to be rid of it.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It was on the sixth day after Atle&rsquo;s visit that the pastor, sitting alone
+      in his study, called Carina to him. He had scarcely seen her during the
+      last six days, or at least talked with her. Her sweet innocent spirit
+      would banish the shadows that darkened his soul.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Carina,&rdquo; he said, in his old affectionate way, &ldquo;papa wants to see you.
+      Come here and let me talk a little with you.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      But could he trust his eyes? Carina, who formerly had run so eagerly into
+      his arms, stood hesitating, as if she hoped to be excused.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Well, my little girl,&rdquo; he asked, in a tone of apprehension, &ldquo;don&rsquo;t you
+      want to talk with papa?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I would rather wait till some other time, papa,&rdquo; she managed to stammer,
+      while her little face flushed with embarrassment.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Mr. Holt closed the door silently, flung himself into a chair, and
+      groaned. That was a blow from where he had least expected it. The child
+      had judged him and found him wanting. His Carina, his darling, who had
+      always been closest to his heart, no longer responded to his affection!
+      Was the pilot&rsquo;s prayer being fulfilled? Was he losing his own child in
+      return for the one he had refused to save? With a pang in his breast,
+      which was like an aching wound, he walked up and down on the floor and
+      marvelled at his own blindness. He had erred indeed; and there was no hope
+      that any chance would come to him to remedy the wrong.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The twilight had deepened into darkness while he revolved this trouble in
+      his mind. The night was stormy, and the limbs of the trees without were
+      continually knocking and bumping against the walls of the house. The rusty
+      weather-vane on the roof whined and screamed, and every now and then the
+      sleet dashed against the window-panes like a handful of shot. The wind
+      hurled itself against the walls, so that the timbers creaked and pulled at
+      the shutters, banged stray doors in out-of-the-way garrets, and then,
+      having accomplished its work, whirled away over the fields with a wild and
+      dismal howl. The pastor sat listening mournfully to this tempestuous
+      commotion. Once he thought he heard a noise as of a door opening near by
+      him, and softly closing; but as he saw no one, he concluded it was his
+      overwrought fancy that had played him a trick. He seated himself again in
+      his easy-chair before the stove, which spread a dim light from its
+      draught-hole into the surrounding gloom.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      While he sat thus absorbed in his meditations, he was startled at the
+      sound of something resembling a sob. He arose to strike a light, but found
+      that his match-safe was empty. But what was that? A step without, surely,
+      and the groping of hands for the door-knob.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Who is there?&rdquo; cried the pastor, with a shivering uneasiness.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He sprang forward and opened the door. A broad figure, surmounted by a
+      sou&rsquo;wester, loomed up in the dark.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;What do you want?&rdquo; asked Mr. Holt, with forced calmness.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I want to know,&rdquo; answered a gruff, hoarse voice, &ldquo;if you&rsquo;ll come to my
+      son now, and help him into eternity?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The pastor recognized Atle Pilot&rsquo;s voice, though it seemed harsher and
+      hoarser than usual.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Sail across the fjord on a night like this?&rdquo; he exclaimed.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;That&rsquo;s what I ask you.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;And the boy is dying, you say?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Can&rsquo;t last till morning.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;And has he asked for the sacrament?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The pilot stepped across the threshold and entered the room. He proceeded
+      slowly to pull off his mittens; then looking up at the pastor&rsquo;s face, upon
+      which a vague sheen fell from the stove, he broke out:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Will you come or will you not? You wouldn&rsquo;t help him to live; now will
+      you help him to die?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The words, thrust forth with a slow, panting emphasis, hit the pastor like
+      so many blows.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I will come,&rdquo; he said, with solemn resolution. &ldquo;Sit down till I get
+      ready.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      He had expected some expression of gratification or thanks, for Atle well
+      knew what he had asked. It was his life the pastor risked, but this time
+      in his calling as a physician, not of bodies, but of souls. It struck him,
+      while he took leave of his wife, that there was something resentful and
+      desperate in the pilot&rsquo;s manner, so different from his humble pleading at
+      their last meeting.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      As he embraced the children one by one, and kissed them, he missed Carina,
+      but was told that she had probably gone to the cow-stable with the
+      dairy-maid, who was her particular friend. So he left tender messages for
+      her, and, summoning Atle, plunged out into the storm. A servant walked
+      before him with a lantern, and lighted the way down to the pier, where the
+      boat lay tossing upon the waves.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;But, man,&rdquo; cried the pastor, seeing that the boat was empty, &ldquo;where are
+      your boatmen?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I am my own boatman,&rdquo; answered Atle, gloomily. &ldquo;You can hold the sheet, I
+      the tiller.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Mr. Holt was ashamed of retiring now, when he had given his word.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      But it was with a sinking heart that he stepped into the frail skiff,
+      which seemed scarcely more than a nutshell upon the tempestuous deep. He
+      was on the point of asking his servant, unacquainted though he was with
+      seamanship, to be the third man in the boat; but the latter, anticipating
+      his intention, had made haste to betake himself away. To venture out into
+      this roaring darkness, with no beacon to guide them, and scarcely a
+      landmark discernible, was indeed to tempt Providence.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      But by the time he had finished this reflection, the pastor felt himself
+      rushing along at a tremendous speed, and short, sharp commands rang in his
+      ears, which instantly engrossed all his attention. To his eyes the sky
+      looked black as ink, except for a dark-blue unearthly shimmer that now and
+      then flared up from the north, trembled, and vanished. By this unsteady
+      illumination it was possible to catch a momentary glimpse of a head, and a
+      peak, and the outline of a mountain. The small sail was double-reefed, yet
+      the boat careened so heavily that the water broke over the gunwale. The
+      squalls beat down upon them with tumultuous roar and smoke, as of
+      snow-drifts, in their wake; but the little boat, climbing the top of the
+      waves and sinking into the dizzy black pits between them, sped fearlessly
+      along and the pastor began to take heart. Then, with a fierce cutting
+      distinctness, came the command out of the dark.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Pull out the reefs!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Are you crazy, man?&rdquo; shouted the pastor. &ldquo;Do you want to sail straight
+      into eternity?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Pull out the reefs!&rdquo; The command was repeated with wrathful emphasis.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Then we are dead men, both you and I.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;So we are, parson&mdash;dead men. My son lies dead at home, though you
+      might have saved him. So, now, parson, we are quits.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      With a fierce laugh he rose up, and still holding the tiller, stretched
+      his hand to tear out the reefs. But at that instant, just as a quivering
+      shimmer broke across the sky, something rose up from under the thwart and
+      stood between them. Atle started back with a hoarse scream.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;In Heaven&rsquo;s name, child!&rdquo; he cried. &ldquo;Oh, God, have mercy upon me!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      And the pastor, not knowing whether he saw a child or a vision, cried out
+      in the same moment: &ldquo;Carina, my darling! Carina, how came you here?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      It was Carina, indeed; but the storm whirled her tiny voice away over the
+      waves, and her father, folding her with one arm to his breast, while
+      holding the sheet with the other, did not hear what she answered to his
+      fervent exclamation. He only knew that her dear little head rested close
+      to his heart, and that her yellow hair blew across his face.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I wanted to save that poor boy, papa,&rdquo; were the only words that met his
+      ears. But he needed no more to explain the mystery. It was Carina, who,
+      repenting of her unkindness to him, had stolen into his study, while he
+      sat in the dark, and there she had heard Atle Pilot&rsquo;s message. Even if
+      this boy was sick unto death, she might perhaps cure him, and make up for
+      her father&rsquo;s harshness. Thus reasoned the sage Carina; and she had gone
+      secretly and prepared for the voyage, and battled with the storm, which
+      again and again threw her down on her road to the pier. It was a miracle
+      that she got safely into the boat, and stowed herself away snugly under
+      the stern thwart.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The clearing in the north gradually spread over the sky, and the storm
+      abated. Soon they had the shore in view, and the lights of the fishermen&rsquo;s
+      cottages gleamed along the beach of the headland. Presently they ran into
+      smoother water; a star or two flashed forth, and wide blue expanses
+      appeared here and there on the vault of the sky. They spied the red
+      lanterns marking the wharf, about which a multitude of boats lay, moored
+      to stakes, and with three skilful tacks Atle made the harbor. It was here,
+      standing on the pier, amid the swash and swirl of surging waters, that the
+      pilot seized Carina&rsquo;s tiny hand in his big and rough one.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Parson,&rdquo; he said, with a breaking voice, &ldquo;I was going to run afoul of
+      you, and wreck myself with you; but this child, God bless her! she ran us
+      both into port, safe and sound.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      But Carina did not hear what he said, for she lay sweetly sleeping in her
+      father&rsquo;s arms.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0013" id="link2H_4_0013">
+      <!--  H2 anchor --> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      &ldquo;THE SONS OF THE VIKINGS&rdquo;
+     </h2>
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0014" id="link2H_4_0014">
+      <!--  H2 anchor --> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      I.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      When Hakon Vang said his prayers at night, he usually finished with these
+      words: &ldquo;And I thank thee, God, most of all, because thou madest me a
+      Norseman, and not a German or an Englishman or a Swede.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      To be a Norseman appears to the Norse boy a claim to distinction.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      God has made so many millions of Englishmen and Russians and Germans, that
+      there can be no particular honor in being one of so vast a herd; while of
+      Norsemen He has made only a small and select number, whom He looks after
+      with special care; upon whom He showers such favors as poverty and cold
+      (with a view to keeping them good and hardy), and remoteness from all the
+      glittering temptations that beset the nations in whom He takes a less
+      paternal interest. Thus at least reasons, in a dim way, the small boy in
+      Norway; thus he is taught to reason by his parents and instructors.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      As for Hakon Vang, he strutted along the beach like a turkey-cock,
+      whenever he thought of his glorious descent from the Vikings&mdash;those
+      daring pirates that stole thrones and kingdoms, and mixed their red Norse
+      blood in the veins of all the royal families of Europe. The teacher of
+      history (who was what is called a Norse-Norseman) had on one occasion,
+      with more patriotic zeal than discretion, undertaken to pick out those
+      boys in his class who were of pure Norse descent; whose blood was
+      untainted by any foreign admixture. The delighted pride of this small band
+      made them an object of envy to all the rest of the school. Hakon, when his
+      name was mentioned, felt as if he had added a yard to his height. Tears of
+      joy started to his eyes; and to give vent to his overcharged feelings, he
+      broke into a war-whoop; for which he received five black marks and was
+      kept in at recess.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      But he minded that very little; all great men, he reflected, have had to
+      suffer for their country.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      What Hakon loved above all things to study&mdash;nay, the only thing he
+      loved to study&mdash;was the old Sagas, which are tales, poems, and
+      histories of the deeds of the Norsemen in ancient times. With eleven of
+      his classmates, who were about his own age and as Norse as himself, he
+      formed a brotherhood which was called &ldquo;The Sons of the Vikings.&rdquo; They gave
+      each other tremendously bloody surnames, in the style of the Sagas&mdash;names
+      that reeked with gore and heroism. Hakon himself assumed the pleasing
+      appellation &ldquo;Skull-splitter,&rdquo; and his classmate Frithjof Ronning was
+      dubbed Vargr-i-Veum, which means Wolf-in-the-Temple. One Son of the
+      Vikings was known as Ironbeard, another as Erling the Lop-Sided, a third
+      as Thore the Hound, a fourth as Aslak Stone-Skull. But a serious
+      difficulty, which came near disrupting the brotherhood, arose over these
+      very names. It was felt that Hakon had taken an unfair advantage of the
+      rest in selecting the bloodiest name at the outset (before anyone else had
+      had an opportunity to choose), and there was a general demand that he
+      should give it up and allow all to draw lots for it. But this Hakon
+      stoutly refused to do; and declared that if anyone wanted his name he
+      would have to fight for it, in good old Norse fashion.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      A holm-gang or duel was then arranged; that is, a ring was marked out with
+      stones; the combatants stepped within it, and he who could drive his
+      antagonist outside of the stone ring was declared to be the victor.
+      Frithjof, who felt that he had a better claim to be named Skull-Splitter
+      than Hakon, was the first to accept the challenge; but after a terrible
+      combat was forced to bite the dust. His conqueror was, however, filled
+      with such a glowing admiration of his valor (as combatants in the Sagas
+      frequently are), that he proposed that they should swear eternal
+      friendship and foster-brotherhood, and seal their compact, according to
+      Norse custom, by the ceremony called &ldquo;Mingling of Blood.&rdquo; It is needless
+      to say that this seemed to all the boys a most delightful proposition; and
+      they entered upon the august rite with a deep sense of its solemnity.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      First a piece of sod, about twelve feet square, was carefully raised upon
+      wooden stakes representing spears, so as to form a green roof over the
+      foster-brothers. Then, sitting upon the black earth, where the turf had
+      been removed, they bared their arms to the shoulder, and in the presence
+      of his ten brethren, as witnesses, each swore that he would regard the
+      other as his true brother and love him and treat him as such, and avenge
+      his death if he survived him; in solemn testimony of which each drew a
+      knife and opened a vein in his arm, letting their blood mingle and flow
+      together. Hakon, however, in his heroic zeal, drove the knife into his
+      flesh rather recklessly, and when the blood had flowed profusely for five
+      minutes, he grew a trifle uneasy. Frithjof, after having bathed his arm in
+      a neighboring brook, had no difficulty in stanching the blood, but the
+      poor Skull-Splitter&rsquo;s wound, in spite of cold water and bandages, kept
+      pouring forth its warm current without sign of abatement. Hakon grew paler
+      and paler, and would have burst into tears, if he had not been a &ldquo;Son of
+      the Vikings.&rdquo; It would have been a relief to him, for the moment, not to
+      have been a &ldquo;Son of the Vikings.&rdquo; For he was terribly frightened, and
+      thought surely he was going to bleed to death. The other Vikings, too,
+      began to feel rather alarmed at such a prospect; and when Erling the
+      Lop-Sided (the pastor&rsquo;s son) proposed that they should carry Hakon to the
+      doctor, no one made any objection. But the doctor unhappily lived so far
+      away that Hakon might die before he got there.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Well, then,&rdquo; said Wolf-in-the Temple, &ldquo;let us take him to old
+      Witch-Martha. She can stanch blood and do lots of other queer things.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Yes, and that is much more Norse, too,&rdquo; suggested Thore the Hound; &ldquo;wise
+      women learned physic and bandaged wounds in the olden time. Men were never
+      doctors.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Yes, Witch-Martha is just the right style,&rdquo; said Erling the Lop-Sided
+      down in his boots; for he had naturally a shrill voice and gave himself
+      great pains to produce a manly bass.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;We must make a litter to carry the Skull-Splitter on,&rdquo; exclaimed Einar
+      Bowstring-Twanger (the sheriff&rsquo;s son); &ldquo;he&rsquo;ll never get to Witch-Martha
+      alive if he is to walk.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      This suggestion was favorably received, the boys set to work with a will,
+      and in a few minutes had put together a litter of green twigs and
+      branches. Hakon, who was feeling curiously light-headed and exhausted,
+      allowed himself to be placed upon it in a reclining position; and its
+      swinging motion, as his friends carried it along, nearly rocked him to
+      sleep. The fear of death was but vaguely present to his mind; but his
+      self-importance grew with every moment, as he saw his blood trickle
+      through the leaves and drop at the roadside. He appeared to himself a
+      brave Norse warrior who was being carried by his comrades from the
+      battle-field, where he had greatly distinguished himself. And now to be
+      going, to the witch who, by magic rhymes and incantations, was to stanch
+      the ebbing stream of his life&mdash;what could be more delightful?
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0015" id="link2H_4_0015">
+      <!--  H2 anchor --> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      II.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      Witch Martha lived in a small lonely cottage down by the river. Very few
+      people ever went to see her in the day-time; but at night she often had
+      visitors. Mothers who suspected that their children were changelings, whom
+      the Trolds had put in the cradle, taking the human infants away; girls who
+      wanted to &ldquo;turn the hearts&rdquo; of their lovers, and lovers who wanted to turn
+      the hearts of the girls; peasants who had lost money or valuables and
+      wanted help to trace the thief&mdash;these and many others sought secret
+      counsel with Witch-Martha, and rarely went away uncomforted. She was an
+      old weather-beaten woman with a deeply wrinkled, smoky-brown face, and
+      small shrewd black eyes. The floor in her cottage was strewn with sand and
+      fresh juniper twigs; from the rafters under the ceiling hung bunches of
+      strange herbs; and in the windows were flower-pots with blooming plants in
+      them.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Martha was stooping at the hearth, blowing and puffing at the fire under
+      her coffee-pot, when the Sons of the Vikings knocked at the door.
+      Wolf-in-the-Temple was the man who took the lead; and when Witch-Martha
+      opened the upper half of the door (she never opened both at the same time)
+      she was not a little astonished to see the Captain&rsquo;s son, Frithjof
+      Ronning, staring up at her with an anxious face.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;What cost thou want, lad?&rdquo; she asked, gruffly; &ldquo;thou hast gone astray
+      surely, and I&rsquo;ll show thee the way home.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I am Wolf-in-the-Temple,&rdquo; began Frithjof, thrusting out his chest, and
+      raising his head proudly.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Dear me, you don&rsquo;t say so!&rdquo; exclaimed Martha.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;My comrade and foster-brother Skull-Splitter has been wounded; and I want
+      thee, old crone, to stanch his blood before he bleeds to death.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Dear, dear me, how very strange!&rdquo; ejaculated the Witch, and shook her
+      aged head.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      She had been accustomed to extraordinary requests; but the language of
+      this boy struck her as being something of the queerest she had yet heard.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Where is thy Skull-Splitter, lad?&rdquo; she asked, looking at him dubiously.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Right here in the underbrush,&rdquo; Wolf-in-the-Temple retorted, gallantly;
+      &ldquo;stir thy aged stumps now, and thou shalt be right royally rewarded.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      He had learned from Walter Scott&rsquo;s romances that this was the proper way
+      to address inferiors, and he prided himself not a little on his jaunty
+      condescension. Imagine then his surprise when the &ldquo;old crone&rdquo; suddenly
+      turned on him with an angry scowl and said:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;If thou canst not keep a civil tongue in thy head, I&rsquo;ll bring a thousand
+      plagues upon thee, thou umnannerly boy.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      By this threat Wolf-in-the-Temple&rsquo;s courage was sadly shaken. He knew
+      Martha&rsquo;s reputation as a witch, and had no desire to test in his own
+      person whether rumor belied her.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Please, mum, I beg of you,&rdquo; he said, with a sudden change of tone; &ldquo;my
+      friend Hakon Vang is bleeding to death; won&rsquo;t you please help him?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Thy friend Hakon Vang!&rdquo; cried Martha, to whom that name was very
+      familiar; &ldquo;bring him in, as quick as thou canst, and I&rsquo;ll do what I can
+      for him.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Wolf-in-the-Temple put two fingers into his mouth and gave a loud shrill
+      whistle, which was answered from the woods, and presently the small
+      procession moved up to the door, carrying their wounded comrade between
+      them. The poor Skull-Splitter was now as white as a sheet, and the
+      drowsiness of his eyes and the laxness of his features showed that help
+      came none too early. Martha, in hot haste, grabbed a bag of herbs, thrust
+      it into a pot of warm water, and clapped it on the wound. Then she began
+      to wag her head slowly to and fro, and crooned, to a soft and plaintive
+      tune, words which sounded to the ears of the boys shudderingly strange:
+    </p>
+<pre xml:space="preserve">
+     &ldquo;I conjure in water, I conjure in lead,
+     I conjure with herbs that grew o&rsquo;er the dead;
+     I conjure with flowers that I plucked, without shoon,
+     When the ghosts were abroad, in the wane of the moon.
+     I conjure with spirits of earth and air
+     That make the wind sigh and cry in despair;
+     I conjure by him within sevenfold rings
+     That sits and broods at the roots of things.
+     I conjure by him who healeth strife,
+     Who plants and waters the germs of life.
+     I conjure, I conjure, I bid thee be still,
+     Thou ruddy stream, thou hast flowed thy fill!
+     Return to thy channel and nurture his life
+     Till his destined measure of years be rife.&rdquo;
+ </pre>
+    <p>
+      She sang the last two lines with sudden energy; and when she removed her
+      hand from the wound, the blood had ceased to flow. The poor Skull-Splitter
+      was sleeping soundly; and his friends, shivering a little with mysterious
+      fears, marched up and down whispering to one another. They set a guard of
+      honor at the leafy couch of their wounded comrade; intercepted the green
+      worms and other insects that kept dropping down upon him from the alder
+      branches overhead, and brushed away the flies that would fain disturb his
+      slumbers. They were all steeped to the core in old Norse heroism; and they
+      enjoyed the situation hugely. All the life about them was half blotted
+      out; they saw it but dimly. That light of youthful romance, which never
+      was on sea or land, transformed all the common things that met their
+      vision into something strange and wonderful. They strained their ears to
+      catch the meaning of the song of the birds, so that they might learn from
+      them the secrets of the future, as Sigurd the Volsung did, after he had
+      slain the dragon, Fafnir. The woods round about them were filled with
+      dragons and fabulous beasts, whose tracks they detected with the eyes of
+      faith; and they started out every morning, during the all too brief
+      vacation, on imaginary expeditions against imaginary monsters.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      When at the end of an hour the Skull-Splitter woke from his slumber, much
+      refreshed, Witch-Martha bandaged his arm carefully, and Wolf-in-the Temple
+      (having no golden arm-rings) tossed her, with magnificent
+      superciliousness, his purse, which contained six cents. But she flung it
+      back at him with such force that he had to dodge with more adroitness than
+      dignity.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I&rsquo;ll get my claws into thee some day, thou foolish lad,&rdquo; she said,
+      lifting her lean vulture-like hand with a threatening gesture.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;No, please don&rsquo;t, Martha, I didn&rsquo;t mean anything,&rdquo; cried the boy, in
+      great alarm; &ldquo;you&rsquo;ll forgive me, won&rsquo;t you, Martha?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I&rsquo;ll bid thee begone, and take thy foolish tongue along with thee,&rdquo; she
+      answered, in a mollified tone.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      And the Sons of the Vikings, taking the hint, shouldered the litter once
+      more, and reached Skull-Splitter&rsquo;s home in time for supper.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0016" id="link2H_4_0016">
+      <!--  H2 anchor --> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      III.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      The Sons of the Vikings were much troubled. Every heroic deed which they
+      plotted had this little disadvantage, that they were in danger of going to
+      jail for it. They could not steal cattle and horses, because they did not
+      know what to do with them when they had got them; they could not sail away
+      over the briny deep in search of fortune or glory, because they had no
+      ships; and sail-boats were scarcely big enough for daring voyages to the
+      blooming South which their ancestors had ravaged. The precious vacation
+      was slipping away, and as yet they had accomplished nothing that could at
+      all be called heroic. It was while the brotherhood was lamenting this fact
+      that Wolf-in-the-Temple had a brilliant idea. He procured his father&rsquo;s
+      permission to invite his eleven companions to spend a day and a night at
+      the Ronning saeter, or mountain dairy, far up in the highlands. The only
+      condition Mr. Ronning made was that they were to be accompanied by his
+      man, Brumle-Knute, who was to be responsible for their safety. But the
+      boys determined privately to make Brumle-Knute their prisoner, in case he
+      showed any disposition to spoil their sport. To spend a day and a night in
+      the woods, to imagine themselves Vikings, and behave as they imagined
+      Vikings would behave, was a prospect which no one could contemplate
+      without the most delightful excitement. There, far away from sheriffs and
+      pastors and maternal supervision, they might perhaps find the long-desired
+      chance of performing their heroic deed.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It was a beautiful morning early in August that the boys started from
+      Strandholm, Mr. Ronning&rsquo;s estate, accompanied by Brumle-Knute. The latter
+      was a middle-aged, round-shouldered peasant, who had the habit of always
+      talking to himself. To look at him you would have supposed that he was a
+      rough and stupid fellow who would have quite enough to do in looking after
+      himself. But the fact was, that Brumle-Knute was the best shot, the best
+      climber&mdash;and altogether the most keen-eyed hunter in the whole
+      valley. It was a saying that he could scent game so well that he never
+      needed a dog; and that he could imitate to perfection the call of every
+      game bird that inhabited the mountain glens. Sweet-tempered he was not;
+      but so reliable, skilful, and vigilant, and moreover so thorough a
+      woodsman, that the boys could well afford to put up with his gruff temper.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The Sons of the Vikings were all mounted on ponies; and
+      Wolf-in-the-Temple, who had been elected chieftain, led the troop. At his
+      side rode Skull-Splitter, who was yet a trifle pale after his
+      blood-letting, but brimming over with ambition to distinguish himself.
+      They had all tied their trousers to their legs with leather thongs, in
+      order to be perfectly &ldquo;Old Norse;&rdquo; and some of them had turned their
+      plaids and summer overcoats inside out, displaying the gorgeous colors of
+      the lining. Loosely attached about their necks and flying in the wind,
+      these could easily serve for scarlet or purple cloaks wrought on Syrian
+      looms. Most of the boys carried also wooden swords and shields, and the
+      chief had a long loor or Alpine horn. Only the valiant Ironbeard, whose
+      father was a military man, had a real sword and a real scabbard into the
+      bargain. Wolf-in-the-Temple, and Erling the Lop-Sided, had each an old
+      fowling-piece; and Brumle-Knute carried a double-barrelled rifle. This, to
+      be sure, was not; quite historically correct; but firearms are so useful
+      in the woods, even if they are not correct, that it was resolved not to
+      notice the irregularity; for there were boars in the mountains, besides
+      wolves and foxes and no end of smaller game.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      For an hour or more the procession rode, single file, up the steep and
+      rugged mountain-paths; but the boys were all in high spirits and enjoyed
+      themselves hugely. The mere fact that they were Vikings, on a daring
+      foraging expedition into a neighboring kingdom, imparted a wonderful zest
+      to everything they did and said. It might be foolish, but it was on that
+      account none the less delightful. They sent out scouts to watch for the
+      approach of an imaginary enemy; they had secret pass-words and signs; they
+      swore (Viking style) by Thor&rsquo;s hammer and by Odin&rsquo;s eye. They talked
+      appalling nonsense to each other with a delicious sentiment of its awful
+      blood-curdling character. It was about noon when they reached the
+      Strandholm saeter, which consisted of three turf-thatched log-cabins or
+      chalets, surrounded by a green inclosure of half a dozen acres. The wide
+      highland plain, eight or ten miles long, was bounded on the north and west
+      by throngs of snow-hooded mountain peaks, which rose, one behind another,
+      in glittering grandeur; and in the middle of the plain there were two
+      lakes or tarns, connected by a river which was milky white where it
+      entered the lakes and clear as crystal where it escaped.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Now, Vikings,&rdquo; cried Wolf-in-the-Temple, when the boys had done justice
+      to their dinner, &ldquo;it behooves us to do valiant deeds, and to prove
+      ourselves worthy of our fathers.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Hear, hear,&rdquo; shouted Ironbeard, who was fourteen years old and had a
+      shadow of a moustache, &ldquo;I am in for great deeds, hip, hip, hurrah!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Hold your tongue when you hear me speak,&rdquo; commanded the chieftain,
+      loftily; &ldquo;we will lie in wait at the ford, between the two tarns, and
+      capture the travellers who pass that way. If perchance a princess from the
+      neighboring kingdom pass, on the way to her dominions, we will hold her
+      captive until her father, the king, comes to ransom her with heaps of gold
+      in rings and fine garments and precious weapons.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;But what are we to do with her when we have caught her?&rdquo; asked the
+      Skull-Splitter, innocently.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;We will keep her imprisoned in the empty saeter hut,&rdquo; Wolf-in-the-Temple
+      responded. &ldquo;Now, are you ready? We&rsquo;ll leave the horses here on the croft,
+      until our return.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The question now was to elude Brumle-Knute&rsquo;s vigilance; for the Sons of
+      the Vikings had good reasons for fearing that he might interfere with
+      their enterprise. They therefore waited until Brumle-knute was invited by
+      the dairymaid to sit down to dinner. No sooner had the door closed upon
+      his stooping figure, than they stole out through a hole in the fence,
+      crept on all-fours among the tangled dwarf-birches and the big gray
+      boulders, and following close in the track of their leader, reached the
+      ford between the lakes. There they observed two enormous heaps of stones
+      known as the Parson and the Deacon; for it had been the custom from
+      immemorial times for every traveller to fling a big stone as a &ldquo;sacrifice&rdquo;
+       for good luck upon the Parson&rsquo;s heap and a small stone upon the Deacon&rsquo;s.
+      Behind these piles of stone the boys hid themselves, keeping a watchful
+      eye on the road and waiting for their chief&rsquo;s signal to pounce upon unwary
+      travellers. They lay for about fifteen minutes in expectant silence, and
+      were on the point of losing their patience.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Look here, Wolf-in-the-Temple,&rdquo; cried Erling the Lop-Sided, &ldquo;you may
+      think this is fun, but I don&rsquo;t. Let us take the raft there and go fishing.
+      The tarn is simply crowded with perch and bass.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Hold your disrespectful tongue,&rdquo; whispered the chief, warningly, &ldquo;or I&rsquo;ll
+      discipline you so you&rsquo;ll remember it till your dying day.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Ho, ho!&rdquo; laughed the rebel, jeeringly; &ldquo;big words and fat pork don&rsquo;t
+      stick in the throat. Wait till I get you alone and we shall see who&rsquo;ll be
+      disciplined.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Erling had risen and was about to emerge from his hiding-place, when
+      suddenly hoof-beats were heard, and a horse was seen approaching, carrying
+      on its back a stalwart peasant lass, in whose lap a pretty little girl of
+      twelve or thirteen was sitting.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The former was clad in scarlet bodice, a black embroidered skirt, and a
+      snowy-white kerchief was tied about her head. Her blonde hair hung in
+      golden profusion down over her back and shoulders. The little girl was
+      city-clad, and had a sweet and appealing face. She was chattering
+      guilelessly with her companion, asking more questions than she could
+      possibly expect to have answered. Nearer and nearer they came to the great
+      stone heaps, dreaming of no harm.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;And, Gunbjor,&rdquo; the Skull-Splitter heard the little girl say, &ldquo;you don&rsquo;t
+      really believe that there are trolds and fairies in the mountains, do
+      you?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Them as are wiser than I am have believed that,&rdquo; was Gunbjor&rsquo;s answer;
+      &ldquo;but we don&rsquo;t hear so much about the trolds nowadays as they did when my
+      granny was young. Then they took young girls into the mountain and&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Here came a wild, piercing yell, as the Sons of the Vikings rushed forward
+      from behind the rocks, and with a terrible war-whoop swooped down upon the
+      road. Wolf-in-the-Temple, who led the band, seized the horse by the
+      bridle, and flourishing his sword threateningly, addressed the frightened
+      peasant lass.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Is this, perchance, the Princess Kunigunde, the heir to the throne of my
+      good friend, King Bjorn the Victorious?&rdquo; he asked, with a magnificent air,
+      seizing the trembling little girl by the wrist.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Nay,&rdquo; Gunbjor answered, as soon as she could find her voice, &ldquo;this is the
+      Deacon&rsquo;s Maggie, as is going to the saeter with me to spend Sunday.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;She cannot proceed on her way,&rdquo; said the chieftain, decisively, &ldquo;she is
+      my prisoner.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Gunbjor, who had been frightened out of her wits by the small red- and
+      blue-cloaked men, swarming among the stones, taking them to be trolds or
+      fairies, now gradually recovered her senses. She recognized in Erling the
+      Lop-Sided the well-known features of the parson&rsquo;s son; and as soon as she
+      had made this discovery she had no great difficulty in identifying the
+      rest. &ldquo;Never you fear, pet,&rdquo; she said to the child in her lap, &ldquo;these be
+      bad boys as want to frighten us. I&rsquo;ll give them a switching if they don&rsquo;t
+      look out.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;The Princess Kunigunde is my prisoner until it please her noble father to
+      ransom her for ten pounds of silver,&rdquo; repeated Wolf-in-the-Temple, putting
+      his arm about little Maggie&rsquo;s waist and trying to lift her from the
+      saddle.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;You keep yer hands off the child, or I&rsquo;ll give you ten pounds of
+      thrashing,&rdquo; cried Gunbjor, angrily.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;She shall be treated with the respect due to her rank,&rdquo;
+       Wolf-in-the-Temple proceeded, loftily. &ldquo;I give King Bjorn the Victorious
+      three moons in which to bring me the ransom.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;And I&rsquo;ll give you three boxes on the ear, and a cut with my whip, into
+      the bargain, if you don&rsquo;t let the horse alone, and take yer hands off the
+      child.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Vikings!&rdquo; cried the chief, &ldquo;lay hands on her! Tear her from the saddle!
+      She has defied us! She deserves no mercy.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      With a tremendous yell the boys rushed forward, brandishing their swords
+      above their heads, and pulled Gunbjor from the saddle. But she held on to
+      her charge with a vigorous clutch, and as soon as her feet touched the
+      ground she began with her disengaged hand to lay about her, with her whip,
+      in a way that proved extremely unpleasant. Wolf-in-the-Temple, against
+      whom her assault was especially directed, received some bad cuts across
+      his face, and Ironbeard was driven backward into the ford, where he fell,
+      full length, and rose dripping wet and mortified. Thore the Hound got a
+      thump in his head from Gunbjor&rsquo;s stalwart elbows, and Skull-Splitter, who
+      had more courage than discretion, was pitched into the water with no more
+      ceremony than if he had been a superfluous kitten. The fact was&mdash;I
+      cannot disguise it&mdash;within five minutes the whole valiant band of the
+      Sons of the Vikings were routed by that terrible switch, wielded by the
+      intrepid Gunbjor. When the last of her foes had bitten the dust, she
+      calmly remounted her pony, and with the Deacon&rsquo;s Maggie in her lap rode,
+      at a leisurely pace, across the ford.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Good-by, lads,&rdquo; she said, nodding her head at them over her shoulder; &ldquo;ye
+      needn&rsquo;t be afraid. I won&rsquo;t tell on you.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0017" id="link2H_4_0017">
+      <!--  H2 anchor --> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      IV.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      To have been routed by a woman was a terrible humiliation to the valiant
+      Sons of the Vikings. They were silent and moody during the evening, and
+      sat staring into the big bonfire on the saeter green with stern and
+      melancholy features. They had suffered defeat in battle, and it behooved
+      them to avenge it. About nine o&rsquo;clock they retired into their bunks in the
+      log cabin, but no sooner was Brumle-Knute&rsquo;s rhythmic snoring perceived
+      than Wolf-in-the-Temple put his head out and called to his comrades to
+      meet him in front of the house for a council of war. Instantly they
+      scrambled out of their alcoves, pulled on their coats and trousers; and
+      noiselessly stole out into the night. The sun was yet visible, but a red
+      veil of fiery mist was drawn across his face; and a magic air of
+      fairy-tales and strange unreality was diffused over mountains, plains and
+      lakes. The river wound like a huge, blood-red serpent through the mountain
+      pastures, and the snow-hooded peaks blazed with fiery splendor.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The boys were quite stunned at the sight of such magnificence, and stood
+      for some minutes gazing at the landscape, before giving heed to the
+      summons of the chief.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Comrades,&rdquo; said Wolf-in-the-Temple, solemnly, &ldquo;what is life without
+      honor?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      There was not a soul present who could answer that conundrum, and after a
+      fitting pause the chief was forced to answer it himself.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Life without honor, comrades,&rdquo; he said, severely, &ldquo;life&mdash;without
+      honor is&mdash;nothing.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Hear, hear!&rdquo; cried Ironbeard; &ldquo;good for you, old man!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Silence!&rdquo; thundered Wolf-in-the-Temple, &ldquo;I must beg the gentlemen to
+      observe the proprieties.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      This tremendous phrase rarely failed to restore order, and the flippant
+      Ironbeard was duly rebuked by the glances of displeasure which met him on
+      all sides. But in the meanwhile the chief had lost the thread of his
+      speech and could not recover it. &ldquo;Vikings,&rdquo; he resumed, clearing his
+      throat vehemently, &ldquo;we have been&mdash;that is to say&mdash;we have
+      sustained&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;A thrashing,&rdquo; supplied the innocent Skull-Splitter.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      But the awful stare which was fixed upon him convinced him that he had
+      made a mistake; and he shrunk into an abashed silence. &ldquo;We must do
+      something to retrieve our honor,&rdquo; continued the chief, earnestly; &ldquo;we must&mdash;take
+      steps&mdash;to to get upon our legs again,&rdquo; he finished, blushing with
+      embarrassment.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I would suggest that we get upon our legs first, and take the steps
+      afterward,&rdquo; remarked the flippant Ironbeard, with a sly wink at Thore the
+      Hound.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The chief held it to be beneath his dignity to notice this interruption,
+      and after having gazed for a while in silence at the blood-red mountain
+      peaks, he continued, more at his ease:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I propose, comrades, that we go on a bear hunt. Then, when we return with
+      a bear-skin or two, our honor will be all right; no one will dare laugh at
+      us. The brave boy-hunters will be the admiration and pride of the whole
+      valley.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;But Brummle-Knute,&rdquo; observed the Skull-Splitter; &ldquo;do you think he will
+      allow us to go bear-hunting?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;What do we care whether he allows us or not?&rdquo; cried Wolf-in-the-Temple,
+      scornfully; &ldquo;he sleeps like a log; and I propose that we tie his hands and
+      feet before we start.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      This suggestion met with enthusiastic approval, and all the boys laughed
+      heartily at the idea of Brumle-Knute waking up and finding himself tied
+      with ropes, like a calf that is carried to market.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Now, comrades,&rdquo; commanded the chief, with a flourish of his sword, &ldquo;get
+      to bed quickly. I&rsquo;ll call you at four o&rsquo;clock; we&rsquo;ll then start to chase
+      the monarch of the mountains.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The Sons of the Vikings scrambled into their bunks with great despatch;
+      and though their beds consisted of pine twigs, covered with a coarse
+      sheet, and a bat of straw for a pillow, they fell asleep without rocking,
+      and slept more soundly than if they had rested on silken bolsters filled
+      with eiderdown. Wolf-in-the-Temple was as good as his word, and waked them
+      promptly at four o&rsquo;clock; and their first task, after having filled their
+      knapsacks with provisions, was to tie Brumle-Knute&rsquo;s hands and feet with
+      the most cunning slip-knots, which would tighten more, the more he
+      struggled to unloose them. Ironbeard, who had served a year before the
+      mast, was the contriver of this daring enterprise; and he did it so
+      cleverly that Brumle-Knute never suspected that his liberty was being
+      interfered with. He snorted a little and rubbed imaginary cobwebs from his
+      face; but soon lapsed again into a deep, snoring unconsciousness.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The faces of the Sons of the Vikings grew very serious as they started out
+      on this dangerous expedition. There was more than one of them who would
+      not have objected to remaining at home, but who feared to incur the charge
+      of cowardice if he opposed the wishes of the rest. Wolf-in-the-Temple
+      walked at the head of the column, as they hastened with stealthy tread out
+      of the saeter inclosure, and steered their course toward the dense pine
+      forest, the tops of which were visible toward the east, where the mountain
+      sloped toward the valley. He carried his fowling-piece, loaded with shot,
+      in his right hand, and a powder-horn and other equipments for the chase
+      were flung across his shoulder. Erling the Lop-Sided was similarly armed,
+      and Ironbeard, glorying in a real sword, unsheathed it every minute and
+      let it flash in the sun. It was a great consolation to the rest of the
+      Vikings to see these formidable weapons; for they were not wise enough to
+      know that grown-up bears are not killed with shot, and that a
+      fowling-piece is a good deal more dangerous than no weapon at all, in the
+      hands of an inexperienced hunter.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The sun, who had exchanged his flaming robe de nuit for the rosy colors of
+      morning, was now shooting his bright shafts of light across the mountain
+      plain, and cheering the hearts of the Sons of the Vikings. The air was
+      fresh and cool; and it seemed a luxury to breathe it. It entered the lungs
+      in a pure, vivifying stream like an elixir of life, and sent the blood
+      dancing through the veins. It was impossible to mope in such air; and
+      Ironbeard interpreted the general mood when he struck up the tune:
+    </p>
+<pre xml:space="preserve">
+     &ldquo;We wander with joy on the far mountain path,
+     We follow the star that will guide us;&rdquo;
+ </pre>
+    <p>
+      but before he had finished the third verse, it occurred to the chief that
+      they were bear-hunters, and that it was very unsportsmanlike behavior to
+      sing on the chase. For all that they were all very jolly, throbbing with
+      excitement at the thought of the adventures which they were about to
+      encounter; and concealing a latent spark of fear under an excess of
+      bravado. At the end of an hour&rsquo;s march they had reached the pine forest;
+      and as they were all ravenously hungry they sat down upon the stones,
+      where a clear mountain brook ran down the slope, and unpacked their
+      provisions. Wolf-in-the-Temple had just helped himself, in old Norse
+      fashion, to a slice of smoked ham, having slashed a piece off at random
+      with his knife, when Erling the Lop-Sided observed that that ham had a
+      very curious odor. Everyone had to test its smell; and they all agreed
+      that it did have a singular flavor, though its taste was irreproachable.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;It smells like a menagerie,&rdquo; said the Skull-Splitter, as he handed it to
+      Thore the Hound.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;But the bread and the biscuit smell just the same,&rdquo; said Thore the Hound;
+      &ldquo;in fact, it is the air that smells like a menagerie.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Boys,&rdquo; cried Wolf-in-the-Temple, &ldquo;do you see that track in the mud?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Yes; it is the track of a barefooted man,&rdquo; suggested the innocent
+      Skull-Splitter.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Ironbeard and Erling the Lop-Sided flung themselves down among the stones
+      and investigated the tracks; and they were no longer in doubt as to where
+      the pungent wild odor came from, which they had attributed to the ham.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Boys,&rdquo; said Erling, looking up with an excited face, &ldquo;a she-bear with one
+      or two cubs has been here within a few minutes.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;This is her drinking-place,&rdquo; said Ironbeard: &ldquo;the tracks are many and
+      well-worn; if she hasn&rsquo;t been here this morning, she is sure to come
+      before long.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;We are in luck indeed,&rdquo; Wolf-in-the-Temple observed, coolly; &ldquo;we needn&rsquo;t
+      go far for our bear. He will be coming for us.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      At that moment the note of an Alpine horn was heard; but it was impossible
+      to determine how far it was away; for the echo took up the note and flung
+      it back and forth with clear and strong reverberations from mountain to
+      mountain.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;It is Brumle-Knute who is calling us,&rdquo; said Thore the Hound. &ldquo;The
+      dairymaid must have released him. Shall we answer?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Never,&rdquo; cried the chief, proudly; &ldquo;I forbid you to answer. Here we have
+      our heroic deed in sight, and I want no one to spoil it. If there is a
+      coward among us, let him take to his heels; no one shall detain him.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      There were perhaps several who would have liked to accept the invitation;
+      but no one did. Skull-Splitter, by way of diversion, plumped backward into
+      the brook, and sat down in the cool pool up to his waist. But nobody
+      laughed at his mishap; because they had their minds full of more serious
+      thoughts. Wolf-in-the-Temple, who had climbed up on a big moss-grown
+      boulder, stood, gun in hand, and peered in among the bushes.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Boys,&rdquo; he whispered, &ldquo;drop down on your bellies&mdash;quick.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      All, crowding behind a rock, obeyed, pushing themselves into position with
+      hands and feet. With wildly beating hearts the Vikings gazed up among the
+      gray wilderness of stone and underbrush, and first one, then another,
+      caught sight of something brown and hairy that came toddling down toward
+      them, now rolling like a ball of yarn, now turning a somersault, and now
+      again pegging industriously along on four clumsy paws. It was the
+      prettiest little bear cub that ever woke on its mossy lair in the woods.
+      Now it came shuffling down in a boozy way to take its morning bath. It
+      seemed but half awake; and Skull-Splitter imagined that it was a trifle
+      cross, because its mother had waked it too early. Evidently it had made no
+      toilet as yet, for bits of moss were sticking in its hair; and it yawned
+      once or twice, and shook its head disgustedly. Skull-Splitter knew so well
+      that feeling and could sympathize with the poor young cub. But
+      Wolf-in-the-Temple, who watched it no less intently, was filled with quite
+      different emotions. Here was his heroic deed, for which he had hungered so
+      long. To shoot a bear&mdash;that was a deed worthy of a Norseman. One step
+      more&mdash;then two&mdash;and then&mdash;up rose the bear cub on its hind
+      legs and rubbed its eyes with its paws. Now he had a clean shot&mdash;now
+      or never; and pulling the trigger Wolf-in-the-Temple blazed away and sent
+      a handful of shot into the carcass of the poor little bear. Up jumped all
+      the Sons of the Vikings from behind their stones, and, with a shout of
+      triumph, ran up the path to where the cub was lying. It had rolled itself
+      up into a brown ball, and whimpered like a child in pain. But at that very
+      moment there came an ominous growl out of the underbrush, and a crackling
+      and creaking of branches was heard which made the hearts of the boys stand
+      still.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Erling,&rdquo; cried Wolf-in-the-Temple, &ldquo;hand me your gun, and load mine for
+      me as quick as you can.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The words were scarcely out of his mouth when the head of a big brown
+      she-bear became visible among the bushes. She paused in the path, where
+      her cub was lying, turned him over with her paw, licked his face, grumbled
+      with a low soothing tone, snuffed him all over and rubbed her nose against
+      his snout. But unwarily she must have touched some sore spot; for the cub
+      gave a sharp yelp of pain and writhed and whimpered as he looked up into
+      his mother&rsquo;s eyes, clumsily returning her caresses. The boys, half emerged
+      from their hiding-places, stood watching this demonstration of affection
+      not without sympathy; and Skull-Splitter, for one, heartily wished that
+      the chief had not wounded the little bear. Quite ignorant as he was of the
+      nature of bears, he allowed his compassion to get the better of his
+      judgment. It seemed such a pity that the poor little beast should lie
+      there and suffer with one eye put out and forty or fifty bits of lead
+      distributed through its body. It would be much more merciful to put it out
+      of its misery altogether. And accordingly when Erling the Lop-Sided handed
+      him his gun to pass on to the chief, Skull-Splitter started forward, flung
+      the gun to his cheek, and blazed away at the little bear once more,
+      entirely heedless of consequences. It was a random, unskilful shot, which
+      was about equally shared by the cub and its mother. And the latter was not
+      in a mood to be trifled with. With an angry roar she rose on her hind legs
+      and advanced against the unhappy Skull-Splitter with two uplifted paws. In
+      another moment she would give him one of her vigorous &ldquo;left-handers,&rdquo;
+       which would probably pacify him forever. Ironbeard gave a scream of terror
+      and Thore the Hound broke down an alder-sapling in his excitement. But
+      Wolf-in-the-Temple, remembering that he had sworn foster-brotherhood with
+      this brave and foolish little lad, thought that now was the time to show
+      his heroism. Here it was no longer play, but dead earnest. Down he leaped
+      from his rock, and just as the she-bear was within a foot of the
+      Skull-Splitter, he dealt her a blow in the head with the butt end of his
+      gun which made the sparks dance before her eyes. She turned suddenly
+      toward her new assailant, growling savagely, and scratched her ear with
+      her paw. And Skull-Splitter, who had slipped on the pine needles and
+      fallen, scrambled to his feet again, leaving his gun on the ground, and
+      with a few aimless steps tumbled once more into the brook. Ironbeard,
+      seeing that he was being outdone by his chief, was quick to seize the gun,
+      and rushing forward dealt the she-bear another blow, which, instead of
+      disabling her, only exasperated her further. She glared with her small
+      bloodshot eyes now at the one, now at the other boy, as if in doubt which
+      she would tackle first. It was an awful moment; one or the other might
+      have saved himself by flight, but each was determined to stand his ground.
+      Vikings could die, but never flee. With a furious growl the she-bear
+      started toward her last assailant, lifting her terrible paw. Ironbeard
+      backed a few steps, pointing his gun before him; and with benumbing force
+      the paw descended upon the gun-barrel, striking it out of his hands.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It seemed all of a sudden to the boy as if his arms were asleep up to the
+      shoulders; he had a stinging sensation in his flesh and a humming in his
+      ears, which made him fear that his last hour had come. If the bear renewed
+      the attack now, he was utterly defenceless. He was not exactly afraid, but
+      he was numb all over. It seemed to matter little what became of him.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      But now a strange thing happened. To his unutterable astonishment he saw
+      the she-bear drop down on all fours and vent her rage on the gun, which,
+      in a trice, was bent and broken into a dozen fragments. But in this
+      diversion she was interrupted by Wolf-in-the-Temple, who hammered away
+      again at her head with the heavy end of his weapon. Again she rose, and
+      presented two rows of white teeth which looked as if they meant business.
+      It was the chief&rsquo;s turn now to meet his fate; and it was the more serious
+      because his helper was disarmed and could give him no assistance. With a
+      wildly thumping heart he raised the butt end of his gun and dashed
+      forward, when as by a miracle a shot was heard&mdash;a sharp, loud shot
+      that rumbled away with manifold reverberations among the mountains. In the
+      same instant the huge brown bear tumbled forward, rolled over, with a
+      gasping growl, and was dead.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;O Brumle-Knute! Brumle-Knute!&rdquo; yelled the boys in joyous chorus, as they
+      saw their rescuer coming forward from behind the rocks, &ldquo;how did you find
+      us?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I heard yer shots and I saw yer tracks,&rdquo; said Brumle-Knute, dryly; &ldquo;but
+      when ye go bear-hunting another time ye had better load with bullets
+      instead of bird-shot.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;But Brumle-Knute, we only wanted to shoot the little bear,&rdquo; protested
+      Wolf-in-the-Temple.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;That may be,&rdquo; Brumle-Knute replied; &ldquo;but the big bears, they are a
+      curiously unreasonable lot&mdash;they are apt to get mad when you fire at
+      their little ones. Next time you must recollect to take the big bear into
+      account.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      I need not tell you that the Sons of the Vikings became great heroes when
+      the rumor of their bear hunt was noised abroad through the valley. But,
+      for all that, they determined to disband their brotherhood.
+      Wolf-in-the-Temple expressed the sentiment of all when, at their last
+      meeting, he made a speech, in which these words occurred:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Brothers, the world isn&rsquo;t quite the same now as it was in the days when
+      our Viking forefathers spread the terror of their name through the South.
+      We are not so strong as they were, nor so hardy. When we mingle blood, we
+      have to send for a surgeon. If we steal princesses we may go to jail for
+      it&mdash;or&mdash;or&mdash;well&mdash;never mind&mdash;what else may
+      happen. Heroism isn&rsquo;t appreciated as once it was in this country; and I,
+      for one, won&rsquo;t try to be a hero any more. I resign my chieftainship now,
+      when I can do it with credit. Let us all make our bows of adieu as bear
+      hunters; and if we don&rsquo;t do anything more in the heroic line it is not
+      because we can&rsquo;t, but because we won&rsquo;t.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0018" id="link2H_4_0018">
+      <!--  H2 anchor --> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      PAUL JESPERSEN&rsquo;S MASQUERADE
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      There was great excitement in the little Norse town, Bumlebro, because
+      there was going to be a masquerade. Everybody was busy inventing the
+      character which he was to represent, and the costume in which he was to
+      represent it.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Miss Amelia Norbeck, the apothecary&rsquo;s daughter, had intended to be Marie
+      Antoinette, but had to give it up because the silk stockings were too
+      dear, although she had already procured the beauty-patches and the
+      powdered wig.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Miss Arctander, the judge&rsquo;s daughter, was to be Night, in black tulle,
+      spangled with silver stars, and Miss Hanna Broby was to be Morning, in
+      white tulle and pink roses.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      There had never BEEN a masquerade in Bumlebro, and there would not have
+      been one now, if it had not been for the enterprise of young Arctander and
+      young Norbeck, who had just returned from the military academy in the
+      capital, and were anxious to exhibit themselves to the young girls in
+      their glory.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Of course, they could not afford to be exclusive, for there were but
+      twenty or thirty families in the town that laid any claims to gentility,
+      and they had all to be invited in order to fill the hall and pay the
+      bills. Thus it came to pass that Paul Jespersen, the book-keeper in the
+      fish-exporting firm of Broby &amp; Larsen, received a card, although, to
+      be sure, there had been a long debate in the committee as to where the
+      line should be drawn.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Paul Jespersen was uncommonly elated when he read the invitation, which
+      was written on a gilt-edged card, requesting the pleasure of Mr.
+      Jespersen&rsquo;s company at a bal masque Tuesday, January 3d, in the
+      Association Hall.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;The pleasure of his company!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Think of it! He felt so flattered that he blushed to the tips of his ears.
+      It must have been Miss Clara Broby who had induced them to be so polite to
+      him, for those insolent cadets, who only nodded patronizingly to him in
+      response to his deferential greeting, would never have asked for &ldquo;the
+      pleasure of his company.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Having satisfied himself on this point, Paul went to call upon Miss Clara
+      in the evening, in order to pay her some compliment and consult her in
+      regard to his costume; but Miss Clara, as it happened, was much more
+      interested in her own costume than in that of Mr. Jespersen, and offered
+      no useful suggestions.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;What character would you advise me to select, Mr. Jespersen?&rdquo; she
+      inquired, sweetly. &ldquo;My sister Hanna, you know, is going to be Morning, so
+      I can&rsquo;t be that, and it seems to me Morning would have suited me just
+      lovely.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Go as Beauty,&rdquo; suggested Mr. Jespersen, blushing at the thought of his
+      audacity.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;So I will, Mr. Jespersen,&rdquo; she answered, laughing, &ldquo;if you will go as the
+      Beast.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Paul, being a simple-hearted fellow, failed to see any sarcasm in this,
+      but interpreted it rather as a hint that Miss Clara desired his escort, as
+      Beauty, of course, only would be recognizable in her proper character by
+      the presence of the Beast.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I shall be delighted, Miss Clara,&rdquo; he said, beaming with pleasure. &ldquo;If
+      you will be my Beauty, I&rsquo;ll be your Beast.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Miss Clara did not know exactly how to take this, and was rather
+      absent-minded during the rest of the interview. She had been chaffing Mr.
+      Jespersen, of course, but she did not wish to be absolutely rude to him,
+      because he was her father&rsquo;s employee, and, as she often heard her father
+      say, a very valuable and trustworthy young man.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      When Paul got home he began at once to ponder upon his character as Beast,
+      and particularly as Miss Clara&rsquo;s Beast. It occurred to him that his uncle,
+      the furrier, had an enormous bear-skin, with head, eyes, claws, and all
+      that was necessary, and without delay he went to try it on.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      His uncle, feeling that this event was somehow to redound to the credit of
+      the family, agreed to make the necessary alterations at a trifling cost,
+      and when the night of the masquerade arrived, Paul was so startled at his
+      appearance that he would have run away from himself if such a thing had
+      been possible. He had never imagined that he would make such a successful
+      Beast.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      By an ingenious contrivance with a string, which he pulled with his hand,
+      he was able to move his lower jaw, which, with its red tongue and terrible
+      teeth, presented an awful appearance. By patching the skin a little
+      behind, his head was made to fit comfortably into the bear&rsquo;s head, and his
+      mild blue eyes looked out of the holes from which the bear&rsquo;s eyes had been
+      removed. The skin was laced with thin leather thongs from the neck down,
+      but the long, shaggy fur made the lacing invisible.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Paul Jespersen practiced ursine behavior before the looking-glass for
+      about half an hour. Then, being uncomfortably warm, he started
+      down-stairs, and determined to walk to the Association Hall. He chuckled
+      to himself at the thought of the sensation he would make, if he should
+      happen to meet anybody on the road.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Having never attended a masquerade before, he did not know that
+      dressing-rooms were provided for the maskers, and, being averse to
+      needless expenditure, he would as soon have thought of flying as of taking
+      a carriage. There was, in fact, but one carriage on runners in the town,
+      and that was already engaged by half a dozen parties.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The moon was shining faintly upon the snow, and there was a sharp frost in
+      the air when Paul Jespersen put his hairy head out of the street-door and
+      reconnoitred the territory.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      There was not a soul to be seen, except an old beggar woman who was
+      hobbling along, supporting herself with two sticks. Paul darted, as
+      quickly as his unwieldly bulk would allow, into the middle of the street.
+      He enjoyed intensely the fun of walking abroad in such a monstrous guise.
+      He contemplated with boyish satisfaction his shadow which stretched, long
+      and black and horrible, across the snow.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It was a bit slippery, and he had to manoeuvre carefully in order to keep
+      right side up. Presently he caught up with the beggar woman.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Good-evening!&rdquo; he said.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The old woman turned about, stared at him horror-stricken; then, as soon
+      as she had collected her senses, took to her heels, yelling at the top of
+      her voice. A big mastiff, who had just been let loose for the night, began
+      to bark angrily in a back yard, and a dozen comrades responded from other
+      yards, and came bounding into the street.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Hello!&rdquo; thought Paul Jespersen. &ldquo;Now look out for trouble.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      He felt anything but hilarious when he saw the pack of angry dogs dancing
+      and leaping about him, barking in a wildly discordant chorus.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Why, Hector, you fool, don&rsquo;t you know me?&rdquo; he said, coaxingly, to the
+      judge&rsquo;s mastiff. &ldquo;And you, Sultan, old man! You ought to be ashamed of
+      yourself! Here, Caro, that&rsquo;s a good fellow! Come, now, don&rsquo;t excite
+      yourself!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      But Hector, Sultan, and Caro were all proof against such blandishments,
+      and as for Bismarck, the apothecary&rsquo;s collie, he grew every moment more
+      furious, and showed his teeth in a very uncomfortable fashion.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      To defend one&rsquo;s self was not to be thought of, for what defence is
+      possible to a sham bear against a dozen genuine dogs? Paul could use
+      neither his teeth nor his claws to any purpose, while the dogs could use
+      theirs, as he presently discovered, with excellent effect.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He had just concluded to seek safety in flight, when suddenly he felt a
+      bite in his left calf, and saw the brute Bismarck tug away at his leg as
+      if it had been a mutton-chop. He had scarcely recovered from this surprise
+      when he heard a sharp report, and a bullet whizzed away over his head,
+      after having neatly put a hole through the right ear. Paul concluded, with
+      reason, that things were getting serious.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      If he could only get hold of that blockhead, the judge&rsquo;s groom, who was
+      violating the law about fire-arms, he would give him an exhibition in
+      athletics which he would not soon forget; but, being for the moment
+      deprived of this pleasure, he knew of nothing better to do than to dodge
+      through the nearest street-door, and implore the protection of the very
+      first individual he might meet.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It so happened that Paul selected the house of two middle-aged milliners
+      for this experiment.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Jemina and Malla Hansen were just seated at the table drinking tea with
+      their one constant visitor, the post-office clerk, Mathias, when, all of a
+      sudden, they heard a tremendous racket in the hall, and the furious
+      barking of dogs.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      With a scream of fright, the two old maids jumyed up, dropping their
+      precious tea-cups, and old Mathias, who had tipped his chair a little
+      backward, lost his balance, and pointed his heels toward the ceiling.
+      Before he had time to pick himself up the door was burst open and a great
+      hairy monster sprang into the room.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Mercy upon us!&rdquo; cried Jemina. &ldquo;It is the devil!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      But now came the worst of it all. The bear put his paw on his heart, and
+      with the politest bow in the world, remarked:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Pardon me, ladies, if I intrude.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      He had meant to say more, but his audience had vanished; only the flying
+      tails of Mathias&rsquo;s coat were seen, as he slammed the door on them, in his
+      precipitate flight.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Police! police!&rdquo; someone shouted out of the window of the adjoining room.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Police! Now, with all due respect for the officers of the law, Paul
+      Jespersen had no desire to meet them at the present moment. To be hauled
+      up at the station-house and fined for street disorder&mdash;nay, perhaps
+      be locked up for the night, if, as was more than likely, the captain of
+      police was at the masquerade, was not at all to Paul&rsquo;s taste. Anything
+      rather than that! He would be the laughing stock of the whole town if,
+      after his elaborate efforts, he were to pass the night in a cell, instead
+      of dancing with Miss Clara Broby.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Hearing the cry for police repeated, Paul looked about him for some means
+      of escape. It occurred to him that he had seen a ladder in the hall
+      leading up to the loft. There he could easily hide himself until the crowd
+      had dispersed.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Without further reflection, he rushed out through the door by which he had
+      entered, climbed the ladder, thrust open a trap-door, and, to his
+      astonishment, found himself under the wintry sky.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The roof sloped steeply, and he had to balance carefully in order to avoid
+      sliding down into the midst of the noisy mob of dogs and street-boys who
+      were laying siege to the door.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      With the utmost caution he crawled along the roof-tree, trembling lest he
+      should be discovered by some lynx-eyed villain in the throng of his
+      pursuers. Happily, the broad brick chimney afforded him some shelter, of
+      which he was quick to take advantage. Rolling himself up into the smallest
+      possible compass, he sat for a long time crouching behind the chimney;
+      while the police were rummaging under the beds and in the closets of the
+      house, in the hope of finding him.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He had, of course, carefully closed the trap-door by which he had reached
+      the comparative safety of his present position; and he could not help
+      chuckling to himself at the thought of having outwitted the officers of
+      the law.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The crowd outside, after having made night hideous by their whoops and
+      yells, began, at the end of an hour, to grow weary; and the dogs being
+      denied entrance to the house, concluded that they had no further business
+      there, and slunk off to their respective kennels.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The people, too, scattered, and only a few patient loiterers hung about
+      the street door, hoping for fresh developments. It seemed useless to Paul
+      to wait until these provoking fellows should take themselves away. They
+      were obviously prepared to make a night of it, and time was no object to
+      them.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It was then that Paul, in his despair, resolved upon a daring stratagem.
+      Mr. Broby&rsquo;s house was in the same block as that of the Misses Hansen, only
+      it was at the other end of the block. By creeping along the roof-trees of
+      the houses, which, happily, differed but slightly in height, he could
+      reach the Broby house, where, no doubt, Miss Clara was now waiting for
+      him, full of impatience.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He did not deliberate long before testing the practicability of this plan.
+      The tanner Thoresen&rsquo;s house was reached without accident, although he
+      barely escaped being detected by a small boy who was amusing himself
+      throwing snow-balls at the chimney. It was a slow and wearisome mode of
+      locomotion&mdash;pushing himself forward on his belly; but, as long as the
+      streets were deserted, it was a pretty safe one.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He gave a start whenever he heard a dog bark; for the echoes of the
+      ear-splitting concert they had given him were yet ringing in his brain.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It was no joke being a bear, he thought, and if he had suspected that it
+      was such a serious business, he would not so rashly have undertaken it.
+      But now there was no way of getting out of it; for he had nothing on but
+      his underclothes under the bear-skin.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      At last he reached the Broby house, and drew a sigh of relief at the
+      thought that he was now at the end of his journey.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He looked about him for a trap-door by which he could descend into the
+      interior, but could find none. There was an inch of snow on the roof,
+      glazed with frost: and if there was a trap-door, it was securely hidden.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      To jump or slide down was out of the question, for he would, in that case,
+      risk breaking his neck. If he cried for help, the groom, who was always
+      ready with his gun, might take a fancy to shoot at him; and that would be
+      still more unpleasant. It was a most embarrassing situation.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Paul&rsquo;s eyes fell upon a chimney; and the thought flashed through his head
+      that there was the solution of the difficulty. He observed that no smoke
+      was coming out of it, so that he would run no risk of being converted into
+      smoked ham during the descent.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He looked down through the long, black tunnel. It was a great, spacious,
+      old-fashioned chimney, and abundantly wide enough for his purpose.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      A pleasant sound of laughter and merry voices came to him from the kitchen
+      below. It was evident the girls were having a frolic. So, without further
+      ado, Paul Jespersen stuffed his great hairy bulk into the chimney and
+      proceeded to let himself down.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      There were notches and iron rings in the brick wall, evidently put there
+      for the convenience of the chimney-sweeps; and he found his task easier
+      than he had anticipated. The soot, to be sure, blinded his eyes, but where
+      there was nothing to be seen, that was no serious disadvantage.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In fact, everything was going as smoothly as possible, when suddenly he
+      heard a girl&rsquo;s voice cry out:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Gracious goodness! what is that in the chimney?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Probably the chimney-sweep,&rdquo; a man&rsquo;s voice answered.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Chimney-sweep at this time of night!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Paul, bracing himself against the walls, looked down and saw a cluster of
+      anxious faces all gazing up toward him. A candle which one of the girls
+      held in her hand showed him that the distance down to the hearth was but
+      short; so, to make an end of their uncertainty, he dropped himself down&mdash;quietly,
+      as he thought, but by the force of his fall blowing the ashes about in all
+      directions.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      A chorus of terrified screams greeted him. One girl fainted, one leaped up
+      on a table, and the rest made for the door.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      And there sat poor Paul, in the ashes on the hearth, utterly bewildered by
+      the consternation he had occasioned. He picked himself up by and by,
+      rubbed the soot out of his eyes with the backs of his paws, and crawled
+      out upon the floor.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He had just managed to raise himself upon his hind-legs, when an awful
+      apparition became visible in the door, holding a candle. It was now Paul&rsquo;s
+      turn to be frightened. The person who stood before him bore a close
+      resemblance to the devil.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;What is all this racket about?&rdquo; he cried, in a tone of authority.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Paul felt instantly relieved, for the voice was that of his revered chief,
+      Mr. Broby, who, he now recollected, was to figure at the masquerade as
+      Mephistopheles. Behind him peeped forth the faces of his two daughters,
+      one as Morning and the other as Spring.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;May I ask what is the cause of this unseemly noise?&rdquo; repeated Mr. Broby,
+      advancing to the middle of the room. The light of his candle now fell upon
+      the huge bear whom, after a slight start, he recognized as a masker.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Excuse me, Mr. Broby,&rdquo; said Paul, &ldquo;but Miss Clara did me the honor&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Oh yes, papa,&rdquo; Miss Clara interrupted him, stepping forth in all her
+      glory of tulle and flowers; &ldquo;it is Paul Jespersen, who was going to be my
+      Beast.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;And it is you who have frightened my servants half out of their wits,
+      Jespersen?&rdquo; said Mr. Broby, laughing.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;He tumbled down through the chimney, sir,&rdquo; declared the cook, who had
+      half-recovered from her fright.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Well,&rdquo; said Mr. Broby, with another laugh, &ldquo;I admit that was a trifle
+      unconventional. Next time you call, Jespersen, you must come through the
+      door.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      He thought Jespersen had chosen to play a practical joke on the servants,
+      and, though he did not exactly like it, he was in no mood for scolding.
+      After having been carefully brushed and rolled in the snow, Paul offered
+      his escort to Miss Clara; and she had not the heart to tell him that she
+      was not at all Beauty, but Spring. And Paul was not enough of an expert to
+      know the difference.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0019" id="link2H_4_0019">
+      <!--  H2 anchor --> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      LADY CLARE THE STORY OF A HORSE
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      The king was dead, and among the many things he left behind him which his
+      successor had no use for were a lot of fancy horses. There were
+      long-barrelled English hunters, all legs and neck; there were Kentucky
+      racers, graceful, swift, and strong; and two Arabian steeds, which had
+      been presented to his late majesty by the Sultan of Turkey. To see the
+      beautiful beasts prancing and plunging, as they were being led through the
+      streets by grooms in the royal livery, was enough to make the blood dance
+      in the veins of any lover of horse-flesh. And to think that they were
+      being led ignominiously to the auction mart to be sold under the hammer&mdash;knocked
+      down to the highest bidder! It was a sin and a shame surely! And they
+      seemed to feel it themselves; and that was the reason they acted so
+      obstreperously, sometimes lifting the grooms off their feet as they reared
+      and snorted and struck sparks with their steel-shod hoofs from the stone
+      pavement.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Among the crowd of schoolboys who followed the equine procession,
+      shrieking and yelling with glee and exciting the horses by their wanton
+      screams, was a handsome lad of fourteen, named Erik Carstens. He had fixed
+      his eyes admiringly on a coal-black, four-year-old mare, a mere colt,
+      which brought up the rear of the procession. How exquisitely she was
+      fashioned! How she danced over the ground with a light mazurka step, as if
+      she were shod with gutta-percha and not with iron! And then she had a head
+      so daintily shaped, small and spirited, that it was a joy to look at her.
+      Erik, who, in spite of his youth, was not a bad judge of a horse, felt his
+      heart beat like a trip-hammer, and a mighty yearning took possession of
+      him to become the owner of that mare.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Though he knew it was time for dinner he could not tear himself away, but
+      followed the procession up one street and down another, until it stopped
+      at the horse market. There a lot of jockeys and coarse-looking dealers
+      were on hand; and an opportunity was afforded them to try the horses
+      before the auction began. They forced open the mouths of the beautiful
+      animals, examined their teeth, prodded them with whips to see if they were
+      gentle, and poked them with their fingers or canes. But when a loutish
+      fellow, in a brown corduroy suit, indulged in that kind of behavior toward
+      the black mare she gave a resentful whinny and without further ado grabbed
+      him with her teeth by the coat collar, lifted him up and shook him as if
+      he had been a bag of straw. Then she dropped him in the mud, and raised
+      her dainty head with an air as if to say that she held him to be beneath
+      contempt. The fellow, however, was not inclined to put up with that kind
+      of treatment. With a volley of oaths he sprang up and would have struck
+      the mare in the mouth with his clinched fist, if Erik had not darted
+      forward and warded off the blow.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;How dare you strike that beautiful creature?&rdquo; he cried, indignantly.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Hold your jaw, you gosling, or I&rsquo;ll hit you instead,&rdquo; retorted the man.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      But by that time one of the royal grooms had made his appearance and the
+      brute did not dare carry out his threat. While the groom strove to quiet
+      the mare, a great tumult arose in some other part of the market-place.
+      There was a whinnying, plunging, rearing, and screaming, as if the whole
+      field had gone mad. The black mare joined in the concert, and stood with
+      her ears pricked up and her head raised in an attitude of panicky
+      expectation. Quite fearlessly Erik walked up to her, patted her on the
+      neck and spoke soothingly to her.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Look out,&rdquo; yelled the groom, &ldquo;or she&rsquo;ll trample you to jelly!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      But instead of that, the mare rubbed her soft nose against the boy&rsquo;s
+      cheek, with a low, friendly neighing, as if she wished to thank him for
+      his gallant conduct. And at that moment Erik&rsquo;s heart went out to that dumb
+      creature with an affection which he had never felt toward any living thing
+      before. He determined, whatever might happen, to bid on her and to buy
+      her, whatever she might prove to be worth. He knew he had a few thousand
+      dollars in the bank&mdash;his inheritance from his mother, who had died
+      when he was a baby&mdash;and he might, perhaps, be able to persuade his
+      father to sanction the purchase. At any rate, he would have some time to
+      invent ways and means; for his father, Captain Carstens, was now away on
+      the great annual drill, and would not return for some weeks.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      As a mere matter of form, he resolved to try the mare before bidding on
+      her; and slipping a coin into the groom&rsquo;s hand he asked for a saddle. It
+      turned out, however, that all the saddles were in use, and Erik had no
+      choice but to mount bareback.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Ride her on the snaffle. She won&rsquo;t stand the curb,&rdquo; shouted the groom, as
+      the mare, after plunging to the right and to the left, darted through the
+      gate to the track, and, after kicking up a vast deal of tan-bark, sped
+      like a bullet down the race-course.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Good gracious, how recklessly that boy rides!&rdquo; one jockey observed to
+      another; &ldquo;but he has got a good grip with his knees all the same.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Yes, he sits like a daisy,&rdquo; the second replied, critically; &ldquo;but mind my
+      word, Lady Clare will throw him yet. She never could stand anybody but the
+      princess on her back: and that was the reason her Royal Highness was so
+      fond of her. Mother of Moses, won&rsquo;t there be a grand rumpus when she comes
+      back again and finds Lady Clare gone! I should not like to be in the shoes
+      of the man who has ordered Lady Clare under the hammer.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;But look at the lad! I told you Lady Clare wouldn&rsquo;t stand no manner of
+      nonsense from boys.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;She is kicking like a Trojan! She&rsquo;ll make hash of him if he loses his
+      seat.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Yes, but he sticks like a burr. That&rsquo;s a jewel of a lad, I tell ye. He
+      ought to have been a jockey.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Up the track came Lady Clare, black as the ace of spades, acting like the
+      Old Harry. Something had displeased her, obviously, and she held Erik
+      responsible for it. Possibly she had just waked up to the fact that she,
+      who had been the pet of a princess, was now being ridden by an ordinary
+      commoner. At all events, she had made up her mind to get rid of the
+      commoner without further ceremony. Putting her fine ears back and dilating
+      her nostrils, she suddenly gave a snort and a whisk with her tail, and up
+      went her heels toward the eternal stars&mdash;that is, if there had been
+      any stars visible just then. Everybody&rsquo;s heart stuck in his throat; for
+      fleet-footed racers were speeding round and round, and the fellow who got
+      thrown in the midst of all these trampling hoofs would have small chance
+      of looking upon the sun again. People instinctively tossed their heads up
+      to see how high he would go before coming down again; but, for a wonder,
+      they saw nothing, except a cloud of dust mixed with tan-bark, and when
+      that had cleared away they discovered the black mare and her rider,
+      apparently on the best of terms, dashing up the track at a breakneck pace.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Erik was dripping with perspiration when he dismounted, and Lady Clare&rsquo;s
+      glossy coat was flecked with foam. She was not aware, apparently, that if
+      she had any reputation to ruin she had damaged it most effectually. Her
+      behavior on the track and her treatment of the horse-dealer were by this
+      time common property, and every dealer and fancier made a mental note that
+      Lady Clare was the number in the catalogue which he would not bid on. All
+      her beauty and her distinguished ancestry counted for nothing, as long as
+      she had so uncertain a temper. Her sire, Potiphar, it appeared, had also
+      been subject to the same infirmities of temper, and there was a strain of
+      savagery in her blood which might crop out when you least expected it.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Accordingly, when a dozen fine horses had been knocked down at good
+      prices, and Lady Clare&rsquo;s turn came, no one came forward to inspect her,
+      and no one could be found to make a bid.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Well, well, gentlemen,&rdquo; cried the auctioneer, &ldquo;here we have a beautiful
+      thoroughbred mare, the favorite mount of Her Royal Highness the Princess,
+      and not a bid do I hear. She&rsquo;s a beauty, gentlemen, sired by the famous
+      Potiphar who won the Epsom Handicap and no end of minor stakes. Take a
+      look at her, gentlemen! Did you ever see a horse before that was raven
+      black from nose to tail? I reckon you never did. But such a horse is Lady
+      Clare. The man who can find a single white hair on her can have her for a
+      gift. Come forward, gentlemen, come forward. Who will start her&mdash;say
+      at five hundred?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      A derisive laugh ran through the crowd, and a voice was heard to cry,
+      &ldquo;Fifty.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Fifty!&rdquo; repeated the auctioneer, in a deeply grieved and injured tone;
+      &ldquo;fifty did you say, sir? Fifty? Did I hear rightly? I hope, for the sake
+      of the honor of this fair city, that my ears deceived me.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Here came a long and impressive pause, during which the auctioneer,
+      suddenly abandoning his dramatic manner, chatted familiarly with a
+      gentleman who stood near him. The only one in the crowd whom he had
+      impressed with the fact that the honor of the city was at stake in this
+      sale was Erik Carstens. He had happily discovered a young and rich
+      lieutenant of his father&rsquo;s company, and was trying to persuade him to bid
+      in the mare for him.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;But, my dear boy,&rdquo; Lieutenant Thicker exclaimed, &ldquo;what do you suppose the
+      captain will say to me if I aid and abet his son in defying the paternal
+      authority?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Oh, you needn&rsquo;t bother about that,&rdquo; Erik rejoined eagerly. &ldquo;If father was
+      at home, I believe he would allow me to buy this mare. But I am a minor
+      yet, and the auctioneer would not accept my bid. Therefore I thought you
+      might be kind enough to bid for me.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The lieutenant made no answer, but looked at the earnest face of the boy
+      with unmistakable sympathy. The auctioneer assumed again an insulted,
+      affronted, pathetically entreating or scornfully repelling tone, according
+      as it suited his purpose; and the price of Lady Clare crawled slowly and
+      reluctantly up from fifty to seventy dollars. There it stopped, and
+      neither the auctioneer&rsquo;s tears nor his prayers could apparently coax it
+      higher.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Seventy dollars!&rdquo; he cried, as if he were really too shocked to speak at
+      all; &ldquo;seven-ty dollars! Make it eighty! Oh, it is a sin and a shame,
+      gentlemen, and the fair fame of this beautiful city is eternally ruined.
+      It will become a wagging of the head and a byword among the nations.
+      Sev-en-ty dollars!&rdquo;&mdash;then hotly and indignantly&mdash;&ldquo;seventy
+      dollars!&mdash;fifth and last time, seventy dollars!&rdquo;&mdash;here he raised
+      his hammer threateningly&mdash;&ldquo;seventy dollars!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;One hundred!&rdquo; cried a high boyish voice, and in an instant every neck was
+      craned and every eye was turned toward the corner where Erik Carstens was
+      standing, half hidden behind the broad figure of Lieutenant Thicker.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Did I hear a hundred?&rdquo; repeated the auctioneer, wonderingly. &ldquo;May I ask
+      who was the gentleman who said a hundred?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      An embarrassing silence followed. Erik knew that if he acknowledged the
+      bid he would suffer the shame of having it refused. But his excitement and
+      his solicitude for the fair fame of his native city had carried him away
+      so completely that the words had escaped from his lips before he was fully
+      aware of their import.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;May I ask,&rdquo; repeated the wielder of the hammer, slowly and emphatically,
+      &ldquo;may I ask the gentleman who offered one hundred dollars for Lady Clare to
+      come forward and give his name?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      He now looked straight at Erik, who blushed to the edge of his hair, but
+      did not stir from the spot. From sheer embarrassment he clutched the
+      lieutenant&rsquo;s arm, and almost pinched it.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Oh, I beg your pardon,&rdquo; the officer exclaimed, addressing the auctioneer,
+      as if he had suddenly been aroused from a fit of abstraction; &ldquo;I made the
+      bid of one hundred dollars, or&mdash;or&mdash;at any rate, I make it now.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The same performance, intended to force up the price, was repeated once
+      more, but with no avail, and at the end of two minutes Lady Clare was
+      knocked down to Lieutenant Thicker.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Now I have gone and done it like the blooming idiot that I am,&rdquo; observed
+      the lieutenant, when Lady Clare was led into his stable by a liveried
+      groom. &ldquo;What an overhauling the captain will give me when he gets home.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;You need have no fear,&rdquo; Erik replied. &ldquo;I&rsquo;ll sound father as soon as he
+      gets home; and if he makes any trouble I&rsquo;ll pay you that one hundred
+      dollars, with interest, the day I come of age.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Well, the captain came home, and having long had the intention to present
+      his son with a saddle-horse, he allowed himself to be cajoled into
+      approving of the bargain. The mare was an exquisite creature, if ever
+      there was one, and he could well understand how Erik had been carried
+      away; Lieutenant Thicker, instead of being hauled over the coals, as he
+      had expected, received thanks for his kind and generous conduct toward the
+      son of his superior officer. As for Erik himself, he had never had any
+      idea that a boy&rsquo;s life could be so glorious as his was now. Mounted on
+      that splendid, coal-black mare, he rode through the city and far out into
+      the country at his father&rsquo;s side; and never did it seem to him that he had
+      loved his father so well as he did during these afternoon rides. The
+      captain was far from suspecting that in that episode of the purchase of
+      Lady Clare his own relation to his son had been at stake. Not that Erik
+      would not have obeyed his father, even if he had turned out his rough side
+      and taken the lieutenant to task for his kindness; but their relation
+      would in that case have lacked the warm intimacy (which in nowise excludes
+      obedience and respect) and that last touch of devoted admiration which now
+      bound them together.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      That fine touch of sympathy in the captain&rsquo;s disposition which had enabled
+      him to smile indulgently at his son&rsquo;s enthusiasm for the horse made the
+      son doubly anxious not to abuse such kindness, and to do everything in his
+      power to deserve the confidence which made his life so rich and happy.
+      Though, as I have said, Captain Carstens lacked the acuteness to discover
+      how much he owed to Lady Clare, he acknowledged himself in quite a
+      different way her debtor. He had never really been aware what a splendid
+      specimen of a boy his son was until he saw him on the back of that
+      spirited mare, which cut up with him like the Old Harry, and yet never
+      succeeded in flurrying, far less in unseating him. The captain felt a glow
+      of affection warming his breast at the sight of this, and his pride in
+      Erik&rsquo;s horsemanship proved a consolation to him when the boy&rsquo;s less
+      distinguished performances at school caused him fret and worry.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;A boy so full of pluck must amount to something, even if he does not take
+      kindly to Latin,&rdquo; he reflected many a time. &ldquo;I am afraid I have made a
+      mistake in having him prepared for college. In the army now, and
+      particularly in the cavalry, he would make a reputation in twenty
+      minutes.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      And a cavalryman Erik might, perhaps, have become if his father had not
+      been transferred to another post, and compelled to take up his residence
+      in the country. It was nominally a promotion, but Captain Carstens was ill
+      pleased with it, and even had some thought of resigning rather than give
+      up his delightful city life, and move far northward into the region of cod
+      and herring. However, he was too young a man to retire on a pension, as
+      yet, and so he gradually reconciled himself to the thought, and sailed
+      northward in the month of April with his son and his entire household. It
+      had long been a question whether Lady Clare should make the journey with
+      them; for Captain Carstens maintained that so high-bred an animal would be
+      very sensitive to climatic changes and might even die on the way. Again,
+      he argued that it was an absurdity to bring so fine a horse into a rough
+      country, where the roads are poor and where nature, in mercy, provides all
+      beasts with rough, shaggy coats to protect them from the cold. How would
+      Lady Clare, with her glossy satin coat, her slender legs that pirouetted
+      so daintily over the ground, and her exquisite head, which she carried so
+      proudly&mdash;how would she look and what kind of figure would she cut
+      among the shaggy, stunted, sedate-looking nags of the Sognefiord district?
+      But the captain, though what he said was irrefutable, had to suspend all
+      argument when he saw how utterly wretched Erik became at the mere thought
+      of losing Lady Clare. So he took his chances; and, after having ordered
+      blankets of three different thicknesses for three different kinds of
+      weather, shipped the mare with the rest of his family for his new northern
+      home.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      As the weather proved unusually mild during the northward voyage Lady
+      Clare arrived in Sogn without accident or adventure. And never in all her
+      life had she looked more beautiful than she did when she came off the
+      steamer, and half the population of the valley turned out to see her. It
+      is no use denying that she was as vain as any other professional beauty,
+      and the way she danced and pirouetted on the gangplank, when Erik led her
+      on to the pier, filled the rustics with amazement. They had come to look
+      at the new captain and his family; but when Lady Clare appeared she
+      eclipsed the rest of the company so completely that no one had eyes for
+      anybody but her. As the sun was shining and the wind was mild, Erik had
+      taken off her striped overcoat (which covered her from nose to tail), for
+      he felt in every fibre of his body the sensation she was making, and
+      blushed with pleasure as if the admiring exclamations had been intended
+      for himself.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Look at that horse,&rdquo; cried young and old, with eyes as big as saucers,
+      pointing with their fingers at Lady Clare.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Handsome carcass that mare has,&rdquo; remarked a stoutish man, who knew what
+      he was talking about; &ldquo;and head and legs to match.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;She beats your Valders-Roan all hollow, John Garvestad,&rdquo; said a young
+      tease who stood next to him in the crowd.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;My Valders-Roan has never seen his match yet, and never will, according
+      to my reckoning,&rdquo; answered John Garvestad.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Ho! ho!&rdquo; shouted the young fellow, with a mocking laugh; &ldquo;that black mare
+      is a hand taller at the very least, and I bet you she&rsquo;s a high-flyer. She
+      has got the prettiest legs I ever clapped eyes on.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;They&rsquo;d snap like clay pipes in the mountains,&rdquo; replied Garvestad,
+      contemptuously.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Erik, as he blushingly ascended the slope to his new home, leading Lady
+      Clare by a halter, had no suspicion of the sentiments which she had
+      aroused in John Garvestad&rsquo;s breast. He was only blissfully conscious of
+      the admiration she had excited; and he promised himself a good deal of fun
+      in future in showing off his horsemanship. He took Lady Clare to the
+      stable, where a new box-stall had been made for her, examined the premises
+      carefully and nailed a board over a crevice in the wall where he suspected
+      a draught. He instructed Anders, the groom, with emphatic and anxious
+      repetitions regarding her care, showed him how to make Lady Clare&rsquo;s bed,
+      how to comb her mane, how to brush her (for she refused to endure
+      currying), how to blanket her, and how to read the thermometer which he
+      nailed to one of the posts of the stall. The latter proved to be a more
+      difficult task than he had anticipated; and the worst of it was that he
+      was not sure that Anders knew any more on the subject of his instruction
+      at the end of the lesson than he had at the beginning. To make sure that
+      he had understood him he asked him to enter the stall and begin the
+      process of grooming. But no sooner had the unhappy fellow put his nose
+      inside the door than Lady Clare laid back her ears in a very ugly fashion,
+      and with a vicious whisk of her tail waltzed around and planted two
+      hoof-marks in the door, just where the groom&rsquo;s nose had that very instant
+      vanished. A second and a third trial had similar results; and as the
+      box-stall was new and of hard wood, Erik had no wish to see it further
+      damaged.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I won&rsquo;t have nothin&rsquo; to do with that hoss, that&rsquo;s as certain as my name
+      is Anders,&rdquo; the groom declared; and Erik, knowing that persuasion would be
+      useless, had henceforth to be his own groom. The fact was he could not
+      help sympathizing with that fastidiousness of Lady Clare which made her
+      object to be handled by coarse fingers and roughly curried, combed, and
+      washed like a common plebeian nag. One does not commence life associating
+      with a princess for nothing. Lady Clare, feeling in every nerve her high
+      descent and breeding, had perhaps a sense of having come down in the
+      world, and, like many another irrational creature of her sex, she kicked
+      madly against fate and exhibited the unloveliest side of her character.
+      But with all her skittishness and caprice she was steadfast in one thing,
+      and that was her love for Erik. As the days went by in country monotony,
+      he began to feel it as a privilege rather than a burden to have the
+      exclusive care of her. The low, friendly neighing with which she always
+      greeted him, as soon as he opened the stable-door, was as intelligible and
+      dear to him as the warm welcome of a friend. And when with dainty
+      alertness she lifted her small, beautiful head, over which the fine
+      net-work of veins meandered, above the top of the stall, and rubbed her
+      nose caressingly against his cheek, before beginning to snuff at his
+      various pockets for the accustomed lump of sugar, he felt a glow of
+      affection spread from his heart and pervade his whole being. Yes, he loved
+      this beautiful animal with a devotion which, a year ago, he would scarcely
+      have thought it possible to bestow upon a horse. No one could have
+      persuaded him that Lady Clare had not a soul which (whether it was
+      immortal or not) was, at all events, as distinct and clearly defined as
+      that of any person with whom he was acquainted. She was to him a
+      personality&mdash;a dear, charming friend, with certain defects of
+      character (as who has not?) which were, however, more than compensated for
+      by her devotion to him. She was fastidious, quick-tempered, utterly
+      unreasonable where her feelings were involved; full of aristocratic
+      prejudice, which only her sex could excuse; and whimsical, proud, and
+      capricious. It was absurd, of course, to contend that these qualities were
+      in themselves admirable; but, on the other hand, few of us would not
+      consent to overlook them in a friend who loved us as well as Lady Clare
+      loved Erik.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The fame of Lady Clare spread through the parish like fire in withered
+      grass. People came from afar to look at her, and departed full of wonder
+      at her beauty. When the captain and his son rode together to church on
+      Sunday morning, men, women, and children stood in rows at the roadside
+      staring at the wonderful mare as if she had been a dromedary or a
+      rhinoceros. And when she was tied in the clergyman&rsquo;s stable a large number
+      of the men ignored the admonition of the church bells and missed the
+      sermon, being unable to tear themselves away from Lady Clare&rsquo;s charms. But
+      woe to him who attempted to take liberties with her; there were two or
+      three horsy young men who had narrow escapes from bearing the imprint of
+      her iron shoes for the rest of their days.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      That taught the others a lesson, and now Lady Clare suffered from no
+      annoying familiarities, but was admired at a respectful distance, until
+      the pastor, vexed at her rivalry with his sermon, issued orders to have
+      the stable-door locked during service.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      There was one person besides the pastor who was ill pleased at the
+      reputation Lady Clare was making. That was John Garvestad, the owner of
+      Valders-Roan. John was the richest man in the parish, and always made a
+      point of keeping fine horses. Valders-Roan, a heavily built, powerful
+      horse, with a tremendous neck and chest and long tassels on his fetlocks,
+      but rather squat in the legs, had hitherto held undisputed rank as the
+      finest horse in all Sogn. By the side of Lady Clare he looked as a stout,
+      good-looking peasant lad with coltish manners might have looked by the
+      side of the daughter of a hundred earls.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      But John Garvestad, who was naturally prejudiced in favor of his own
+      horse, could scarcely be blamed for failing to recognize her superiority.
+      He knew that formerly, on Sundays, the men were wont to gather with
+      admiring comment about Valders-Roan; while now they stood craning their
+      necks, peering through the windows of the parson&rsquo;s stable, in order to
+      catch a glimpse of Lady Clare, and all the time Valders-Roan was standing
+      tied to the fence, in full view of all, utterly neglected. This spectacle
+      filled him with such ire that he hardly could control himself. His first
+      impulse was to pick a quarrel with Erik; but a second and far brighter
+      idea presently struck him. He would buy Lady Clare. Accordingly, when the
+      captain and his son had mounted their horses and were about to start on
+      their homeward way, Garvestad, putting Valders-Roan to his trumps, dug his
+      heels into his sides and rode up with a great flourish in front of the
+      churchyard gate.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;How much will you take for that mare of yours, captain?&rdquo; he asked, as he
+      checked his charger with unnecessary vigor close to Lady Clare.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;She is not mine to sell,&rdquo; the captain replied. &ldquo;Lady Clare belongs to my
+      son.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Well, what will you take for her, then?&rdquo; Garvestad repeated,
+      swaggeringly, turning to Erik.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Not all the gold in the world could buy her,&rdquo; retorted Erik, warmly.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Valders-Roan, unable to resist the charms of Lady Clare, had in the
+      meanwhile been making some cautious overtures toward an acquaintance. He
+      arched his mighty neck, rose on his hind legs, while his tremendous
+      forehoofs were beating the air, and cut up generally&mdash;all for Lady
+      Clare&rsquo;s benefit.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      She, however, having regarded his performances for awhile with a mild and
+      somewhat condescending interest, grew a little tired of them and looked
+      out over the fiord, as a belle might do, with a suppressed yawn, when her
+      cavalier fails to entertain her. Valders-Roan, perceiving the slight, now
+      concluded to make more decided advances. So he put forward his nose until
+      it nearly touched Lady Clare&rsquo;s, as if he meant to kiss her. But that was
+      more than her ladyship was prepared to put up with. Quick as a flash she
+      flung herself back on her haunches, down went her ears, and hers was the
+      angriest horse&rsquo;s head that ever had been seen in that parish. With an
+      indignant snort she wheeled around, kicking up a cloud of dust by the
+      suddenness of the manoeuvre. A less skilled rider than Erik would
+      inevitably have been thrown by two such unforeseen jerks; and the fact was
+      he had all he could do to keep his seat.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Oho!&rdquo; shouted Garvestad, &ldquo;your mare shies; she&rsquo;ll break your neck some
+      day, as likely as not. You had better sell her before she gets you into
+      trouble.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;But I shouldn&rsquo;t like to have your broken neck on my conscience,&rdquo; Erik
+      replied; &ldquo;if necks are to be broken by Lady Clare I should prefer to have
+      it be my own.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The peasant was not clever enough to make out whether this was jest or
+      earnest. With a puzzled frown he stared at the youth and finally broke
+      out:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Then you won&rsquo;t sell her at no price? Anyway, the day you change your mind
+      don&rsquo;t forget to notify John Garvestad. If it&rsquo;s spondulix you are after,
+      then here&rsquo;s where there&rsquo;s plenty of &lsquo;em.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      He slapped his left breast-pocket with a great swagger, looking around to
+      observe the impression he was making on his audience; then, jerking the
+      bridle violently, so as to make his horse rear, he rode off like Alexander
+      on Bucephalus, and swung down upon the highway.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It was but a few weeks after this occurrence that Captain Carstens and his
+      son were invited to honor John Garvestad by their presence at his wedding.
+      They were in doubt, at first, as to whether they ought to accept the
+      invitation; for some unpleasant rumors had reached them, showing that
+      Garvestad entertained unfriendly feelings toward them. He was an intensely
+      vain man; and the thought that Erik Carstens had a finer horse than
+      Valders-Roan left him no peace. He had been heard to say repeatedly that,
+      if that high-nosed youth persisted in his refusal to sell the mare, he
+      would discover his mistake when, perhaps, it would be too late to have it
+      remedied. Whatever that meant, it sufficed to make both Erik and his
+      father uneasy. But, on the other hand, it would be the worst policy
+      possible, under such circumstances, to refuse the invitation. For that
+      would be interpreted either as fear or as aristocratic exclusiveness; and
+      the captain, while he was new in the district, was as anxious to avoid the
+      appearance of the one as of the other. Accordingly he accepted the
+      invitation and on the appointed day rode with his son into the wide yard
+      of John Garvestad&rsquo;s farm, stopping at the pump, where they watered their
+      horses. It was early in the afternoon, and both the house and the barn
+      were thronged with wedding-guests. From the sitting-room the strains of
+      two fiddles were heard, mingled with the scraping and stamping of heavy
+      feet.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Another musical performance was in progress in the barn; and all over the
+      yard elderly men and youths were standing in smaller and larger groups,
+      smoking their pipes and tasting the beer-jugs, which were passed from hand
+      to hand. But the moment Lady Clare was seen all interest in minor concerns
+      ceased, and with one accord the crowd moved toward her, completely
+      encircling her, and viewing her with admiring glances that appreciated all
+      her perfections.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Did you ever see cleaner-shaped legs on a horse?&rdquo; someone was heard to
+      say, and instantly his neighbor in the crowd joined the chorus of praise,
+      and added: &ldquo;What a snap and spring there is in every bend of her knee and
+      turn of her neck and flash of her eye!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      It was while this chorus of admiration was being sung in all keys and
+      tones of the whole gamut, that the bridegroom came out of the house, a
+      little bit tipsy, perhaps, from the many toasts he had been obliged to
+      drink, and bristling with pugnacity to the ends of his fingers and the
+      tips of his hair. Every word of praise that he heard sounded in his ears
+      like a jeer and an insult to himself. With ruthless thrusts he elbowed his
+      way through the throng of guests and soon stood in front of the two
+      horses, from which the captain and Erik had not yet had a chance to
+      dismount. He returned their greeting with scant courtesy and plunged
+      instantly into the matter which he had on his mind.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I reckon you have thought better of my offer by this time,&rdquo; he said, with
+      a surly swagger, to Erik. &ldquo;What do you hold your mare at to-day?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I thought we had settled that matter once for all,&rdquo; the boy replied,
+      quietly. &ldquo;I have no more intention of selling Lady Clare now than I ever
+      had.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Then will ye trade her off for Valders-Roan?&rdquo; ejaculated Garvestad,
+      eagerly.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;No, I won&rsquo;t trade her for Valders-Roan or any other horse in creation.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Don&rsquo;t be cantankerous, now, young fellow, or you might repent of it.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I am not cantankerous. But I beg of you kindly to drop this matter. I
+      came here, at your invitation, as a guest at your wedding, not for the
+      purpose of trading horses.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      It was an incautious speech, and was interpreted by everyone present as a
+      rebuke to the bridegroom for his violation of the rules of hospitality.
+      The captain, anxious to avoid a row, therefore broke in, in a voice of
+      friendly remonstrance: &ldquo;My dear Mr. Garvestad, do let us drop this matter.
+      If you will permit us, we should like to dismount and drink a toast to
+      your health, wishing you a long life and much happiness.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Ah, yes, I understand your smooth palaver,&rdquo; the bridegroom growled
+      between his teeth. &ldquo;I have stood your insolence long enough, and, by
+      jingo, I won&rsquo;t stand it much longer. What will ye take for your mare, I
+      say, or how much do you want to boot, if you trade her for Valders-Roan?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      He shouted the last words with furious emphasis, holding his clinched fist
+      up toward Erik, and glaring at him savagely.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      But now Lady Clare, who became frightened perhaps by the loud talk and
+      violent gestures, began to rear and plunge, and by an unforeseen motion
+      knocked against the bridegroom, so that he fell backward into the
+      horse-trough under the pump, which was full of water. The wedding-guests
+      had hardly time to realize what was happening when a great splash sent the
+      water flying into their faces, and the burly form of John Garvestad was
+      seen sprawling helplessly in the horse-trough. But then&mdash;then they
+      realized it with a vengeance. And a laugh went up&mdash;a veritable storm
+      of laughter&mdash;which swept through the entire crowd and re-echoed with
+      a ghostly hilarity from the mountains. John Garvestad in the meanwhile had
+      managed to pick himself out of the horse-trough, and while he stood
+      snorting, spitting, and dripping, Captain Carstens and his son politely
+      lifted their hats to him and rode away. But as they trotted out of the
+      gate they saw their host stretch a big clinched fist toward them, and
+      heard him scream with hoarse fury: &ldquo;I&rsquo;ll make ye smart for that some day,
+      so help me God!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Lady Clare was not sent to the mountains in the summer, as are nearly all
+      horses in the Norwegian country districts. She was left untethered in an
+      enclosed home pasture about half a mile from the mansion. Here she grazed,
+      rolled, kicked up her heels, and gambolled to her heart&rsquo;s content. During
+      the long, bright summer nights, when the sun scarcely dips beneath the
+      horizon and reappears in an hour, clothed in the breezy garments of
+      morning, she was permitted to frolic, race, and play all sorts of
+      improvised games with a shaggy, little, plebeian three-year-old colt whom
+      she had condescended to honor with her acquaintance. This colt must have
+      had some fine feeling under his rough coat, for he never presumed in the
+      least upon the acquaintance, being perhaps aware of the honor it conferred
+      upon him. He allowed himself to be abused, ignored, or petted, as it might
+      suit the pleasure of her royal highness, with a patient, even-tempered
+      good-nature which was admirable. When Lady Clare (perhaps for fear of
+      making him conceited) took no notice of him, he showed neither resentment
+      nor surprise, but walked off with a sheepish shake of his head. Thus he
+      slowly learned the lesson to make no exhibition of feeling at the sight of
+      his superior; not to run up and greet her with a disrespectfully joyous
+      whinny; but calmly wait for her to recognize him before appearing to be
+      aware of her presence. It took Lady Clare several months to accustom Shag
+      (for that was the colt&rsquo;s name) to her ways. She taught him unconsciously
+      the rudiments of good manners; but he proved himself docile, and when he
+      once had been reduced to his proper place he proved a fairly acceptable
+      companion.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      During the first and second week after John Garvestad&rsquo;s wedding Erik had
+      kept Lady Clare stabled, having a vague fear that the angry peasant might
+      intend to do her harm. But she whinnied so pitifully through the long
+      light nights that finally he allowed his compassion to get the better of
+      his anxiety, and once more she was seen racing madly about the field with
+      Shag, whom she always beat so ignominiously that she felt half sorry for
+      him, and as a consolation allowed him gently to claw her mane with his
+      teeth. This was a privilege which Shag could not fail to appreciate,
+      though she never offered to return the favor by clawing him. At any rate,
+      as soon as Lady Clare reappeared in the meadow Shag&rsquo;s cup of bliss seemed
+      to be full.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      A week passed in this way, nothing happened, and Erik&rsquo;s vigilance was
+      relaxed. He went to bed on the evening of July 10th with an easy mind,
+      without the remotest apprehension of danger. The sun set about ten
+      o&rsquo;clock, and Lady Clare and Shag greeted its last departing rays with a
+      whinny, accompanied by a wanton kickup from the rear&mdash;for whatever
+      Lady Clare did Shag felt in honor bound to do, and was conscious of no
+      disgrace in his abject and ape-like imitation. They had spent an hour,
+      perhaps, in such delightful performances, when all of a sudden they were
+      startled by a deep bass whinny, which rumbled and shook like distant
+      thunder. Then came the tramp, tramp, tramp of heavy hoof-beats, which made
+      the ground tremble. Lady Clare lifted her beautiful head and looked with
+      fearless curiosity in the direction whence the sound came. Shag, of
+      course, did as nearly as he could exactly the same. What they saw was a
+      big roan horse with an enormous arched neck, squat feet, and
+      long-tasselled fetlocks.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Lady Clare had no difficulty in recognizing Valders-Roan. But how big and
+      heavy and ominous he looked in the blood-red after-glow of the blood-red
+      sunset. For the first time in her life Lady Clare felt a cold shiver of
+      fear run through her. There was, happily, a fence between them, and she
+      devoutly hoped that Valders-Roan was not a jumper. At that moment,
+      however, two men appeared next to the huge horse, and Lady Clare heard the
+      sound of breaking fence-rails. The deep hoarse whinny once more made the
+      air shake, and it made poor Lady Clare shake too, for now she saw
+      Valders-Roan come like a whirlwind over the field, and so powerful were
+      his hoof-beats that a clod of earth which had stuck to one of his shoes
+      shot like a bullet through the air.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He looked so gigantic, so brimming with restrained strength, and somehow
+      Lady Clare, as she stood quaking at the sight of him, had never seemed to
+      herself so dainty, frail, and delicate as she seemed in this moment. She
+      felt herself so entirely at his mercy; she was no match for him surely.
+      Shag, anxious as ever to take his cue from her, had stationed himself at
+      her side, and shook his head and whisked his tail in a non-committal
+      manner. Now Valders-Roan had cleared the fence where the men had broken it
+      down; then on he came again, tramp, tramp, tramp, until he was within half
+      a dozen paces from Lady Clare. There he stopped, for back went Lady
+      Clare&rsquo;s pretty ears, while she threw herself upon her haunches in an
+      attitude of defence. She was dimly aware that this was a foolish thing to
+      do, but her inbred disdain and horror of everything rough made her act on
+      instinct instead of reason. Valders-Roan, irritated by this uncalled-for
+      action, now threw ceremony to the winds, and without further ado trotted
+      up and rubbed his nose against hers. That was more than Lady Clare could
+      stand. With an hysterical snort she flung herself about, and up flew her
+      heels straight into the offending nose, inflicting considerable damage.
+      Shag, being now quite clear that the programme was fight, whisked about in
+      exactly the same manner, with as close an imitation of Lady Clare&rsquo;s snort
+      as he could produce, and a second pair of steel-shod heels came within a
+      hair of reducing the enemy&rsquo;s left nostril to the same condition as the
+      right. But alas for the generous folly of youth! Shag had to pay dearly
+      for that exhibition of devotion. Valders-Roan, enraged by this wanton
+      insult, made a dash at Shag, and by the mere impetus of his huge bulk
+      nearly knocked him senseless. The colt rolled over, flung all his four
+      legs into the air, and as soon as he could recover his footing reeled
+      sideways like a drunken man and made haste to retire to a safe distance.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Valders-Roan had now a clear field and could turn his undivided attention
+      to Lady Clare. I am not sure that he had not made an example of Shag
+      merely to frighten her. Bounding forward with his mighty chest expanded
+      and the blood dripping from his nostrils, he struck out with a tremendous
+      hind leg and would have returned Lady Clare&rsquo;s blow with interest if she
+      had not leaped high into the air. She had just managed by her superior
+      alertness to dodge that deadly hoof, and was perhaps not prepared for an
+      instant renewal of the attack. But she had barely gotten her four feet in
+      contact with the sod when two rows of terrific teeth plunged into her
+      withers. The pain was frightful, and with a long, pitiful scream Lady
+      Clare sank down upon the ground, and, writhing with agony, beat the air
+      with her hoofs. Shag, who had by this time recovered his senses, heard the
+      noise of the battle, and, plucking up his courage, trotted bravely forward
+      against the victorious Valders-Roan. He was so frightened that his heart
+      shot up into his throat. But there lay Lady Clare mangled and bleeding. He
+      could not leave her in the lurch, so forward he came, trembling, just as
+      Lady Clare was trying to scramble to her feet. Led away by his sympathy
+      Shag bent his head down toward her and thereby prevented her from rising.
+      And in the same instant a stunning blow hit him straight in the forehead,
+      a shower of sparks danced before his eyes, and then Shag saw and heard no
+      more. A convulsive quiver ran through his body, then he stretched out his
+      neck on the bloody grass, heaved a sigh, and died.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Lady Clare, seeing Shag killed by the blow which had been intended for
+      herself, felt her blood run cold. She was strongly inclined to run, for
+      she could easily beat the heavy Valders-Roan at a race, and her fleet legs
+      might yet save her. I cannot say whether it was a generous wrath at the
+      killing of her humble champion or a mere blind fury which overcame this
+      inclination. But she knew now neither pain nor fear. With a shrill scream
+      she rushed at Valders-Roan, and for five minutes a whirling cloud of earth
+      and grass and lumps of sod moved irregularly over the field, and tails,
+      heads, and legs were seen flung and tossed madly about, while an
+      occasional shriek of rage or of pain startled the night, and re-echoed
+      with a weird resonance between the mountains.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It was about five o&rsquo;clock in the morning of July 11th, that Erik awoke,
+      with a vague sense that something terrible had happened. His groom was
+      standing at his bedside with a terrified face, doubtful whether to arouse
+      his young master or allow him to sleep.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;What has happened, Anders?&rdquo; cried Erik, tumbling out of bed.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Lady Clare, sir&mdash;&mdash;&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Lady Clare!&rdquo; shouted the boy. &ldquo;What about her? Has she been stolen?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;No, I reckon not,&rdquo; drawled Anders.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Then she&rsquo;s dead! Quick, tell me what you know or I shall go crazy!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;No; I can&rsquo;t say for sure she&rsquo;s dead either,&rdquo; the groom stammered,
+      helplessly.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Erik, being too stunned with grief and pain, tumbled in a dazed fashion
+      about the room, and scarcely knew how he managed to dress. He felt cold,
+      shivery, and benumbed; and the daylight had a cruel glare in it which hurt
+      his eyes. Accompanied by his groom, he hastened to the home pasture, and
+      saw there the evidence of the fierce battle which had raged during the
+      night. A long, black, serpentine track, where the sod had been torn up by
+      furious hoof-beats, started from the dead carcass of the faithful Shag and
+      moved with irregular breaks and curves up toward the gate that connected
+      the pasture with the underbrush of birch and alder. Here the fence had
+      been broken down, and the track of the fight suddenly ceased. A pool of
+      blood had soaked into the ground, showing that one of the horses, and
+      probably the victor, must have stood still for a while, allowing the
+      vanquished to escape.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Erik had no need of being told that the horse which had attacked Lady
+      Clare was Valders-Roan; and though he would scarcely have been able to
+      prove it, he felt positive that John Garvestad had arranged and probably
+      watched the fight. Having a wholesome dread of jail, he had not dared to
+      steal Lady Clare; but he had chosen this contemptible method to satisfy
+      his senseless jealousy. It was all so cunningly devised as to baffle legal
+      inquiry. Valders-Roan had gotten astray, and being a heavy beast, had
+      broken into a neighbor&rsquo;s field and fought with his filly, chasing her away
+      into the mountains. That was the story he would tell, of course, and as
+      there had been no witnesses present, there was no way of disproving it.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Abandoning, however, for the time being all thought of revenge, Erik
+      determined to bend all his energies to the recovery of Lady Clare. He felt
+      confident that she had run away from her assailant, and was now roaming
+      about in the mountains. He therefore organized a search party of all the
+      male servants on the estate, besides a couple of volunteers, making in all
+      nine. On the evening of the first day&rsquo;s search they put up at a saeter or
+      mountain chalet. Here they met a young man named Tollef Morud, who had
+      once been a groom at John Garvestad&rsquo;s. This man had a bad reputation; and
+      as the idea occurred to some of them that he might know something about
+      Lady Clare&rsquo;s disappearance, they questioned him at great length, without,
+      however, eliciting a single crumb of information.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      For a week the search was continued, but had finally to be given up.
+      Weary, footsore, and heavy hearted, Erik returned home. His grief at the
+      loss of Lady Clare began to tell on his health; and his perpetual plans
+      for getting even with John Garvestad amounted almost to a mania, and
+      caused his father both trouble and anxiety. It was therefore determined to
+      send him to the military academy in the capital.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Four or five years passed and Erik became a lieutenant. It was during the
+      first year after his graduation from the military academy that he was
+      invited to spend the Christmas holidays with a friend, whose parents lived
+      on a fine estate about twenty miles from the city. Seated in their narrow
+      sleighs, which were drawn by brisk horses, they drove merrily along,
+      shouting to each other to make their voices heard above the jingling of
+      the bells. About eight o&rsquo;clock in the evening, when the moon was shining
+      brightly and the snow sparkling, they turned in at a wayside tavern to
+      order their supper. Here a great crowd of lumbermen had congregated, and
+      all along the fences their overworked, half-broken-down horses stood,
+      shaking their nose-bags. The air in the public room was so filled with the
+      fumes of damp clothes and bad tobacco that Erik and his friend, while
+      waiting for their meal, preferred to spend the time under the radiant sky.
+      They were sauntering about, talking in a desultory fashion, when all of a
+      sudden a wild, joyous whinny rang out upon the startled air.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It came from a rusty, black, decrepit-looking mare hitched to a lumber
+      sleigh which they had just passed. Erik, growing very serious, paused
+      abruptly.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      A second whinny, lower than the first, but almost alluring and cajoling,
+      was so directly addressed to Erik that he could not help stepping up to
+      the mare and patting her on the nose.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;You once had a horse you cared a great deal for, didn&rsquo;t you?&rdquo; his friend
+      remarked, casually.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Oh, don&rsquo;t speak about it,&rdquo; answered Erik, in a voice that shook with
+      emotion; &ldquo;I loved Lady Clare as I never loved any creature in this world&mdash;except
+      my father, of course,&rdquo; he added, reflectively.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      But what was the matter with the old lumber nag? At the sound of the name
+      Lady Clare she pricked up her ears, and lifted her head with a pathetic
+      attempt at alertness. With a low, insinuating neighing she rubbed her nose
+      against the lieutenant&rsquo;s cheek. He had let his hand glide over her long,
+      thin neck, when quite suddenly his fingers slid into a deep scar in the
+      withers.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;My God!&rdquo; he cried, while the tears started to his eyes, &ldquo;am I awake, or
+      am I dreaming?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;What in the world is the matter?&rdquo; inquired his comrade, anxiously.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;It is Lady Clare! By the heavens, it is Lady Clare!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;That old ramshackle of a lumber nag whose every rib you can count through
+      her skin is your beautiful thoroughbred?&rdquo; ejaculated his friend,
+      incredulously. &ldquo;Come now, don&rsquo;t be a goose.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I&rsquo;ll tell you of it some other time,&rdquo; said Erik, quietly; &ldquo;but there&rsquo;s
+      not a shadow of a doubt that this is Lady Clare.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Yes, strange as it may seem, it was indeed Lady Clare. But oh, who would
+      have recognized in this skeleton, covered with a rusty-black skin and
+      tousled mane and forelock in which chaff and dirt were entangled&mdash;who
+      would have recognized in this drooping and rickety creature the proud, the
+      dainty, the exquisite Lady Clare? Her beautiful tail, which had once been
+      her pride, was now a mere scanty wisp; and a sharp, gnarled ridge running
+      along the entire length of her back showed every vertebra of her spine
+      through the notched and scarred skin. Poor Lady Clare, she had seen hard
+      usage. But now the days of her tribulations are at an end. It did not take
+      Erik long to find the half-tipsy lumberman who was Lady Clare&rsquo;s owner; nor
+      to agree with him on the price for which he was willing to part with her.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      There is but little more to relate. By interviews and correspondence with
+      the different parties through whose hands the mare had passed, Erik
+      succeeded in tracing her to Tollef Morud, the ex-groom of John Garvestad.
+      On being promised immunity from prosecution, he was induced to confess
+      that he had been hired by his former master to arrange the nocturnal fight
+      between Lady Clare and Valders-Roan, and had been paid ten dollars for
+      stealing the mare when she had been sufficiently damaged. John Garvestad
+      had himself watched the fight from behind the fence, and had laughed fit
+      to split his sides, until Valders-Roan seemed on the point of being
+      worsted. Then he had interfered to separate them, and Tollef had led Lady
+      Clare away, bleeding from a dozen wounds, and had hidden her in a deserted
+      lumberman&rsquo;s shed near the saeter where the searchers had overtaken him.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Having obtained these facts, Erik took pains to let John Garvestad know
+      that the chain of evidence against him was complete, and if he had had his
+      own way he would not have rested until his enemy had suffered the full
+      penalty of the law. But John Garvestad, suspecting what was in the young
+      man&rsquo;s mind, suddenly divested himself of his pride, and cringing dike a
+      whipped dog, came and asked Erik&rsquo;s pardon, entreating him not to
+      prosecute.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      As for Lady Clare, she never recovered her lost beauty. A pretty
+      fair-looking mare she became, to be sure, when good feeding and careful
+      grooming had made her fat and glossy once more. A long and contented old
+      age is, no doubt, in store for her. Having known evil days, she
+      appreciates the blessings which the change in her fate has brought her.
+      The captain declares she is the best-tempered and steadiest horse in his
+      stable.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0020" id="link2H_4_0020">
+      <!--  H2 anchor --> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      BONNYBOY
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0021" id="link2H_4_0021">
+      <!--  H2 anchor --> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      I.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Oh, you never will amount to anything, Bonnyboy!&rdquo; said Bonnyboy&rsquo;s father,
+      when he had vainly tried to show him how to use a gouge; for Bonnyboy had
+      just succeeded in gouging a piece out of his hand, and was standing
+      helplessly, letting his blood drop on an engraving of Napoleon at
+      Austerlitz, which had been sent to his father for framing. The trouble
+      with Bonnyboy was that he was not only awkward&mdash;left-handed in
+      everything he undertook, as his father put it&mdash;but he was so very
+      good-natured that it was impossible to get angry with him. His large blue
+      innocent eyes had a childlike wonder in them, when he had done anything
+      particularly stupid, and he was so willing and anxious to learn, that his
+      ill-success seemed a reason for pity rather than for wrath. Grim Norvold,
+      Bonnyboy&rsquo;s father, was by trade a carpenter, and handy as he was at all
+      kinds of tinkering, he found it particularly exasperating to have a son
+      who was so left-handed. There was scarcely anything Grim could not do. He
+      could take a watch apart and put it together again; he could mend a
+      harness if necessary; he could make a wagon; nay, he could even doctor a
+      horse when it got spavin or glanders. He was a sort of jack-of-all-trades,
+      and a very useful man in a valley where mechanics were few and
+      transportation difficult. He loved work for its own sake, and was ill at
+      ease when he had not a tool in his hand. The exercise of his skill gave
+      him a pleasure akin to that which the fish feels in swimming, the eagle in
+      soaring, and the lark in singing. A finless fish, a wingless eagle, or a
+      dumb lark could not have been more miserable than Grim was when a
+      succession of holidays, like Easter or Christmas, compelled him to be
+      idle.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      When his son was born his chief delight was to think of the time when he
+      should be old enough to handle a tool, and learn the secrets of his
+      father&rsquo;s trade. Therefore, from the time the boy was old enough to sit or
+      to crawl in the shavings without getting his mouth and eyes full of
+      sawdust, he gave him a place under the turning bench, and talked or sang
+      to him while he worked. And Bonnyboy, in the meanwhile amused himself by
+      getting into all sorts of mischief. If it had not been for the belief that
+      a good workman must grow up in the atmosphere of the shop, Grim would have
+      lost patience with his son and sent him back to his mother, who had better
+      facilities for taking care of him. But the fact was he was too fond of the
+      boy to be able to dispense with him, and he would rather bear the loss
+      resulting from his mischief than miss his prattle and his pretty dimpled
+      face.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It was when the child was eighteen or nineteen months old that he acquired
+      the name Bonnyboy. A woman of the neighborhood, who had called at the shop
+      with some article of furniture which she wanted to have mended, discovered
+      the infant in the act of investigating a pot of blue paint, with a part of
+      which he had accidentally decorated his face.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Good gracious! what is that ugly thing you have got under your turning
+      bench?&rdquo; she cried, staring at the child in amazement.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;No, he is not an ugly thing,&rdquo; replied the father, with resentment; &ldquo;he is
+      a bonny boy, that&rsquo;s what he is.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The woman, in order to mollify Grim, turned to the boy, and asked, with
+      her sweetest manner, &ldquo;What is your name, child?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Bonny boy,&rdquo; murmured the child, with a vaguely offended air&mdash;&ldquo;bonny
+      boy.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      And from that day the name Bonnyboy clung to him.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0022" id="link2H_4_0022">
+      <!--  H2 anchor --> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      II.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      To teach Bonnyboy the trade of a carpenter was a task which would have
+      exhausted the patience of all the saints in the calendar. If there was any
+      possible way of doing a thing wrong, Bonnyboy would be sure to hit upon
+      that way. When he was eleven years old he chopped off the third joint of
+      the ring-finger on his right hand with a cutting tool while working the
+      turning-lathe; and by the time he was fourteen it seemed a marvel to his
+      father that he had any fingers left at all. But Bonnyboy persevered in
+      spite of all difficulties, was always cheerful and of good courage, and
+      when his father, in despair, exclaimed: &ldquo;Well, you will never amount to
+      anything, Bonnyboy,&rdquo; he would look up with his slow, winning smile and
+      say:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Don&rsquo;t worry, father. Better luck next time.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;But, my dear boy, how can I help worrying, when you don&rsquo;t learn anything
+      by which you can make your living?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Oh, well, father,&rdquo; said Bonnyboy, soothingly (for he was beginning to
+      feel sorry on his father&rsquo;s account rather than on his own), &ldquo;I wouldn&rsquo;t
+      bother about that if I were you. I don&rsquo;t worry a bit. Something will turn
+      up for me to do, sooner or later.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;But you&rsquo;ll do it badly, Bonnyboy, and then you won&rsquo;t get a second chance.
+      And then, who knows but you may starve to death. You&rsquo;ll chop off the
+      fingers you have left; and when I am dead and can no longer look after
+      you, I am very much afraid you&rsquo;ll manage to chop off your head too.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Well,&rdquo; observed Bonnyboy, cheerfully, &ldquo;in that case I shall not starve to
+      death.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Grim had to laugh in spite of himself at the paternal way in which his son
+      comforted him, as if he were the party to be pitied. Bonnyboy&rsquo;s unfailing
+      cheerfulness, which had its great charm, began to cause him uneasiness,
+      because he feared it was but another form of stupidity. A cleverer boy
+      would have been sorry for his mistakes and anxious about his own future.
+      But Bonnyboy looked into the future with the serene confidence of a child,
+      and nothing under the sun ever troubled him, except his father&rsquo;s tendency
+      to worry. For he was very fond of his father, and praised him as a paragon
+      of skill and excellence. He lavished an abject admiration on everything he
+      did and said. His dexterity in the use of tools, and his varied
+      accomplishments as a watch-maker and a horse-doctor, filled Bonnyboy with
+      ungrudging amazement. He knew it was a hopeless thing for him to aspire to
+      rival such genius, and he took the thing philosophically, and did not
+      aspire.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It occurred to Grim one day, when Bonnyboy had made a most discouraging
+      exhibition of his awkwardness, that it might be a good thing to ask the
+      pastor&rsquo;s advice in regard to him. The pastor had had a long experience in
+      educating children, and his own, though they were not all clever, promised
+      to turn out well. Accordingly Grim called at the parsonage, was well
+      received, and returned home charged to the muzzle with good advice. The
+      pastor lent him a book full of stories, and recommended him to read them
+      to his son, and afterward question him about every single fact which each
+      story contained. This the pastor had found to be a good way to develop the
+      intellect of a backward boy.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0023" id="link2H_4_0023">
+      <!--  H2 anchor --> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      III.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      When Bonnyboy had been confirmed, the question again rose what was to
+      become of him. He was now a tall young fellow, red-checked,
+      broad-shouldered, and strong, and rather nice-looking. A slow,
+      good-natured smile spread over his face when anyone spoke to him, and he
+      had a way of flinging his head back, when the tuft of yellow hair which
+      usually hung down over his forehead obscured his sight. Most people liked
+      him, even though they laughed at him behind his back; but to his face
+      nobody laughed, because his strength inspired respect. Nor did he know
+      what fear was when he was roused; but that was probably, as people
+      thought, because he did not know much of anything. At any rate, on a
+      certain occasion he showed that there was a limit to his good-nature, and
+      when that limit was reached, he was not as harmless a fellow as he looked.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      On the neighboring farm of Gimlehaug there was a wedding to which Grim and
+      his son were invited. On the afternoon of the second wedding day&mdash;for
+      peasant weddings in Norway are often celebrated for three days&mdash;a
+      notorious bully named Ola Klemmerud took it into his head to have some
+      sport with the big good-natured simpleton. So, by way of pleasantry, he
+      pulled the tuft of hair which hung down upon Bonnyboy&rsquo;s forehead.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Don&rsquo;t do that,&rdquo; said Bonnyboy.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Ola Klemmerud chuckled, and the next time he passed Bonnyboy, pinched his
+      ear.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;If you do that again I sha&rsquo;n&rsquo;t like you,&rdquo; cried Bonnyboy.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The innocence of that remark made the people laugh, and the bully, seeing
+      that their sympathy was on his side, was encouraged to continue his
+      teasing. Taking a few dancing steps across the floor, he managed to touch
+      Bonnyboy&rsquo;s nose with the toe of his boot, which feat again was rewarded
+      with a burst of laughter. The poor lad quietly blew his nose, wiped the
+      perspiration off his brow with a red handkerchief, and said, &ldquo;Don&rsquo;t make
+      me mad, Ola, or I might hurt you.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      This speech struck the company as being immensely funny, and they laughed
+      till the tears ran down their cheeks. At this moment Grim entered, and
+      perceived at once that Ola Klemmerud was amusing the company at his son&rsquo;s
+      expense. He grew hot about his ears, clinched his teeth, and stared
+      challengingly at the bully. The latter began to feel uncomfortable, but he
+      could not stop at this point without turning the laugh against himself,
+      and that he had not the courage to do. So in order to avoid rousing the
+      father&rsquo;s wrath, and yet preserving his own dignity, he went over to
+      Bonnyboy, rumpled his hair with both his hands, and tweaked his nose. This
+      appeared such innocent sport, according to his notion, that no rational
+      creature could take offence at it. But Grim, whose sense of humor was
+      probably defective, failed to see it in that light.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Let the boy alone,&rdquo; he thundered.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Well, don&rsquo;t bite my head off, old man,&rdquo; replied Ola. &ldquo;I haven&rsquo;t hurt your
+      fool of a boy. I have only been joking with him.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t think you are troubled with overmuch wit yourself, judging by the
+      style of your jokes,&rdquo; was Grim&rsquo;s cool retort.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The company, who plainly saw that Ola was trying to wriggle out of his
+      difficulty, but were anxious not to lose an exciting scene, screamed with
+      laughter again; but this time at the bully&rsquo;s expense. The blood mounted to
+      his head, and his anger got the better of his natural cowardice. Instead
+      of sneaking off, as he had intended, he wheeled about on his heel and
+      stood for a moment irresolute, clinching his fist in his pocket.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Why don&rsquo;t you take your lunkhead of a son home to his mother, if he isn&rsquo;t
+      bright enough to understand fun!&rdquo; he shouted.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Now let me see if you are bright enough to understand the same kind of
+      fun,&rdquo; cried Grim. Whereupon he knocked off Ola&rsquo;s cap, rumpled his hair,
+      and gave his nose such a pull that it was a wonder it did not come off.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The bully, taken by surprise, tumbled a step backward, but recovering
+      himself, struck Grim in the face with his clinched fist. At this moment.
+      Bonnyboy, who had scarcely taken in the situation; jumped up and screamed,
+      &ldquo;Sit down, Ola Klemmerud, sit down!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The effect of this abrupt exclamation was so comical, that people nearly
+      fell from their benches as they writhed and roared with laughter.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Bonnyboy, who had risen to go to his father&rsquo;s assistance, paused in
+      astonishment in the middle of the floor. He could not comprehend, poor
+      boy, why everything he said provoked such uncontrollable mirth. He surely
+      had no intention of being funny.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      So, taken aback a little, he repeated to himself, half wonderingly, with
+      an abrupt pause after each word, &ldquo;Sit&mdash;down&mdash;Ola&mdash;Klemmerud&mdash;sit&mdash;down!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      But Ola Klemmerud, instead of sitting down, hit Grim repeatedly about the
+      face and head, and it was evident that the elder man, in spite of his
+      strength, was not a match for him in alertness. This dawned presently upon
+      Bonnyboy&rsquo;s slow comprehension, and his good-natured smile gave way to a
+      flush of excitement. He took two long strides across the floor, pushed his
+      father gently aside, and stood facing his antagonist. He repeated once
+      more his invitation to sit down; to which the latter responded with a slap
+      which made the sparks dance before Bonnyboy&rsquo;s eyes. Now Bonnyboy became
+      really angry. Instead of returning the slap, he seized his enemy with a
+      sudden and mighty grab by both his shoulders, lifted him up as if he were
+      a bag of hay, and put him down on a chair with such force that it broke
+      into splinters under him.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Will you now sit down?&rdquo; said Bonnyboy.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Nobody laughed this time, and the bully, not daring to rise, remained
+      seated on the floor among the ruins of the chair. Thereupon, with
+      imperturbable composure, Bonnyboy turned to his father, brushed off his
+      coat with his hands and smoothed his disordered hair. &ldquo;Now let us go home,
+      father,&rdquo; he said, and taking the old man&rsquo;s arm he walked out of the room.
+      But hardly had he crossed the threshold before the astonished company
+      broke into cheering.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Good for you, Bonnyboy!&rdquo; &ldquo;Well done, Bonnyboy!&rdquo; &ldquo;You are a bully boy,
+      Bonnyboy!&rdquo; they cried after him.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      But Bonnyboy strode calmly along, quite unconscious of his triumph, and
+      only happy to have gotten his father out of the room safe and sound. For a
+      good while they walked on in silence. Then, when the effect of the
+      excitement had begun to wear away, Grim stopped in the path, gazed
+      admiringly at his son, and said, &ldquo;Well, Bonnyboy, you are a queer fellow.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Oh, yes,&rdquo; answered Bonnyboy, blushing with embarrassment (for though he
+      did not comprehend the remark, he felt the approving gaze); &ldquo;but then, you
+      know, I asked him to sit down, and he wouldn&rsquo;t.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Bless your innocent heart!&rdquo; murmured his father, as he gazed at
+      Bonnyboy&rsquo;s honest face with a mingling of affection and pity.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0024" id="link2H_4_0024">
+      <!--  H2 anchor --> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      IV.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      When Bonnyboy was twenty years old his father gave up, once for all, his
+      attempt to make a carpenter of him. A number of saw-mills had been built
+      during the last years along the river down in the valley, and the old
+      rapids had been broken up into a succession of mill-dams, one above the
+      other. At one of these saw-mills Bonnyboy sought work, and was engaged
+      with many others as a mill hand. His business was to roll the logs on to
+      the little trucks that ran on rails, and to push them up to the saws,
+      where they were taken in charge by another set of men, who fastened and
+      watched them while they were cut up into planks. Very little art was,
+      indeed, required for this simple task; but strength was required, and of
+      this Bonnyboy had enough and to spare. He worked with a will from early
+      morn till dewy eve, and was happy in the thought that he had at last found
+      something that he could do. It made the simple-hearted fellow proud to
+      observe that he was actually gaining his father&rsquo;s regard; or, at all
+      events, softening the disappointment which, in a vague way, he knew that
+      his dulness must have caused him. If, occasionally, he was hurt by a
+      rolling log, he never let any one know it; but even though his foot was a
+      mass of agony every time he stepped on it, he would march along as stiffly
+      as a soldier. It was as if he felt his father&rsquo;s eye upon him long before
+      he saw him.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      There was a curious kind of sympathy between them which expressed itself,
+      on the father&rsquo;s part, in a need to be near his son. But he feared to avow
+      any such weakness, knowing that Bonnyboy would interpret it as distrust of
+      his ability to take care of himself, and a desire to help him if he got
+      into trouble. Grim, therefore, invented all kinds of transparent pretexts
+      for paying visits to the saw-mills. And when he saw Bonnyboy, conscious
+      that his eye was resting upon him, swinging his axe so that the chips flew
+      about his ears, and the perspiration rained from his brow, a dim anxiety
+      often took possession of him, though he could give no reason for it. That
+      big brawny fellow, with the frame of a man and the brain of a child, with
+      his guileless face and his guileless heart, strangely moved his
+      compassion. There was something almost beautiful about him, his father
+      thought; but he could not have told what it was; nor would he probably
+      have found any one else that shared his opinion. That frank and genial
+      gaze of Bonnyboy&rsquo;s, which expressed goodness of heart but nothing else,
+      seemed to Grim an &ldquo;open sesame&rdquo; to all hearts; and that unawakened
+      something which goes so well with childhood, but not with adult age,
+      filled him with tenderness and a vague anxiety. &ldquo;My poor lad,&rdquo; he would
+      murmur to himself, as he caught sight of Bonnyboy&rsquo;s big perspiring face,
+      with the yellow tuft of hair hanging down over his forehead, &ldquo;clever you
+      are not; but you have that which the cleverest of us often lack.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0025" id="link2H_4_0025">
+      <!--  H2 anchor --> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      V.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      There were sixteen saw-mills in all, and the one at which Bonnyboy was
+      employed was the last of the series. They were built on little terraces on
+      both banks of the river, and every four of them were supplied with power
+      from an artificial dam, in which the water was stored in time of drought,
+      and from which it escaped in a mill-race when required for use. These four
+      dams were built of big stones, earthwork, and lumber, faced with smooth
+      planks, over which a small quantity of water usually drizzled into the
+      shallow river-bed. Formerly, before the power was utilized, this slope had
+      been covered with seething and swirling rapids&mdash;a favorite resort of
+      the salmon, which leaped high in the spring, and were caught in the
+      box-traps that hung on long beams over the water. Now the salmon had small
+      chance of shedding their spawn in the cool, bright mountain pools, for
+      they could not leap the dams, and if by chance one got into the mill-race,
+      it had a hopeless struggle against a current that would have carried an
+      elephant off his feet. Bonnyboy, who more than once had seen the beautiful
+      silvery fish spring right on to the millwheel, and be flung upon the
+      rocks, had wished that he had understood the language of the fishes, so
+      that he might tell them how foolish such proceedings were. But merciful
+      though he was, he had been much discouraged when, after having put them
+      back into the river, they had promptly repeated the experiment.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      There were about twenty-five or thirty men employed at the mill where
+      Bonnyboy earned his bread in the sweat of his brow, and he was, on the
+      whole, on good terms with all of them. They did, to be sure, make fun of
+      him occasionally; but sometimes he failed to understand it, and at other
+      times he made clumsy but good-humored attempts to repay their gibes in
+      kind. They took good care, however, not to rouse his wrath, for the
+      reputation he had acquired by his treatment of Ola Klemmerud made them
+      afraid to risk a collision.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      This was the situation when the great floods of 188- came, and introduced
+      a spice of danger into Bonnyboy&rsquo;s monotonous life. The mill-races were now
+      kept open night and day, and yet the water burst like a roaring cascade
+      over the tops of dams, and the river-bed was filled to overflowing with a
+      swiftly-hurrying tawny torrent, which filled the air with its rush and
+      swash, and sent hissing showers of spray flying through the tree-tops.
+      Bonnyboy and a gang of twenty men were working as they had never worked
+      before in their lives, under the direction of an engineer, who had been
+      summoned by the mill-owner to strengthen the dams; for if but one of them
+      burst, the whole tremendous volume of water would be precipitated upon the
+      valley, and the village by the lower falls and every farm within half a
+      mile of the river-banks would be swept out of existence. Guards were
+      stationed all the way up the river to intercept any stray lumber that
+      might be afloat. For if a log jam were added to the terrific strain of the
+      flood, there would surely be no salvation possible. Yet in spite of all
+      precautions, big logs now and then came bumping against the dams, and shot
+      with wild gyrations and somersaults down into the brown eddies below.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The engineer, who was standing on the top of a log pile, had shouted until
+      he was hoarse, and gesticulated with his cane until his arms were lame,
+      but yet there was a great deal to do before he could go to bed with an
+      easy conscience. Bonnyboy and his comrades, who had had by far the harder
+      part of the task, were ready to drop with fatigue. It was now eight
+      o&rsquo;clock in the evening, and they had worked since six in the morning, and
+      had scarcely had time to swallow their scant rations. Some of them began
+      to grumble, and the engineer had to coax and threaten them to induce them
+      to persevere for another hour. The moon was just rising behind the
+      mountain ridges, and the beautiful valley lay, with its green fields,
+      sprouting forests, and red-painted farm-houses, at Bonnyboy&rsquo;s feet. It was
+      terrible to think that perhaps destruction was to overtake those happy and
+      peaceful homes, where men had lived and died for many hundred years.
+      Bonnyboy could scarcely keep back the tears when this fear suddenly came
+      over him. Was it not strange that, though they knew that danger was
+      threatening, they made not the slightest effort to save themselves? In the
+      village below men were still working in their forges, whose chimneys
+      belched forth fiery smoke, and the sound of their hammer-blows could be
+      heard above the roar of the river. Women were busy with their household
+      tasks; some boys were playing in the streets, damming up the gutters and
+      shrieking with joy when their dams broke. A few provident souls had driven
+      their cattle to the neighboring hills; but neither themselves nor their
+      children had they thought it necessary to remove. The fact was, nobody
+      believed that the dams would break, as they had not imagination enough to
+      foresee what would happen if the dams did break.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Bonnyboy was wet to the skin, and his knees were a trifle shaky from
+      exhaustion. He had been cutting down an enormous mast-tree, which was
+      needed for a prop to the dam, and had hauled it down with two horses, one
+      of which was a half-broken gray colt, unused to pulling in a team. To
+      restrain this frisky animal had required all Bonnyboy&rsquo;s strength, and he
+      stood wiping his brow with the sleeve of his shirt. Just at that moment a
+      terrified yell sounded from above: &ldquo;Run for your lives! The upper dam is
+      breaking!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The engineer from the top of the log-pile cast a swift glance up the
+      valley, and saw at once from the increasing volume of water that the
+      report was true.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Save yourselves, lads!&rdquo; he screamed. &ldquo;Run to the woods!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      And suiting his action to his words, he tumbled down from the log pile,
+      and darted up the hill-side toward the forest. The other men, hearing the
+      wild rush and roar above them, lost no time in following his example. Only
+      Bonnyboy, slow of comprehension as always, did not obey. Suddenly there
+      flared up a wild resolution in his face. He pulled out his knife, cut the
+      traces, and leaped upon the colt&rsquo;s back. Lashing the beast, and shouting
+      at the top of his voice, he dashed down the hill-side at a break-neck
+      pace.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;The dam is breaking!&rdquo; he roared. &ldquo;Run for the woods!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      He glanced anxiously behind him to see if the flood was overtaking him. A
+      great cloud of spray was rising against the sky, and he heard the yells of
+      men and the frenzied neighing of horses through the thunderous roar. But
+      happily there was time. The dam was giving way gradually, and had not yet
+      let loose the tremendous volume of death and desolation which it held
+      enclosed within its frail timbers. The colt, catching the spirit of
+      excitement in the air, flew like the wind, leaving farm after farm behind
+      it, until it reached the village.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;The dam is breaking! Run for your lives!&rdquo; cried Bonnyboy, with a rousing
+      clarion yell which rose above all other poises; and up and down the valley
+      the dread tidings spread like wildfire. In an instant all was in wildest
+      commotion. Terrified mothers, with babes in their arms, came bursting out
+      of the houses, and little girls, hugging kittens or cages with
+      canary-birds, clung weeping to their skirts; shouting men, shrieking
+      women, crying children, barking dogs, gusty showers sweeping from nowhere
+      down upon the distracted fugitives, and above all the ominous, throbbing,
+      pulsating roar as of a mighty chorus of cataracts. It came nearer and
+      nearer. It filled the great vault of the sky with a rush as of colossal
+      wing-beats. Then there came a deafening creaking and crashing; then a huge
+      brownish-white rolling wall, upon which the moonlight gleamed for an
+      instant, and then the very trump of doom&mdash;a writhing, brawling,
+      weltering chaos of cattle, dogs, men, lumber, houses, barns, whirling and
+      struggling upon the destroying flood.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0026" id="link2H_4_0026">
+      <!--  H2 anchor --> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      VI.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      It was the morning after the disaster. The sun rose red and threatening,
+      circled with a ring of fiery mist. People encamped upon the hill-side
+      greeted each other as on the morn of resurrection. For many were found
+      among the living who were being mourned as dead. Mothers hugged their
+      children with tearful joy, thanking God that they had been spared; and
+      husbands who had heard through the night the agonized cries of their
+      drowning wives, finding them at dawn safe and sound, felt as if they had
+      recovered them from the very gates of death. When all were counted, it was
+      ascertained that but very few of the villagers had been overtaken by the
+      flood. The timely warning had enabled all to save themselves, except some
+      who in their eagerness to rescue their goods had lingered too long.
+      Impoverished most of them were by the loss of their houses and cattle. The
+      calamity was indeed overwhelming. But when they considered how much
+      greater the disaster would have been if the flood had come upon them
+      unheralded, they felt that they had cause for gratitude in the midst of
+      their sorrow. And who was it that brought the tidings that snatched them
+      from the jaws of death? Well, nobody knew. He rode too fast. And each was
+      too much startled by the message to take note of the messenger. But who
+      could he possibly have been? An angel from Heaven, perhaps sent by God in
+      His mercy. That was indeed more than likely. The belief was at once
+      accepted that the rescuer was an angel from heaven. But just then a
+      lumberman stepped forward who had worked at the mill and said: &ldquo;It was
+      Bonnyboy, Grim Carpenter&rsquo;s son. I saw him jump on his gray colt.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Bonnyboy, Grim Carpenter&rsquo;s son. It couldn&rsquo;t be possible. But the lumberman
+      insisted that it was, and they had to believe him, though, of course, it
+      was a disappointment. But where was Bonnyboy? He deserved thanks, surely.
+      And, moreover, that gray colt was a valuable animal. It was to be hoped
+      that it was not drowned.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The water had now subsided, though it yet overflowed the banks; so that
+      trees, bent and splintered by the terrific force of the flood, grew far
+      out in the river. The foul dams had all been swept away, and the tawny
+      torrent ran again with tumultuous rapids in its old channel. Of the mills
+      scarcely a vestige was left except slight cavities in the banks, and a few
+      twisted beams clinging to the rocks where they had stood. The ruins of the
+      village, with jagged chimneys and broken walls, loomed out of a
+      half-inundated meadow, through which erratic currents were sweeping. Here
+      and there lay a dead cow or dog, and in the branches of a maple-tree the
+      carcasses of two sheep were entangled. In this marshy field a stooping
+      figure was seen wading about, as if in search of something. The water
+      broke about his knees, and sometimes reached up to his waist. He stood
+      like one dazed, and stared into the brown swirling torrent. Now he poked
+      something with his boat-hook, now bent down and purled some dead thing out
+      of a copse of shrubbery in which it had been caught. The sun rose higher
+      in the sky, and the red vapors were scattered. But still the old man
+      trudged wearily about, with the stony stare in his eyes, searching for him
+      whom he had lost. One company after another now descended from the
+      hill-sides, and from the high-lying farms which had not been reached by
+      the flood came wagons with provisions and clothes, and men and women eager
+      and anxious to help. They shouted to the old man in the submerged field,
+      and asked what he was looking for. But he only shook his head, as if he
+      did not understand.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Why, that is old Grim the carpenter,&rdquo; said someone. &ldquo;Has anybody seen
+      Bonnyboy?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      But no one had seen Bonnyboy.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Do you want help?&rdquo; they shouted to Grim; but they got no answer.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Hour after hour old Grim trudged about in the chilly water searching for
+      his son. Then, about noon, when he had worked his way far down the river,
+      he caught sight of something which made his heart stand still. In a brown
+      pool, in which a half-submerged willow-tree grew, he saw a large grayish
+      shape which resembled a horse. He stretched out the boat-hook and rolled
+      it over. Dumbly, fearlessly, he stood staring into the pool. There lay his
+      son&mdash;there lay Bonnyboy stark and dead.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The cold perspiration broke out upon Grim&rsquo;s brow, and his great breast
+      labored. Slowly he stooped down, drew the dead body out of the water, and
+      tenderly laid it across his knees. He stared into the sightless eyes, and
+      murmuring a blessing, closed them. There was a large discolored spot on
+      the forehead, as of a bruise. Grim laid his hand softly upon it, and
+      stroked away the yellow tuft of hair.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;My poor lad,&rdquo; he said, while the tears coursed down his wrinkled cheeks,
+      &ldquo;you had a weak head, but your heart, Bonnyboy&mdash;your heart was good.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0027" id="link2H_4_0027">
+      <!--  H2 anchor --> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      THE CHILD OF LUCK
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0028" id="link2H_4_0028">
+      <!--  H2 anchor --> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      I.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      A sunny-tempered little fellow was Hans, and his father declared that he
+      had brought luck with him when he came into the world.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;He was such a handsome baby when he was born,&rdquo; said Inga, his mother;
+      &ldquo;but you would scarcely believe it now, running about as he does in forest
+      and field, tearing his clothes and scratching his face.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Now, it was true, as Hans&rsquo;s mother said, that he did often tear his
+      clothes; and as he had an indomitable curiosity, and had to investigate
+      everything that came in his way, it was also no uncommon thing for him to
+      come home with his face stung or scratched.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Why must you drag that child with you wherever you go, Nils?&rdquo; the mother
+      complained to Hans&rsquo;s father, when the little boy was brought to her in
+      such a disreputable condition. &ldquo;Why can&rsquo;t you leave him at home? What
+      other man do you know who carries a six-year-old little fellow about with
+      him in rain and shine, storm and quiet?
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Well,&rdquo; Nils invariably answered, &ldquo;I like him and he likes me. He brings
+      me luck.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      This was a standing dispute between Nils and Inga, his wife, and they
+      never came to an agreement. She knew as well as her husband that before
+      little Hans was born there was want and misery in their cottage. But from
+      the hour the child lifted up its tiny voice, announcing its arrival, there
+      had been prosperity and contentment. Their luck had turned, Nils said, and
+      it was the child that had turned it. They had been married for four years,
+      and though they had no one to provide for but themselves, they scarcely
+      managed to keep body and soul together. All sorts of untoward things
+      happened. Now a tree which he was cutting down fell upon Nils and laid him
+      up for a month; now he got water on his knee from a blow he received while
+      rolling logs into the chute; now the pig died which was to have provided
+      them with salt pork for the winter, and the hens took to the bush, and
+      laid their eggs where nobody except the rats and the weasels could find
+      them. But since little Hans had come and put an end to all these
+      disasters, his father had a superstitious feeling that he could not bear
+      to have him away from him. Therefore every morning when he started out for
+      the forest or the river he carried Hans on his shoulder. And the little
+      boy sat there, smiling proudly and waving his hand to his mother, who
+      stood in the door looking longingly after him.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Hello, little chap!&rdquo; cried the lumbermen, when they saw him.
+      &ldquo;Good-morning to you and good luck!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      They always cheered up, however bad the weather was, when they saw little
+      Hans, for nobody could look at his sunny little face without feeling
+      something like a ray of sunlight stealing into his heart. Hans had a smile
+      and a wave of his hand for everybody. He knew all the lumbermen by name,
+      and they knew him.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      They sang as they swung the axe or the boat-hook, and the work went
+      merrily when little Hans sat on the top of the log pile and shouted to
+      them. But if by chance he was absent for a day or two they missed him. No
+      songs were heard, but harsh words, and not infrequently quarrels. Now,
+      nobody believed, of course, that little Hans was such a wizard that he
+      could make people feel and behave any better than it was in their nature
+      to do; but sure it was&mdash;at least the lumbermen insisted that it was
+      so&mdash;there was joy and good-tempered mirth wherever that child went,
+      and life seemed a little sadder and poorer to those who knew him when he
+      was away.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      No one will wonder that Nils sometimes boasted of his little son.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He told not once, but a hundred times, as they sat about the camp-fire
+      eating their dinner, that little Hans was a child of luck, and that no
+      misfortune could happen while he was near. Lumbermen are naturally
+      superstitious, and though perhaps at first they may have had their doubts,
+      they gradually came to accept the statement without question. They came to
+      regard it as a kind of right to have little Hans sit on the top of the log
+      pile when they worked, or running along the chute, while the wild-cat
+      strings of logs shot down the steep slide with lightning speed. They were
+      not in the least afraid lest the logs should jump the chute, as they had
+      often done before, killing or maiming the unhappy man that came too near.
+      For was not little Hans&rsquo;s life charmed, so that no harm could befall him?
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Now, it happened that Inga, little Hans&rsquo;s mother, came one day to the
+      river to see how he was getting on. Nils was then standing on a raft
+      hooking the floating logs with his boat-hook, while the boy was watching
+      him from the shore, shouting to him, throwing chips into the water, and
+      amusing himself as best he could. It was early in May, and the river was
+      swollen from recent thaws. Below the cataract where the lumbermen worked,
+      the broad, brown current moved slowly along with sluggish whirls and
+      eddies; but the raft was moored by chains to the shore, so that it was in
+      no danger of getting adrift. It was capital fun to see the logs come
+      rushing down the slide, plunging with a tremendous splash into the river,
+      and then bob up like live things after having bumped against the bottom.
+      Little Hans clapped his hands and yelled with delight when a string of
+      three or four came tearing along in that way, and dived, one after the
+      other, headlong into the water.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Catch that one, papa!&rdquo; he cried; &ldquo;that is a good big fellow. He dived
+      like a man, he did. He has washed the dirt off his snout now; that was the
+      reason he took such a big plunge.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Nils never failed to reach his boat-hook after the log little Hans
+      indicated, for he liked to humor him, and little Hans liked to be humored.
+      He had an idea that he was directing his father&rsquo;s work, and Nils invented
+      all sorts of innocent devices to flatter little Hans&rsquo;s dignity, and make
+      him think himself indispensable. It was of no use, therefore, for poor
+      Inga to beg little Hans to go home with her. He had so much to do, he
+      said, that he couldn&rsquo;t. He even tried to tear himself away from his mother
+      when she took him by the arm and remonstrated with him. And then and there
+      the conviction stole upon Inga that her child did not love her. She was
+      nothing to him compared to what his father was. And was it right for Nils
+      thus to rob her of the boy&rsquo;s affection? Little Hans could scarcely be
+      blamed for loving his father better; for love is largely dependent upon
+      habit, and Nils had been his constant companion since he was a year old. A
+      bitter sense of loneliness and loss overcame the poor wife as she stood on
+      the river-bank pleading with her child, and finding that she annoyed
+      instead of moving him.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Won&rsquo;t you come home with mamma, little Hans?&rdquo; she asked, tearfully. &ldquo;The
+      kitten misses you very much; it has been mewing for you all the morning.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;No,&rdquo; said little Hans, thrusting his hands into his pockets, and turning
+      about with a manly stride; &ldquo;we are going to have the lumber inspector here
+      to-day? and then papa&rsquo;s big raft is going down the river.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;But this dreadful noise, dear; how can you stand it? And the logs
+      shooting down that slide and making such a racket. And these great piles
+      of lumber, Hans&mdash;think, if they should tumble down and kill you!&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Oh, I&rsquo;m not afraid, mamma,&rdquo; cried Hans, proudly; and, to show his
+      fearlessness, he climbed up the log pile, and soon stood on the top of it,
+      waving his cap and shouting.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Oh, do come down, child&mdash;do come down!&rdquo; begged Inga, anxiously.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      She had scarcely uttered the words when she heard a warning shout from the
+      slope above, and had just time to lift her eyes, when she saw a big black
+      object dart past her, strike the log pile, and break with a deafening
+      crash. A long confused rumble of rolling logs followed, terrified voices
+      rent the air, and, above it all, the deep and steady roar of the cataract.
+      She saw, as through a fog, little Hans, serene and smiling as ever, borne
+      down on the top of the rolling lumber, now rising up and skipping from log
+      to log, now clapping his hands and screaming with pleasure, and then
+      suddenly vanishing in the brown writhing river. His laughter was still
+      ringing in her ears; the poor child, he did not realize his danger. The
+      rumbling of falling logs continued with terrifying persistence. Splash!
+      splash! splash! they went, diving by twos, by fours, and by dozens at the
+      very spot where her child had vanished. But where was little Hans? Oh,
+      where was he? It was all so misty, so unreal and confused. She could not
+      tell whether little Hans was among the living or among the dead. But
+      there, all of a sudden, his head popped up in the middle of the river; and
+      there was another head close to his&mdash;it was that of his father! And
+      round about them other heads bobbed up; for all the lumbermen who were on
+      the raft had plunged into the water with Nils when they saw that little
+      Hans was in danger. A dozen more were running down the slope as fast as
+      their legs could carry them; and they gave a tremendous cheer when they
+      saw little Hans&rsquo;s face above the water. He looked a trifle pale and
+      shivery, and he gave a funny little snort, so that the water spurted from
+      his nose. He had lost his hat, but he did not seem to be hurt. His little
+      arms clung tightly about his father&rsquo;s neck, while Nils, dodging the
+      bobbing logs, struck out with all his might for the shore. And when he
+      felt firm bottom under his feet, and came stumbling up through the shallow
+      water, looking like a drowned rat, what a welcome he received from the
+      lumbermen! They all wanted to touch little Hans and pat his cheek, just to
+      make sure that it was really he.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;It was wonderful indeed,&rdquo; they said, &ldquo;that he ever came up out of that
+      horrible jumble of pitching and diving logs. He is a child of luck, if
+      ever there was one.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Not one of them thought of the boy&rsquo;s mother, and little Hans himself
+      scarcely thought of her, elated as he was at the welcome he received from
+      the lumbermen. Poor Inga stood dazed, struggling with a horrible feeling,
+      seeing her child passed from one to the other, while she herself claimed
+      no share in him. Somehow the thought stung her. A sudden clearness burst
+      upon her; she rushed forward, with a piercing scream, snatched little Hans
+      from his father&rsquo;s arms, and hugging his wet little shivering form to her
+      breast, fled like a deer through the underbrush.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      From that day little Hans was not permitted to go to the river. It was in
+      vain that Nils pleaded and threatened. His wife acted so unreasonably when
+      that question was broached that he saw it was useless to discuss it. She
+      seized little Hans as a tigress might seize her young, and held him
+      tightly clasped, as if daring anybody to take him away from her. Nils knew
+      it would require force to get his son back again, and that he was not
+      ready to employ. But all joy seemed to have gone out of his life since he
+      had lost the daily companionship of little Hans. His work became drudgery;
+      and all the little annoyances of life, which formerly he had brushed away
+      as one brushes a fly from his nose, became burdens and calamities. The
+      raft upon which he had expended so much labor went to pieces during a
+      sudden rise of the river the night after little Hans&rsquo;s adventure, and
+      three days later Thorkel Fossen was killed outright by a string of logs
+      that jumped the chute.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;It isn&rsquo;t the same sort of place since you took little Hans away,&rdquo; the
+      lumbermen would often say to Nils. &ldquo;There&rsquo;s no sort of luck in anything.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Sometimes they taunted him with want of courage, and called him a
+      &ldquo;night-cap&rdquo; and a &ldquo;hen-pecked coon,&rdquo; all of which made Nils uncomfortable.
+      He made two or three attempts to persuade his wife to change her mind in
+      regard to little Hans, but the last time she got so frightened that she
+      ran out of the house and hid in the cow stable with the boy, crouching in
+      an empty stall, and crying as if her heart would break, when little Hans
+      escaped and betrayed her hiding-place. The boy, in fact, sympathized with
+      his father, and found his confinement at home irksome. The companionship
+      of the cat had no more charm for him; and even the brindled calf, which
+      had caused such an excitement when he first arrived, had become an old
+      story. Little Halls fretted, was mischievous for want of better
+      employment, and gave his mother no end of trouble. He longed for the gay
+      and animated life at the river, and he would have run away if he had not
+      been watched. He could not imagine how the lumbermen could be getting on
+      without him. It seemed to him that all work must come to a stop when he
+      was no longer sitting on the top of the log piles, or standing on the bank
+      throwing chips into the water.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Now, as a matter of fact, they were not getting on very well at the river
+      without little Hans. The luck had deserted them, the lumbermen said; and
+      whatever mishaps they had, they attributed to the absence of little Hans.
+      They came to look with ill-suppressed hostility at Nils, whom they
+      regarded as responsible for their misfortunes. For they could scarcely
+      believe that he was quite in earnest in his desire for the boy&rsquo;s return,
+      otherwise they could not comprehend how his wife could dare to oppose him.
+      The weather was stormy, and the mountain brook which ran along the slide
+      concluded to waste no more labor in carving out a bed for itself in the
+      rock, when it might as well be using the slide which it found ready made.
+      And one fine day it broke into the slide and half filled it, so that the
+      logs, when they were started down the steep incline, sent the water
+      flying, turned somersaults, stood on end, and played no end of dangerous
+      tricks which no one could foresee. Several men were badly hurt by beams
+      shooting like rockets through the air, and old Mads Furubakken was knocked
+      senseless and carried home for dead. Then the lumbermen held a council,
+      and made up their minds to get little Hans by fair means or foul. They
+      thought first of sending a delegation of four or five men that very
+      morning, but finally determined to march up to Nils&rsquo;s cottage in a body
+      and demand the boy. There were twenty of them at the very least, and the
+      tops of their long boat-hooks, which they carried on their shoulders, were
+      seen against the green forest before they were themselves visible.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Nils, who was just out of bed, was sitting on the threshold smoking his
+      pipe and pitching a ball to little Hans, who laughed with delight whenever
+      he caught it. Inga was bustling about inside the house, preparing
+      breakfast, which was to consist of porridge, salt herring, and baked
+      potatoes. It had rained during the night, and the sky was yet overcast,
+      but the sun was struggling to break through the cloud-banks. A couple of
+      thrushes in the alder-bushes about the cottage were rejoicing at the
+      change in the weather, and Nils was listening to their song and to his
+      son&rsquo;s merry prattle, when he caught sight of the twenty lumbermen marching
+      up the hillside. He rose, with some astonishment, and went to meet them.
+      Inga, hearing their voices, came to the door, and seeing the many men,
+      snatched up little Hans, and with a wildly palpitating heart ran into the
+      cottage, bolting the door behind her. She had a vague foreboding that this
+      unusual visit meant something hostile to herself, and she guessed that
+      Nils had been only the spokesman of his comrades in demanding so eagerly
+      the return of the boy to the river. She believed all their talk about his
+      luck to be idle nonsense; but she knew that Nils had unwittingly spread
+      this belief, and that the lumbermen were convinced that little Hans was
+      their good genius, whose presence averted disaster. Distracted with fear
+      and anxiety, she stood pressing her ear against the crack in the door, and
+      sometimes peeping out to see what measures she must take for the child&rsquo;s
+      safety. Would Nils stand by her, or would he desert her? But surely&mdash;what
+      was Nils thinking about? He was extending his hand to each of the men, and
+      receiving them kindly.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Next he would be inviting them to come in and take little Hans. She saw
+      one of the men&mdash;Stubby Mons by name&mdash;step forward, and she
+      plainly heard him say:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;We miss the little chap down at the river, Nils. The luck has been
+      against us since he left.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Well, Mons,&rdquo; Nils answered, &ldquo;I miss the little chap as much as any of
+      you; perhaps more. But my wife&mdash;she&rsquo;s got a sort of crooked notion
+      that the boy won&rsquo;t come home alive if she lets him go to the river. She
+      got a bad scare last time, and it isn&rsquo;t any use arguing with her.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;But won&rsquo;t you let us talk to her, Nils?&rdquo; one of the lumbermen proposed.
+      &ldquo;It is a tangled skein, and I don&rsquo;t pretend to say that I can straighten
+      it out. But two men have been killed and one crippled since the little
+      chap was taken away. And in the three years he was with us no untoward
+      thing happened. Now that speaks for itself, Nils, doesn&rsquo;t it?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;It does, indeed,&rdquo; said Nils, with an air of conviction.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;And you&rsquo;ll let us talk to your wife, and see if we can&rsquo;t make her listen
+      to reason,&rdquo; the man urged.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;You are welcome to talk to her as much as you like,&rdquo; Nils replied,
+      knocking out his pipe on the heel of his boot; &ldquo;but I warn you that she&rsquo;s
+      mighty cantankerous.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      He rose slowly, and tried to open the door. It was locked. &ldquo;Open, Inga,&rdquo;
+       he said, a trifle impatiently; &ldquo;there are some men here who want to see
+      you.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0029" id="link2H_4_0029">
+      <!--  H2 anchor --> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      II.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      Inga sat crouching on the hearth, hugging little Hans to her bosom. She
+      shook and trembled with fear, let her eyes wander around the walls, and
+      now and then moaned at the thought that now they would take little Hans
+      away from her.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Why don&rsquo;t you open the door for papa?&rdquo; asked little Hans, wonderingly.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Ah, he too was against her! All the world was against her! And her husband
+      was in league with her enemies!
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Open, I say!&rdquo; cried Nils, vehemently. &ldquo;What do you mean by locking the
+      door when decent people come to call upon us?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Should she open the door or should she not? Holding little Hans in her
+      arms, she rose hesitatingly, and stretched out her hand toward the bolt.
+      But all of a sudden, in a paroxysm of fear, she withdrew her hand, turned
+      about, and fled with the child through the back door. The alder bushes
+      grew close up to the walls of the cottage, and by stooping a little she
+      managed to remain unobserved. Her greatest difficulty was to keep little
+      Hans from shouting to his father, and she had to put her hand over his
+      mouth to keep him quiet; for the boy, who had heard the voices without,
+      could not understand why he should not be permitted to go out and converse
+      with his friends the lumbermen. The wild eyes and agitated face of his
+      mother distressed him, and the little showers of last night&rsquo;s rain which
+      the trees shook down upon him made him shiver.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Why do you run so, mamma?&rdquo; he asked, when she removed her hand from his
+      mouth.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Because the bad men want to take you away from me, Hans,&rdquo; she answered,
+      panting.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Those were not bad men, mamma,&rdquo; the boy ejaculated. &ldquo;That was Stubby Mons
+      and Stuttering Peter and Lars Skin-breeches. They don&rsquo;t, want to hurt me.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      He expected that his mamma would be much relieved at receiving this
+      valuable information, and return home without delay. But she still pressed
+      on, flushed and panting, and cast the same anxious glances behind her.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      In the meanwhile Nils and his guests had entirely lost their patience.
+      Finding his persuasions of no avail, the former began to thump at the door
+      with the handle of his axe, and receiving no response, he climbed up to
+      the window and looked in. To his amazement there was no one in the room.
+      Thinking that Inga might have gone to the cow-stable, he ran to the rear
+      of the cottage, and called her name. Still no answer.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Hans,&rdquo; he cried, &ldquo;where are you?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      But Hans, too, was as if spirited away. It scarcely occurred to Nils,
+      until he had searched the cow-stable and the house in vain, that his wife
+      had fled from the harmless lumbermen. Then the thought shot through his
+      brain that possibly she was not quite right in her head; that this fixed
+      idea that everybody wanted to take her child away from her had unsettled
+      her reason. Nils grew hot and cold in the same moment as this dreadful
+      apprehension took lodgement in his mind. Might she not, in her confused
+      effort to save little Hans, do him harm? In the blind and feverish terror
+      which possessed her might she not rush into the water, or leap over a
+      precipice? Visions of little Hans drowning, or whirled into the abyss in
+      his mother&rsquo;s arms, crowded his fancy as he walked back to the lumbermen,
+      and told them that neither his wife nor child was anywhere to be found.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I would ask ye this, lads,&rdquo; he said, finally: &ldquo;if you would help me
+      search for them. For Inga&mdash;I reckon she is a little touched in the
+      upper story&mdash;she has gone off with the boy, and I can&rsquo;t get on
+      without little Hans any more than you can.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The men understood the situation at a glance, and promised their aid. They
+      had all looked upon Inga as &ldquo;high-strung&rdquo; and &ldquo;queer,&rdquo; and it did not
+      surprise them to hear that she had been frightened out of her wits at
+      their request for the loan of little Hans. Forming a line, with a space of
+      twenty feet between each man, they began to beat the bush, climbing the
+      steep slope toward the mountains. Inga, pausing for an instant, and
+      peering out between the tree trunks, saw the alder bushes wave as they
+      broke through the underbrush. She knew now that she was pursued. Tired she
+      was, too, and the boy grew heavier for every step that she advanced. And
+      yet if she made him walk, he might run away from her. If he heard his
+      father&rsquo;s voice, he would be certain to answer. Much perplexed, she looked
+      about her for a hiding-place.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      For, as the men would be sure to overtake her, her only safety was in
+      hiding. With tottering knees she stumbled along, carrying the heavy child,
+      grabbing hold of the saplings for support, and yet scarcely keeping from
+      falling. The cold perspiration broke from her brow and a strange faintness
+      overcame her.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;You will have to walk, little Hans,&rdquo; she said, at last. &ldquo;But if you run
+      away from me, dear, I shall lie down here and die.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Little Hans promised that he would not run away, and for five minutes they
+      walked up a stony path which looked like the abandoned bed of a brook.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;You hurt my hand, mamma,&rdquo; whimpered the boy, &ldquo;you squeeze so hard.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      She would have answered, but just then she heard the voices of the
+      lumbermen scarcely fifty paces away. With a choking sensation and a stitch
+      in her side she pressed on, crying out in spirit for the hills to hide her
+      and the mountains to open their gates and receive her. Suddenly she stood
+      before a rocky wall some eighty or a hundred feet high. She could go no
+      farther. Her strength was utterly exhausted. There was a big boulder lying
+      at the base of the rock, and a spreading juniper half covered it. Knowing
+      that in another minute she would be discovered, she flung herself down
+      behind the boulder, though the juniper needles scratched her face, and
+      pulled little Hans down at her side. But, strange to say, little Hans fell
+      farther than she had calculated, and utterly-vanished from sight. She
+      heard a muffled cry, and reaching her hand in the direction where he had
+      fallen, caught hold of his arm. A strong, wild smell beat against her, and
+      little Hans, as he was pulled out, was enveloped in a most unpleasant
+      odor. But odor or no odor, here was the very hiding-place she had been
+      seeking. A deserted wolf&rsquo;s den, it was, probably&mdash;at least she hoped
+      it was deserted; for if it was not, she might be confronted with even
+      uglier customers than the lumbermen. But she had no time for debating the
+      question, for she saw the head of Stubby Mons emerging from the leaves,
+      and immediately behind him came Stuttering Peter, with his long boat-hook.
+      Quick as a flash she slipped into the hole, and dragged Hans after her.
+      The juniper-bush entirely covered the entrance. She could see everyone who
+      approached, without being seen. Unhappily, the boy too caught sight of
+      Stubby Mons, and called him by name. The lumberman stopped and pricked up
+      his ears.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Did you hear anybody call?&rdquo; he asked his companion.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;N-n-n-n-aw, I d-d-d-d-didn&rsquo;t,&rdquo; answered Stuttering Peter. &ldquo;There b-be
+      lots of qu-qu-qu-qu-eer n-noises in the w-w-w-woods.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Little Hans heard every word that they spoke, and he would have cried out
+      again, if it hadn&rsquo;t appeared such great fun to be playing hide-and-go-seek
+      with the lumbermen. He had a delicious sense of being well hidden, and had
+      forgotten everything except the zest of the game. Most exciting it became
+      when Stubby Mons drew the juniper-bush aside and peered eagerly behind the
+      boulder. Inga&rsquo;s heart stuck in her throat; she felt sure that in the next
+      instant they would be discovered. And as ill-luck would have it, there was
+      something alive scrambling about her feet and tugging at her skirts.
+      Suddenly she felt a sharp bite, but clinched her teeth, and uttered no
+      sound. When her vision again cleared, the juniper branch had rebounded
+      into its place, and the face of Stubby Mons was gone. She drew a deep
+      breath of relief, but yet did not dare to emerge from the den. For one,
+      two, three tremulous minutes she remained motionless, feeling all the
+      while that uncomfortable sensation of living things about her.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      At last she could endure it no longer. Thrusting little Hans before her,
+      she crawled out of the hole, and looked back into the small cavern. As
+      soon as her eyes grew accustomed to the twilight she uttered a cry of
+      amazement, for out from her skirts jumped a little gray furry object, and
+      two frisky little customers of the same sort were darting about among the
+      stones and tree-roots. The truth dawned upon her, and it chilled her to
+      the marrow of her bones. The wolf&rsquo;s den was not deserted. The old folks
+      were only out hunting, and the shouting and commotion of the searching
+      party had probably prevented them from returning in time to look after
+      their family. She seized little Hans by the hand, and once more dragged
+      him away over the rough path. He soon became tired and fretful, and in
+      spite of all her entreaties began to shout lustily for his father. But the
+      men were now so far away that they could not hear him. He complained of
+      hunger; and when presently they came to a blueberry patch, she flung
+      herself down on the heather and allowed him to pick berries. She heard
+      cow-bells and sheep-bells tinkling round about her, and concluded that she
+      could not be far from the saeters, or mountain dairies. That was
+      fortunate, indeed, for she would not have liked to sleep in the woods with
+      wolves and bears prowling about her.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      She was just making an effort to rise from the stone upon which she was
+      sitting, when the big, good-natured face of a cow broke through the leaves
+      and stared at her. There was again help in need. She approached the cow,
+      patted it, and calling little Hans, bade him sit down in the heather and
+      open his mouth. He obeyed rather wonderingly, but perceived his mother&rsquo;s
+      intent when she knelt at his side and began to milk into his mouth. It
+      seemed to him that he had never tasted anything so delicious as this fresh
+      rich milk, fragrant with the odor of the woods and the succulent mountain
+      grass. When his hunger was satisfied, he fell again to picking berries,
+      while Inga refreshed herself with milk in the same simple fashion. After
+      having rested a full hour, she felt strong enough to continue her journey;
+      and hearing the loor, or Alpine horn, re-echoing among the mountains, she
+      determined to follow the sound. It was singular what luck attended her in
+      the midst of her misfortune. Perhaps it was, after all, no idle tale that
+      little Hans was a child of luck; and she had done the lumbermen injustice
+      in deriding their faith in him. Perhaps there was some guiding Providence
+      in all that had happened, destined in the end to lead little Hans to
+      fortune and glory. Much encouraged by this thought, she stooped over him
+      and kissed him; then took his hand and trudged along over logs and stones,
+      through juniper and bramble bushes.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Mamma,&rdquo; said little Hans, &ldquo;where are you going?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I am going to the saeter,&rdquo; she answered; &ldquo;where you have wanted so often
+      to go.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Then why don&rsquo;t you follow the cows? They are going there too.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Surely that child had a marvellous mind! She smiled down upon him and
+      nodded. By following the cows they arrived in twenty minutes at a neat
+      little log cabin, from which the smoke curled up gayly into the clear air.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The dairy-maids who spent the summer there tending the cattle both fell
+      victims to the charms of little Hans, and offered him and his mother their
+      simple hospitality. They told of the lumbermen who had passed the saeter
+      huts, and inquired for her; but otherwise they respected her silence, and
+      made no attempt to pry into her secrets. The next morning she started,
+      after a refreshing sleep, westward toward the coast, where she hoped in
+      some way to find a passage to America. For if little Hans was really born
+      under a lucky star&mdash;which fact she now could scarcely doubt&mdash;then
+      America was the place for him. There he might rise to become President, or
+      a judge, or a parson, or something or other; while in Norway he would
+      never be anything but a lumberman like his father. Inga had a well-to-do
+      sister, who was a widow, in the nearest town, and she would borrow enough
+      money from her to pay their passage to New York.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It was early in July when little Hans and his mother arrived in New York.
+      The latter had repented bitterly of her rashness in stealing her child
+      from his father, and under a blind impulse traversing half the globe in a
+      wild-goose chase after fortune. The world was so much bigger than she in
+      her quiet valley had imagined; and, what was worse, it wore such a cold
+      and repellent look, and was so bewildering and noisy. Inga had been very
+      sea-sick during the voyage; and after she stepped ashore from the tug that
+      brought her to Castle Garden, the ground kept heaving and swelling under
+      her feet, and made her dizzy and miserable. She had been very wicked, she
+      was beginning to think, and deserved punishment; and if it had not been
+      for a vague and adventurous faith in the great future that was in store
+      for her son, she would have been content to return home, do penance for
+      her folly, and beg her husband&rsquo;s forgiveness. But, in the first place, she
+      had no money to pay for a return ticket; and, secondly, it would be a
+      great pity to deprive little Hans of the Presidency and all the grandeur
+      that his lucky star might here bring him.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Inga was just contemplating this bright vision of Hans&rsquo;s future, when she
+      found herself passing through a gate, at which a clerk was seated.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;What is your name?&rdquo; he asked, through an interpreter.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Inga Olsdatter Pladsen.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Age?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Twenty-eight a week after Michaelmas.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Single or married?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Married.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Where is your husband?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;In Norway.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Are you divorced from him?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Divorced&mdash;I! Why, no! Who ever heard of such a thing?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Inga grew quite indignant at the thought of her being divorced. A dozen
+      other questions were asked, at each of which her embarrassment increased.
+      When, finally, she declared that she had no money, no definite
+      destination, and no relatives or friends in the country, the examination
+      was cut short, and after an hour&rsquo;s delay and a wearisome cross-questioning
+      by different officials, she was put on board the tug, and returned to the
+      steamer in which she had crossed the ocean. Four dreary days passed; then
+      there was a tremendous commotion on deck: blowing of whistles, roaring of
+      steam, playing of bands, bumping of trunks and boxes, and finally the
+      steady pulsation of the engines as the big ship stood out to sea. After
+      nine days of discomfort in the stuffy steerage and thirty-six hours of
+      downright misery while crossing the stormy North Sea, Inga found herself
+      once more in the land of her birth. Full of humiliation and shame she met
+      her husband at the railroad station, and prepared herself for a deluge of
+      harsh words and reproaches. But instead of that he patted her gently on
+      the head, and clasped little Hans in his arms and kissed him. They said
+      very little to each other as they rode homeward in the cars; but little
+      Hans had a thousand things to tell, and his father was delighted to hear
+      them. In the evening, when they had reached their native valley, and the
+      boy was asleep, Inga plucked up courage and said, &ldquo;Nils, it is all a
+      mistake about little Hans&rsquo;s luck.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Mistake! Why, no,&rdquo; cried Nils. &ldquo;What greater luck could he have than to
+      be brought safely home to his father?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      Inga had indeed hoped for more; but she said nothing. Nevertheless, fate
+      still had strange things in store for little Hans. The story of his
+      mother&rsquo;s flight to and return from America was picked up by some
+      enterprising journalist, who made a most touching romance of it. Hundreds
+      of inquiries regarding little Hans poured in upon the pastor and the
+      postmaster; and offers to adopt him, educate him, and I know not what
+      else, were made to his parents. But Nils would hear of no adoption; nor
+      would he consent to any plan that separated him from the boy. When,
+      however, he was given a position as superintendent of a lumber yard in the
+      town, and prosperity began to smile upon him, he sent little Hans to
+      school, and as Hans was a clever boy, he made the most of his
+      opportunities.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      And now little Hans is indeed a very big Hans, but a child of luck he is
+      yet; for I saw him referred to the other day in the newspapers as one of
+      the greatest lumber dealers, and one of the noblest, most generous, and
+      public-spirited men in Norway.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0030" id="link2H_4_0030">
+      <!--  H2 anchor --> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      THE BEAR THAT HAD A BANK ACCOUNT
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0031" id="link2H_4_0031">
+      <!--  H2 anchor --> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      I.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      You may not believe it, but the bear I am going to tell you about really
+      had a bank account! He lived in the woods, as most bears do; but he had a
+      reputation which extended over all Norway and more than half of England.
+      Earls and baronets came every summer, with repeating-rifles of the latest
+      patent, and plaids and field-glasses and portable cooking-stoves, intent
+      upon killing him. But Mr. Bruin, whose only weapons were a pair of paws
+      and a pair of jaws, both uncommonly good of their kind, though not
+      patented, always managed to get away unscathed; and that was sometimes
+      more than the earls and the baronets did.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      One summer the Crown Prince of Germany came to Norway. He also heard of
+      the famous bear that no one could kill, and made up his mind that he was
+      the man to kill it. He trudged for two days through bogs, and climbed
+      through glens and ravines, before he came on the scent of a bear, and a
+      bear&rsquo;s scent, you may know, is strong, and quite unmistakable. Finally he
+      discovered some tracks in the moss, like those of a barefooted man, or, I
+      should rather say, perhaps, a man-footed bear. The Prince was just turning
+      the corner of a projecting rock, when he saw a huge, shaggy beast standing
+      on its hind legs, examining in a leisurely manner the inside of a hollow
+      tree, while a swarm of bees were buzzing about its ears. It was just
+      hauling out a handful of honey, and was smiling with a grewsome mirth,
+      when His Royal Highness sent it a bullet right in the breast, where its
+      heart must have been, if it had one. But, instead of falling down flat, as
+      it ought to have done, out of deference to the Prince, it coolly turned
+      its back, and gave its assailant a disgusted nod over its shoulder as it
+      trudged away through the underbrush. The attendants ranged through the
+      woods and beat the bushes in all directions, but Mr. Bruin was no more to
+      be seen that afternoon. It was as if he had sunk into the earth; not a
+      trace of him was to be found by either dogs or men.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      From that time forth the rumor spread abroad that this Gausdale Bruin (for
+      that was the name by which he became known) was enchanted. It was said
+      that he shook off bullets as a duck does water; that he had the evil eye,
+      and could bring misfortune to whomsoever he looked upon. The peasants
+      dreaded to meet him, and ceased to hunt him. His size was described as
+      something enormous, his teeth, his claws, and his eyes as being diabolical
+      beyond human conception. In the meanwhile Mr. Bruin had it all his own way
+      in the mountains, killed a young bull or a fat heifer for his dinner every
+      day or two, chased in pure sport a herd of sheep over a precipice; and as
+      for Lars Moe&rsquo;s bay mare Stella, he nearly finished her, leaving his
+      claw-marks on her flank in a way that spoiled her beauty forever.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Now Lars Moe himself was too old to hunt; and his nephew was&mdash;well,
+      he was not old enough. There was, in fact, no one in the valley who was of
+      the right age to hunt this Gausdale Bruin. It was of no use that Lars Moe
+      egged on the young lads to try their luck, shaming them, or offering them
+      rewards, according as his mood might happen to be. He was the wealthiest
+      man in the valley, and his mare Stella had been the apple of his eye. He
+      felt it as a personal insult that the bear should have dared to molest
+      what belonged to him, especially the most precious of all his possessions.
+      It cut him to the heart to see the poor wounded beauty, with those cruel
+      scratches on her thigh, and one stiff, aching leg done up in oil and
+      cotton. When he opened the stable-door, and was greeted by Stella&rsquo;s low,
+      friendly neighing, or when she limped forward in her box-stall and put her
+      small, clean-shaped head on his shoulder, then Lars Moe&rsquo;s heart swelled
+      until it seemed on the point of breaking. And so it came to pass that he
+      added a codicil to his will, setting aside five hundred dollars of his
+      estate as a reward to the man who, within six years, should kill the
+      Gausdale Bruin.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Soon after that, Lars Moe died, as some said, from grief and chagrin;
+      though the physician affirmed that it was of rheumatism of the heart. At
+      any rate, the codicil relating to the enchanted bear was duly read before
+      the church door, and pasted, among other legal notices, in the vestibules
+      of the judge&rsquo;s and the sheriff&rsquo;s offices. When the executors had settled
+      up the estate, the question arose in whose name or to whose credit should
+      be deposited the money which was to be set aside for the benefit of the
+      bear-slayer. No one knew who would kill the bear, or if any one would kill
+      it. It was a puzzling question.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Why, deposit it to the credit of the bear,&rdquo; said a jocose executor;
+      &ldquo;then, in the absence of other heirs, his slayer will inherit it. That is
+      good old Norwegian practice, though I don&rsquo;t know whether it has ever been
+      the law.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;All right,&rdquo; said the other executors, &ldquo;so long as it is understood who is
+      to have the money, it does not matter.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      And so an amount equal to $500 was deposited in the county bank to the
+      credit of the Gausdale Bruin. Sir Barry Worthington, Bart., who came
+      abroad the following summer for the shooting, heard the story, and thought
+      it a good one. So, after having vainly tried to earn the prize himself, he
+      added another $500 to the deposit, with the stipulation that he was to
+      have the skin.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      But his rival for parliamentary honors, Robert Stapleton, Esq., the great
+      iron-master, who had come to Norway chiefly to outshine Sir Barry,
+      determined that he was to have the skin of that famous bear, if any one
+      was to have it, and that, at all events, Sir Barry should not have it. So
+      Mr. Stapleton added $750 to the bear&rsquo;s bank account, with the stipulation
+      that the skin should come to him.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Mr. Bruin, in the meanwhile, as if to resent this unseemly contention
+      about his pelt, made worse havoc among the herds than ever, and compelled
+      several peasants to move their dairies to other parts of the mountains,
+      where the pastures were poorer, but where they would be free from his
+      depredations. If the $1,750 in the bank had been meant as a bribe or a
+      stipend for good behavior, such as was formerly paid to Italian brigands,
+      it certainly could not have been more demoralizing in its effect; for all
+      agreed that, since Lars Moe&rsquo;s death, Bruin misbehaved worse than ever.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0032" id="link2H_4_0032">
+      <!--  H2 anchor --> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      II.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      There was an odd clause in Lars Moe&rsquo;s will besides the codicil relating to
+      the bear. It read:
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I hereby give and bequeath to my daughter Unna, or, in case of her
+      decease, to her oldest living issue, my bay mare Stella, as a token that I
+      have forgiven her the sorrow she caused me by her marriage.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      It seemed incredible that Lars Moe should wish to play a practical joke
+      (and a bad one at that) on his only child, his daughter Unna, because she
+      had displeased him by her marriage. Yet that was the common opinion in the
+      valley when this singular clause became known. Unna had married Thorkel
+      Tomlevold, a poor tenant&rsquo;s son, and had refused her cousin, the great
+      lumber-dealer, Morten Janson, whom her father had selected for a
+      son-in-law.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      She dwelt now in a tenant&rsquo;s cottage, northward in the parish; and her
+      husband, who was a sturdy and fine-looking fellow, eked out a living by
+      hunting and fishing. But they surely had no accommodations for a
+      broken-down, wounded, trotting mare, which could not even draw a plough.
+      It is true Unna, in the days of her girlhood, had been very fond of the
+      mare, and it is only charitable to suppose that the clause, which was in
+      the body of the will, was written while Stella was in her prime, and
+      before she had suffered at the paws of the Gausdale Bruin. But even
+      granting that, one could scarcely help suspecting malice aforethought in
+      the curious provision. To Unna the gift was meant to say, as plainly as
+      possible, &ldquo;There, you see what you have lost by disobeying your father! If
+      you had married according to his wishes, you would have been able to
+      accept the gift, while now you are obliged to decline it like a beggar.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      But if it was Lars Moe&rsquo;s intention to convey such a message to his
+      daughter, he failed to take into account his daughter&rsquo;s spirit. She
+      appeared plainly but decently dressed at the reading of the will, and
+      carried her head not a whit less haughtily than was her wont in her maiden
+      days. She exhibited no chagrin when she found that Janson was her father&rsquo;s
+      heir and that she was disinherited. She even listened with perfect
+      composure to the reading of the clause which bequeathed to her the
+      broken-down mare.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It at once became a matter of pride with her to accept her girlhood&rsquo;s
+      favorite, and accept it she did! And having borrowed a side-saddle, she
+      rode home, apparently quite contented. A little shed, or lean-to, was
+      built in the rear of the house, and Stella became a member of Thorkel
+      Tomlevold&rsquo;s family. Odd as it may seem, the fortunes of the family took a
+      turn for the better from the day she arrived; Thorkel rarely came home
+      without big game, and in his traps he caught more than any three other men
+      in all the parish.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;The mare has brought us luck,&rdquo; he said to his wife. &ldquo;If she can&rsquo;t plough,
+      she can at all events pull the sleigh to church; and you have as good a
+      right as any one to put on airs, if you choose.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Yes, she has brought us blessing,&rdquo; replied Unna, quietly; &ldquo;and we are
+      going to keep her till she dies of old age.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      To the children Stella became a pet, as much as if she had been a dog or a
+      cat. The little boy Lars climbed all over her, and kissed her regularly
+      good-morning when she put her handsome head in through the kitchen-door to
+      get her lump of sugar. She was as gentle as a lamb and as intelligent as a
+      dog. Her great brown eyes, with their soft, liquid look, spoke as plainly
+      as words could speak, expressing pleasure when she was patted; and the low
+      neighing with which she greeted the little boy, when she heard his
+      footsteps in the door, was to him like the voice of a friend.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He grew to love this handsome and noble animal as he had loved nothing on
+      earth except his father and mother.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      As a matter of course he heard a hundred times the story of Stella&rsquo;s
+      adventure with the terrible Gausdale bear. It was a story that never lost
+      its interest, that seemed to grow more exciting the oftener it was told.
+      The deep scars of the bear&rsquo;s claws in Stella&rsquo;s thigh were curiously
+      examined, and each time gave rise to new questions. The mare became quite
+      a heroic character, and the suggestion was frequently discussed between
+      Lars and his little sister Marit, whether Stella might not be an enchanted
+      princess who was waiting for some one to cut off her head, so that she
+      might show herself in her glory. Marit thought the experiment well worth
+      trying, but Lars had his doubts, and was unwilling to take the risk; yet
+      if she brought luck, as his mother said, then she certainly must be
+      something more than an ordinary horse.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Stella had dragged little Lars out of the river when he fell overboard
+      from the pier; and that, too, showed more sense than he had ever known a
+      horse to have.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      There could be no doubt in his mind that Stella was an enchanted princess.
+      And instantly the thought occurred to him that the dreadful enchanted bear
+      with the evil eye was the sorcerer, and that, when he was killed, Stella
+      would resume her human guise. It soon became clear to him that he was the
+      boy to accomplish this heroic deed; and it was equally plain to him that
+      he must keep his purpose secret from all except Marit, as his mother would
+      surely discourage him from engaging in so perilous an enterprise. First of
+      all, he had to learn how to shoot; and his father, who was the best shot
+      in the valley, was very willing to teach him. It seemed quite natural to
+      Thorkel that a hunter&rsquo;s son should take readily to the rifle; and it gave
+      him great satisfaction to see how true his boy&rsquo;s aim was, and how steady
+      his hand.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Father,&rdquo; said Lars one day, &ldquo;you shoot so well, why haven&rsquo;t you ever
+      tried to kill the Gausdale Bruin that hurt Stella so badly?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Hush, child! you don&rsquo;t know what you are talking about,&rdquo; answered his
+      father; &ldquo;no leaden bullet will harm that wicked beast.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;Why not?&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t like to talk about it&mdash;but it is well known that he is
+      enchanted.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;But will he then live for ever? Is there no sort of bullet that will kill
+      him?&rdquo; asked the boy.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I don&rsquo;t know. I don&rsquo;t want to have anything to do with witchcraft,&rdquo; said
+      Thorkel.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The word &ldquo;witchcraft&rdquo; set the boy to thinking, and he suddenly remembered
+      that he had been warned not to speak to an old woman named Martha Pladsen,
+      because she was a witch. Now, she was probably the very one who could tell
+      him what he wanted to know. Her cottage lay close up under the
+      mountain-side, about two miles from his home. He did not deliberate long
+      before going to seek this mysterious person, about whom the most
+      remarkable stories were told in the valley. To his astonishment, she
+      received him kindly, gave him a cup of coffee with rock candy, and
+      declared that she had long expected him. The bullet which was to slay the
+      enchanted bear had long been in her possession; and she would give it to
+      him if he would promise to give her the beast&rsquo;s heart.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      He did not have to be asked twice for that; and off he started gayly with
+      his prize in his pocket. It was rather an odd-looking bullet, made of
+      silver, marked with a cross on one side and with a lot of queer illegible
+      figures on the other. It seemed to burn in his pocket, so anxious was he
+      to start out at once to release the beloved Stella from the cruel
+      enchantment. But Martha had said that the bear could only be killed when
+      the moon was full; and until the moon was full he accordingly had to
+      bridle his impatience.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <a name="link2H_4_0033" id="link2H_4_0033">
+      <!--  H2 anchor --> </a>
+    </p>
+    <div style="height: 4em;">
+      <br /><br /><br /><br />
+    </div>
+    <h2>
+      III.
+    </h2>
+    <p>
+      It was a bright morning in January, and, as it happened, Lars&rsquo;s fourteenth
+      birthday. To his great delight, his mother had gone down to the judge&rsquo;s to
+      sell some ptarmigans, and his father had gone to fell some timber up in
+      the glen. Accordingly he could secure the rifle without being observed. He
+      took an affectionate good-by of Stella, who rubbed her soft nose against
+      his own, playfully pulled at his coat-collar, and blew her sweet, warm
+      breath into his face. Lars was a simple-hearted boy, in spite of his age,
+      and quite a child at heart. He had lived so secluded from all society, and
+      breathed so long the atmosphere of fairy tales, that he could see nothing
+      at all absurd in what he was about to undertake. The youngest son in the
+      story-book always did just that sort of thing, and everybody praised and
+      admired him for it. Lars meant, for once, to put the story-book hero into
+      the shade. He engaged little Marit to watch over Stella while he was gone,
+      and under no circumstances to betray him&mdash;all of which Marit solemnly
+      promised.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      With his rifle on his shoulder and his skees on his feet, Lars glided
+      slowly along over the glittering surface of the snow, for the mountain was
+      steep, and he had to zigzag in long lines before he reached the upper
+      heights, where the bear was said to have his haunts. The place where Bruin
+      had his winter den had once been pointed out to him, and he remembered yet
+      how pale his father was, when he found that he had strayed by chance into
+      so dangerous a neighborhood. Lars&rsquo;s heart, too, beat rather uneasily as he
+      saw the two heaps of stones, called &ldquo;The Parson&rdquo; and &ldquo;The Deacon,&rdquo; and the
+      two huge fir-trees which marked the dreaded spot. It had been customary
+      from immemorial time for each person who passed along the road to throw a
+      large stone on the Parson&rsquo;s heap, and a small one on the Deacon&rsquo;s; but
+      since the Gausdale Bruin had gone into winter quarters there, the stone
+      heaps had ceased to grow.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Under the great knotted roots of the fir-trees there was a hole, which was
+      more than half-covered with snow; and it was noticeable that there was not
+      a track of bird or beast to be seen anywhere around it. Lars, who on the
+      way had been buoyed up by the sense of his heroism, began now to feel
+      strangely uncomfortable. It was so awfully hushed and still round about
+      him; not the scream of a bird&mdash;not even the falling of a broken bough
+      was to be heard. The pines stood in lines and in clumps, solemn, like a
+      funeral procession, shrouded in sepulchral white. Even if a crow had cawed
+      it would have been a relief to the frightened boy&mdash;for it must be
+      confessed that he was a trifle frightened&mdash;if only a little shower of
+      snow had fallen upon his head from the heavily laden branches, he would
+      have been grateful for it, for it would have broken the spell of this
+      oppressive silence.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      There could be no doubt of it; inside, under those tree-roots slept
+      Stella&rsquo;s foe&mdash;the dreaded enchanted beast who had put the boldest of
+      hunters to flight, and set lords and baronets by the ears for the
+      privilege of possessing his skin. Lars became suddenly aware that it was a
+      foolhardy thing he had undertaken, and that he had better betake himself
+      home. But then, again, had not Witch-Martha said that she had been waiting
+      for him; that he was destined by fate to accomplish this deed, just as the
+      youngest son had been in the story-book. Yes, to be sure, she had said
+      that; and it was a comforting thought.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Accordingly, having again examined his rifle, which he had carefully
+      loaded with the silver bullet before leaving home, he started boldly
+      forward, climbed up on the little hillock between the two trees, and began
+      to pound it lustily with the butt-end of his gun. He listened for a moment
+      tremulously, and heard distinctly long, heavy sighs from within.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      His heart stood still. The bear was awake! Soon he would have to face it!
+      A minute more elapsed; Lars&rsquo;s heart shot up into his throat. He leaped
+      down, placed himself in front of the entrance to the den, and cocked his
+      rifle. Three long minutes passed. Bruin had evidently gone to sleep again.
+      Wild with excitement, the boy rushed forward and drove his skee-staff
+      straight into the den with all his might. A sullen growl was heard, like a
+      deep and menacing thunder. There could be no doubt that now the monster
+      would take him to task for his impertinence.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Again the boy seized his rifle; and his nerves, though tense as stretched
+      bow-strings, seemed suddenly calm and steady. He lifted the rifle to his
+      cheek, and resolved not to shoot until he had a clear aim at heart or
+      brain. Bruin, though Lars could hear him rummaging within, was in no hurry
+      to come out, But he sighed and growled uproariously, and presently showed
+      a terrible, long-clawed paw, which he thrust out through his door and then
+      again withdrew. But apparently it took him a long while to get his mind
+      clear as to the cause of the disturbance; for fully five minutes had
+      elapsed when suddenly a big tuft of moss was tossed out upon the snow,
+      followed by a cloud of dust and an angry creaking of the tree-roots.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Great masses of snow were shaken from the swaying tops of the firs, and
+      fell with light thuds upon the ground. In the face of this unexpected
+      shower, which entirely hid the entrance to the den, Lars was obliged to
+      fall back a dozen paces; but, as the glittering drizzle cleared away, he
+      saw an enormous brown beast standing upon its hind legs, with widely
+      distended jaws. He was conscious of no fear, but of a curious numbness in
+      his limbs, and strange noises, as of warning shouts and cries, filling his
+      ears.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      Fortunately, the great glare of the sun-smitten snow dazzled Bruin; he
+      advanced slowly, roaring savagely, but staring rather blindly before him
+      out of his small, evil-looking eyes. Suddenly, when he was but a few yards
+      distant, he raised his great paw, as if to rub away the cobwebs that
+      obscured his sight.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      It was the moment for which the boy had waited. Now he had a clear aim!
+      Quickly he pulled the trigger; the shot reverberated from mountain to
+      mountain, and in the same instant the huge brown bulk rolled in the snow,
+      gave a gasp, and was dead! The spell was broken! The silver bullet had
+      pierced his heart. There was a curious unreality about the whole thing to
+      Lars. He scarcely knew whether he was really himself or the hero of the
+      fairy-tale.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      All that was left for him to do now was to go home and marry Stella, the
+      delivered princess.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      The noises about him seemed to come nearer and nearer; and now they
+      sounded like human voices. He looked about him, and to his amazement saw
+      his father and Marit, followed by two wood-cutters, who, with raised axes,
+      were running toward him. Then he did not know exactly what happened; but
+      he felt himself lifted up by two strong arms, and tears fell hot and fast
+      upon his face.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;My boy! my boy!&rdquo; said the voice in his ears, &ldquo;I expected to find you
+      dead.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;No, but the bear is dead,&rdquo; said Lars, innocently.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      &ldquo;I didn&rsquo;t mean to tell on you, Lars,&rdquo; cried Marit, &ldquo;but I was so afraid,
+      and then I had to.&rdquo;
+     </p>
+    <p>
+      The rumor soon filled the whole valley that the great Gausdale Bruin was
+      dead, and that the boy Lars Tomlevold had killed him. It is needless to
+      say that Lars Tomlevold became the parish hero from that day. He did not
+      dare to confess in the presence of all this praise and wonder that at
+      heart he was bitterly disappointed; for when he came home, throbbing with
+      wild expectancy, there stood Stella before the kitchen door, munching a
+      piece of bread; and when she hailed him with a low whinny, he burst into
+      tears. But he dared not tell any one why he was weeping.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      This story might have ended here, but it has a little sequel. The $1,750
+      which Bruin had to his credit in the bank had increased to $2,290; and it
+      was all paid to Lars. A few years later, Martin Janson, who had inherited
+      the estate of Moe from old Lars, failed in consequence of his daring
+      forest speculations, and young Lars was enabled to buy the farm at auction
+      at less than half its value. Thus he had the happiness to bring his mother
+      back to the place of her birth, of which she had been wrongfully deprived;
+      and Stella, who was now twenty-one years old, occupied once more her
+      handsome box-stall, as in the days of her glory. And although she never
+      proved to be a princess, she was treated as if she were one, during the
+      few years that remained to her.
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <a name="linknote-1" id="linknote-1">
+      <!-- Note --></a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="foot">
+      1 (<a href="#linknoteref-1">return</a>)<br /> [ In Norway confirmation is
+      always preceded by a public examination of the candidates in the aisle of
+      the church. The order in which they are arranged is supposed to indicate
+      their attainments, but does, as a rule, indicate the rank and social
+      position of their parents.]
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <a name="linknote-2" id="linknote-2">
+      <!-- Note --></a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="foot">
+      2 (<a href="#linknoteref-2">return</a>)<br /> [ Norwegian snow-shoes.]
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <a name="linknote-3" id="linknote-3">
+      <!-- Note --></a>
+    </p>
+    <p class="foot">
+      3 (<a href="#linknoteref-3">return</a>)<br /> [ The genius of cattle,
+      represented as a beautiful maiden disfigured by a heifer&rsquo;s tail, which she
+      is always trying to hide, though often unsuccessfully.]
+    </p>
+    <p>
+      <br /><br />
+    </p>
+<pre xml:space="preserve">
+
+
+
+
+
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+</pre>
+  </body>
+</html>
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+The Project Gutenberg EBook of Boyhood in Norway, by Hjalmar Hjorth Boyesen
+
+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: Boyhood in Norway
+
+Author: Hjalmar Hjorth Boyesen
+
+Posting Date: July 23, 2008 [EBook #784]
+Release Date: January, 1997
+
+Language: English
+
+Character set encoding: ASCII
+
+*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK BOYHOOD IN NORWAY ***
+
+
+
+
+Produced by Charles Keller
+
+
+
+
+
+BOYHOOD IN NORWAY
+
+Stories Of Boy-Life In The Land Of The Midnight Sun
+
+By Hjalmar Hjorth Boyesen
+
+
+
+
+CONTENTS
+
+     THE BATTLE OF THE RAFTS
+     THE CLASH OF ARMS
+     BICEPS GRIMLUND'S CHRISTMAS VACATION
+     THE NIXY'S STRAIN
+     THE WONDER CHILD
+     "THE SONS OF THE VIKINGS"
+     PAUL JESPERSEN'S MASQUERADE
+     LADY CLARE  THE STORY OF A HORSE
+     BONNYBOY
+     THE CHILD OF LUCK
+     THE BEAR THAT HAD A BANK ACCOUNT
+
+
+
+
+
+THE BATTLE OF THE RAFTS
+
+
+
+
+I. THE ORIGIN OF THE WAR
+
+A deadly feud was raging among the boys of Numedale. The East-Siders
+hated the West-Siders, and thrashed them when they got a chance; and
+the West-Siders, when fortune favored them, returned the compliment
+with interest. It required considerable courage for a boy to venture,
+unattended by comrades, into the territory of the enemy; and no one took
+the risk unless dire necessity compelled him.
+
+The hostile parties had played at war so long that they had forgotten
+that it was play; and now were actually inspired with the emotions which
+they had formerly simulated. Under the leadership of their chieftains,
+Halvor Reitan and Viggo Hook, they held councils of war, sent out
+scouts, planned midnight surprises, and fought at times mimic battles. I
+say mimic battles, because no one was ever killed; but broken heads
+and bruised limbs many a one carried home from these engagements, and
+unhappily one boy, named Peer Oestmo, had an eye put out by an arrow.
+
+It was a great consolation to him that he became a hero to all the
+West-Siders and was promoted for bravery in the field to the rank of
+first lieutenant. He had the sympathy of all his companions in arms and
+got innumerable bites of apples, cancelled postage stamps, and colored
+advertising-labels in token of their esteem.
+
+But the principal effect of this first serious wound was to invest the
+war with a breathless and all-absorbing interest. It was now no longer
+"make believe," but deadly earnest. Blood had flowed; insults had been
+exchanged in due order, and offended honor cried for vengeance.
+
+It was fortunate that the river divided the West-Siders from the
+East-Siders, or it would have been difficult to tell what might
+have happened. Viggo Hook, the West-Side general, was a handsome,
+high-spirited lad of fifteen, who was the last person to pocket an
+injury, as long as red blood flowed in his veins, as he was wont to
+express it. He was the eldest son of Colonel Hook of the regular army,
+and meant some day to be a Von Moltke or a Napoleon. He felt in his
+heart that he was destined for something great; and in conformity with
+this conviction assumed a superb behavior, which his comrades found very
+admirable.
+
+He had the gift of leadership in a marked degree, and established his
+authority by a due mixture of kindness and severity. Those boys whom he
+honored with his confidence were absolutely attached to him. Those whom,
+with magnificent arbitrariness, he punished and persecuted, felt meekly
+that they had probably deserved it; and if they had not, it was somehow
+in the game.
+
+There never was a more absolute king than Viggo, nor one more abjectly
+courted and admired. And the amusing part of it was that he was at heart
+a generous and good-natured lad, but possessed with a lofty ideal of
+heroism, which required above all things that whatever he said or did
+must be striking. He dramatized, as it were, every phrase he uttered and
+every act he performed, and modelled himself alternately after Napoleon
+and Wellington, as he had seen them represented in the old engravings
+which decorated the walls in his father's study.
+
+He had read much about heroes of war, ancient and modern, and he lived
+about half his own life imagining himself by turns all sorts of grand
+characters from history or fiction.
+
+His costume was usually in keeping with his own conception of these
+characters, in so far as his scanty opportunities permitted. An old,
+broken sword of his father's, which had been polished until it "flashed"
+properly, was girded to a brass-mounted belt about his waist; an
+ancient, gold-braided, military cap, which was much too large, covered
+his curly head; and four tarnished brass buttons, displaying the Golden
+Lion of Norway, gave a martial air to his blue jacket, although the rest
+were plain horn.
+
+But quite independently of his poor trappings Viggo was to his comrades
+an august personage. I doubt if the Grand Vizier feels more flattered
+and gratified by the favor of the Sultan than little Marcus Henning did,
+when Viggo condescended to be civil to him.
+
+Marcus was small, round-shouldered, spindle-shanked, and freckle-faced.
+His hair was coarse, straight, and the color of maple sirup; his nose
+was broad and a little flattened at the point, and his clothes had a
+knack of never fitting him. They were made to grow in and somehow he
+never caught up with them, he once said, with no intention of being
+funny. His father, who was Colonel Hook's nearest neighbor, kept a
+modest country shop, in which you could buy anything, from dry goods and
+groceries to shoes and medicines. You would have to be very ingenious to
+ask for a thing which Henning could not supply. The smell in the store
+carried out the same idea; for it was a mixture of all imaginable smells
+under the sun.
+
+Now, it was the chief misery of Marcus that, sleeping, as he did, in the
+room behind the store, he had become so impregnated with this curious
+composite smell that it followed him like an odoriferous halo, and
+procured him a number of unpleasant nicknames. The principal ingredient
+was salted herring; but there was also a suspicion of tarred ropes, plug
+tobacco, prunes, dried codfish, and oiled tarpaulin.
+
+It was not so much kindness of heart as respect for his own dignity
+which made Viggo refrain from calling Marcus a "Muskrat" or a
+"Smelling-Bottle." And yet Marcus regarded this gracious forbearance on
+his part as the mark of a noble soul. He had been compelled to accept
+these offensive nicknames, and, finding rebellion vain, he had finally
+acquiesced in them.
+
+He never loved to be called a "Muskrat," though he answered to the name
+mechanically. But when Viggo addressed him as "base minion," in his
+wrath, or as "Sergeant Henning," in his sunnier moods, Marcus felt
+equally complimented by both terms, and vowed in his grateful soul
+eternal allegiance and loyalty to his chief.
+
+He bore kicks and cuffs with the same admirable equanimity; never
+complained when he was thrown into a dungeon in a deserted pigsty for
+breaches of discipline of which he was entirely guiltless, and trudged
+uncomplainingly through rain and sleet and snow, as scout or spy, or
+what-not, at the behest of his exacting commander.
+
+It was all so very real to him that he never would have thought of
+doubting the importance of his mission. He was rather honored by the
+trust reposed in him, and was only intent upon earning a look or word of
+scant approval from the superb personage whom he worshipped.
+
+Halvor Reitan, the chief of the East-Siders, was a big, burly peasant
+lad, with a pimpled face, fierce blue eyes, and a shock of towy hair.
+But he had muscles as hard as twisted ropes, and sinews like steel.
+
+He had the reputation, of which he was very proud, of being the
+strongest boy in the valley, and though he was scarcely sixteen years
+old, he boasted that he could whip many a one of twice his years. He
+had, in fact, been so praised for his strength that he never neglected
+to accept, or even to create, opportunities for displaying it.
+
+His manner was that of a bully; but it was vanity and not malice which
+made him always spoil for a fight. He and Viggo Hook had attended
+the parson's "Confirmation Class," together, and it was there their
+hostility had commenced.
+
+Halvor, who conceived a dislike of the tall, rather dainty, and
+disdainful Viggo, with his aquiline nose and clear, aristocratic
+features, determined, as he expressed it, to take him down a peg or two;
+and the more his challenges were ignored the more persistent he grew in
+his insults.
+
+He dubbed Viggo "Missy." He ran against him with such violence in the
+hall that he knocked his head against the wainscoting; he tripped him up
+on the stairs by means of canes and sticks; and he hired his partisans
+who sat behind Viggo to stick pins into him, while he recited his
+lessons. And when all these provocations proved unavailing he determined
+to dispense with any pretext, but simply thrash his enemy within an inch
+of his life at the first opportunity which presented itself. He grew to
+hate Viggo and was always aching to molest him.
+
+Halvor saw plainly enough that Viggo despised him, and refused to notice
+his challenges, not so much because he was afraid of him, as because he
+regarded himself as a superior being who could afford to ignore insults
+from an inferior, without loss of dignity.
+
+During recess the so-called "genteel boys," who had better clothes and
+better manners than the peasant lads, separated themselves from the
+rest, and conversed or played with each other. No one will wonder
+that such behavior was exasperating to the poorer boys. I am far from
+defending Viggo's behavior in this instance. He was here, as everywhere,
+the acknowledged leader; and therefore more cordially hated than the
+rest. It was the Roundhead hating the Cavalier; and the Cavalier making
+merry at the expense of the Roundhead.
+
+There was only one boy in the Confirmation Class who was doubtful as to
+what camp should claim him, and that was little Marcus Henning. He was
+a kind of amphibious animal who, as he thought, really belonged
+nowhere. His father was of peasant origin, but by his prosperity and his
+occupation had risen out of the class to which he was formerly attached,
+without yet rising into the ranks of the gentry, who now, as always,
+looked with scorn upon interlopers. Thus it came to pass that little
+Marcus, whose inclinations drew him toward Viggo's party, was yet forced
+to associate with the partisans of Halvor Reitan.
+
+It was not a vulgar ambition "to pretend to be better than he was" which
+inspired Marcus with a desire to change his allegiance, but a deep,
+unreasoning admiration for Viggo Hook. He had never seen any one who
+united so many superb qualities, nor one who looked every inch as noble
+as he did.
+
+It did not discourage him in the least that his first approaches met
+with no cordial reception. His offer to communicate to Viggo where there
+was a hawk's nest was coolly declined, and even the attractions of fox
+dens and rabbits' burrows were valiantly resisted. Better luck he had
+with a pair of fan-tail pigeons, his most precious treasure, which Viggo
+rather loftily consented to accept, for, like most genteel boys in the
+valley, he was an ardent pigeon-fancier, and had long vainly importuned
+his father to procure him some of the rarer breeds.
+
+He condescended to acknowledge Marcus's greeting after that, and to
+respond to his diffident "Good-morning" and "Good-evening," and Marcus
+was duly grateful for such favors. He continued to woo his idol with
+raisins and ginger-snaps from the store, and other delicate attentions,
+and bore the snubs which often fell to his lot with humility and
+patience.
+
+But an event soon occurred which was destined to change the relations
+of the two boys. Halvor Reitan called a secret meeting of his partisans,
+among whom he made the mistake to include Marcus, and agreed with them
+to lie in ambush at the bend of the road, where it entered the forest,
+and attack Viggo Hook and his followers. Then, he observed, he would
+"make him dance a jig that would take the starch out of him."
+
+The others declared that this would be capital fun, and enthusiastically
+promised their assistance. Each one selected his particular antipathy to
+thrash, though all showed a marked preference for Viggo, whom, however,
+for reason of politeness, they were obliged to leave to the chief. Only
+one boy sat silent, and made no offer to thrash anybody, and that was
+Marcus Henning.
+
+"Well, Muskrat," cried Halvor Reitan, "whom are you going to take on
+your conscience?"
+
+"No one," said Marcus.
+
+"Put the Muskrat in your pocket, Halvor," suggested one of the boys; "he
+is so small, and he has got such a hard bullet head, you might use him
+as a club."
+
+"Well, one thing is sure," shouted Halvor, as a dark suspicion shot
+through his brain, "if you don't keep mum, you will be a mighty sick
+coon the day after to-morrow."
+
+Marcus made no reply, but got up quietly, pulled a rubber sling from
+his pocket, and began, with the most indifferent manner in the world,
+to shoot stones down the river. He managed during this exercise, which
+everybody found perfectly natural, to get out of the crowd, and, without
+seeming to have any purpose whatever, he continued to put a couple of
+hundred yards between himself and his companion.
+
+"Look a-here, Muskrat," he heard Halvor cry, "you promised to keep mum."
+
+Marcus, instead of answering, took to his heels and ran.
+
+"Boys, the scoundrel is going to betray us!" screamed the chief. "Now
+come, boys! We've got to catch him, dead or alive."
+
+A volley of stones, big and little, was hurled after the fugitive, who
+now realizing his position ran for dear life. The stones hailed down
+round about him; occasionally one vicious missile would whiz past his
+ear, and send a cold shudder through him. The tramp of his pursuers
+sounded nearer and nearer, and his one chance of escape was to throw
+himself into the only boat, which he saw on this side of the river, and
+push out into the stream before he was overtaken.
+
+He had his doubts as to whether he could accomplish this, for the blood
+rushed and roared in his ears, the hill-side billowed under his feet,
+and it seemed as if the trees were all running a race in the opposite
+direction, in order to betray him to his enemies.
+
+A stone gave him a thump in the back, but though he felt a gradual heat
+spreading from the spot which it hit, he was conscious of no pain.
+
+Presently a larger missile struck him in the neck, and he heard a
+breathless snorting close behind him. That was the end; he gave himself
+up for lost, for those boys would have no mercy on him if they captured
+him.
+
+But in the next moment he heard a fall and an oath, and the voice was
+that of Halvor Reitan. He breathed a little more freely as he saw the
+river run with its swelling current at his feet. Quite mechanically,
+without clearly knowing what he did, he sprang into the boat, grabbed
+a boat-hook, and with three strong strokes pushed himself out into the
+deep water.
+
+At that instant a dozen of his pursuers reached the river bank, and
+he saw dimly their angry faces and threatening gestures, and heard the
+stones drop into the stream about him. Fortunately the river was partly
+dammed, in order to accumulate water for the many saw-mills under the
+falls. It would therefore have been no very difficult feat to paddle
+across, if his aching arms had had an atom of strength left in them. As
+soon as he was beyond the reach of flying stones he seated himself in
+the stern, took an oar, and after having bathed his throbbing forehead
+in the cold water, managed, in fifteen minutes, to make the further
+bank. Then he dragged himself wearily up the hill-side to Colonel Hook's
+mansion, and when he had given his message to Viggo, fell into a dead
+faint.
+
+How could Viggo help being touched by such devotion? He had seen the
+race through a fieldglass from his pigeon-cot, but had been unable to
+make out its meaning, nor had he remotely dreamed that he was himself
+the cause of the cruel chase. He called his mother, who soon perceived
+that Marcus's coat was saturated with blood in the back, and undressing
+him, she found that a stone, hurled by a sling, had struck him, slid a
+few inches along the rib, and had lodged in the fleshy part of his left
+side.
+
+A doctor was now sent for; the stone was cut out without difficulty,
+and Marcus was invited to remain as Viggo's guest until he recovered.
+He felt so honored by this invitation that he secretly prayed he might
+remain ill for a month; but the wound showed an abominable readiness to
+heal, and before three days were past Marcus could not feign any ailment
+which his face and eye did not belie.
+
+He then, with a heavy heart, betook himself homeward, and installed
+himself once more among his accustomed smells behind the store, and
+pondered sadly on the caprice of the fate which had made Viggo a
+high-nosed, handsome gentleman, and him--Marcus Henning--an under-grown,
+homely, and unrefined drudge. But in spite of his failure to answer this
+question, there was joy within him at the thought that he had saved
+this handsome face of Viggo's from disfigurement, and--who could
+know?--perhaps would earn a claim upon his gratitude.
+
+It was this series of incidents which led to the war between the
+East-Siders and the West-Siders. It was a mere accident that the
+partisans of Viggo Hook lived on the west side of the river, and those
+of Halvor Reitan mostly on the east side.
+
+Viggo, who had a chivalrous sense of fair play, would never have
+molested any one without good cause; but now his own safety, and, as he
+persuaded himself, even his life, was in danger, and he had no choice
+but to take measures in self-defence. He surrounded himself with a
+trusty body-guard, which attended him wherever he went. He sent little
+Marcus, in whom he recognized his most devoted follower, as scout into
+the enemy's territory, and swelled his importance enormously by lending
+him his field-glass to assist him in his perilous observations.
+
+Occasionally an unhappy East-Sider was captured on the west bank of the
+river, court-martialed, and, with much solemnity, sentenced to death as
+a spy, but paroled for an indefinite period, until it should suit his
+judges to execute the sentence. The East-Siders, when they captured a
+West-Sider, went to work with less ceremony; they simply thrashed their
+captive soundly and let him run, if run he could.
+
+Thus months passed. The parson's Confirmation Class ceased, and both the
+opposing chieftains were confirmed on the same day; but Viggo stood at
+the head of the candidates, while Halvor had his place at the bottom. [1]
+
+During the following winter the war was prosecuted with much zeal, and
+the West-Siders, in imitation of Robin Hood and his Merry Men, armed
+themselves with cross-bows, and lay in ambush in the underbrush, aiming
+their swift arrows against any intruder who ventured to cross the river.
+
+Nearly all the boys in the valley between twelve and sixteen became
+enlisted on the one side or the other, and there were councils of war,
+marches, and counter-marches without number, occasional skirmishes, but
+no decisive engagements. Peer Oestmo, to be sure, had his eye put out by
+an arrow, as has already been related, for the East-Siders were not slow
+to imitate the example of their enemies, in becoming expert archers.
+
+Marcus Henning was captured by a hostile outpost, and was being
+conducted to the abode of the chief, when, by a clever stratagem, he
+succeeded in making his escape.
+
+The East-Siders despatched, under a flag of truce, a most insulting
+caricature of General Viggo, representing him as a rooster that seemed
+on the point of bursting with an excess of dignity.
+
+These were the chief incidents of the winter, though there were many
+others of less consequence that served to keep the boys in a delightful
+state of excitement. They enjoyed the war keenly, though they pretended
+to themselves that they were being ill-used and suffered terrible
+hardships. They grumbled at their duties, brought complaints against
+their officers to the general, and did, in fact, all the things that
+real soldiers would have been likely to do under similar circumstances.
+
+
+
+
+II. THE CLASH OF ARMS
+
+When the spring is late in Norway, and the heat comes with a sudden
+rush, the mountain streams plunge with a tremendous noise down into the
+valleys, and the air is filled far and near with the boom and roar of
+rushing waters. The glaciers groan, and send their milk-white torrents
+down toward the ocean. The snow-patches in the forest glens look gray
+and soiled, and the pines perspire a delicious resinous odor which
+cheers the soul with the conviction that spring has come.
+
+But the peasant looks anxiously at the sun and the river at such times,
+for he knows that there is danger of inundation. The lumber, which
+the spring floods set afloat in enormous quantities, is carried by the
+rivers to the cities by the sea; there it is sorted according to
+the mark it bears, showing the proprietor, and exported to foreign
+countries.
+
+In order to prevent log-jams, which are often attended with terrible
+disasters, men are stationed night and day at the narrows of the rivers.
+The boys, to whom all excitement is welcome, are apt to congregate in
+large numbers at such places, assisting or annoying the watchers, riding
+on the logs, or teasing the girls who stand up on the hillside, admiring
+the daring feats of the lumbermen.
+
+It was on such a spring day, when the air was pungent with the smell
+of sprouting birch and pine, that General Viggo and his trusty army
+had betaken themselves to the cataract to share in the sport. They were
+armed with their bows, as usual, knowing that they were always liable
+to be surprised by their vigilant enemy. Nor were they in this instance
+disappointed, for Halvor Reitan, with fifty or sixty followers, was
+presently visible on the east side, and it was a foregone conclusion
+that if they met there would be a battle.
+
+The river, to be sure, separated them, but the logs were at times so
+densely packed that it was possible for a daring lad to run far out into
+the river, shoot his arrow and return to shore, leaping from log to log.
+The Reitan party was the first to begin this sport, and an arrow hit
+General Viggo's hat before he gave orders to repel the assault.
+
+Cool and dignified as he was, he could not consent to skip and jump
+on the slippery logs, particularly as he had no experience in this
+difficult exercise, while the enemy apparently had much. Paying no heed
+to the jeers of the lumbermen, who supposed he was afraid, he drew his
+troops up in line and addressed them as follows:
+
+"Soldiers: You have on many previous occasions given me proof of your
+fidelity to duty and your brave and fearless spirit. I know that I can,
+now as always, trust you to shed glory upon our arms, and to maintain
+our noble fame and honorable traditions.
+
+"The enemy is before us. You have heard and seen his challenge. It
+behooves us to respond gallantly. To jump and skip like rabbits is
+unmilitary and unsoldierlike. I propose that each of us shall select two
+large logs, tie them together, procure, if possible, a boat-hook or an
+oar, and, sitting astride the logs, boldly push out into the river. If
+we can advance in a tolerably even line, which I think quite possible,
+we can send so deadly a charge into the ranks of our adversaries that
+they will be compelled to flee. Then we will land on the east side,
+occupy the heights, and rout our foe.
+
+"Now let each man do his duty. Forward, march!"
+
+The lumbermen, whose sympathies were with the East-Siders, found this
+performance highly diverting, but Viggo allowed himself in nowise to be
+disturbed by their laughter or jeers. He marched his troops down to
+the river-front, commanded "Rest arms!" and repeated once more his
+instructions; then, flinging off his coat and waistcoat, he seized a
+boat-hook and ran some hundred yards along the bank of the stream.
+
+The river-bed was here expanded to a wide basin, in which the logs
+floated lazily down to the cataract below. Trees and underbrush, which
+usually stood on dry land, were half-submerged in the yellow water,
+and the current gurgled slowly about their trunks with muddy foam and
+bubbles. Now and then a heap of lumber would get wedged in between the
+jutting rocks above the waterfall, and then the current slackened, only
+to be suddenly accelerated, when the exertions of the men had again
+removed the obstruction.
+
+It was an exciting spectacle to see these daring fellows leap from log
+to log, with birch-bark shoes on their feet. They would ride on a heap
+of lumber down to the very edge of the cataract, dexterously jump off
+at the critical moment, and after half a dozen narrow escapes, reach
+the shore, only to repeat the dangerous experiment, as soon as the next
+opportunity offered itself.
+
+It was the example of these hardy and agile lumbermen, trained from
+childhood to sport with danger, which inspired Viggo and his followers
+with a desire to show their mettle.
+
+"Sergeant Henning," said the General to his ever-faithful shadow, "take
+a squad of five men with you, and cut steering-poles for those for whom
+boat-hooks cannot be procured. You will be the last to leave shore.
+Report to me if any one fails to obey orders."
+
+"Shall be done, General," Marcus responded, with a deferential military
+salute.
+
+"The bows, you understand, will be slung by the straps across the backs
+of the men, while they steer and push with their poles."
+
+"Certainly, General," said Marcus, with another salute.
+
+"You may go."
+
+"All right, General," answered Marcus, with a third salute.
+
+And now began the battle. The East-Siders, fearing that a stratagem was
+intended, when they saw the enemy moving up the stream, made haste to
+follow their example, capturing on their way every stray log that came
+along. They sent ineffectual showers of arrows into the water, while the
+brave General Viggo, striding two big logs which he had tied together
+with a piece of rope, and with a boat-hook in his hand, pushed proudly
+at the head of his army into the middle of the wide basin.
+
+Halvor Reitan was clever enough to see what it meant, and he was not
+going to allow the West-Siders to gain the heights above him, and attack
+him in the rear. He meant to prevent the enemy from landing, or, still
+better, he would meet him half-way, and drive him back to his own shore.
+
+The latter, though not the wiser course, was the plan which Halvor
+Reitan adopted. To have a tussle with the high-nosed Viggo in the middle
+of the basin, to dislodge him from his raft--that seemed to Halvor a
+delightful project. He knew that Viggo was a good swimmer, so he
+feared no dangerous consequences; and even if he had, it would not have
+restrained him. He was so much stronger than Viggo, and here was his
+much-longed-for opportunity.
+
+With great despatch he made himself a raft of two logs, and seating
+himself astride them, with his legs in the water, put off from shore. He
+shouted to his men to follow him, and they needed no urging. Viggo was
+now near the middle of the basin, with twenty or thirty picked archers
+close behind him. They fired volley after volley of arrows against the
+enemy, and twice drove him back to the shore.
+
+But Halvor Reitan, shielding his face with a piece of bark which he had
+picked up, pushed forward in spite of their onslaught, though one arrow
+knocked off his red-peaked cap, and another scratched his ear. Now he
+was but a dozen feet from his foe. He cared little for his bow now; the
+boat-hook was a far more effectual weapon.
+
+Viggo saw at a glance that he meant to pull his raft toward him, and,
+relying upon his greater strength, fling him into the water.
+
+His first plan would therefore be to fence with his own boat-hook, so as
+to keep his antagonist at a distance.
+
+When Halvor made the first lunge at the nose of his raft, he foiled the
+attempt with his own weapon, and managed dexterously to give the hostile
+raft a downward push, which increased the distance between them.
+
+"Take care, General!" said a respectful voice close to Viggo's ear.
+"There is a small log jam down below, which is getting bigger every
+moment. When it is got afloat, it will be dangerous out here."
+
+"What are you doing here, Sergeant?" asked the General, severely. "Did I
+not tell you to be the last to leave the shore?"
+
+"You did, General," Marcus replied, meekly, "and I obeyed. But I have
+pushed to the front so as to be near you."
+
+"I don't need you, Sergeant," Viggo responded, "you may go to the rear."
+
+The booming of the cataract nearly drowned his voice and Marcus
+pretended not to hear it. A huge lumber mass was piling itself up among
+the rocks jutting out of the rapids, and a dozen men hanging like flies
+on the logs, sprang up and down with axes in their hands. They cut one
+log here and another there; shouted commands; and fell into the river
+amid the derisive jeers of the spectators; they scrambled out again and,
+dripping wet, set to work once more with a cheerful heart, to the mighty
+music of the cataract, whose thundering rhythm trembled and throbbed in
+the air.
+
+The boys who were steering their rafts against each other in the
+comparatively placid basin were too absorbed in their mimic battle to
+heed what was going on below. Halvor and Viggo were fighting desperately
+with their boat-hooks, the one attacking and the other defending himself
+with great dexterity. They scarcely perceived, in their excitement, that
+the current was dragging them slowly toward the cataract; nor did they
+note the warning cries of the men and women on the banks.
+
+Viggo's blood was hot, his temples throbbed, his eyes flashed. He would
+show this miserable clown who had dared to insult him, that the trained
+skill of a gentleman is worth more than the rude strength of a bully.
+With beautiful precision he foiled every attack; struck Halvor's
+boat-hook up and down, so that the water splashed about him, manoeuvring
+at the same time his own raft with admirable adroitness.
+
+Cheer upon cheer rent the air, after each of his successful sallies,
+and his comrades, selecting their antagonists from among the enemy, now
+pressed forward, all eager to bear their part in the fray.
+
+Splash! splash! splash! one East-Sider was dismounted, got an
+involuntary bath, but scrambled up on his raft again. The next time it
+was a West-Sider who got a ducking, but seemed none the worse for it.
+There was a yelling and a cheering, now from one side and now from the
+other, which made everyone forget that something was going on at that
+moment of greater importance than the mimic warfare of boys.
+
+All the interest of the contending parties was concentrated on the duel
+of their chieftains. It seemed now really that Halvor was getting the
+worst of it. He could not get close enough to use his brawny muscles;
+and in precision of aim and adroitness of movement he was not Viggo's
+match.
+
+Again and again he thrust his long-handled boat-hook angrily against the
+bottom (for the flooded parts of the banks were very shallow), to push
+the raft forward, but every time Viggo managed to turn it sideward, and
+Halvor had to exert all his presence of mind to keep his seat. Wild with
+rage he sprang up on his slender raft and made a vicious lunge at his
+opponent, who warded the blow with such force that the handle of the
+boat-hook broke, and Halvor lost his balance and fell into the water.
+
+At this same instant a tremendous crash was heard from below, followed
+by a long rumble as of mighty artillery. A scream of horror went up
+from the banks, as the great lumber mass rolled down into the cataract,
+making a sudden suction which it seemed impossible that the unhappy boys
+could resist.
+
+The majority of both sides, seeing their danger, beat, by means of their
+boat-hooks, a hasty retreat, and as they were in shallow water were
+hauled ashore by the lumbermen, who sprang into the river to save them.
+
+When the clouds of spray had cleared away, only three figures were
+visible. Viggo, still astride of his raft, was fighting, not for his own
+life, but for that of his enemy, Halvor, who was struggling helplessly
+in the white rapids. Close behind his commander stood little Marcus on
+his raft, holding on, with one hand to the boat-hook which he had hewn,
+with all his might, into Viggo's raft, and with the other grasping the
+branch of a half-submerged tree.
+
+"Save yourself, General!" he yelled, wildly. "Let go there. I can't hold
+on much longer."
+
+But Viggo did not heed. He saw nothing but the pale, frightened face
+of his antagonist, who might lose his life. With a desperate effort he
+flung his boat-hook toward him and succeeded this time in laying hold
+of the leather girdle about his waist. One hundred feet below yawned the
+foaming, weltering abyss, from which the white smoke ascended. If Marcus
+lost his grip, if the branch snapped no human power could save them;
+they were all dead men.
+
+By this time the people on the shore had discovered that three lives
+were hanging on the brink of eternity. Twenty men had waded waist-deep
+into the current and had flung a stout rope to the noble little fellow
+who was risking his own life for his friend.
+
+"Keep your hold, my brave lad!" they cried; "hold on another minute!"
+
+"Grab the rope!" screamed others.
+
+Marcus clinched his teeth, and his numb arms trembled, mist gathered
+in his eyes--his heart stood still. But with a clutch that seemed
+superhuman he held on. He had but one thought--Viggo, his chief! Viggo,
+his idol! Viggo, his general! He must save him or die with him. One end
+of the rope was hanging on the branch and was within easy reach; but he
+did not venture to seize it, lest the wrench caused by his motion might
+detach his hold on Viggo's raft.
+
+Viggo, who just now was pulling Halvor out of the water, saw in an
+instant that he had by adding his weight to the raft, increased the
+chance of both being carried to their death. With quick resolution he
+plunged the beak of his own boat-hook into Marcus's raft, and shouted to
+Halvor to save himself. The latter, taking in the situation at a glance,
+laid hold of the handle of the boat-hook and together they pulled up
+alongside of Marcus and leaped aboard his raft, whereupon Viggo's raft
+drifted downward and vanished in a flash in the yellow torrent.
+
+At that very instant Marcus's strength gave out; he relaxed his grip on
+the branch, which slid out of his hand, and they would inevitably have
+darted over the brink of the cataract if Viggo had not, with great
+adroitness, snatched the rope from the branch of the half-submerged
+tree.
+
+A wild shout, half a cheer, half a cry of relief, went up from the
+banks, as the raft with the three lads was slowly hauled toward the
+shore by the lumbermen who had thrown the rope.
+
+Halvor Reitan was the first to step ashore. But no joyous welcome
+greeted him from those whose sympathies had, a little while ago, been
+all on his side. He hung around uneasily for some minutes, feeling
+perhaps that he ought to say something to Viggo who had saved his life,
+but as he could not think of anything which did not seem foolish, he
+skulked away unnoticed toward the edge of the forest.
+
+But when Viggo stepped ashore, carrying the unconscious Marcus in his
+arms, how the crowd rushed forward to gaze at him, to press his hands,
+to call down God's blessing upon him! He had never imagined that he was
+such a hero. It was Marcus, not he, to whom their ovation was due. But
+poor Marcus--it was well for him that he had fainted from over-exertion;
+for otherwise he would have fainted from embarrassment at the honors
+which would have been showered upon him.
+
+The West-Siders, marching two abreast, with their bows slung across
+their shoulders, escorted their general home, cheering and shouting as
+they went. When they were half-way up the hillside, Marcus opened his
+eyes, and finding himself so close to his beloved general, blushed
+crimson, scarlet, and purple, and all the other shades that an
+embarrassed blush is capable of assuming.
+
+"Please, General," he stammered, "don't bother about me."
+
+Viggo had thought of making a speech exalting the heroism of his
+faithful follower. But he saw at a glance that his praise would be more
+grateful to Marcus, if he received it in private.
+
+When, however, the boys gave him a parting cheer, in front of his
+father's mansion, he forgot his resolution, leaped up on the steps, and
+lifting the blushing Marcus above his head; called out:
+
+"Three cheers for the bravest boy in Norway!"
+
+
+
+
+BICEPS GRIMLUND'S CHRISTMAS VACATION
+
+
+
+
+I.
+
+The great question which Albert Grimlund was debating was fraught
+with unpleasant possibilities. He could not go home for the Christmas
+vacation, for his father lived in Drontheim, which is so far away from
+Christiania that it was scarcely worth while making the journey for
+a mere two-weeks' holiday. Then, on the other hand, he had an old
+great-aunt who lived but a few miles from the city. She had, from
+conscientious motives, he feared, sent him an invitation to pass
+Christmas with her. But Albert had a poor opinion of Aunt Elsbeth.
+He thought her a very tedious person. She had a dozen cats, talked
+of nothing but sermons and lessons, and asked him occasionally, with
+pleasant humor, whether he got many whippings at school. She failed to
+comprehend that a boy could not amuse himself forever by looking at
+the pictures in the old family Bible, holding yarn, and listening to
+oft-repeated stories, which he knew by heart, concerning the doings and
+sayings of his grandfather. Aunt Elsbeth, after a previous experience
+with her nephew, had come to regard boys as rather a reprehensible kind
+of animal, who differed in many of their ways from girls, and altogether
+to the boys' disadvantage.
+
+Now, the prospect of being "caged" for two weeks with this estimable
+lady was, as I said, not at all pleasant to Albert. He was sixteen years
+old, loved out-door sports, and had no taste for cats. His chief pride
+was his muscle, and no boy ever made his acquaintance without being
+invited to feel the size and hardness of his biceps. This was a standing
+joke in the Latin school, and Albert was generally known among his
+companions as "Biceps" Grimlund. He was not very tall for his age, but
+broad-shouldered and deep-chested, with something in his glance, his
+gait, and his manners which showed that he had been born and bred near
+the sea. He cultivated a weather-beaten complexion, and was particularly
+proud when the skin "peeled" on his nose, which it usually did in the
+summer-time, during his visits to his home in the extreme north. Like
+most blond people, when sunburnt, he was red, not brown; and this became
+a source of great satisfaction when he learned that Lord Nelson had
+the same peculiarity. Albert's favorite books were the sea romances of
+Captain Marryat, whose "Peter Simple" and "Midshipman Easy" he held to
+be the noblest products of human genius. It was a bitter disappointment
+to him that his father forbade his going to sea and was educating him
+to be a "landlubber," which he had been taught by his boy associates to
+regard as the most contemptible thing on earth.
+
+Two days before Christmas, Biceps Grimlund was sitting in his room,
+looking gloomily out of the window. He wished to postpone as long as
+possible his departure for Aunt Elsbeth's country-place, for he foresaw
+that both he and she were doomed to a surfeit of each other's company
+during the coming fortnight. At last he heaved a deep sigh and languidly
+began to pack his trunk. He had just disposed the dear Marryat books on
+top of his starched shirts, when he heard rapid footsteps on the stairs,
+and the next moment the door burst open, and his classmate, Ralph Hoyer,
+rushed breathlessly into the room.
+
+"Biceps," he cried, "look at this! Here is a letter from my father, and
+he tells me to invite one of my classmates to come home with me for the
+vacation. Will you come? Oh, we shall have grand times, I tell you! No
+end of fun!"
+
+Albert, instead of answering, jumped up and danced a jig on the floor,
+upsetting two chairs and breaking the wash-pitcher.
+
+"Hurrah!" he cried, "I'm your man. Shake hands on it, Ralph! You have
+saved me from two weeks of cats and yarn and moping! Give us your paw! I
+never was so glad to see anybody in all my life."
+
+And to prove it, he seized Ralph by the shoulders, gave him a vigorous
+whirl and forced him to join in the dance.
+
+"Now, stop your nonsense," Ralph protested, laughing; "if you have so
+much strength to waste, wait till we are at home in Solheim, and you'll
+have a chance to use it profitably."
+
+Albert flung himself down on his old rep-covered sofa. It seemed to
+have some internal disorder, for its springs rattled and a vague musical
+twang indicated that something or other had snapped. It had seen much
+maltreatment, that poor old piece of furniture, and bore visible marks
+of it. When, after various exhibitions of joy, their boisterous delight
+had quieted down, both boys began to discuss their plans for the
+vacation.
+
+"But I fear my groom may freeze, down there in the street," Ralph
+ejaculated, cutting short the discussion; "it is bitter cold, and he
+can't leave the horses. Hurry up, now, old man, and I'll help you pack."
+
+It did not take them long to complete the packing. Albert sent a
+telegram to his father, asking permission to accept Ralph's invitation;
+but, knowing well that the reply would be favorable, did not think
+it necessary to wait for it. With the assistance of his friend he
+now wrapped himself in two overcoats, pulled a pair of thick woollen
+stockings over the outside of his boots and a pair of fur-lined
+top-boots outside of these, girded himself with three long scarfs, and
+pulled his brown otter-skin cap down over his ears. He was nearly
+as broad as he was long, when he had completed these operations, and
+descended into the street where the big double-sleigh (made in the shape
+of a huge white swan) was awaiting them. They now called at Ralph's
+lodgings, whence he presently emerged in a similar Esquimau costume,
+wearing a wolf-skin coat which left nothing visible except the tip of
+his nose and the steam of his breath. Then they started off merrily with
+jingling bells, and waved a farewell toward many a window, wherein were
+friends and acquaintances. They felt in so jolly a mood, that they could
+not help shouting their joy in the face of all the world, and crowing
+over all poor wretches who were left to spend the holidays in the city.
+
+
+
+
+II.
+
+Solheim was about twenty miles from the city, and it was nine o'clock in
+the evening when the boys arrived there. The moon was shining brightly,
+and the Milky Way, with its myriad stars, looked like a luminous mist
+across the vault of the sky. The aurora borealis swept down from the
+north with white and pink radiations which flushed the dark blue sky for
+an instant, and vanished. The earth was white, as far as the eye could
+reach--splendidly, dazzlingly white. And out of the white radiance rose
+the great dark pile of masonry called Solheim, with its tall chimneys
+and dormer-windows and old-fashioned gables. Round about stood the tall
+leafless maples and chestnut-trees, sparkling with frost and stretching
+their gaunt arms against the heavens. The two horses, when they swung
+up before the great front-door, were so white with hoar-frost that they
+looked shaggy like goats, and no one could tell what was their original
+color. Their breath was blown in two vapory columns from their nostrils
+and drifted about their heads like steam about a locomotive.
+
+The sleigh-bells had announced the arrival of the guests, and a great
+shout of welcome was heard from the hall of the house, which seemed
+alive with grownup people and children. Ralph jumped out of the sleigh,
+embraced at random half a dozen people, one of whom was his mother,
+kissed right and left, protesting laughingly against being smothered
+in affection, and finally managed to introduce his friend, who for the
+moment was feeling a trifle lonely.
+
+"Here, father," he cried. "Biceps, this is my father; and, father, this
+is my Biceps----"
+
+"What stuff you are talking, boy," his father exclaimed. "How can this
+young fellow be your biceps----"
+
+"Well, how can a man keep his senses in such confusion?" said the son
+of the house. "This is my friend and classmate, Albert Grimlund, alias
+Biceps Grimlund, and the strongest man in the whole school. Just feel
+his biceps, mother, and you'll see."
+
+"No, I thank you. I'll take your word for it," replied Mrs. Hoyer. "As
+I intend to treat him as a friend of my son should be treated, I hope he
+will not feel inclined to give me any proof of his muscularity."
+
+When, with the aid of the younger children, the travellers had divested
+themselves of their various wraps and overcoats, they were ushered
+into the old-fashioned sitting-room. In one corner roared an enormous,
+many-storied, iron stove. It had a picture in relief, on one side, of
+Diana the Huntress, with her nymphs and baying hounds. In the middle of
+the room stood a big table, and in the middle of the table a big
+lamp, about which the entire family soon gathered. It was so cosey and
+homelike that Albert, before he had been half an hour in the room, felt
+gratefully the atmosphere of mutual affection which pervaded the house.
+It amused him particularly to watch the little girls, of whom there were
+six, and to observe their profound admiration for their big brother.
+Every now and then one of them, sidling up to him while he sat talking,
+would cautiously touch his ear or a curl of his hair; and if he deigned
+to take any notice of her, offering her, perhaps, a perfunctory kiss,
+her pride and pleasure were charming to witness.
+
+Presently the signal was given that supper was ready, and various savory
+odors, which escaped, whenever a door was opened, served to arouse the
+anticipations of the boys to the highest pitch. Now, if I did not have
+so much else to tell you, I should stop here and describe that supper.
+There were twenty-two people who sat down to it; but that was nothing
+unusual at Solheim, for it was a hospitable house, where every wayfarer
+was welcome, either to the table in the servants' hall or to the
+master's table in the dining-room.
+
+
+
+
+III.
+
+At the stroke of ten all the family arose, and each in turn kissed the
+father and mother good-night; whereupon Mr. Hoyer took the great lamp
+from the table and mounted the stairs, followed by his pack of noisy
+boys and girls. Albert and Ralph found themselves, with four smaller
+Hoyers, in an enormous low-ceiled room with many windows. In three
+corners stood huge canopied bedsteads, with flowered-chintz curtains and
+mountainous eiderdown coverings which swelled up toward the ceiling. In
+the middle of the wall, opposite the windows, a big iron stove, like
+the one in the sitting-room (only that it was adorned with a bunch of
+flowers, peaches, and grapes, and not with Diana and her nymphs), was
+roaring merrily, and sending a long red sheen from its draught-hole
+across the floor.
+
+Around the big warm stove the boys gathered (for it was positively
+Siberian in the region of the windows), and while undressing played
+various pranks upon each other, which created much merriment. But
+the most laughter was provoked at the expense of Finn Hoyer, a boy of
+fourteen, whose bare back his brother insisted upon exhibiting to his
+guest; for it was decorated with a facsimile of the picture on the
+stove, showing roses and luscious peaches and grapes in red relief.
+Three years before, on Christmas Eve, the boys had stood about the
+red-hot stove, undressing for their bath, and Finn, who was naked, had,
+in the general scrimmage to get first into the bath-tub, been
+pushed against the glowing iron, the ornamentation of which had been
+beautifully burned upon his back. He had to be wrapped in oil and cotton
+after that adventure, and he recovered in due time, but never quite
+relished the distinction he had acquired by his pictorial skin.
+
+It was long before Albert fell asleep; for the cold kept up a continual
+fusillade, as of musketry, during the entire night. The woodwork of the
+walls snapped and cracked with loud reports; and a little after midnight
+a servant came in and stuffed the stove full of birch-wood, until it
+roared like an angry lion. This roar finally lulled Albert to sleep, in
+spite of the startling noises about him.
+
+The next morning the boys were aroused at seven o'clock by a servant,
+who brought a tray with the most fragrant coffee and hot rolls. It was
+in honor of the guest that, in accordance with Norse custom, this
+early meal was served; and all the boys, carrying pillows and blankets,
+gathered on Albert's and Ralph's bed and feasted right royally. So it
+seemed to them, at least; for any break in the ordinary routine, be it
+ever so slight, is an event to the young. Then they had a pillow-fight,
+thawed at the stove the water in the pitchers (for it was frozen hard),
+and arrayed themselves to descend and meet the family at the nine
+o'clock breakfast. When this repast was at an end, the question arose
+how they were to entertain their guest, and various plans were proposed.
+But to all Ralph's propositions his mother interposed the objection that
+it was too cold.
+
+"Mother is right," said Mr. Hoyer; "it is so cold that 'the chips jump
+on the hill-side.' You'll have to be content with indoor sports to-day."
+
+"But, father, it is not more than twenty degrees below zero," the boy
+demurred. "I am sure we can stand that, if we keep in motion. I have
+been out at thirty without losing either ears or nose."
+
+He went to the window to observe the thermometer; but the dim daylight
+scarcely penetrated the fantastic frost-crystals, which, like a splendid
+exotic flora, covered the panes. Only at the upper corner, where the ice
+had commenced to thaw, a few timid sunbeams were peeping in, making the
+lamp upon the table seem pale and sickly. Whenever the door to the hall
+was opened a white cloud of vapor rolled in; and every one made haste
+to shut the door, in order to save the precious heat. The boys, being
+doomed to remain indoors, walked about restlessly, felt each other's
+muscle, punched each other, and sometimes, for want of better
+employment, teased the little girls. Mr. Hoyer, seeing how miserable
+they were, finally took pity on them, and, after having thawed out
+a window-pane sufficiently to see the thermometer outside, gave his
+consent to a little expedition on skees [2] down to the river.
+
+And now, boys, you ought to have seen them! Now there was life in them!
+You would scarcely have dreamed that they were the same creatures who,
+a moment ago, looked so listless and miserable. What rollicking laughter
+and fun, while they bundled one another in scarfs, cardigan-jackets,
+fur-lined top-boots, and overcoats!
+
+"You had better take your guns along, boys," said the father, as they
+stormed out through the front door; "you might strike a couple of
+ptarmigan, or a mountain-cock, over on the west side."
+
+"I am going to take your rifle, if you'll let me," Ralph exclaimed. "I
+have a fancy we might strike bigger game than mountain-cock. I shouldn't
+object to a wolf or two."
+
+"You are welcome to the rifle," said his father; "but I doubt whether
+you'll find wolves on the ice so early in the day."
+
+Mr. Hoyer took the rifle from its case, examined it carefully, and
+handed it to Ralph. Albert, who was a less experienced hunter than
+Ralph, preferred a fowling-piece to the rifle; especially as he had
+no expectation of shooting anything but ptarmigan. Powder-horns,
+cartridges, and shot were provided; and quite proudly the two friends
+started off on their skees, gliding over the hard crust of the snow,
+which, as the sun rose higher, was oversown with thousands of glittering
+gems. The boys looked like Esquimaux, with their heads bundled up in
+scarfs, and nothing visible except their eyes and a few hoary locks of
+hair which the frost had silvered.
+
+
+
+
+IV.
+
+"What was that?" cried Albert, startled by a sharp report which
+reverberated from the mountains. They had penetrated the forest on the
+west side, and ranged over the ice for an hour, in a vain search for
+wolves.
+
+"Hush," said Ralph, excitedly; and after a moment of intent listening he
+added, "I'll be drawn and quartered if it isn't poachers!"
+
+"How do you know?"
+
+"These woods belong to father, and no one else has any right to hunt in
+them. He doesn't mind if a poor man kills a hare or two, or a brace of
+ptarmigan; but these chaps are after elk; and if the old gentleman gets
+on the scent of elk-hunters, he has no more mercy than Beelzebub."
+
+"How can you know that they are after elk?"
+
+"No man is likely to go to the woods for small game on a day like this.
+They think the cold protects them from pursuit and capture."
+
+"What are you going to do about it?"
+
+"I am going to play a trick on them. You know that the sheriff, whose
+duty it is to be on the lookout for elk-poachers, would scarcely send
+out a posse when the cold is so intense. Elk, you know, are becoming
+very scarce, and the law protects them. No man is allowed to shoot more
+than one elf a year, and that one on his own property. Now, you and
+I will play deputy-sheriffs, and have those poachers securely in the
+lock-up before night."
+
+"But suppose they fight?"
+
+"Then we'll fight back."
+
+Ralph was so aglow with joyous excitement at the thought of this
+adventure, that Albert had not the heart to throw cold water on his
+enthusiasm. Moreover, he was afraid of being thought cowardly by his
+friend if he offered objections. The recollection of Midshipman Easy
+and his daring pranks flashed through his brain, and he felt an
+instant desire to rival the exploits of his favorite hero. If only the
+enterprise had been on the sea he would have been twice as happy, for
+the land always seemed to him a prosy and inconvenient place for the
+exhibition of heroism.
+
+"But, Ralph," he exclaimed, now more than ready to bear his part in
+the expedition, "I have only shot in my gun. You can't shoot men with
+bird-shot."
+
+"Shoot men! Are you crazy? Why, I don't intend to shoot anybody.
+I only wish to capture them. My rifle is a breech-loader and has six
+cartridges. Besides, it has twice the range of theirs (for there isn't
+another such rifle in all Odalen), and by firing one shot over their
+heads I can bring them to terms, don't you see?"
+
+Albert, to be frank, did not see it exactly; but he thought it best to
+suppress his doubts. He scented danger in the air, and his blood bounded
+through his veins.
+
+"How do you expect to track them?" he asked, breathlessly.
+
+"Skee-tracks in the snow can be seen by a bat, born blind," answered
+Ralph, recklessly.
+
+They were now climbing up the wooded slope on the western side of the
+river. The crust of the frozen snow was strong enough to bear them;
+and as it was not glazed, but covered with an inch of hoar-frost, it
+retained the imprint of their feet with distinctness. They were obliged
+to carry their skees, on account both of the steepness of the slope and
+the density of the underbrush. Roads and paths were invisible under
+the white pall of the snow, and only the facility with which they could
+retrace their steps saved them from the fear of going astray. Through
+the vast forest a deathlike silence reigned; and this silence was not
+made up of an infinity of tiny sounds, like the silence of a summer
+day when the crickets whirr in the treetops and the bees drone in the
+clover-blossoms. No; this silence was dead, chilling, terrible. The huge
+pine-trees now and then dropped a load of snow on the heads of the bold
+intruders, and it fell with a thud, followed by a noiseless, glittering
+drizzle. As far as their eyes could reach, the monotonous colonnade
+of brown tree-trunks, rising out of the white waste, extended in all
+directions. It reminded them of the enchanted forest in "Undine,"
+through which a man might ride forever without finding the end. It was
+a great relief when, from time to time, they met a squirrel out foraging
+for pine-cones or picking up a scanty living among the husks of last
+year's hazel-nuts. He was lively in spite of the weather, and the
+faint noises of his small activities fell gratefully upon ears already
+ap-palled by the awful silence. Occasionally they scared up a brace
+of grouse that seemed half benumbed, and hopped about in a melancholy
+manner under the pines, or a magpie, drawing in its head and ruffling up
+its feathers against the cold, until it looked frowsy and disreputable.
+
+"Biceps," whispered Ralph, who had suddenly discovered something
+interesting in the snow, "do you see that?"
+
+"Je-rusalem!" ejaculated Albert, with thoughtless delight, "it is a
+hoof-track!"
+
+"Hold your tongue, you blockhead," warned his friend, too excited to be
+polite, "or you'll spoil the whole business!"
+
+"But you asked me," protested Albert, in a huff.
+
+"But I didn't shout, did I?"
+
+Again the report of a shot tore a great rent in the wintry stillness and
+rang out with sharp reverberations.
+
+"We've got them," said Ralph, examining the lock of his rifle. "That
+shot settles them."
+
+"If we don't look out, they may get us instead," grumbled Albert, who
+was still offended.
+
+Ralph stood peering into the underbrush, his eyes as wild as those of
+an Indian, his nostrils dilated, and all his senses intensely awake. His
+companion, who was wholly unskilled in woodcraft, could see no cause for
+his agitation, and feared that he was yet angry. He did not detect the
+evidences of large game in the immediate neighborhood. He did not see,
+by the bend of the broken twigs and the small tufts of hair on the
+briar-bush, that an elk had pushed through that very copse within a few
+minutes; nor did he sniff the gamy odor with which the large beast had
+charged the air. In obedience to his friend's gesture, he flung himself
+down on hands and knees and cautiously crept after him through the
+thicket. He now saw without difficulty a place where the elk had broken
+through the snow crust, and he could also detect a certain aimless
+bewilderment in the tracks, owing, no doubt, to the shot and the
+animal's perception of danger on two sides. Scarcely had he crawled
+twenty feet when he was startled by a noise of breaking branches, and
+before he had time to cock his gun, he saw an enormous bull-elk tearing
+through the underbrush, blowing two columns of steam from his nostrils,
+and steering straight toward them. At the same instant Ralph's rifle
+blazed away, and the splendid beast, rearing on its hind legs, gave a
+wild snort, plunged forward and rolled on its side in the snow. Quick
+as a flash the young hunter had drawn his knife, and, in accordance with
+the laws of the chase, had driven it into the breast of the animal. But
+the glance from the dying eyes--that glance, of which every elk-hunter
+can tell a moving tale--pierced the boy to the very heart! It was such
+a touching, appealing, imploring glance, so soft and gentle and
+unresentful.
+
+"Why did you harm me," it seemed to say, "who never harmed any living
+thing--who claimed only the right to live my frugal life in the forest,
+digging up the frozen mosses under the snow, which no mortal creature
+except myself can eat?"
+
+The sanguinary instinct--the fever for killing, which every boy inherits
+from savage ancestors--had left Ralph, before he had pulled the knife
+from the bleeding wound. A miserable feeling of guilt stole over him.
+He never had shot an elk before; and his father, who was anxious to
+preserve the noble beasts from destruction, had not availed himself of
+his right to kill one for many years. Ralph had, indeed, many a time
+hunted rabbits, hares, mountain-cock, and capercaillie. But they had
+never destroyed his pleasure by arousing pity for their deaths; and he
+had always regarded himself as being proof against sentimental emotions.
+
+"Look here, Biceps," he said, flinging the knife into the snow, "I wish
+I hadn't killed that bull."
+
+"I thought we were hunting for poachers," answered Albert, dubiously;
+"and now we have been poaching ourselves."
+
+"By Jiminy! So we have; and I never once thought of it," cried the
+valiant hunter. "I am afraid we are off my father's preserves too. It
+is well the deputy sheriffs are not abroad, or we might find ourselves
+decorated with iron bracelets before night."
+
+"But what did you do it for?"
+
+"Well, I can't tell. It's in the blood, I fancy. The moment I saw the
+track and caught the wild smell, I forgot all about the poachers, and
+started on the scent like a hound."
+
+The two boys stood for some minutes looking at the dead animal, not with
+savage exultation, but with a dim regret. The blood which was gushing
+from the wound in the breast froze in a solid lump the very moment it
+touched the snow, although the cold had greatly moderated since the
+morning.
+
+"I suppose we'll have to skin the fellow," remarked Ralph, lugubriously;
+"it won't do to leave that fine carcass for the wolves to celebrate
+Christmas with."
+
+"All right," Albert answered, "I am not much of a hand at skinning, but
+I'll do the best I can."
+
+They fell to work rather reluctantly at the unwonted task, but had not
+proceeded far when they perceived that they had a full day's job before
+them.
+
+"I've no talent for the butcher's trade," Ralph exclaimed in disgust,
+dropping his knife into the snow. "There's no help for it, Biceps, we'll
+have to bury the carcass, pile some logs on the top of it, and send a
+horse to drag it home to-morrow. If it were not Christmas Eve to-night
+we might take a couple of men along and shoot a dozen wolves or more.
+For there is sure to be pandemonium here before long, and a concert in
+G-flat that'll curdle the marrow of your bones with horror."
+
+"Thanks," replied the admirer of Midshipman Easy, striking a reckless
+naval attitude. "The marrow of my bones is not so easily curdled. I've
+been on a whaling voyage, which is more than you have."
+
+Ralph was about to vindicate his dignity by referring to his own valiant
+exploits, when suddenly his keen eyes detected a slight motion in the
+underbrush on the slope below.
+
+"Biceps," he said, with forced composure, "those poachers are tracking
+us."
+
+"What do you mean?" asked Albert, in vague alarm.
+
+"Do you see the top of that young birch waving?"
+
+"Well, what of that!"
+
+"Wait and see. It's no good trying to escape. They can easily overtake
+us. The snow is the worst tell-tale under the sun."
+
+"But why should we wish to escape? I thought we were going to catch
+them."
+
+"So we were; but that was before we turned poachers ourselves. Now those
+fellows will turn the tables on us--take us to the sheriff and collect
+half the fine, which is fifty dollars, as informers."
+
+"Je-rusalem!" cried Biceps, "isn't it a beautiful scrape we've gotten
+into?"
+
+"Rather," responded his friend, coolly.
+
+"But why meekly allow ourselves to be captured? Why not defend
+ourselves?"
+
+"My dear Biceps, you don't know what you are talking about. Those
+fellows don't mind putting a bullet into you, if you run. Now,
+I'd rather pay fifty dollars any day, than shoot a man even in
+self-defence."
+
+"But they have killed elk too. We heard them shoot twice. Suppose we
+play the same game on them that they intend to play on us. We can play
+informers too, then we'll at least be quits."
+
+"Biceps, you are a brick! That's a capital idea! Then let us start for
+the sheriff's; and if we get there first, we'll inform both on ourselves
+and on them. That'll cancel the fine. Quick, now!"
+
+No persuasions were needed to make Albert bestir himself. He leaped
+toward his skees, and following his friend, who was a few rods ahead of
+him, started down the slope in a zigzag line, cautiously steering his
+way among the tree trunks. The boys had taken their departure none too
+soon; for they were scarcely five hundred yards down the declivity,
+when they heard behind them loud exclamations and oaths. Evidently the
+poachers had stopped to roll some logs (which were lying close by) over
+the carcass, probably meaning to appropriate it; and this gave the boys
+an advantage, of which they were in great need. After a few moments
+they espied an open clearing which sloped steeply down toward the river.
+Toward this Ralph had been directing his course; for although it was a
+venturesome undertaking to slide down so steep and rugged a hill, he was
+determined rather to break his neck than lower his pride, and become the
+laughing-stock of the parish.
+
+One more tack through alder copse and juniper jungle--hard indeed,
+and terribly vexatious--and he saw with delight the great open slope,
+covered with an unbroken surface of glittering snow. The sun (which at
+midwinter is but a few hours above the horizon) had set; and the stars
+were flashing forth with dazzling brilliancy. Ralph stopped, as he
+reached the clearing, to give Biceps an opportunity to overtake him; for
+Biceps, like all marine animals, moved with less dexterity on the dry
+land.
+
+"Ralph," he whispered breathlessly, as he pushed himself up to his
+companion with a vigorous thrust of his skee-staff, "there are two awful
+chaps close behind us. I distinctly heard them speak."
+
+"Fiddlesticks," said Ralph; "now let us see what you are made of!
+Don't take my track, or you may impale me like a roast pig on a spit.
+Now, ready!--one, two, three!"
+
+"Hold on there, or I shoot," yelled a hoarse voice from out of the
+underbrush; but it was too late; for at the same instant the two boys
+slid out over the steep slope, and, wrapped in a whirl of loose snow,
+were scudding at a dizzying speed down the precipitous hill-side. Thump,
+thump, thump, they went, where hidden wood-piles or fences obstructed
+their path, and out they shot into space, but each time came down firmly
+on their feet, and dashed ahead with undiminished ardor. Their calves
+ached, the cold air whistled in their ears, and their eyelids became
+stiff and their sight half obscured with the hoar-frost that fringed
+their lashes. But onward they sped, keeping their balance with wonderful
+skill, until they reached the gentler slope which formed the banks of
+the great river. Then for the first time Ralph had an opportunity to
+look behind him, and he saw two moving whirls of snow darting downward,
+not far from his own track. His heart beat in his throat; for those
+fellows had both endurance and skill, and he feared that he was no match
+for them. But suddenly--he could have yelled with delight--the foremost
+figure leaped into the air, turned a tremendous somersault, and, coming
+down on his head, broke through the crust of the snow and vanished,
+while his skees started on an independent journey down the hill-side.
+He had struck an exposed fence-rail, which, abruptly checking his speed,
+had sent him flying like a rocket.
+
+The other poacher had barely time to change his course, so as to avoid
+the snag; but he was unable to stop and render assistance to his fallen
+comrade. The boys, just as they were shooting out upon the ice, saw by
+his motions that he was hesitating whether or not he should give up the
+chase. He used his staff as a brake for a few moments, so as to retard
+his speed; but discovering, perhaps, by the brightening starlight,
+that his adversaries were not full-grown men, he took courage, started
+forward again, and tried to make up for the time he had lost. If he
+could but reach the sheriff's house before the boys did, he could have
+them arrested and collect the informer's fee, instead of being himself
+arrested and fined as a poacher. It was a prize worth racing for! And,
+moreover, there were two elks, worth twenty-five dollars apiece, buried
+in the snow under logs. These also would belong to the victor! The
+poacher dashed ahead, straining every nerve, and reached safely the foot
+of the steep declivity. The boys were now but a few hundred yards ahead
+of him.
+
+"Hold on there," he yelled again, "or I shoot!"
+
+He was not within range, but he thought he could frighten the youngsters
+into abandoning the race. The sheriff's house was but a short distance
+up the river. Its tall, black chimneys could he seen looming up against
+the starlit sky. There was no slope now to accelerate their speed. They
+had to peg away for dear life, pushing themselves forward with their
+skee-staves, laboring like plough-horses, panting, snorting, perspiring.
+Ralph turned his head once more. The poacher was gaining upon them;
+there could be no doubt of it. He was within the range of Ralph's rifle;
+and a sturdy fellow he was, who seemed good for a couple of miles yet.
+Should Ralph send a bullet over his head to frighten him? No; that
+might give the poacher an excuse for sending back a bullet with a less
+innocent purpose. Poor Biceps, he was panting and puffing in his heavy
+wraps like a steamboat! He did not once open his mouth to speak; but,
+exerting his vaunted muscle to the utmost, kept abreast of his friend,
+and sometimes pushed a pace or two ahead of him. But it cost him a
+mighty effort! And yet the poacher was gaining upon him! They could
+see the long broadside of windows in the sheriff's mansion, ablaze with
+Christmas candles. They came nearer and nearer! The church-bells up on
+the bend were ringing in the festival. Five minutes more and they would
+be at their goal. Five minutes more! Surely they had strength enough
+left for that small space of time. So had the poacher, probably! The
+question was, which had the most. Then, with a short, sharp resonance,
+followed by a long reverberation, a shot rang out and a bullet whizzed
+past Ralph's ear. It was the poacher who had broken the peace. Ralph,
+his blood boiling with wrath, came to a sudden stop, flung his rifle to
+his cheek and cried, "Drop that gun!"
+
+The poacher, bearing down with all his might on the skee-staff, checked
+his speed. In the meanwhile Albert hurried on, seeing that the issue of
+the race depended upon him.
+
+"Don't force me to hurt ye!" shouted the poacher, threateningly, to
+Ralph, taking aim once more.
+
+"You can't," Ralph shouted back. "You haven't another shot."
+
+At that instant sounds of sleigh-bells and voices were heard, and half
+a dozen people, startled by the shot, were seen rushing out from the
+sheriff's mansion. Among them was Mr. Bjornerud himself, with one of his
+deputies.
+
+"In the name of the law, I command you to cease," he cried, when he
+saw down the two figures in menacing attitudes. But before he could say
+another word, some one fell prostrate in the road before him, gasping:
+
+"We have shot an elk; so has that man down on the ice. We give ourselves
+up."
+
+Mr. Bjornerud, making no answer, leaped over the prostrate figure, and,
+followed by the deputy, dashed down upon the ice.
+
+"In the name of the law!" he shouted again, and both rifles were
+reluctantly lowered.
+
+"I have shot an elk," cried Ralph, eagerly, "and this man is a poacher,
+we heard him shoot."
+
+"I have killed an elk," screamed the poacher, in the same moment, "and
+so has this fellow."
+
+The sheriff was too astonished to speak. Never before, in his
+experience, had poachers raced for dear life to give themselves into
+custody. He feared that they were making sport of him; in that case,
+however, he resolved to make them suffer for their audacity.
+
+"You are my prisoners," he said, after a moment's hesitation. "Take them
+to the lock-up, Olsen, and handcuff them securely," he added, turning to
+his deputy.
+
+There were now a dozen men--most of them guests and attendants of the
+sheriff's household--standing in a ring about Ralph and the poacher.
+Albert, too, had scrambled to his feet and had joined his comrade.
+
+"Will you permit me, Mr. Sheriff," said Ralph, making the officer his
+politest bow, "to send a message to my father, who is probably anxious
+about us?"
+
+"And who is your father, young man?" asked the sheriff, not unkindly;
+"I should think you were doing him an ill-turn in taking to poaching at
+your early age."
+
+"My father is Mr. Hoyer, of Solheim," said the boy, not without some
+pride in the announcement.
+
+"What--you rascal, you! Are you trying to, play pranks on an old man?"
+cried the officer of the law, grasping Ralph cordially by the hand.
+"You've grown to be quite a man, since I saw you last. Pardon me for not
+recognizing the son of an old neighbor."
+
+"Allow me to introduce to you my friend, Mr. Biceps--I mean, Mr. Albert
+Grimlund."
+
+"Happy to make your acquaintance, Mr. Biceps Albert; and now you must
+both come and eat the Christmas porridge with us. I'll send a messenger
+to Mr. Hoyer without delay."
+
+The sheriff, in a jolly mood, and happy to have added to the number of
+his Christmas guests, took each of the two young men by the arm, as if
+he were going to arrest them, and conducted them through the spacious
+front hall into a large cosey room, where, having divested themselves of
+their wraps, they told the story of their adventure.
+
+"But, my dear sir," Mr. Bjornerud exclaimed, "I don't see how you
+managed to go beyond your father's preserves. You know he bought of
+me the whole forest tract, adjoining his own on the south, about three
+months ago. So you were perfectly within your rights; for your father
+hasn't killed an elk on his land for three years."
+
+"If that is the case, Mr. Sheriff," said Ralph, "I must beg of you to
+release the poor fellow who chased us. I don't wish any informer's fee,
+nor have I any desire to get him into trouble."
+
+"I am sorry to say I can't accommodate you," Bjornerud replied. "This
+man is a notorious poacher and trespasser, whom my deputies have long
+been tracking in vain. Now that I have him I shall keep him. There's no
+elk safe in Odalen so long as that rascal is at large."
+
+"That may be; but I shall then turn my informer's fee over to him, which
+will reduce his fine from fifty dollars to twenty-five dollars."
+
+"To encourage him to continue poaching?"
+
+"Well, I confess I have a little more sympathy with poachers, since
+we came so near being poachers ourselves. It was only an accident that
+saved us!"
+
+
+
+
+THE NIXY'S STRAIN
+
+Little Nils had an idea that he wanted to be something great in the
+world, but he did not quite know how to set about it. He had always been
+told that, having been born on a Sunday, he was a luck-child, and that
+good fortune would attend him on that account in whatever he undertook.
+
+He had never, so far, noticed anything peculiar about himself, though,
+to be sure, his small enterprises did not usually come to grief, his
+snares were seldom empty, and his tiny stamping-mill, which he and his
+friend Thorstein had worked at so faithfully, was now making a merry
+noise over in the brook in the Westmo Glen, so that you could hear it a
+hundred yards away.
+
+The reason of this, his mother told him, according to the superstition
+of her people, was that the Nixy and the Hulder [3] and the gnomes
+favored him because he was a Sunday child. What was more, she assured
+him, that he would see them some day, and then, if he conducted himself
+cleverly, so as to win their favor, he would, by their aid, rise high in
+the world, and make his fortune.
+
+Now this was exactly what Nils wanted, and therefore he was not a
+little anxious to catch a glimpse of the mysterious creatures who had so
+whimsical a reason for taking an interest in him. Many and many a time
+he sat at the waterfall where the Nixy was said to play the harp every
+midsummer night, but although he sometimes imagined that he heard a
+vague melody trembling through the rush and roar of the water, and saw
+glimpses of white limbs flashing through the current, yet never did he
+get a good look at the Nixy.
+
+Though he roamed through the woods early and late, setting snares for
+birds and rabbits, and was ever on the alert for a sight of the Hulder's
+golden hair and scarlet bodice, the tricksy sprite persisted in eluding
+him.
+
+He thought sometimes that he heard a faint, girlish giggle, full of
+teasing provocation and suppressed glee, among the underbrush, and once
+he imagined that he saw a gleam of scarlet and gold vanish in a dense
+alder copse.
+
+But very little good did that do him, when he could not fix the vision,
+talk with it face to face, and extort the fulfilment of the three
+regulation wishes.
+
+"I am probably not good enough," thought Nils. "I know I am a selfish
+fellow, and cruel, too, some-times, to birds and beasts. I suppose she
+won't have anything to do with me, as long as she isn't satisfied with
+my behavior."
+
+Then he tried hard to be kind and considerate; smiled at his little
+sister when she pulled his hair, patted Sultan, the dog, instead of
+kicking him, when he was in his way, and never complained or sulked when
+he was sent on errands late at night or in bad weather.
+
+But, strange to say, though the Nixy's mysterious melody still sounded
+vaguely through the water's roar, and the Hulder seemed to titter behind
+the tree-trunks and vanish in the underbrush, a real, unmistakable view
+was never vouchsafed to Nils, and the three wishes which were to make
+his fortune he had no chance of propounding.
+
+He had fully made up his mind what his wishes were to be, for he was
+determined not to be taken by surprise. He knew well the fate of
+those foolish persons in the fairy tales who offend their benevolent
+protectors by bouncing against them head foremost, as it were, with a
+greedy cry for wealth.
+
+Nils was not going to be caught that way. He would ask first for
+wisdom--that was what all right-minded heroes did--then for good repute
+among men, and lastly--and here was the rub--lastly he was inclined to
+ask for a five-bladed knife, like the one the parson's Thorwald had got
+for a Christmas present.
+
+But he had considerable misgiving about the expediency of this last
+wish. If he had a fair renown and wisdom, might he not be able to get
+along without a five-bladed pocket-knife? But no; there was no help for
+it. Without that five-bladed pocket-knife neither wisdom nor fame would
+satisfy him. It would be the drop of gall in his cup of joy.
+
+After many days' pondering, it occurred to him, as a way out of the
+difficulty, that it would, perhaps, not offend the Hulder if he asked,
+not for wealth, but for a moderate prosperity. If he were blessed with a
+moderate prosperity, he could, of course, buy a five-bladed pocket-knife
+with corkscrew and all other appurtenances, and still have something
+left over.
+
+He had a dreadful struggle with this question, for he was well aware
+that the proper things to wish were long life and happiness for his
+father and mother, or something in that line. But, though he wished his
+father and mother well, he could not make up his mind to forego his own
+precious chances on their account. Moreover, he consoled himself with
+the reflection that if he attained the goal of his own desires he could
+easily bestow upon them, of his bounty, a reasonable prospect of long
+life and happiness.
+
+You see Nils was by no means so good yet as he ought to be. He was
+clever enough to perceive that he had small chance of seeing the Hulder,
+as long as his heart was full of selfishness and envy and greed.
+
+For, strive as he might, he could not help feeling envious of the
+parson's Thorwald, with his elaborate combination pocket-knife and his
+silver watch-chain, which he unfeelingly flaunted in the face of an
+admiring community. It was small consolation for Nils to know that there
+was no watch but only a key attached to it; for a silver watch-chain,
+even without a watch, was a sufficiently splendid possession to justify
+a boy in fording it over his less fortunate comrades.
+
+Nils's father, who was a poor charcoal-burner, could never afford to
+make his son such a present, even if he worked until he was as black as
+a chimney-sweep. For what little money he earned was needed at once for
+food and clothes for the family; and there were times when they were
+obliged to mix ground birch-bark with their flour in order to make it
+last longer.
+
+It was easy enough for a rich man's son to be good, Nils thought.
+
+It was small credit to him if he was not envious, having never known
+want and never gone to bed on birch-bark porridge. But for a poor boy
+not to covet all the nice things which would make life so pleasant, if
+he had them, seemed next to impossible.
+
+Still Nils kept on making good resolutions and breaking them, and then
+piecing them together again and breaking them anew.
+
+If it had not been for his desire to see the Hulder and the Nixy, and
+making them promise the fulfilment of the three wishes, he would have
+given up the struggle, and resigned himself to being a bad boy because
+he was born so. But those teasing glimpses of the Hulder's scarlet
+bodice and golden hair, and the vague snatches of wondrous melody that
+rose from the cataract in the silent summer nights, filled his soul with
+an intense desire to see the whole Hulder, with her radiant smile and
+melancholy eyes, and to hear the whole melody plainly enough to be
+written down on paper and learned by heart.
+
+It was with this longing to repeat the few haunting notes that hummed in
+his brain that Nils went to the schoolmaster one day and asked him for
+the loan of his fiddle. But the schoolmaster, hearing that Nils could
+not play, thought his request a foolish one and refused.
+
+Nevertheless, that visit became an important event, and a turning-point
+in the boy's life. For he was moved to confide in the schoolmaster, who
+was a kindly old man, and fond of clever boys; and he became interested
+in Nils. Though he regarded Nils's desire to record the Nixy's strains
+as absurd, he offered to teach him to play. There was good stuff in the
+lad, he thought, and when he had out-grown his fantastic nonsense, he
+might, very likely, make a good fiddler.
+
+Thus it came to pass that the charcoal-burner's son learned to play
+the violin. He had not had half a dozen lessons before he set about
+imitating the Nixy's notes which he had heard in the waterfall.
+
+"It was this way," he said to the schoolmaster, pressing his ear against
+the violin, while he ran the bow lightly over the strings; "or rather it
+was this way," making another ineffectual effort. "No, no, that wasn't
+it, either. It's no use, schoolmaster: I shall never be able to do it!"
+he cried, flinging the violin on the table and rushing out of the door.
+
+When he returned the next day he was heartily ashamed of his impatience.
+To try to catch the Nixy's notes after half a dozen lessons was, of
+course, an absurdity.
+
+The master told him simply to banish such folly from his brain, to apply
+himself diligently to his scales, and not to bother himself about the
+Nixy.
+
+That seemed to be sound advice and Nils accepted it with contrition.
+He determined never to repeat his silly experiment. But when the next
+midsummer night came, a wild yearning possessed him, and he stole out
+noiselessly into the forest, and sat down on a stone by the river,
+listening intently.
+
+For a long while he heard nothing but the monotonous boom of the water
+plunging into the deep. But, strangely enough, there was a vague, hushed
+rhythm in this thundering roar; and after a while he seemed to hear
+a faint strain, ravishingly sweet, which vibrated on the air for an
+instant and vanished.
+
+It seemed to steal upon his ear unawares, and the moment he
+listened, with a determination to catch it, it was gone. But sweet it
+was--inexpressibly sweet.
+
+Let the master talk as much as he liked, catch it he would and catch it
+he must. But he must acquire greater skill before he would be able to
+render something so delicate and elusive.
+
+Accordingly Nils applied himself with all his might and main to his
+music, in the intervals between his work.
+
+He was big enough now to accompany his father to the woods, and help
+him pile turf and earth on the heap of logs that were to be burned
+to charcoal. He did not see the Hulder face to face, though he was
+constantly on the watch for her; but once or twice he thought he saw a
+swift flash of scarlet and gold in the underbrush, and again and again
+he thought he heard her soft, teasing laughter in the alder copses.
+That, too, he imagined he might express in music; and the next time he
+got hold of the schoolmaster's fiddle he quavered away on the fourth
+string, but produced nothing that had the remotest resemblance to
+melody, much less to that sweet laughter.
+
+He grew so discouraged that he could have wept. He had a wild impulse
+to break the fiddle, and never touch another as long as he lived. But he
+knew he could not live up to any such resolution. The fiddle was already
+too dear to him to be renounced for a momentary whim. But it was like an
+unrequited affection, which brought as much sorrow as joy.
+
+There was so much that Nils burned to express; but the fiddle refused to
+obey him, and screeched something utterly discordant, as it seemed, from
+sheer perversity.
+
+It occurred to Nils again, that unless the Nixy took pity on him and
+taught him that marvellous, airy strain he would never catch it. Would
+he then ever be good enough to win the favor of the Nixy?
+
+For in the fairy tales it is always the bad people who come to grief,
+while the good and merciful ones are somehow rewarded.
+
+It was evidently because he was yet far from being good enough that both
+Hulder and Nixy eluded him. Sunday child though he was, there seemed to
+be small chance that he would ever be able to propound his three wishes.
+
+Only now, the third wish was no longer a five-bladed pocket-knife, but
+a violin of so fine a ring and delicate modulation that it might render
+the Nixy's strain.
+
+While these desires and fancies fought in his heart, Nils grew to be a
+young man; and he still was, what he had always been--a charcoal-burner.
+He went to the parson for half a year to prepare for confirmation; and
+by his gentleness and sweetness of disposition attracted not only the
+good man himself, but all with whom he came in contact. His answers were
+always thoughtful, and betrayed a good mind.
+
+He was not a prig, by any means, who held aloof from sport and play; he
+could laugh with the merriest, run a race with the swiftest, and try a
+wrestling match with the strongest.
+
+There was no one among the candidates for confirmation, that year, who
+was so well liked as Nils. Gentle as he was and soft-spoken, there was a
+manly spirit in him, and that always commands respect among boys.
+
+He received much praise from the pastor, and no one envied him the kind
+words that were addressed to him; for every one felt that they were
+deserved. But the thought in Nils's mind during all the ceremony in the
+church and in the parsonage was this:
+
+"Now, perhaps, I shall be good enough to win the Nixy's favor. Now I
+shall catch the wondrous strain."
+
+It did not occur to him, in his eagerness, that such a reflection was
+out of place in church; nor was it, perhaps, for the Nixy's strain was
+constantly associated in his mind with all that was best in him; with
+his highest aspirations, and his constant strivings for goodness and
+nobleness in thought and deed.
+
+It happened about this time that the old schoolmaster died, and in his
+will it was found that he had bequeathed his fiddle to Nils. He had very
+little else to leave, poor fellow; but if he had been a Croesus he could
+not have given his favorite pupil anything that would have delighted him
+more.
+
+Nils played now early and late, except when he was in the woods with his
+father. His fame went abroad through all the valley as the best fiddler
+in seven parishes round, and people often came from afar to hear
+him. There was a peculiar quality in his playing--something strangely
+appealing, that brought the tears to one's eyes--yet so elusive that it
+was impossible to repeat or describe it.
+
+It was rumored among the villagers that he had caught the Nixy's
+strain, and that it was that which touched the heart so deeply in his
+improvisations. But Nils knew well that he had not caught the Nixy's
+strain; though a faint echo--a haunting undertone--of that vaguely
+remembered snatch of melody, heard now and then in the water's roar,
+would steal at times into his music, when he was, perhaps, himself least
+aware of it.
+
+Invitations now came to him from far and wide to play at wedding and
+dancing parties and funerals. There was no feast complete without Nils;
+and soon this strange thing was noticed, that quarrels and brawls, which
+in those days were common enough in Norway, were rare wherever Nils
+played.
+
+It seemed as if his calm and gentle presence called forth all that
+was good in the feasters and banished whatever was evil. Such was his
+popularity that he earned more money by his fiddling in a week than his
+father had ever done by charcoal-burning in a month.
+
+A half-superstitious regard for him became general among the people;
+first, because it seemed impossible that any man could play as he did
+without the aid of some supernatural power; and secondly, because his
+gentle demeanor and quaint, terse sayings inspired them with admiration.
+It was difficult to tell by whom the name, Wise Nils, was first started,
+but it was felt by all to be appropriate, and it therefore clung to the
+modest fiddler, in spite of all his protests.
+
+Before he was twenty-five years old it became the fashion to go to him
+and consult him in difficult situations; and though he long shrank from
+giving advice, his reluctance wore away, when it became evident to him
+that he could actually benefit the people.
+
+There was nothing mysterious in his counsel. All he said was as clear
+and rational as the day-light. But the good folk were nevertheless
+inclined to attribute a higher authority to him; and would desist from
+vice or folly for his sake, when they would not for their own sake. It
+was odd, indeed: this Wise Nils, the fiddler, became a great man in the
+valley, and his renown went abroad and brought him visitors, seeking
+his counsel, from distant parishes. Rarely did anyone leave him
+disappointed, or at least without being benefited by his sympathetic
+advice.
+
+One summer, during the tourist season, a famous foreign musician came
+to Norway, accompanied by a rich American gentleman. While in his
+neighborhood, they heard the story of the rustic fiddler, and became
+naturally curious to see him.
+
+They accordingly went to his cottage, in order to have some sport with
+him, for they expected to find a vain and ignorant charlatan, inflated
+by the flattery of his more ignorant neighbors. But Nils received them
+with a simple dignity which quite disarmed them. They had come to mock;
+they stayed to admire. This peasant's artless speech, made up of ancient
+proverbs and shrewd common-sense, and instinct with a certain sunny
+beneficence, impressed them wonderfully.
+
+And when, at their request, he played some of his improvisations, the
+renowned musician exclaimed that here was, indeed, a great artist lost
+to the world. In spite of the poor violin, there was a marvellously
+touching quality in the music; something new and alluring which had
+never been heard before.
+
+But Nils himself was not aware of it. Occasionally, while he played, the
+Nixy's haunting strain would flit through his brain, or hover about it,
+where he could feel it, as it were, but yet be unable to catch it. This
+was his regret--his constant chase for those elusive notes that refused
+to be captured.
+
+But he consoled himself many a time with the reflection that it was
+the fiddle's fault, not his own. With a finer instrument, capable of
+rendering more delicate shades of sound, he might yet surprise the
+Nixy's strain, and record it unmistakably in black and white.
+
+The foreign musician and his American friend departed, but returned at
+the end of two weeks. They then offered to accompany Nils on a concert
+tour through all the capitals of Europe and the large cities of America,
+and to insure him a sum of money which fairly made him dizzy.
+
+Nils begged for time to consider, and the next day surprised them by
+declining the startling offer.
+
+He was a peasant, he said, and must remain a peasant. He belonged here
+in his native valley, where he could do good, and was happy in the
+belief that he was useful.
+
+Out in the great world, of which he knew nothing, he might indeed gather
+wealth, but he might lose his peace of mind, which was more precious
+than wealth. He was content with a moderate prosperity, and that he had
+already attained. He had enough, and more than enough, to satisfy his
+modest wants, and to provide those who were dear to him with reasonable
+comfort in their present condition of life.
+
+The strangers were amazed at a man's thus calmly refusing a fortune that
+was within his easy grasp, for they did not doubt that Nils, with
+his entirely unconventional manner of playing, and yet with that
+extraordinary moving quality in his play, would become the rage both in
+Europe and America, as a kind of heaven-born, untutored genius, and fill
+both his own pockets and theirs with shekels.
+
+They made repeated efforts to persuade him, but it was all in vain. With
+smiling serenity, he told them that he had uttered his final decision.
+They then took leave of him, and a month after their departure there
+arrived from Germany a box addressed to Nils. He opened it with some
+trepidation, and it was found to contain a Cremona violin--a genuine
+Stradivarius.
+
+The moment Nils touched the strings with the bow, a thrill of rapture
+went through him, the like of which he had never experienced. The divine
+sweetness and purity of the tone that vibrated through those magic
+chambers resounded through all his being, and made him feel happy and
+exalted.
+
+It occurred to him, while he was coaxing the intoxicating music from his
+instrument, that tonight would be midsummer night. Now was his chance to
+catch the Nixy's strain, for this exquisite violin would be capable of
+rendering the very chant of the archangels in the morning of time.
+
+To-night he would surprise the Nixy, and the divine strain should no
+more drift like a melodious mist through his brain; for at midsummer
+night the Nixy always plays the loudest, and then, if ever, is the time
+to learn what he felt must be the highest secret of the musical art.
+
+Hugging his Stradivarius close to his breast, to protect it from the
+damp night-air, Nils hurried through the birch woods down to the river.
+The moon was sailing calmly through a fleecy film of cloud, and a light
+mist hovered over the tops of the forest.
+
+The fiery afterglow of the sunset still lingered in the air, though the
+sun had long been hidden, but the shadows of the trees were gaunt and
+dark, as in the light of the moon.
+
+The sound of the cataract stole with a whispering rush through the
+underbrush, for the water was low at midsummer, and a good deal of it
+was diverted to the mill, which was working busily away, with its big
+water-wheel going round and round.
+
+Nils paused close to the mill, and peered intently into the rushing
+current; but nothing appeared. Then he stole down to the river-bank,
+where he seated himself on a big stone, barely out of reach of the
+spray, which blew in gusts from the cataract. He sat for a long while
+motionless, gazing with rapt intentness at the struggling, foaming
+rapids, but he saw or heard nothing.
+
+Then all of a sudden it seemed to him that the air began to vibrate
+faintly with a vague, captivating rhythm. Nils could hear his heart
+beat in his throat. With trembling eagerness he unwrapped the violin and
+raised it to his chin.
+
+Now, surely, there was a note. It belonged on the A string. No, not
+there. On the E string, perhaps. But no, not there, either.
+
+Look! What is that?
+
+A flash, surely, through the water of a beautiful naked arm.
+
+And there--no, not there--but somewhere from out of the gentle rush
+of the middle current there seemed to come to him a marvellous mist of
+drifting sound--ineffably, rapturously sweet!
+
+With a light movement Nils runs his bow over the strings, but not a
+ghost, not a semblance, can he reproduce of the swift, scurrying flight
+of that wondrous melody. Again and again he listens breathlessly, and
+again and again despair overwhelms him.
+
+Should he, then, never see the Nixy, and ask the fulfilment of his three
+wishes?
+
+Curiously enough, those three wishes which once were so great a part
+of his life had now almost escaped him. It was the Nixy's strain he had
+been intent upon, and the wishes had lapsed into oblivion.
+
+And what were they, really, those three wishes, for the sake of which he
+desired to confront the Nixy?
+
+Well, the first--the first was--what was it, now? Yes, now at length he
+remembered. The first was wisdom.
+
+Well, the people called him Wise Nils now, so, perhaps, that wish was
+superfluous. Very likely he had as much wisdom as was good for him. At
+all events, he had refused to acquire more by going abroad to acquaint
+himself with the affairs of the great world.
+
+Then the second wish; yes, he could recall that. It was fame. It was odd
+indeed; that, too, he had refused, and what he possessed of it was as
+much, or even far more, than he desired. But when he called to mind the
+third and last of his boyish wishes, a moderate prosperity or a good
+violin--for that was the alternative--he had to laugh outright, for both
+the violin and the prosperity were already his.
+
+Nils lapsed into deep thought, as he sat there in the summer night, with
+the crowns of the trees above him and the brawling rapids swirling about
+him.
+
+Had not the Nixy bestowed upon him her best gift already in permitting
+him to hear that exquisite ghost of a melody, that shadowy, impalpable
+strain, which had haunted him these many years? In pursuing that he had
+gained the goal of his desires, till other things he had wished for had
+come to him unawares, as it were, and almost without his knowing it. And
+now what had he to ask of the Nixy, who had blessed him so abundantly?
+
+The last secret, the wondrous strain, forsooth, that he might imprison
+it in notes, and din it in the ears of an unappreciative multitude!
+Perhaps it were better, after all, to persevere forever in the quest,
+for what would life have left to offer him if the Nixy's strain was
+finally caught, when all were finally attained, and no divine melody
+haunted the brain, beyond the powers even of a Stradivarius to lure from
+its shadowy realm?
+
+Nils walked home that night plunged in deep meditation. He vowed to
+himself that he would never more try to catch the Nixy's strain. But the
+next day, when he seized the violin, there it was again, and, strive as
+he might, he could not forbear trying to catch it.
+
+Wise Nils is many years older now; has a good wife and several children,
+and is a happy man; but to this day, resolve as he will, he has never
+been able to abandon the effort to catch the Nixy's strain. Sometimes he
+thinks he has half caught it, but when he tries to play it, it is always
+gone.
+
+
+
+
+THE WONDER CHILD
+
+
+
+
+I.
+
+A very common belief in Norway, as in many other lands, is that the
+seventh child of the seventh child can heal the sick by the laying on
+of hands. Such a child is therefore called a wonder child. Little Carina
+Holt was the seventh in a family of eight brothers and sisters, but she
+grew to be six years old before it became generally known that she was a
+wonder child. Then people came from afar to see her, bringing their sick
+with them; and morning after morning, as Mrs. Holt rolled up the shades,
+she found invalids, seated or standing in the snow, gazing with devout
+faith and anxious longing toward Carina's window.
+
+It seemed a pity to send them away uncomforted, when the look and the
+touch cost Carina so little. But there was another fear that arose in
+the mother's breast, and that was lest her child should be harmed by the
+veneration with which she was regarded, and perhaps come to believe that
+she was something more than a common mortal. What was more natural than
+that a child who was told by grown-up people that there was healing in
+her touch, should at last come to believe that she was something apart
+and extraordinary?
+
+It would have been a marvel, indeed, if the constant attention she
+attracted, and the pilgrimages that were made to her, had failed to make
+any impression upon her sensitive mind. Vain she was not, and it would
+have been unjust to say that she was spoiled. She had a tender nature,
+full of sympathy for sorrow and suffering. She was constantly giving
+away her shoes, her stockings, nay, even her hood and cloak, to poor
+little invalids, whose misery appealed to her merciful heart. It was
+of no use to scold her; you could no more prevent a stream from flowing
+than Carina from giving. It was a spontaneous yielding to an impulse
+that was too strong to be resisted.
+
+But to her father there was something unnatural in it; he would have
+preferred to have her frankly selfish, as most children are, not because
+he thought it lovely, but because it was childish and natural. Her
+unusual goodness gave him a pang more painful than ever the bad behavior
+of her brothers had occasioned. On the other hand, it delighted him to
+see her do anything that ordinary children did. He was charmed if she
+could be induced to take part in a noisy romp, play tag, or dress her
+dolls. But there followed usually after each outbreak of natural mirth a
+shy withdrawal into herself, a resolute and quiet retirement, as if she,
+were a trifle ashamed of her gayety. There was nothing morbid in these
+moods, no brooding sadness or repentance, but a touching solemnity, a
+serene, almost cheerful seriousness, which in one of her years seemed
+strange.
+
+Mr. Holt had many a struggle with himself as to how he should treat
+Carina's delusion; and he made up his mind, at last, that it was his
+duty to do everything in his power to dispel and counteract it. When he
+happened to overhear her talking to her dolls one day, laying her hands
+upon them, and curing them of imaginary diseases, he concluded it was
+high time for him to act.
+
+He called Carina to him, remonstrated kindly with her, and forbade her
+henceforth to see the people who came to her for the purpose of
+being cured. But it distressed him greatly to see how reluctantly she
+consented to obey him.
+
+When Carina awoke the morning after this promise had been extorted from
+her, she heard the dogs barking furiously in the yard below. Her elder
+sister, Agnes, was standing half dressed before the mirror, holding the
+end of one blond braid between her teeth, while tying the other with
+a pink ribbon. Seeing that Carina was awake, she gave her a nod in the
+glass, and, removing her braid, observed that there evidently were sick
+pilgrims under the window. She could sympathize with Sultan and Hector,
+she averred, in their dislike of pilgrims.
+
+"Oh, I wish they would not come!" sighed Carina. "It will be so hard for
+me to send them away."
+
+"I thought you liked curing people," exclaimed Agnes.
+
+"I do, sister, but papa has made me promise never to do it again."
+
+She arose and began to dress, her sister assisting her, chatting all the
+while like a gay little chirruping bird that neither gets nor expects an
+answer. She was too accustomed to Carina's moods to be either annoyed
+or astonished; but she loved her all the same, and knew that her little
+ears were wide open, even though she gave no sign of listening.
+
+Carina had just completed her simple toilet when Guro, the chamber-maid,
+entered, and announced that there were some sick folk below who wished
+to see the wonder child.
+
+"Tell them I cannot see them," answered Carina, with a tremulous voice;
+"papa does not permit me."
+
+"But this man, Atle Pilot, has come from so far away in this dreadful
+cold," pleaded Guro, "and his son is so very bad, poor thing; he's lying
+down in the boat, and he sighs and groans fit to move a stone."
+
+"Don't! Don't tell her that," interposed Agnes, motioning to the girl to
+begone. "Don't you see it is hard enough for her already?"
+
+There was something in the air, as the two sisters descended the stairs
+hand in hand, which foreboded calamity. The pastor had given out from
+the pulpit last Sunday that he would positively receive no invalids
+at his house; and he had solemnly charged every one to refrain from
+bringing their sick to his daughter. He had repeated this announcement
+again and again, and he was now very much annoyed at his apparent
+powerlessness to protect his child from further imposition. Loud and
+angry speech was heard in his office, and a noise as if the furniture
+were being knocked about. The two little girls remained standing on the
+stairs, each gazing at the other's frightened face. Then there was a
+great bang, and a stalwart, elderly sailor came tumbling head foremost
+out into the hall. His cap was flung after him through the crack of the
+door. Agnes saw for an instant her father's face, red and excited;
+and in his bearing there was something wild and strange, which was so
+different from his usual gentle and dignified appearance. The sailor
+stood for a while bewildered, leaning against the wall; then he stooped
+slowly and picked up his cap. But the moment he caught sight of Carina
+his embarrassment vanished, and his rough features were illuminated with
+an intense emotion.
+
+"Come, little miss, and help me," he cried, in a hoarse, imploring
+whisper. "Halvor, my son--he is the only one God gave me--he is sick; he
+is going to die, miss, unless you take pity on him."
+
+"Where is he?" asked Carina.
+
+"He's down in the boat, miss, at the pier. But I'll carry him up to you,
+if you like. We have been rowing half the night in the cold, and he is
+very low."
+
+"No, no; you mustn't bring him here," said Agnes, seeing by Carina's
+face that she was on the point of yielding. "Father would be so angry."
+
+"He may kill me if he likes," exclaimed the sailor, wildly. "It doesn't
+matter to me. But Halvor he's the only one I have, miss, and his mother
+died when he was born, and he is young, miss, and he will have many
+years to live, if you'll only have mercy on him."
+
+"But, you know, I shouldn't dare, on papa's account, to have you bring
+him here," began Carina, struggling with her tears.
+
+"Ah, yes! Then you will go to him. God bless you for that!" cried the
+poor man, with agonized eagerness. And interpreting the assent he read
+in Carina's eye, he caught her up in his arms, snatched a coat from a
+peg in the wall, and wrapping her in it, tore open the door. Carina made
+no outcry, and was not in the least afraid. She felt herself resting in
+two strong arms, warmly wrapped and borne away at a great speed over the
+snow. But Agnes, seeing her sister vanish in that sudden fashion, gave a
+scream which called her father to the door.
+
+"What has happened?" he asked. "Where is Carina?"
+
+"That dreadful Atle Pilot took her and ran away with her."
+
+"Ran away with her?" cried the pastor in alarm. "How? Where?"
+
+"Down to the pier."
+
+It was a few moments' work for the terrified father to burst open the
+door, and with his velvet skull-cap on his head, and the skirts of his
+dressing-gown flying wildly about him, rush down toward the beach. He
+saw Atle Pilot scarcely fifty feet in advance of him, and shouted to him
+at the top of his voice. But the sailor only redoubled his speed, and
+darted out upon the pier, hugging tightly to his breast the precious
+burden he carried. So blindly did he rush ahead that the pastor expected
+to see him plunge headlong into the icy waves. But, as by a miracle,
+he suddenly checked himself, and grasping with one hand the flag-pole,
+swung around it, a foot or two above the black water, and regained his
+foothold upon the planks. He stood for an instant irresolute, staring
+down into a boat which lay moored to the end of the pier. What he saw
+resembled a big bundle, consisting of a sheepskin coat and a couple of
+horse blankets.
+
+"Halvor," he cried, with a voice that shook with emotion, "I have
+brought her."
+
+There was presently a vague movement under the horse-blankets, and after
+a minute's struggle a pale yellowish face became visible. It was a young
+face--the face of a boy of fifteen or sixteen. But, oh, what suffering
+was depicted in those sunken eyes, those bloodless, cracked lips, and
+the shrunken yellow skin which clung in premature wrinkles about the
+emaciated features! An old and worn fur cap was pulled down over his
+ears, but from under its rim a few strands of blond hair were hanging
+upon his forehead.
+
+Atle had just disentangled Carina from her wrappings, and was about
+to descend the stairs to the water when a heavy hand seized him by the
+shoulder, and a panting voice shouted in his ear:
+
+"Give me back my child."
+
+He paused, and turned his pathetically bewildered face toward the
+pastor. "You wouldn't take him from me, parson," he stammered,
+helplessly; "no, you wouldn't. He's the only one I've got."
+
+"I don't take him from you," the parson thundered, wrathfully. "But what
+right have you to come and steal my child, because yours is ill?"
+
+"When life is at stake, parson," said the pilot, imploringly, "one gets
+muddled about right and wrong. I'll do your little girl no harm. Only
+let her lay her blessed hands upon my poor boy's head, and he will be
+well."
+
+"I have told you no, man, and I must put a stop to this stupid idolatry,
+which will ruin my child, and do you no good. Give her back to me, I
+say, at once."
+
+The pastor held out his hand to receive Carina, who stared at him with
+large pleading eyes out of the grizzly wolf-skin coat.
+
+"Be good to him, papa," she begged. "Only this once."
+
+"No, child; no parleying now; come instantly."
+
+And he seized her by main force, and tore her out of the pilot's arms.
+But to his dying day he remembered the figure of the heart-broken man,
+as he stood outlined against the dark horizon, shaking his clinched
+fists against the sky, and crying out, in a voice of despair:
+
+"May God show you the same mercy on the Judgment Day as you have shown
+to me!"
+
+
+
+
+II.
+
+Six miserable days passed. The weather was stormy, and tidings of
+shipwreck and calamity filled the air. Scarcely a visitor came to the
+parsonage who had not some tale of woe to relate. The pastor, who was
+usually so gentle and cheerful, wore a dismal face, and it was easy to
+see that something was weighing on his mind.
+
+"May God show you the same mercy on the Judgment Day as you have shown
+to me!"
+
+These words rang constantly in his ears by night and by day. Had he
+not been right, according to the laws of God and man, in defending his
+household against the assaults of ignorance and superstition? Would
+he have been justified in sacrificing his own child, even if he could
+thereby save another's? And, moreover, was it not all a wild, heathenish
+delusion, which it was his duty as a servant of God to stamp out and
+root out at all hazards? Yes, there could be no doubt of it; he had but
+exercised his legal right. He had done what was demanded of him by laws
+human and divine. He had nothing to reproach himself for. And yet, with
+a haunting persistency, the image of the despairing pilot praying God
+for vengeance stared at him from every dark corner, and in the very
+church bells, as they rang out their solemn invitation to the house
+of God, he seemed to hear the rhythm and cadence of the heart-broken
+father's imprecation. In the depth of his heart there was a still small
+voice which told him that, say what he might, he had acted cruelly. If
+he put himself in Atle Pilot's place, bound as he was in the iron bonds
+of superstition, how different the case would look? He saw himself, in
+spirit, rowing in a lonely boat through the stormy winter night to
+his pastor, bringing his only son, who was at the point of death, and
+praying that the pastor's daughter might lay her hands upon him, as
+Christ had done to the blind, the halt, and the maimed. And his pastor
+received him with wrath, nay, with blows, and sent him away uncomforted.
+It was a hideous picture indeed, and Mr. Holt would have given years of
+his life to be rid of it.
+
+It was on the sixth day after Atle's visit that the pastor, sitting
+alone in his study, called Carina to him. He had scarcely seen her
+during the last six days, or at least talked with her. Her sweet
+innocent spirit would banish the shadows that darkened his soul.
+
+"Carina," he said, in his old affectionate way, "papa wants to see you.
+Come here and let me talk a little with you."
+
+But could he trust his eyes? Carina, who formerly had run so eagerly
+into his arms, stood hesitating, as if she hoped to be excused.
+
+"Well, my little girl," he asked, in a tone of apprehension, "don't you
+want to talk with papa?"
+
+"I would rather wait till some other time, papa," she managed to
+stammer, while her little face flushed with embarrassment.
+
+Mr. Holt closed the door silently, flung himself into a chair, and
+groaned. That was a blow from where he had least expected it. The child
+had judged him and found him wanting. His Carina, his darling, who had
+always been closest to his heart, no longer responded to his affection!
+Was the pilot's prayer being fulfilled? Was he losing his own child in
+return for the one he had refused to save? With a pang in his breast,
+which was like an aching wound, he walked up and down on the floor and
+marvelled at his own blindness. He had erred indeed; and there was no
+hope that any chance would come to him to remedy the wrong.
+
+The twilight had deepened into darkness while he revolved this trouble
+in his mind. The night was stormy, and the limbs of the trees without
+were continually knocking and bumping against the walls of the house.
+The rusty weather-vane on the roof whined and screamed, and every now
+and then the sleet dashed against the window-panes like a handful of
+shot. The wind hurled itself against the walls, so that the timbers
+creaked and pulled at the shutters, banged stray doors in out-of-the-way
+garrets, and then, having accomplished its work, whirled away over the
+fields with a wild and dismal howl. The pastor sat listening mournfully
+to this tempestuous commotion. Once he thought he heard a noise as of a
+door opening near by him, and softly closing; but as he saw no one, he
+concluded it was his overwrought fancy that had played him a trick. He
+seated himself again in his easy-chair before the stove, which spread a
+dim light from its draught-hole into the surrounding gloom.
+
+While he sat thus absorbed in his meditations, he was startled at the
+sound of something resembling a sob. He arose to strike a light, but
+found that his match-safe was empty. But what was that? A step without,
+surely, and the groping of hands for the door-knob.
+
+"Who is there?" cried the pastor, with a shivering uneasiness.
+
+He sprang forward and opened the door. A broad figure, surmounted by a
+sou'wester, loomed up in the dark.
+
+"What do you want?" asked Mr. Holt, with forced calmness.
+
+"I want to know," answered a gruff, hoarse voice, "if you'll come to my
+son now, and help him into eternity?"
+
+The pastor recognized Atle Pilot's voice, though it seemed harsher and
+hoarser than usual.
+
+"Sail across the fjord on a night like this?" he exclaimed.
+
+"That's what I ask you."
+
+"And the boy is dying, you say?"
+
+"Can't last till morning."
+
+"And has he asked for the sacrament?"
+
+The pilot stepped across the threshold and entered the room. He
+proceeded slowly to pull off his mittens; then looking up at the
+pastor's face, upon which a vague sheen fell from the stove, he broke
+out:
+
+"Will you come or will you not? You wouldn't help him to live; now will
+you help him to die?"
+
+The words, thrust forth with a slow, panting emphasis, hit the pastor
+like so many blows.
+
+"I will come," he said, with solemn resolution. "Sit down till I get
+ready."
+
+He had expected some expression of gratification or thanks, for Atle
+well knew what he had asked. It was his life the pastor risked, but
+this time in his calling as a physician, not of bodies, but of souls.
+It struck him, while he took leave of his wife, that there was something
+resentful and desperate in the pilot's manner, so different from his
+humble pleading at their last meeting.
+
+As he embraced the children one by one, and kissed them, he missed
+Carina, but was told that she had probably gone to the cow-stable
+with the dairy-maid, who was her particular friend. So he left tender
+messages for her, and, summoning Atle, plunged out into the storm. A
+servant walked before him with a lantern, and lighted the way down to
+the pier, where the boat lay tossing upon the waves.
+
+"But, man," cried the pastor, seeing that the boat was empty, "where are
+your boatmen?"
+
+"I am my own boatman," answered Atle, gloomily. "You can hold the sheet,
+I the tiller."
+
+Mr. Holt was ashamed of retiring now, when he had given his word.
+
+But it was with a sinking heart that he stepped into the frail skiff,
+which seemed scarcely more than a nutshell upon the tempestuous deep. He
+was on the point of asking his servant, unacquainted though he was
+with seamanship, to be the third man in the boat; but the latter,
+anticipating his intention, had made haste to betake himself away. To
+venture out into this roaring darkness, with no beacon to guide them,
+and scarcely a landmark discernible, was indeed to tempt Providence.
+
+But by the time he had finished this reflection, the pastor felt himself
+rushing along at a tremendous speed, and short, sharp commands rang in
+his ears, which instantly engrossed all his attention. To his eyes the
+sky looked black as ink, except for a dark-blue unearthly shimmer that
+now and then flared up from the north, trembled, and vanished. By this
+unsteady illumination it was possible to catch a momentary glimpse of
+a head, and a peak, and the outline of a mountain. The small sail was
+double-reefed, yet the boat careened so heavily that the water broke
+over the gunwale. The squalls beat down upon them with tumultuous
+roar and smoke, as of snow-drifts, in their wake; but the little boat,
+climbing the top of the waves and sinking into the dizzy black pits
+between them, sped fearlessly along and the pastor began to take heart.
+Then, with a fierce cutting distinctness, came the command out of the
+dark.
+
+"Pull out the reefs!"
+
+"Are you crazy, man?" shouted the pastor. "Do you want to sail straight
+into eternity?"
+
+"Pull out the reefs!" The command was repeated with wrathful emphasis.
+
+"Then we are dead men, both you and I."
+
+"So we are, parson--dead men. My son lies dead at home, though you might
+have saved him. So, now, parson, we are quits."
+
+With a fierce laugh he rose up, and still holding the tiller, stretched
+his hand to tear out the reefs. But at that instant, just as a quivering
+shimmer broke across the sky, something rose up from under the thwart
+and stood between them. Atle started back with a hoarse scream.
+
+"In Heaven's name, child!" he cried. "Oh, God, have mercy upon me!"
+
+And the pastor, not knowing whether he saw a child or a vision, cried
+out in the same moment: "Carina, my darling! Carina, how came you here?"
+
+It was Carina, indeed; but the storm whirled her tiny voice away over
+the waves, and her father, folding her with one arm to his breast, while
+holding the sheet with the other, did not hear what she answered to his
+fervent exclamation. He only knew that her dear little head rested close
+to his heart, and that her yellow hair blew across his face.
+
+"I wanted to save that poor boy, papa," were the only words that met his
+ears. But he needed no more to explain the mystery. It was Carina, who,
+repenting of her unkindness to him, had stolen into his study, while he
+sat in the dark, and there she had heard Atle Pilot's message. Even if
+this boy was sick unto death, she might perhaps cure him, and make up
+for her father's harshness. Thus reasoned the sage Carina; and she had
+gone secretly and prepared for the voyage, and battled with the storm,
+which again and again threw her down on her road to the pier. It was
+a miracle that she got safely into the boat, and stowed herself away
+snugly under the stern thwart.
+
+The clearing in the north gradually spread over the sky, and the
+storm abated. Soon they had the shore in view, and the lights of the
+fishermen's cottages gleamed along the beach of the headland. Presently
+they ran into smoother water; a star or two flashed forth, and wide blue
+expanses appeared here and there on the vault of the sky. They spied the
+red lanterns marking the wharf, about which a multitude of boats lay,
+moored to stakes, and with three skilful tacks Atle made the harbor.
+It was here, standing on the pier, amid the swash and swirl of surging
+waters, that the pilot seized Carina's tiny hand in his big and rough
+one.
+
+"Parson," he said, with a breaking voice, "I was going to run afoul of
+you, and wreck myself with you; but this child, God bless her! she ran
+us both into port, safe and sound."
+
+But Carina did not hear what he said, for she lay sweetly sleeping in
+her father's arms.
+
+
+
+
+"THE SONS OF THE VIKINGS"
+
+
+
+
+I.
+
+When Hakon Vang said his prayers at night, he usually finished with
+these words: "And I thank thee, God, most of all, because thou madest me
+a Norseman, and not a German or an Englishman or a Swede."
+
+To be a Norseman appears to the Norse boy a claim to distinction.
+
+God has made so many millions of Englishmen and Russians and Germans,
+that there can be no particular honor in being one of so vast a herd;
+while of Norsemen He has made only a small and select number, whom
+He looks after with special care; upon whom He showers such favors
+as poverty and cold (with a view to keeping them good and hardy), and
+remoteness from all the glittering temptations that beset the nations in
+whom He takes a less paternal interest. Thus at least reasons, in a dim
+way, the small boy in Norway; thus he is taught to reason by his parents
+and instructors.
+
+As for Hakon Vang, he strutted along the beach like a turkey-cock,
+whenever he thought of his glorious descent from the Vikings--those
+daring pirates that stole thrones and kingdoms, and mixed their red
+Norse blood in the veins of all the royal families of Europe. The
+teacher of history (who was what is called a Norse-Norseman) had on one
+occasion, with more patriotic zeal than discretion, undertaken to pick
+out those boys in his class who were of pure Norse descent; whose blood
+was untainted by any foreign admixture. The delighted pride of this
+small band made them an object of envy to all the rest of the school.
+Hakon, when his name was mentioned, felt as if he had added a yard to
+his height. Tears of joy started to his eyes; and to give vent to his
+overcharged feelings, he broke into a war-whoop; for which he received
+five black marks and was kept in at recess.
+
+But he minded that very little; all great men, he reflected, have had to
+suffer for their country.
+
+What Hakon loved above all things to study--nay, the only thing he loved
+to study--was the old Sagas, which are tales, poems, and histories
+of the deeds of the Norsemen in ancient times. With eleven of his
+classmates, who were about his own age and as Norse as himself, he
+formed a brotherhood which was called "The Sons of the Vikings." They
+gave each other tremendously bloody surnames, in the style of the
+Sagas--names that reeked with gore and heroism. Hakon himself assumed
+the pleasing appellation "Skull-splitter," and his classmate Frithjof
+Ronning was dubbed Vargr-i-Veum, which means Wolf-in-the-Temple. One Son
+of the Vikings was known as Ironbeard, another as Erling the Lop-Sided,
+a third as Thore the Hound, a fourth as Aslak Stone-Skull. But a serious
+difficulty, which came near disrupting the brotherhood, arose over these
+very names. It was felt that Hakon had taken an unfair advantage of the
+rest in selecting the bloodiest name at the outset (before anyone else
+had had an opportunity to choose), and there was a general demand that
+he should give it up and allow all to draw lots for it. But this Hakon
+stoutly refused to do; and declared that if anyone wanted his name he
+would have to fight for it, in good old Norse fashion.
+
+A holm-gang or duel was then arranged; that is, a ring was marked out
+with stones; the combatants stepped within it, and he who could drive
+his antagonist outside of the stone ring was declared to be the victor.
+Frithjof, who felt that he had a better claim to be named Skull-Splitter
+than Hakon, was the first to accept the challenge; but after a terrible
+combat was forced to bite the dust. His conqueror was, however, filled
+with such a glowing admiration of his valor (as combatants in the
+Sagas frequently are), that he proposed that they should swear eternal
+friendship and foster-brotherhood, and seal their compact, according to
+Norse custom, by the ceremony called "Mingling of Blood." It is needless
+to say that this seemed to all the boys a most delightful proposition;
+and they entered upon the august rite with a deep sense of its
+solemnity.
+
+First a piece of sod, about twelve feet square, was carefully raised
+upon wooden stakes representing spears, so as to form a green roof over
+the foster-brothers. Then, sitting upon the black earth, where the turf
+had been removed, they bared their arms to the shoulder, and in the
+presence of his ten brethren, as witnesses, each swore that he would
+regard the other as his true brother and love him and treat him as such,
+and avenge his death if he survived him; in solemn testimony of which
+each drew a knife and opened a vein in his arm, letting their blood
+mingle and flow together. Hakon, however, in his heroic zeal, drove the
+knife into his flesh rather recklessly, and when the blood had flowed
+profusely for five minutes, he grew a trifle uneasy. Frithjof, after
+having bathed his arm in a neighboring brook, had no difficulty in
+stanching the blood, but the poor Skull-Splitter's wound, in spite of
+cold water and bandages, kept pouring forth its warm current without
+sign of abatement. Hakon grew paler and paler, and would have burst into
+tears, if he had not been a "Son of the Vikings." It would have been a
+relief to him, for the moment, not to have been a "Son of the Vikings."
+For he was terribly frightened, and thought surely he was going to bleed
+to death. The other Vikings, too, began to feel rather alarmed at such a
+prospect; and when Erling the Lop-Sided (the pastor's son) proposed that
+they should carry Hakon to the doctor, no one made any objection. But
+the doctor unhappily lived so far away that Hakon might die before he
+got there.
+
+"Well, then," said Wolf-in-the Temple, "let us take him to old
+Witch-Martha. She can stanch blood and do lots of other queer things."
+
+"Yes, and that is much more Norse, too," suggested Thore the Hound;
+"wise women learned physic and bandaged wounds in the olden time. Men
+were never doctors."
+
+"Yes, Witch-Martha is just the right style," said Erling the Lop-Sided
+down in his boots; for he had naturally a shrill voice and gave himself
+great pains to produce a manly bass.
+
+"We must make a litter to carry the Skull-Splitter on," exclaimed Einar
+Bowstring-Twanger (the sheriff's son); "he'll never get to Witch-Martha
+alive if he is to walk."
+
+This suggestion was favorably received, the boys set to work with a
+will, and in a few minutes had put together a litter of green twigs and
+branches. Hakon, who was feeling curiously light-headed and exhausted,
+allowed himself to be placed upon it in a reclining position; and its
+swinging motion, as his friends carried it along, nearly rocked him to
+sleep. The fear of death was but vaguely present to his mind; but his
+self-importance grew with every moment, as he saw his blood trickle
+through the leaves and drop at the roadside. He appeared to himself
+a brave Norse warrior who was being carried by his comrades from the
+battle-field, where he had greatly distinguished himself. And now to be
+going, to the witch who, by magic rhymes and incantations, was to stanch
+the ebbing stream of his life--what could be more delightful?
+
+
+
+
+II.
+
+Witch Martha lived in a small lonely cottage down by the river. Very few
+people ever went to see her in the day-time; but at night she often had
+visitors. Mothers who suspected that their children were changelings,
+whom the Trolds had put in the cradle, taking the human infants away;
+girls who wanted to "turn the hearts" of their lovers, and lovers who
+wanted to turn the hearts of the girls; peasants who had lost money
+or valuables and wanted help to trace the thief--these and many
+others sought secret counsel with Witch-Martha, and rarely went away
+uncomforted. She was an old weather-beaten woman with a deeply wrinkled,
+smoky-brown face, and small shrewd black eyes. The floor in her cottage
+was strewn with sand and fresh juniper twigs; from the rafters under
+the ceiling hung bunches of strange herbs; and in the windows were
+flower-pots with blooming plants in them.
+
+Martha was stooping at the hearth, blowing and puffing at the fire
+under her coffee-pot, when the Sons of the Vikings knocked at the door.
+Wolf-in-the-Temple was the man who took the lead; and when Witch-Martha
+opened the upper half of the door (she never opened both at the same
+time) she was not a little astonished to see the Captain's son, Frithjof
+Ronning, staring up at her with an anxious face.
+
+"What cost thou want, lad?" she asked, gruffly; "thou hast gone astray
+surely, and I'll show thee the way home."
+
+"I am Wolf-in-the-Temple," began Frithjof, thrusting out his chest, and
+raising his head proudly.
+
+"Dear me, you don't say so!" exclaimed Martha.
+
+"My comrade and foster-brother Skull-Splitter has been wounded; and I
+want thee, old crone, to stanch his blood before he bleeds to death."
+
+"Dear, dear me, how very strange!" ejaculated the Witch, and shook her
+aged head.
+
+She had been accustomed to extraordinary requests; but the language
+of this boy struck her as being something of the queerest she had yet
+heard.
+
+"Where is thy Skull-Splitter, lad?" she asked, looking at him dubiously.
+
+"Right here in the underbrush," Wolf-in-the-Temple retorted, gallantly;
+"stir thy aged stumps now, and thou shalt be right royally rewarded."
+
+He had learned from Walter Scott's romances that this was the proper way
+to address inferiors, and he prided himself not a little on his jaunty
+condescension. Imagine then his surprise when the "old crone" suddenly
+turned on him with an angry scowl and said:
+
+"If thou canst not keep a civil tongue in thy head, I'll bring a
+thousand plagues upon thee, thou umnannerly boy."
+
+By this threat Wolf-in-the-Temple's courage was sadly shaken. He knew
+Martha's reputation as a witch, and had no desire to test in his own
+person whether rumor belied her.
+
+"Please, mum, I beg of you," he said, with a sudden change of tone; "my
+friend Hakon Vang is bleeding to death; won't you please help him?"
+
+"Thy friend Hakon Vang!" cried Martha, to whom that name was very
+familiar; "bring him in, as quick as thou canst, and I'll do what I can
+for him."
+
+Wolf-in-the-Temple put two fingers into his mouth and gave a loud
+shrill whistle, which was answered from the woods, and presently the
+small procession moved up to the door, carrying their wounded comrade
+between them. The poor Skull-Splitter was now as white as a sheet, and
+the drowsiness of his eyes and the laxness of his features showed that
+help came none too early. Martha, in hot haste, grabbed a bag of herbs,
+thrust it into a pot of warm water, and clapped it on the wound. Then
+she began to wag her head slowly to and fro, and crooned, to a soft and
+plaintive tune, words which sounded to the ears of the boys shudderingly
+strange:
+
+     "I conjure in water, I conjure in lead,
+     I conjure with herbs that grew o'er the dead;
+     I conjure with flowers that I plucked, without shoon,
+     When the ghosts were abroad, in the wane of the moon.
+     I conjure with spirits of earth and air
+     That make the wind sigh and cry in despair;
+     I conjure by him within sevenfold rings
+     That sits and broods at the roots of things.
+     I conjure by him who healeth strife,
+     Who plants and waters the germs of life.
+     I conjure, I conjure, I bid thee be still,
+     Thou ruddy stream, thou hast flowed thy fill!
+     Return to thy channel and nurture his life
+     Till his destined measure of years be rife."
+
+
+She sang the last two lines with sudden energy; and when she removed
+her hand from the wound, the blood had ceased to flow. The poor
+Skull-Splitter was sleeping soundly; and his friends, shivering a little
+with mysterious fears, marched up and down whispering to one another.
+They set a guard of honor at the leafy couch of their wounded comrade;
+intercepted the green worms and other insects that kept dropping down
+upon him from the alder branches overhead, and brushed away the flies
+that would fain disturb his slumbers. They were all steeped to the core
+in old Norse heroism; and they enjoyed the situation hugely. All the
+life about them was half blotted out; they saw it but dimly. That light
+of youthful romance, which never was on sea or land, transformed all
+the common things that met their vision into something strange and
+wonderful. They strained their ears to catch the meaning of the song of
+the birds, so that they might learn from them the secrets of the future,
+as Sigurd the Volsung did, after he had slain the dragon, Fafnir. The
+woods round about them were filled with dragons and fabulous beasts,
+whose tracks they detected with the eyes of faith; and they started
+out every morning, during the all too brief vacation, on imaginary
+expeditions against imaginary monsters.
+
+When at the end of an hour the Skull-Splitter woke from his slumber,
+much refreshed, Witch-Martha bandaged his arm carefully, and Wolf-in-the
+Temple (having no golden arm-rings) tossed her, with magnificent
+superciliousness, his purse, which contained six cents. But she flung
+it back at him with such force that he had to dodge with more adroitness
+than dignity.
+
+"I'll get my claws into thee some day, thou foolish lad," she said,
+lifting her lean vulture-like hand with a threatening gesture.
+
+"No, please don't, Martha, I didn't mean anything," cried the boy, in
+great alarm; "you'll forgive me, won't you, Martha?"
+
+"I'll bid thee begone, and take thy foolish tongue along with thee," she
+answered, in a mollified tone.
+
+And the Sons of the Vikings, taking the hint, shouldered the litter once
+more, and reached Skull-Splitter's home in time for supper.
+
+
+
+
+III.
+
+The Sons of the Vikings were much troubled. Every heroic deed which they
+plotted had this little disadvantage, that they were in danger of going
+to jail for it. They could not steal cattle and horses, because they
+did not know what to do with them when they had got them; they could
+not sail away over the briny deep in search of fortune or glory, because
+they had no ships; and sail-boats were scarcely big enough for daring
+voyages to the blooming South which their ancestors had ravaged. The
+precious vacation was slipping away, and as yet they had accomplished
+nothing that could at all be called heroic. It was while the brotherhood
+was lamenting this fact that Wolf-in-the-Temple had a brilliant idea.
+He procured his father's permission to invite his eleven companions to
+spend a day and a night at the Ronning saeter, or mountain dairy, far up
+in the highlands. The only condition Mr. Ronning made was that they were
+to be accompanied by his man, Brumle-Knute, who was to be responsible
+for their safety. But the boys determined privately to make Brumle-Knute
+their prisoner, in case he showed any disposition to spoil their sport.
+To spend a day and a night in the woods, to imagine themselves Vikings,
+and behave as they imagined Vikings would behave, was a prospect which
+no one could contemplate without the most delightful excitement. There,
+far away from sheriffs and pastors and maternal supervision, they might
+perhaps find the long-desired chance of performing their heroic deed.
+
+It was a beautiful morning early in August that the boys started from
+Strandholm, Mr. Ronning's estate, accompanied by Brumle-Knute. The
+latter was a middle-aged, round-shouldered peasant, who had the habit of
+always talking to himself. To look at him you would have supposed that
+he was a rough and stupid fellow who would have quite enough to do in
+looking after himself. But the fact was, that Brumle-Knute was the best
+shot, the best climber--and altogether the most keen-eyed hunter in the
+whole valley. It was a saying that he could scent game so well that he
+never needed a dog; and that he could imitate to perfection the call of
+every game bird that inhabited the mountain glens. Sweet-tempered he was
+not; but so reliable, skilful, and vigilant, and moreover so thorough
+a woodsman, that the boys could well afford to put up with his gruff
+temper.
+
+The Sons of the Vikings were all mounted on ponies; and
+Wolf-in-the-Temple, who had been elected chieftain, led the troop.
+At his side rode Skull-Splitter, who was yet a trifle pale after his
+blood-letting, but brimming over with ambition to distinguish himself.
+They had all tied their trousers to their legs with leather thongs, in
+order to be perfectly "Old Norse;" and some of them had turned their
+plaids and summer overcoats inside out, displaying the gorgeous colors
+of the lining. Loosely attached about their necks and flying in the
+wind, these could easily serve for scarlet or purple cloaks wrought on
+Syrian looms. Most of the boys carried also wooden swords and shields,
+and the chief had a long loor or Alpine horn. Only the valiant
+Ironbeard, whose father was a military man, had a real sword and a real
+scabbard into the bargain. Wolf-in-the-Temple, and Erling the
+Lop-Sided, had each an old fowling-piece; and Brumle-Knute carried a
+double-barrelled rifle. This, to be sure, was not; quite historically
+correct; but firearms are so useful in the woods, even if they are not
+correct, that it was resolved not to notice the irregularity; for there
+were boars in the mountains, besides wolves and foxes and no end of
+smaller game.
+
+For an hour or more the procession rode, single file, up the steep and
+rugged mountain-paths; but the boys were all in high spirits and enjoyed
+themselves hugely. The mere fact that they were Vikings, on a daring
+foraging expedition into a neighboring kingdom, imparted a wonderful
+zest to everything they did and said. It might be foolish, but it was on
+that account none the less delightful. They sent out scouts to watch
+for the approach of an imaginary enemy; they had secret pass-words and
+signs; they swore (Viking style) by Thor's hammer and by Odin's eye.
+They talked appalling nonsense to each other with a delicious sentiment
+of its awful blood-curdling character. It was about noon when they
+reached the Strandholm saeter, which consisted of three turf-thatched
+log-cabins or chalets, surrounded by a green inclosure of half a dozen
+acres. The wide highland plain, eight or ten miles long, was bounded on
+the north and west by throngs of snow-hooded mountain peaks, which rose,
+one behind another, in glittering grandeur; and in the middle of the
+plain there were two lakes or tarns, connected by a river which was
+milky white where it entered the lakes and clear as crystal where it
+escaped.
+
+"Now, Vikings," cried Wolf-in-the-Temple, when the boys had done justice
+to their dinner, "it behooves us to do valiant deeds, and to prove
+ourselves worthy of our fathers."
+
+"Hear, hear," shouted Ironbeard, who was fourteen years old and had a
+shadow of a moustache, "I am in for great deeds, hip, hip, hurrah!"
+
+"Hold your tongue when you hear me speak," commanded the chieftain,
+loftily; "we will lie in wait at the ford, between the two tarns, and
+capture the travellers who pass that way. If perchance a princess from
+the neighboring kingdom pass, on the way to her dominions, we will hold
+her captive until her father, the king, comes to ransom her with heaps
+of gold in rings and fine garments and precious weapons."
+
+"But what are we to do with her when we have caught her?" asked the
+Skull-Splitter, innocently.
+
+"We will keep her imprisoned in the empty saeter hut,"
+Wolf-in-the-Temple responded. "Now, are you ready? We'll leave the
+horses here on the croft, until our return."
+
+The question now was to elude Brumle-Knute's vigilance; for the Sons of
+the Vikings had good reasons for fearing that he might interfere with
+their enterprise. They therefore waited until Brumle-knute was invited
+by the dairymaid to sit down to dinner. No sooner had the door closed
+upon his stooping figure, than they stole out through a hole in the
+fence, crept on all-fours among the tangled dwarf-birches and the big
+gray boulders, and following close in the track of their leader, reached
+the ford between the lakes. There they observed two enormous heaps of
+stones known as the Parson and the Deacon; for it had been the custom
+from immemorial times for every traveller to fling a big stone as a
+"sacrifice" for good luck upon the Parson's heap and a small stone
+upon the Deacon's. Behind these piles of stone the boys hid themselves,
+keeping a watchful eye on the road and waiting for their chief's signal
+to pounce upon unwary travellers. They lay for about fifteen minutes in
+expectant silence, and were on the point of losing their patience.
+
+"Look here, Wolf-in-the-Temple," cried Erling the Lop-Sided, "you
+may think this is fun, but I don't. Let us take the raft there and go
+fishing. The tarn is simply crowded with perch and bass."
+
+"Hold your disrespectful tongue," whispered the chief, warningly, "or
+I'll discipline you so you'll remember it till your dying day."
+
+"Ho, ho!" laughed the rebel, jeeringly; "big words and fat pork don't
+stick in the throat. Wait till I get you alone and we shall see who'll
+be disciplined."
+
+Erling had risen and was about to emerge from his hiding-place, when
+suddenly hoof-beats were heard, and a horse was seen approaching,
+carrying on its back a stalwart peasant lass, in whose lap a pretty
+little girl of twelve or thirteen was sitting.
+
+The former was clad in scarlet bodice, a black embroidered skirt, and
+a snowy-white kerchief was tied about her head. Her blonde hair hung in
+golden profusion down over her back and shoulders. The little girl
+was city-clad, and had a sweet and appealing face. She was chattering
+guilelessly with her companion, asking more questions than she could
+possibly expect to have answered. Nearer and nearer they came to the
+great stone heaps, dreaming of no harm.
+
+"And, Gunbjor," the Skull-Splitter heard the little girl say, "you don't
+really believe that there are trolds and fairies in the mountains, do
+you?"
+
+"Them as are wiser than I am have believed that," was Gunbjor's answer;
+"but we don't hear so much about the trolds nowadays as they did when my
+granny was young. Then they took young girls into the mountain and----"
+
+Here came a wild, piercing yell, as the Sons of the Vikings rushed
+forward from behind the rocks, and with a terrible war-whoop swooped
+down upon the road. Wolf-in-the-Temple, who led the band, seized the
+horse by the bridle, and flourishing his sword threateningly, addressed
+the frightened peasant lass.
+
+"Is this, perchance, the Princess Kunigunde, the heir to the throne of
+my good friend, King Bjorn the Victorious?" he asked, with a magnificent
+air, seizing the trembling little girl by the wrist.
+
+"Nay," Gunbjor answered, as soon as she could find her voice, "this is
+the Deacon's Maggie, as is going to the saeter with me to spend Sunday."
+
+"She cannot proceed on her way," said the chieftain, decisively, "she is
+my prisoner."
+
+Gunbjor, who had been frightened out of her wits by the small red- and
+blue-cloaked men, swarming among the stones, taking them to be trolds
+or fairies, now gradually recovered her senses. She recognized in Erling
+the Lop-Sided the well-known features of the parson's son; and as
+soon as she had made this discovery she had no great difficulty in
+identifying the rest. "Never you fear, pet," she said to the child in
+her lap, "these be bad boys as want to frighten us. I'll give them a
+switching if they don't look out."
+
+"The Princess Kunigunde is my prisoner until it please her noble father
+to ransom her for ten pounds of silver," repeated Wolf-in-the-Temple,
+putting his arm about little Maggie's waist and trying to lift her from
+the saddle.
+
+"You keep yer hands off the child, or I'll give you ten pounds of
+thrashing," cried Gunbjor, angrily.
+
+"She shall be treated with the respect due to her rank,"
+Wolf-in-the-Temple proceeded, loftily. "I give King Bjorn the Victorious
+three moons in which to bring me the ransom."
+
+"And I'll give you three boxes on the ear, and a cut with my whip, into
+the bargain, if you don't let the horse alone, and take yer hands off
+the child."
+
+"Vikings!" cried the chief, "lay hands on her! Tear her from the saddle!
+She has defied us! She deserves no mercy."
+
+With a tremendous yell the boys rushed forward, brandishing their swords
+above their heads, and pulled Gunbjor from the saddle. But she held on
+to her charge with a vigorous clutch, and as soon as her feet touched
+the ground she began with her disengaged hand to lay about her, with
+her whip, in a way that proved extremely unpleasant. Wolf-in-the-Temple,
+against whom her assault was especially directed, received some bad cuts
+across his face, and Ironbeard was driven backward into the ford, where
+he fell, full length, and rose dripping wet and mortified. Thore the
+Hound got a thump in his head from Gunbjor's stalwart elbows, and
+Skull-Splitter, who had more courage than discretion, was pitched
+into the water with no more ceremony than if he had been a superfluous
+kitten. The fact was--I cannot disguise it--within five minutes the
+whole valiant band of the Sons of the Vikings were routed by that
+terrible switch, wielded by the intrepid Gunbjor. When the last of her
+foes had bitten the dust, she calmly remounted her pony, and with the
+Deacon's Maggie in her lap rode, at a leisurely pace, across the ford.
+
+"Good-by, lads," she said, nodding her head at them over her shoulder;
+"ye needn't be afraid. I won't tell on you."
+
+
+
+
+IV.
+
+To have been routed by a woman was a terrible humiliation to the valiant
+Sons of the Vikings. They were silent and moody during the evening,
+and sat staring into the big bonfire on the saeter green with stern and
+melancholy features. They had suffered defeat in battle, and it behooved
+them to avenge it. About nine o'clock they retired into their bunks
+in the log cabin, but no sooner was Brumle-Knute's rhythmic snoring
+perceived than Wolf-in-the-Temple put his head out and called to
+his comrades to meet him in front of the house for a council of war.
+Instantly they scrambled out of their alcoves, pulled on their coats
+and trousers; and noiselessly stole out into the night. The sun was yet
+visible, but a red veil of fiery mist was drawn across his face; and
+a magic air of fairy-tales and strange unreality was diffused over
+mountains, plains and lakes. The river wound like a huge, blood-red
+serpent through the mountain pastures, and the snow-hooded peaks blazed
+with fiery splendor.
+
+The boys were quite stunned at the sight of such magnificence, and stood
+for some minutes gazing at the landscape, before giving heed to the
+summons of the chief.
+
+"Comrades," said Wolf-in-the-Temple, solemnly, "what is life without
+honor?"
+
+There was not a soul present who could answer that conundrum, and after
+a fitting pause the chief was forced to answer it himself.
+
+"Life without honor, comrades," he said, severely, "life--without honor
+is--nothing."
+
+"Hear, hear!" cried Ironbeard; "good for you, old man!"
+
+"Silence!" thundered Wolf-in-the-Temple, "I must beg the gentlemen to
+observe the proprieties."
+
+This tremendous phrase rarely failed to restore order, and the flippant
+Ironbeard was duly rebuked by the glances of displeasure which met him
+on all sides. But in the meanwhile the chief had lost the thread of his
+speech and could not recover it. "Vikings," he resumed, clearing his
+throat vehemently, "we have been--that is to say--we have sustained----"
+
+"A thrashing," supplied the innocent Skull-Splitter.
+
+But the awful stare which was fixed upon him convinced him that he
+had made a mistake; and he shrunk into an abashed silence. "We must do
+something to retrieve our honor," continued the chief, earnestly; "we
+must--take steps--to to get upon our legs again," he finished, blushing
+with embarrassment.
+
+"I would suggest that we get upon our legs first, and take the steps
+afterward," remarked the flippant Ironbeard, with a sly wink at Thore
+the Hound.
+
+The chief held it to be beneath his dignity to notice this interruption,
+and after having gazed for a while in silence at the blood-red mountain
+peaks, he continued, more at his ease:
+
+"I propose, comrades, that we go on a bear hunt. Then, when we return
+with a bear-skin or two, our honor will be all right; no one will dare
+laugh at us. The brave boy-hunters will be the admiration and pride of
+the whole valley."
+
+"But Brummle-Knute," observed the Skull-Splitter; "do you think he will
+allow us to go bear-hunting?"
+
+"What do we care whether he allows us or not?" cried Wolf-in-the-Temple,
+scornfully; "he sleeps like a log; and I propose that we tie his hands
+and feet before we start."
+
+This suggestion met with enthusiastic approval, and all the boys laughed
+heartily at the idea of Brumle-Knute waking up and finding himself tied
+with ropes, like a calf that is carried to market.
+
+"Now, comrades," commanded the chief, with a flourish of his sword, "get
+to bed quickly. I'll call you at four o'clock; we'll then start to chase
+the monarch of the mountains."
+
+The Sons of the Vikings scrambled into their bunks with great despatch;
+and though their beds consisted of pine twigs, covered with a coarse
+sheet, and a bat of straw for a pillow, they fell asleep without
+rocking, and slept more soundly than if they had rested on silken
+bolsters filled with eiderdown. Wolf-in-the-Temple was as good as his
+word, and waked them promptly at four o'clock; and their first task,
+after having filled their knapsacks with provisions, was to tie
+Brumle-Knute's hands and feet with the most cunning slip-knots, which
+would tighten more, the more he struggled to unloose them. Ironbeard,
+who had served a year before the mast, was the contriver of this daring
+enterprise; and he did it so cleverly that Brumle-Knute never suspected
+that his liberty was being interfered with. He snorted a little and
+rubbed imaginary cobwebs from his face; but soon lapsed again into a
+deep, snoring unconsciousness.
+
+The faces of the Sons of the Vikings grew very serious as they started
+out on this dangerous expedition. There was more than one of them who
+would not have objected to remaining at home, but who feared to
+incur the charge of cowardice if he opposed the wishes of the rest.
+Wolf-in-the-Temple walked at the head of the column, as they hastened
+with stealthy tread out of the saeter inclosure, and steered their
+course toward the dense pine forest, the tops of which were visible
+toward the east, where the mountain sloped toward the valley. He
+carried his fowling-piece, loaded with shot, in his right hand, and a
+powder-horn and other equipments for the chase were flung across his
+shoulder. Erling the Lop-Sided was similarly armed, and Ironbeard,
+glorying in a real sword, unsheathed it every minute and let it flash
+in the sun. It was a great consolation to the rest of the Vikings to
+see these formidable weapons; for they were not wise enough to know that
+grown-up bears are not killed with shot, and that a fowling-piece is
+a good deal more dangerous than no weapon at all, in the hands of an
+inexperienced hunter.
+
+The sun, who had exchanged his flaming robe de nuit for the rosy colors
+of morning, was now shooting his bright shafts of light across the
+mountain plain, and cheering the hearts of the Sons of the Vikings. The
+air was fresh and cool; and it seemed a luxury to breathe it. It entered
+the lungs in a pure, vivifying stream like an elixir of life, and sent
+the blood dancing through the veins. It was impossible to mope in such
+air; and Ironbeard interpreted the general mood when he struck up the
+tune:
+
+     "We wander with joy on the far mountain path,
+     We follow the star that will guide us;"
+
+but before he had finished the third verse, it occurred to the chief
+that they were bear-hunters, and that it was very unsportsmanlike
+behavior to sing on the chase. For all that they were all very jolly,
+throbbing with excitement at the thought of the adventures which they
+were about to encounter; and concealing a latent spark of fear under an
+excess of bravado. At the end of an hour's march they had reached the
+pine forest; and as they were all ravenously hungry they sat down
+upon the stones, where a clear mountain brook ran down the slope, and
+unpacked their provisions. Wolf-in-the-Temple had just helped himself,
+in old Norse fashion, to a slice of smoked ham, having slashed a piece
+off at random with his knife, when Erling the Lop-Sided observed that
+that ham had a very curious odor. Everyone had to test its smell; and
+they all agreed that it did have a singular flavor, though its taste was
+irreproachable.
+
+"It smells like a menagerie," said the Skull-Splitter, as he handed it
+to Thore the Hound.
+
+"But the bread and the biscuit smell just the same," said Thore the
+Hound; "in fact, it is the air that smells like a menagerie."
+
+"Boys," cried Wolf-in-the-Temple, "do you see that track in the mud?"
+
+"Yes; it is the track of a barefooted man," suggested the innocent
+Skull-Splitter.
+
+Ironbeard and Erling the Lop-Sided flung themselves down among the
+stones and investigated the tracks; and they were no longer in doubt as
+to where the pungent wild odor came from, which they had attributed to
+the ham.
+
+"Boys," said Erling, looking up with an excited face, "a she-bear with
+one or two cubs has been here within a few minutes."
+
+"This is her drinking-place," said Ironbeard: "the tracks are many and
+well-worn; if she hasn't been here this morning, she is sure to come
+before long."
+
+"We are in luck indeed," Wolf-in-the-Temple observed, coolly; "we
+needn't go far for our bear. He will be coming for us."
+
+At that moment the note of an Alpine horn was heard; but it was
+impossible to determine how far it was away; for the echo took up the
+note and flung it back and forth with clear and strong reverberations
+from mountain to mountain.
+
+"It is Brumle-Knute who is calling us," said Thore the Hound. "The
+dairymaid must have released him. Shall we answer?"
+
+"Never," cried the chief, proudly; "I forbid you to answer. Here we have
+our heroic deed in sight, and I want no one to spoil it. If there is a
+coward among us, let him take to his heels; no one shall detain him."
+
+There were perhaps several who would have liked to accept the
+invitation; but no one did. Skull-Splitter, by way of diversion, plumped
+backward into the brook, and sat down in the cool pool up to his waist.
+But nobody laughed at his mishap; because they had their minds full of
+more serious thoughts. Wolf-in-the-Temple, who had climbed up on a big
+moss-grown boulder, stood, gun in hand, and peered in among the bushes.
+
+"Boys," he whispered, "drop down on your bellies--quick."
+
+All, crowding behind a rock, obeyed, pushing themselves into position
+with hands and feet. With wildly beating hearts the Vikings gazed up
+among the gray wilderness of stone and underbrush, and first one, then
+another, caught sight of something brown and hairy that came toddling
+down toward them, now rolling like a ball of yarn, now turning a
+somersault, and now again pegging industriously along on four clumsy
+paws. It was the prettiest little bear cub that ever woke on its mossy
+lair in the woods. Now it came shuffling down in a boozy way to take its
+morning bath. It seemed but half awake; and Skull-Splitter imagined
+that it was a trifle cross, because its mother had waked it too early.
+Evidently it had made no toilet as yet, for bits of moss were
+sticking in its hair; and it yawned once or twice, and shook its
+head disgustedly. Skull-Splitter knew so well that feeling and could
+sympathize with the poor young cub. But Wolf-in-the-Temple, who watched
+it no less intently, was filled with quite different emotions. Here
+was his heroic deed, for which he had hungered so long. To shoot a
+bear--that was a deed worthy of a Norseman. One step more--then two--and
+then--up rose the bear cub on its hind legs and rubbed its eyes with
+its paws. Now he had a clean shot--now or never; and pulling the trigger
+Wolf-in-the-Temple blazed away and sent a handful of shot into the
+carcass of the poor little bear. Up jumped all the Sons of the Vikings
+from behind their stones, and, with a shout of triumph, ran up the path
+to where the cub was lying. It had rolled itself up into a brown ball,
+and whimpered like a child in pain. But at that very moment there came
+an ominous growl out of the underbrush, and a crackling and creaking of
+branches was heard which made the hearts of the boys stand still.
+
+"Erling," cried Wolf-in-the-Temple, "hand me your gun, and load mine for
+me as quick as you can."
+
+The words were scarcely out of his mouth when the head of a big brown
+she-bear became visible among the bushes. She paused in the path,
+where her cub was lying, turned him over with her paw, licked his face,
+grumbled with a low soothing tone, snuffed him all over and rubbed her
+nose against his snout. But unwarily she must have touched some sore
+spot; for the cub gave a sharp yelp of pain and writhed and whimpered
+as he looked up into his mother's eyes, clumsily returning her caresses.
+The boys, half emerged from their hiding-places, stood watching this
+demonstration of affection not without sympathy; and Skull-Splitter,
+for one, heartily wished that the chief had not wounded the little
+bear. Quite ignorant as he was of the nature of bears, he allowed his
+compassion to get the better of his judgment. It seemed such a pity that
+the poor little beast should lie there and suffer with one eye put out
+and forty or fifty bits of lead distributed through its body. It would
+be much more merciful to put it out of its misery altogether. And
+accordingly when Erling the Lop-Sided handed him his gun to pass on to
+the chief, Skull-Splitter started forward, flung the gun to his cheek,
+and blazed away at the little bear once more, entirely heedless of
+consequences. It was a random, unskilful shot, which was about equally
+shared by the cub and its mother. And the latter was not in a mood to be
+trifled with. With an angry roar she rose on her hind legs and advanced
+against the unhappy Skull-Splitter with two uplifted paws. In another
+moment she would give him one of her vigorous "left-handers," which
+would probably pacify him forever. Ironbeard gave a scream of terror
+and Thore the Hound broke down an alder-sapling in his excitement. But
+Wolf-in-the-Temple, remembering that he had sworn foster-brotherhood
+with this brave and foolish little lad, thought that now was the time to
+show his heroism. Here it was no longer play, but dead earnest. Down he
+leaped from his rock, and just as the she-bear was within a foot of the
+Skull-Splitter, he dealt her a blow in the head with the butt end of
+his gun which made the sparks dance before her eyes. She turned suddenly
+toward her new assailant, growling savagely, and scratched her ear with
+her paw. And Skull-Splitter, who had slipped on the pine needles and
+fallen, scrambled to his feet again, leaving his gun on the ground, and
+with a few aimless steps tumbled once more into the brook. Ironbeard,
+seeing that he was being outdone by his chief, was quick to seize the
+gun, and rushing forward dealt the she-bear another blow, which, instead
+of disabling her, only exasperated her further. She glared with her
+small bloodshot eyes now at the one, now at the other boy, as if in
+doubt which she would tackle first. It was an awful moment; one or the
+other might have saved himself by flight, but each was determined to
+stand his ground. Vikings could die, but never flee. With a furious
+growl the she-bear started toward her last assailant, lifting her
+terrible paw. Ironbeard backed a few steps, pointing his gun before him;
+and with benumbing force the paw descended upon the gun-barrel, striking
+it out of his hands.
+
+It seemed all of a sudden to the boy as if his arms were asleep up to
+the shoulders; he had a stinging sensation in his flesh and a humming in
+his ears, which made him fear that his last hour had come. If the bear
+renewed the attack now, he was utterly defenceless. He was not exactly
+afraid, but he was numb all over. It seemed to matter little what became
+of him.
+
+But now a strange thing happened. To his unutterable astonishment he saw
+the she-bear drop down on all fours and vent her rage on the gun, which,
+in a trice, was bent and broken into a dozen fragments. But in this
+diversion she was interrupted by Wolf-in-the-Temple, who hammered away
+again at her head with the heavy end of his weapon. Again she rose,
+and presented two rows of white teeth which looked as if they meant
+business. It was the chief's turn now to meet his fate; and it was
+the more serious because his helper was disarmed and could give him no
+assistance. With a wildly thumping heart he raised the butt end of his
+gun and dashed forward, when as by a miracle a shot was heard--a sharp,
+loud shot that rumbled away with manifold reverberations among the
+mountains. In the same instant the huge brown bear tumbled forward,
+rolled over, with a gasping growl, and was dead.
+
+"O Brumle-Knute! Brumle-Knute!" yelled the boys in joyous chorus, as
+they saw their rescuer coming forward from behind the rocks, "how did you
+find us?"
+
+"I heard yer shots and I saw yer tracks," said Brumle-Knute, dryly; "but
+when ye go bear-hunting another time ye had better load with bullets
+instead of bird-shot."
+
+"But Brumle-Knute, we only wanted to shoot the little bear," protested
+Wolf-in-the-Temple.
+
+"That may be," Brumle-Knute replied; "but the big bears, they are a
+curiously unreasonable lot--they are apt to get mad when you fire at
+their little ones. Next time you must recollect to take the big bear
+into account."
+
+I need not tell you that the Sons of the Vikings became great heroes
+when the rumor of their bear hunt was noised abroad through the valley.
+But, for all that, they determined to disband their brotherhood.
+Wolf-in-the-Temple expressed the sentiment of all when, at their last
+meeting, he made a speech, in which these words occurred:
+
+"Brothers, the world isn't quite the same now as it was in the days
+when our Viking forefathers spread the terror of their name through the
+South. We are not so strong as they were, nor so hardy. When we mingle
+blood, we have to send for a surgeon. If we steal princesses we may go
+to jail for it--or--or--well--never mind--what else may happen. Heroism
+isn't appreciated as once it was in this country; and I, for one, won't
+try to be a hero any more. I resign my chieftainship now, when I can do
+it with credit. Let us all make our bows of adieu as bear hunters; and
+if we don't do anything more in the heroic line it is not because we
+can't, but because we won't."
+
+
+
+
+PAUL JESPERSEN'S MASQUERADE
+
+There was great excitement in the little Norse town, Bumlebro, because
+there was going to be a masquerade. Everybody was busy inventing the
+character which he was to represent, and the costume in which he was to
+represent it.
+
+Miss Amelia Norbeck, the apothecary's daughter, had intended to be Marie
+Antoinette, but had to give it up because the silk stockings were too
+dear, although she had already procured the beauty-patches and the
+powdered wig.
+
+Miss Arctander, the judge's daughter, was to be Night, in black tulle,
+spangled with silver stars, and Miss Hanna Broby was to be Morning, in
+white tulle and pink roses.
+
+There had never BEEN a masquerade in Bumlebro, and there would not have
+been one now, if it had not been for the enterprise of young Arctander
+and young Norbeck, who had just returned from the military academy in
+the capital, and were anxious to exhibit themselves to the young girls
+in their glory.
+
+Of course, they could not afford to be exclusive, for there were but
+twenty or thirty families in the town that laid any claims to gentility,
+and they had all to be invited in order to fill the hall and pay the
+bills. Thus it came to pass that Paul Jespersen, the book-keeper in the
+fish-exporting firm of Broby & Larsen, received a card, although, to be
+sure, there had been a long debate in the committee as to where the line
+should be drawn.
+
+Paul Jespersen was uncommonly elated when he read the invitation,
+which was written on a gilt-edged card, requesting the pleasure of
+Mr. Jespersen's company at a bal masque Tuesday, January 3d, in the
+Association Hall.
+
+"The pleasure of his company!"
+
+Think of it! He felt so flattered that he blushed to the tips of his
+ears. It must have been Miss Clara Broby who had induced them to be so
+polite to him, for those insolent cadets, who only nodded patronizingly
+to him in response to his deferential greeting, would never have asked
+for "the pleasure of his company."
+
+Having satisfied himself on this point, Paul went to call upon Miss
+Clara in the evening, in order to pay her some compliment and consult
+her in regard to his costume; but Miss Clara, as it happened, was much
+more interested in her own costume than in that of Mr. Jespersen, and
+offered no useful suggestions.
+
+"What character would you advise me to select, Mr. Jespersen?" she
+inquired, sweetly. "My sister Hanna, you know, is going to be Morning,
+so I can't be that, and it seems to me Morning would have suited me just
+lovely."
+
+"Go as Beauty," suggested Mr. Jespersen, blushing at the thought of his
+audacity.
+
+"So I will, Mr. Jespersen," she answered, laughing, "if you will go as
+the Beast."
+
+Paul, being a simple-hearted fellow, failed to see any sarcasm in this,
+but interpreted it rather as a hint that Miss Clara desired his escort,
+as Beauty, of course, only would be recognizable in her proper character
+by the presence of the Beast.
+
+"I shall be delighted, Miss Clara," he said, beaming with pleasure. "If
+you will be my Beauty, I'll be your Beast."
+
+Miss Clara did not know exactly how to take this, and was rather
+absent-minded during the rest of the interview. She had been chaffing
+Mr. Jespersen, of course, but she did not wish to be absolutely rude to
+him, because he was her father's employee, and, as she often heard her
+father say, a very valuable and trustworthy young man.
+
+When Paul got home he began at once to ponder upon his character as
+Beast, and particularly as Miss Clara's Beast. It occurred to him that
+his uncle, the furrier, had an enormous bear-skin, with head, eyes,
+claws, and all that was necessary, and without delay he went to try it
+on.
+
+His uncle, feeling that this event was somehow to redound to the credit
+of the family, agreed to make the necessary alterations at a trifling
+cost, and when the night of the masquerade arrived, Paul was so startled
+at his appearance that he would have run away from himself if such a
+thing had been possible. He had never imagined that he would make such a
+successful Beast.
+
+By an ingenious contrivance with a string, which he pulled with his
+hand, he was able to move his lower jaw, which, with its red tongue and
+terrible teeth, presented an awful appearance. By patching the skin
+a little behind, his head was made to fit comfortably into the bear's
+head, and his mild blue eyes looked out of the holes from which the
+bear's eyes had been removed. The skin was laced with thin leather
+thongs from the neck down, but the long, shaggy fur made the lacing
+invisible.
+
+Paul Jespersen practiced ursine behavior before the looking-glass
+for about half an hour. Then, being uncomfortably warm, he started
+down-stairs, and determined to walk to the Association Hall. He chuckled
+to himself at the thought of the sensation he would make, if he should
+happen to meet anybody on the road.
+
+Having never attended a masquerade before, he did not know that
+dressing-rooms were provided for the maskers, and, being averse to
+needless expenditure, he would as soon have thought of flying as of
+taking a carriage. There was, in fact, but one carriage on runners in
+the town, and that was already engaged by half a dozen parties.
+
+The moon was shining faintly upon the snow, and there was a sharp frost
+in the air when Paul Jespersen put his hairy head out of the street-door
+and reconnoitred the territory.
+
+There was not a soul to be seen, except an old beggar woman who was
+hobbling along, supporting herself with two sticks. Paul darted, as
+quickly as his unwieldly bulk would allow, into the middle of the
+street. He enjoyed intensely the fun of walking abroad in such a
+monstrous guise. He contemplated with boyish satisfaction his shadow
+which stretched, long and black and horrible, across the snow.
+
+It was a bit slippery, and he had to manoeuvre carefully in order to
+keep right side up. Presently he caught up with the beggar woman.
+
+"Good-evening!" he said.
+
+The old woman turned about, stared at him horror-stricken; then, as soon
+as she had collected her senses, took to her heels, yelling at the top
+of her voice. A big mastiff, who had just been let loose for the night,
+began to bark angrily in a back yard, and a dozen comrades responded
+from other yards, and came bounding into the street.
+
+"Hello!" thought Paul Jespersen. "Now look out for trouble."
+
+He felt anything but hilarious when he saw the pack of angry dogs
+dancing and leaping about him, barking in a wildly discordant chorus.
+
+"Why, Hector, you fool, don't you know me?" he said, coaxingly, to the
+judge's mastiff. "And you, Sultan, old man! You ought to be ashamed
+of yourself! Here, Caro, that's a good fellow! Come, now, don't excite
+yourself!"
+
+But Hector, Sultan, and Caro were all proof against such blandishments,
+and as for Bismarck, the apothecary's collie, he grew every moment more
+furious, and showed his teeth in a very uncomfortable fashion.
+
+To defend one's self was not to be thought of, for what defence is
+possible to a sham bear against a dozen genuine dogs? Paul could use
+neither his teeth nor his claws to any purpose, while the dogs could use
+theirs, as he presently discovered, with excellent effect.
+
+He had just concluded to seek safety in flight, when suddenly he felt a
+bite in his left calf, and saw the brute Bismarck tug away at his leg
+as if it had been a mutton-chop. He had scarcely recovered from this
+surprise when he heard a sharp report, and a bullet whizzed away over
+his head, after having neatly put a hole through the right ear. Paul
+concluded, with reason, that things were getting serious.
+
+If he could only get hold of that blockhead, the judge's groom, who was
+violating the law about fire-arms, he would give him an exhibition in
+athletics which he would not soon forget; but, being for the moment
+deprived of this pleasure, he knew of nothing better to do than to dodge
+through the nearest street-door, and implore the protection of the very
+first individual he might meet.
+
+It so happened that Paul selected the house of two middle-aged milliners
+for this experiment.
+
+Jemina and Malla Hansen were just seated at the table drinking tea with
+their one constant visitor, the post-office clerk, Mathias, when, all
+of a sudden, they heard a tremendous racket in the hall, and the furious
+barking of dogs.
+
+With a scream of fright, the two old maids jumyed up, dropping their
+precious tea-cups, and old Mathias, who had tipped his chair a little
+backward, lost his balance, and pointed his heels toward the ceiling.
+Before he had time to pick himself up the door was burst open and a
+great hairy monster sprang into the room.
+
+"Mercy upon us!" cried Jemina. "It is the devil!"
+
+But now came the worst of it all. The bear put his paw on his heart, and
+with the politest bow in the world, remarked:
+
+"Pardon me, ladies, if I intrude."
+
+He had meant to say more, but his audience had vanished; only the flying
+tails of Mathias's coat were seen, as he slammed the door on them, in
+his precipitate flight.
+
+"Police! police!" someone shouted out of the window of the adjoining
+room.
+
+Police! Now, with all due respect for the officers of the law, Paul
+Jespersen had no desire to meet them at the present moment. To be hauled
+up at the station-house and fined for street disorder--nay, perhaps be
+locked up for the night, if, as was more than likely, the captain of
+police was at the masquerade, was not at all to Paul's taste. Anything
+rather than that! He would be the laughing stock of the whole town
+if, after his elaborate efforts, he were to pass the night in a cell,
+instead of dancing with Miss Clara Broby.
+
+Hearing the cry for police repeated, Paul looked about him for some
+means of escape. It occurred to him that he had seen a ladder in the
+hall leading up to the loft. There he could easily hide himself until
+the crowd had dispersed.
+
+Without further reflection, he rushed out through the door by which he
+had entered, climbed the ladder, thrust open a trap-door, and, to his
+astonishment, found himself under the wintry sky.
+
+The roof sloped steeply, and he had to balance carefully in order
+to avoid sliding down into the midst of the noisy mob of dogs and
+street-boys who were laying siege to the door.
+
+With the utmost caution he crawled along the roof-tree, trembling lest
+he should be discovered by some lynx-eyed villain in the throng of his
+pursuers. Happily, the broad brick chimney afforded him some shelter,
+of which he was quick to take advantage. Rolling himself up into the
+smallest possible compass, he sat for a long time crouching behind
+the chimney; while the police were rummaging under the beds and in the
+closets of the house, in the hope of finding him.
+
+He had, of course, carefully closed the trap-door by which he had
+reached the comparative safety of his present position; and he could
+not help chuckling to himself at the thought of having outwitted the
+officers of the law.
+
+The crowd outside, after having made night hideous by their whoops and
+yells, began, at the end of an hour, to grow weary; and the dogs
+being denied entrance to the house, concluded that they had no further
+business there, and slunk off to their respective kennels.
+
+The people, too, scattered, and only a few patient loiterers hung about
+the street door, hoping for fresh developments. It seemed useless to
+Paul to wait until these provoking fellows should take themselves away.
+They were obviously prepared to make a night of it, and time was no
+object to them.
+
+It was then that Paul, in his despair, resolved upon a daring stratagem.
+Mr. Broby's house was in the same block as that of the Misses Hansen,
+only it was at the other end of the block. By creeping along the
+roof-trees of the houses, which, happily, differed but slightly in
+height, he could reach the Broby house, where, no doubt, Miss Clara was
+now waiting for him, full of impatience.
+
+He did not deliberate long before testing the practicability of this
+plan. The tanner Thoresen's house was reached without accident, although
+he barely escaped being detected by a small boy who was amusing himself
+throwing snow-balls at the chimney. It was a slow and wearisome mode of
+locomotion--pushing himself forward on his belly; but, as long as the
+streets were deserted, it was a pretty safe one.
+
+He gave a start whenever he heard a dog bark; for the echoes of the
+ear-splitting concert they had given him were yet ringing in his brain.
+
+It was no joke being a bear, he thought, and if he had suspected that it
+was such a serious business, he would not so rashly have undertaken it.
+But now there was no way of getting out of it; for he had nothing on but
+his underclothes under the bear-skin.
+
+At last he reached the Broby house, and drew a sigh of relief at the
+thought that he was now at the end of his journey.
+
+He looked about him for a trap-door by which he could descend into the
+interior, but could find none. There was an inch of snow on the roof,
+glazed with frost: and if there was a trap-door, it was securely hidden.
+
+To jump or slide down was out of the question, for he would, in that
+case, risk breaking his neck. If he cried for help, the groom, who was
+always ready with his gun, might take a fancy to shoot at him; and that
+would be still more unpleasant. It was a most embarrassing situation.
+
+Paul's eyes fell upon a chimney; and the thought flashed through his
+head that there was the solution of the difficulty. He observed that
+no smoke was coming out of it, so that he would run no risk of being
+converted into smoked ham during the descent.
+
+He looked down through the long, black tunnel. It was a great, spacious,
+old-fashioned chimney, and abundantly wide enough for his purpose.
+
+A pleasant sound of laughter and merry voices came to him from the
+kitchen below. It was evident the girls were having a frolic. So,
+without further ado, Paul Jespersen stuffed his great hairy bulk into
+the chimney and proceeded to let himself down.
+
+There were notches and iron rings in the brick wall, evidently put there
+for the convenience of the chimney-sweeps; and he found his task easier
+than he had anticipated. The soot, to be sure, blinded his eyes, but
+where there was nothing to be seen, that was no serious disadvantage.
+
+In fact, everything was going as smoothly as possible, when suddenly he
+heard a girl's voice cry out:
+
+"Gracious goodness! what is that in the chimney?"
+
+"Probably the chimney-sweep," a man's voice answered.
+
+"Chimney-sweep at this time of night!"
+
+Paul, bracing himself against the walls, looked down and saw a cluster
+of anxious faces all gazing up toward him. A candle which one of the
+girls held in her hand showed him that the distance down to the hearth
+was but short; so, to make an end of their uncertainty, he dropped
+himself down--quietly, as he thought, but by the force of his fall
+blowing the ashes about in all directions.
+
+A chorus of terrified screams greeted him. One girl fainted, one leaped
+up on a table, and the rest made for the door.
+
+And there sat poor Paul, in the ashes on the hearth, utterly bewildered
+by the consternation he had occasioned. He picked himself up by and by,
+rubbed the soot out of his eyes with the backs of his paws, and crawled
+out upon the floor.
+
+He had just managed to raise himself upon his hind-legs, when an awful
+apparition became visible in the door, holding a candle. It was now
+Paul's turn to be frightened. The person who stood before him bore a
+close resemblance to the devil.
+
+"What is all this racket about?" he cried, in a tone of authority.
+
+Paul felt instantly relieved, for the voice was that of his revered
+chief, Mr. Broby, who, he now recollected, was to figure at the
+masquerade as Mephistopheles. Behind him peeped forth the faces of his
+two daughters, one as Morning and the other as Spring.
+
+"May I ask what is the cause of this unseemly noise?" repeated Mr.
+Broby, advancing to the middle of the room. The light of his candle now
+fell upon the huge bear whom, after a slight start, he recognized as a
+masker.
+
+"Excuse me, Mr. Broby," said Paul, "but Miss Clara did me the honor----"
+
+"Oh yes, papa," Miss Clara interrupted him, stepping forth in all her
+glory of tulle and flowers; "it is Paul Jespersen, who was going to be
+my Beast."
+
+"And it is you who have frightened my servants half out of their wits,
+Jespersen?" said Mr. Broby, laughing.
+
+"He tumbled down through the chimney, sir," declared the cook, who had
+half-recovered from her fright.
+
+"Well," said Mr. Broby, with another laugh, "I admit that was a trifle
+unconventional. Next time you call, Jespersen, you must come through the
+door."
+
+He thought Jespersen had chosen to play a practical joke on the
+servants, and, though he did not exactly like it, he was in no mood for
+scolding. After having been carefully brushed and rolled in the snow,
+Paul offered his escort to Miss Clara; and she had not the heart to tell
+him that she was not at all Beauty, but Spring. And Paul was not enough
+of an expert to know the difference.
+
+
+
+
+LADY CLARE THE STORY OF A HORSE
+
+The king was dead, and among the many things he left behind him which
+his successor had no use for were a lot of fancy horses. There were
+long-barrelled English hunters, all legs and neck; there were Kentucky
+racers, graceful, swift, and strong; and two Arabian steeds, which had
+been presented to his late majesty by the Sultan of Turkey. To see the
+beautiful beasts prancing and plunging, as they were being led through
+the streets by grooms in the royal livery, was enough to make the blood
+dance in the veins of any lover of horse-flesh. And to think that they
+were being led ignominiously to the auction mart to be sold under the
+hammer--knocked down to the highest bidder! It was a sin and a shame
+surely! And they seemed to feel it themselves; and that was the reason
+they acted so obstreperously, sometimes lifting the grooms off their
+feet as they reared and snorted and struck sparks with their steel-shod
+hoofs from the stone pavement.
+
+Among the crowd of schoolboys who followed the equine procession,
+shrieking and yelling with glee and exciting the horses by their wanton
+screams, was a handsome lad of fourteen, named Erik Carstens. He had
+fixed his eyes admiringly on a coal-black, four-year-old mare, a mere
+colt, which brought up the rear of the procession. How exquisitely she
+was fashioned! How she danced over the ground with a light mazurka step,
+as if she were shod with gutta-percha and not with iron! And then she
+had a head so daintily shaped, small and spirited, that it was a joy to
+look at her. Erik, who, in spite of his youth, was not a bad judge of
+a horse, felt his heart beat like a trip-hammer, and a mighty yearning
+took possession of him to become the owner of that mare.
+
+Though he knew it was time for dinner he could not tear himself away,
+but followed the procession up one street and down another, until it
+stopped at the horse market. There a lot of jockeys and coarse-looking
+dealers were on hand; and an opportunity was afforded them to try the
+horses before the auction began. They forced open the mouths of the
+beautiful animals, examined their teeth, prodded them with whips to see
+if they were gentle, and poked them with their fingers or canes. But
+when a loutish fellow, in a brown corduroy suit, indulged in that
+kind of behavior toward the black mare she gave a resentful whinny
+and without further ado grabbed him with her teeth by the coat collar,
+lifted him up and shook him as if he had been a bag of straw. Then she
+dropped him in the mud, and raised her dainty head with an air as if to
+say that she held him to be beneath contempt. The fellow, however, was
+not inclined to put up with that kind of treatment. With a volley of
+oaths he sprang up and would have struck the mare in the mouth with his
+clinched fist, if Erik had not darted forward and warded off the blow.
+
+"How dare you strike that beautiful creature?" he cried, indignantly.
+
+"Hold your jaw, you gosling, or I'll hit you instead," retorted the man.
+
+But by that time one of the royal grooms had made his appearance and the
+brute did not dare carry out his threat. While the groom strove to quiet
+the mare, a great tumult arose in some other part of the market-place.
+There was a whinnying, plunging, rearing, and screaming, as if the whole
+field had gone mad. The black mare joined in the concert, and stood
+with her ears pricked up and her head raised in an attitude of panicky
+expectation. Quite fearlessly Erik walked up to her, patted her on the
+neck and spoke soothingly to her.
+
+"Look out," yelled the groom, "or she'll trample you to jelly!"
+
+But instead of that, the mare rubbed her soft nose against the boy's
+cheek, with a low, friendly neighing, as if she wished to thank him for
+his gallant conduct. And at that moment Erik's heart went out to that
+dumb creature with an affection which he had never felt toward any
+living thing before. He determined, whatever might happen, to bid on her
+and to buy her, whatever she might prove to be worth. He knew he had a
+few thousand dollars in the bank--his inheritance from his mother, who
+had died when he was a baby--and he might, perhaps, be able to persuade
+his father to sanction the purchase. At any rate, he would have some
+time to invent ways and means; for his father, Captain Carstens, was now
+away on the great annual drill, and would not return for some weeks.
+
+As a mere matter of form, he resolved to try the mare before bidding on
+her; and slipping a coin into the groom's hand he asked for a saddle. It
+turned out, however, that all the saddles were in use, and Erik had no
+choice but to mount bareback.
+
+"Ride her on the snaffle. She won't stand the curb," shouted the groom,
+as the mare, after plunging to the right and to the left, darted through
+the gate to the track, and, after kicking up a vast deal of tan-bark,
+sped like a bullet down the race-course.
+
+"Good gracious, how recklessly that boy rides!" one jockey observed to
+another; "but he has got a good grip with his knees all the same."
+
+"Yes, he sits like a daisy," the second replied, critically; "but mind
+my word, Lady Clare will throw him yet. She never could stand anybody
+but the princess on her back: and that was the reason her Royal Highness
+was so fond of her. Mother of Moses, won't there be a grand rumpus when
+she comes back again and finds Lady Clare gone! I should not like to be
+in the shoes of the man who has ordered Lady Clare under the hammer."
+
+"But look at the lad! I told you Lady Clare wouldn't stand no manner of
+nonsense from boys."
+
+"She is kicking like a Trojan! She'll make hash of him if he loses his
+seat."
+
+"Yes, but he sticks like a burr. That's a jewel of a lad, I tell ye. He
+ought to have been a jockey."
+
+Up the track came Lady Clare, black as the ace of spades, acting like
+the Old Harry. Something had displeased her, obviously, and she held
+Erik responsible for it. Possibly she had just waked up to the fact
+that she, who had been the pet of a princess, was now being ridden by an
+ordinary commoner. At all events, she had made up her mind to get rid
+of the commoner without further ceremony. Putting her fine ears back and
+dilating her nostrils, she suddenly gave a snort and a whisk with her
+tail, and up went her heels toward the eternal stars--that is, if there
+had been any stars visible just then. Everybody's heart stuck in his
+throat; for fleet-footed racers were speeding round and round, and the
+fellow who got thrown in the midst of all these trampling hoofs would
+have small chance of looking upon the sun again. People instinctively
+tossed their heads up to see how high he would go before coming down
+again; but, for a wonder, they saw nothing, except a cloud of dust mixed
+with tan-bark, and when that had cleared away they discovered the black
+mare and her rider, apparently on the best of terms, dashing up the
+track at a breakneck pace.
+
+Erik was dripping with perspiration when he dismounted, and Lady Clare's
+glossy coat was flecked with foam. She was not aware, apparently, that
+if she had any reputation to ruin she had damaged it most effectually.
+Her behavior on the track and her treatment of the horse-dealer were by
+this time common property, and every dealer and fancier made a mental
+note that Lady Clare was the number in the catalogue which he would
+not bid on. All her beauty and her distinguished ancestry counted for
+nothing, as long as she had so uncertain a temper. Her sire, Potiphar,
+it appeared, had also been subject to the same infirmities of temper,
+and there was a strain of savagery in her blood which might crop out
+when you least expected it.
+
+Accordingly, when a dozen fine horses had been knocked down at good
+prices, and Lady Clare's turn came, no one came forward to inspect her,
+and no one could be found to make a bid.
+
+"Well, well, gentlemen," cried the auctioneer, "here we have a beautiful
+thoroughbred mare, the favorite mount of Her Royal Highness the
+Princess, and not a bid do I hear. She's a beauty, gentlemen, sired
+by the famous Potiphar who won the Epsom Handicap and no end of minor
+stakes. Take a look at her, gentlemen! Did you ever see a horse before
+that was raven black from nose to tail? I reckon you never did. But such
+a horse is Lady Clare. The man who can find a single white hair on her
+can have her for a gift. Come forward, gentlemen, come forward. Who will
+start her--say at five hundred?"
+
+A derisive laugh ran through the crowd, and a voice was heard to cry,
+"Fifty."
+
+"Fifty!" repeated the auctioneer, in a deeply grieved and injured tone;
+"fifty did you say, sir? Fifty? Did I hear rightly? I hope, for the sake
+of the honor of this fair city, that my ears deceived me."
+
+Here came a long and impressive pause, during which the auctioneer,
+suddenly abandoning his dramatic manner, chatted familiarly with a
+gentleman who stood near him. The only one in the crowd whom he had
+impressed with the fact that the honor of the city was at stake in
+this sale was Erik Carstens. He had happily discovered a young and rich
+lieutenant of his father's company, and was trying to persuade him to
+bid in the mare for him.
+
+"But, my dear boy," Lieutenant Thicker exclaimed, "what do you suppose
+the captain will say to me if I aid and abet his son in defying the
+paternal authority?"
+
+"Oh, you needn't bother about that," Erik rejoined eagerly. "If father
+was at home, I believe he would allow me to buy this mare. But I am a
+minor yet, and the auctioneer would not accept my bid. Therefore I
+thought you might be kind enough to bid for me."
+
+The lieutenant made no answer, but looked at the earnest face of the boy
+with unmistakable sympathy. The auctioneer assumed again an insulted,
+affronted, pathetically entreating or scornfully repelling tone,
+according as it suited his purpose; and the price of Lady Clare crawled
+slowly and reluctantly up from fifty to seventy dollars. There it
+stopped, and neither the auctioneer's tears nor his prayers could
+apparently coax it higher.
+
+"Seventy dollars!" he cried, as if he were really too shocked to speak
+at all; "seven-ty dollars! Make it eighty! Oh, it is a sin and a shame,
+gentlemen, and the fair fame of this beautiful city is eternally ruined.
+It will become a wagging of the head and a byword among the
+nations. Sev-en-ty dollars!"--then hotly and indignantly--"seventy
+dollars!--fifth and last time, seventy dollars!"--here he raised his
+hammer threateningly--"seventy dollars!"
+
+"One hundred!" cried a high boyish voice, and in an instant every
+neck was craned and every eye was turned toward the corner where Erik
+Carstens was standing, half hidden behind the broad figure of Lieutenant
+Thicker.
+
+"Did I hear a hundred?" repeated the auctioneer, wonderingly. "May I ask
+who was the gentleman who said a hundred?"
+
+An embarrassing silence followed. Erik knew that if he acknowledged the
+bid he would suffer the shame of having it refused. But his excitement
+and his solicitude for the fair fame of his native city had carried him
+away so completely that the words had escaped from his lips before he
+was fully aware of their import.
+
+"May I ask," repeated the wielder of the hammer, slowly and
+emphatically, "may I ask the gentleman who offered one hundred dollars
+for Lady Clare to come forward and give his name?"
+
+He now looked straight at Erik, who blushed to the edge of his hair,
+but did not stir from the spot. From sheer embarrassment he clutched the
+lieutenant's arm, and almost pinched it.
+
+"Oh, I beg your pardon," the officer exclaimed, addressing the
+auctioneer, as if he had suddenly been aroused from a fit of
+abstraction; "I made the bid of one hundred dollars, or--or--at any
+rate, I make it now."
+
+The same performance, intended to force up the price, was repeated once
+more, but with no avail, and at the end of two minutes Lady Clare was
+knocked down to Lieutenant Thicker.
+
+"Now I have gone and done it like the blooming idiot that I am,"
+observed the lieutenant, when Lady Clare was led into his stable by a
+liveried groom. "What an overhauling the captain will give me when he
+gets home."
+
+"You need have no fear," Erik replied. "I'll sound father as soon as
+he gets home; and if he makes any trouble I'll pay you that one hundred
+dollars, with interest, the day I come of age."
+
+Well, the captain came home, and having long had the intention to
+present his son with a saddle-horse, he allowed himself to be cajoled
+into approving of the bargain. The mare was an exquisite creature,
+if ever there was one, and he could well understand how Erik had been
+carried away; Lieutenant Thicker, instead of being hauled over the
+coals, as he had expected, received thanks for his kind and generous
+conduct toward the son of his superior officer. As for Erik himself, he
+had never had any idea that a boy's life could be so glorious as his was
+now. Mounted on that splendid, coal-black mare, he rode through the city
+and far out into the country at his father's side; and never did it
+seem to him that he had loved his father so well as he did during
+these afternoon rides. The captain was far from suspecting that in that
+episode of the purchase of Lady Clare his own relation to his son had
+been at stake. Not that Erik would not have obeyed his father, even if
+he had turned out his rough side and taken the lieutenant to task for
+his kindness; but their relation would in that case have lacked the warm
+intimacy (which in nowise excludes obedience and respect) and that last
+touch of devoted admiration which now bound them together.
+
+That fine touch of sympathy in the captain's disposition which had
+enabled him to smile indulgently at his son's enthusiasm for the horse
+made the son doubly anxious not to abuse such kindness, and to do
+everything in his power to deserve the confidence which made his life
+so rich and happy. Though, as I have said, Captain Carstens lacked the
+acuteness to discover how much he owed to Lady Clare, he acknowledged
+himself in quite a different way her debtor. He had never really been
+aware what a splendid specimen of a boy his son was until he saw him
+on the back of that spirited mare, which cut up with him like the Old
+Harry, and yet never succeeded in flurrying, far less in unseating him.
+The captain felt a glow of affection warming his breast at the sight of
+this, and his pride in Erik's horsemanship proved a consolation to him
+when the boy's less distinguished performances at school caused him fret
+and worry.
+
+"A boy so full of pluck must amount to something, even if he does not
+take kindly to Latin," he reflected many a time. "I am afraid I have
+made a mistake in having him prepared for college. In the army now,
+and particularly in the cavalry, he would make a reputation in twenty
+minutes."
+
+And a cavalryman Erik might, perhaps, have become if his father had not
+been transferred to another post, and compelled to take up his residence
+in the country. It was nominally a promotion, but Captain Carstens was
+ill pleased with it, and even had some thought of resigning rather than
+give up his delightful city life, and move far northward into the region
+of cod and herring. However, he was too young a man to retire on a
+pension, as yet, and so he gradually reconciled himself to the thought,
+and sailed northward in the month of April with his son and his entire
+household. It had long been a question whether Lady Clare should make
+the journey with them; for Captain Carstens maintained that so high-bred
+an animal would be very sensitive to climatic changes and might even die
+on the way. Again, he argued that it was an absurdity to bring so fine
+a horse into a rough country, where the roads are poor and where nature,
+in mercy, provides all beasts with rough, shaggy coats to protect them
+from the cold. How would Lady Clare, with her glossy satin coat, her
+slender legs that pirouetted so daintily over the ground, and her
+exquisite head, which she carried so proudly--how would she look
+and what kind of figure would she cut among the shaggy, stunted,
+sedate-looking nags of the Sognefiord district? But the captain, though
+what he said was irrefutable, had to suspend all argument when he saw
+how utterly wretched Erik became at the mere thought of losing Lady
+Clare. So he took his chances; and, after having ordered blankets
+of three different thicknesses for three different kinds of weather,
+shipped the mare with the rest of his family for his new northern home.
+
+As the weather proved unusually mild during the northward voyage Lady
+Clare arrived in Sogn without accident or adventure. And never in all
+her life had she looked more beautiful than she did when she came off
+the steamer, and half the population of the valley turned out to see
+her. It is no use denying that she was as vain as any other professional
+beauty, and the way she danced and pirouetted on the gangplank, when
+Erik led her on to the pier, filled the rustics with amazement. They
+had come to look at the new captain and his family; but when Lady Clare
+appeared she eclipsed the rest of the company so completely that no one
+had eyes for anybody but her. As the sun was shining and the wind was
+mild, Erik had taken off her striped overcoat (which covered her from
+nose to tail), for he felt in every fibre of his body the sensation she
+was making, and blushed with pleasure as if the admiring exclamations
+had been intended for himself.
+
+"Look at that horse," cried young and old, with eyes as big as saucers,
+pointing with their fingers at Lady Clare.
+
+"Handsome carcass that mare has," remarked a stoutish man, who knew what
+he was talking about; "and head and legs to match."
+
+"She beats your Valders-Roan all hollow, John Garvestad," said a young
+tease who stood next to him in the crowd.
+
+"My Valders-Roan has never seen his match yet, and never will, according
+to my reckoning," answered John Garvestad.
+
+"Ho! ho!" shouted the young fellow, with a mocking laugh; "that
+black mare is a hand taller at the very least, and I bet you she's a
+high-flyer. She has got the prettiest legs I ever clapped eyes on."
+
+"They'd snap like clay pipes in the mountains," replied Garvestad,
+contemptuously.
+
+Erik, as he blushingly ascended the slope to his new home, leading Lady
+Clare by a halter, had no suspicion of the sentiments which she had
+aroused in John Garvestad's breast. He was only blissfully conscious of
+the admiration she had excited; and he promised himself a good deal of
+fun in future in showing off his horsemanship. He took Lady Clare to
+the stable, where a new box-stall had been made for her, examined the
+premises carefully and nailed a board over a crevice in the wall where
+he suspected a draught. He instructed Anders, the groom, with emphatic
+and anxious repetitions regarding her care, showed him how to make Lady
+Clare's bed, how to comb her mane, how to brush her (for she refused to
+endure currying), how to blanket her, and how to read the thermometer
+which he nailed to one of the posts of the stall. The latter proved to
+be a more difficult task than he had anticipated; and the worst of it
+was that he was not sure that Anders knew any more on the subject of his
+instruction at the end of the lesson than he had at the beginning. To
+make sure that he had understood him he asked him to enter the stall and
+begin the process of grooming. But no sooner had the unhappy fellow put
+his nose inside the door than Lady Clare laid back her ears in a very
+ugly fashion, and with a vicious whisk of her tail waltzed around and
+planted two hoof-marks in the door, just where the groom's nose had that
+very instant vanished. A second and a third trial had similar results;
+and as the box-stall was new and of hard wood, Erik had no wish to see
+it further damaged.
+
+"I won't have nothin' to do with that hoss, that's as certain as my name
+is Anders," the groom declared; and Erik, knowing that persuasion would
+be useless, had henceforth to be his own groom. The fact was he could
+not help sympathizing with that fastidiousness of Lady Clare which made
+her object to be handled by coarse fingers and roughly curried, combed,
+and washed like a common plebeian nag. One does not commence life
+associating with a princess for nothing. Lady Clare, feeling in every
+nerve her high descent and breeding, had perhaps a sense of having come
+down in the world, and, like many another irrational creature of her
+sex, she kicked madly against fate and exhibited the unloveliest side
+of her character. But with all her skittishness and caprice she was
+steadfast in one thing, and that was her love for Erik. As the days went
+by in country monotony, he began to feel it as a privilege rather than
+a burden to have the exclusive care of her. The low, friendly neighing
+with which she always greeted him, as soon as he opened the stable-door,
+was as intelligible and dear to him as the warm welcome of a friend. And
+when with dainty alertness she lifted her small, beautiful head, over
+which the fine net-work of veins meandered, above the top of the stall,
+and rubbed her nose caressingly against his cheek, before beginning to
+snuff at his various pockets for the accustomed lump of sugar, he felt
+a glow of affection spread from his heart and pervade his whole being.
+Yes, he loved this beautiful animal with a devotion which, a year ago,
+he would scarcely have thought it possible to bestow upon a horse.
+No one could have persuaded him that Lady Clare had not a soul which
+(whether it was immortal or not) was, at all events, as distinct and
+clearly defined as that of any person with whom he was acquainted. She
+was to him a personality--a dear, charming friend, with certain
+defects of character (as who has not?) which were, however, more
+than compensated for by her devotion to him. She was fastidious,
+quick-tempered, utterly unreasonable where her feelings were involved;
+full of aristocratic prejudice, which only her sex could excuse; and
+whimsical, proud, and capricious. It was absurd, of course, to contend
+that these qualities were in themselves admirable; but, on the other
+hand, few of us would not consent to overlook them in a friend who loved
+us as well as Lady Clare loved Erik.
+
+The fame of Lady Clare spread through the parish like fire in withered
+grass. People came from afar to look at her, and departed full of wonder
+at her beauty. When the captain and his son rode together to church on
+Sunday morning, men, women, and children stood in rows at the roadside
+staring at the wonderful mare as if she had been a dromedary or a
+rhinoceros. And when she was tied in the clergyman's stable a large
+number of the men ignored the admonition of the church bells and missed
+the sermon, being unable to tear themselves away from Lady Clare's
+charms. But woe to him who attempted to take liberties with her; there
+were two or three horsy young men who had narrow escapes from bearing
+the imprint of her iron shoes for the rest of their days.
+
+That taught the others a lesson, and now Lady Clare suffered from no
+annoying familiarities, but was admired at a respectful distance, until
+the pastor, vexed at her rivalry with his sermon, issued orders to have
+the stable-door locked during service.
+
+There was one person besides the pastor who was ill pleased at the
+reputation Lady Clare was making. That was John Garvestad, the owner of
+Valders-Roan. John was the richest man in the parish, and always made
+a point of keeping fine horses. Valders-Roan, a heavily built, powerful
+horse, with a tremendous neck and chest and long tassels on his
+fetlocks, but rather squat in the legs, had hitherto held undisputed
+rank as the finest horse in all Sogn. By the side of Lady Clare he
+looked as a stout, good-looking peasant lad with coltish manners might
+have looked by the side of the daughter of a hundred earls.
+
+But John Garvestad, who was naturally prejudiced in favor of his
+own horse, could scarcely be blamed for failing to recognize her
+superiority. He knew that formerly, on Sundays, the men were wont to
+gather with admiring comment about Valders-Roan; while now they stood
+craning their necks, peering through the windows of the parson's stable,
+in order to catch a glimpse of Lady Clare, and all the time Valders-Roan
+was standing tied to the fence, in full view of all, utterly neglected.
+This spectacle filled him with such ire that he hardly could control
+himself. His first impulse was to pick a quarrel with Erik; but a second
+and far brighter idea presently struck him. He would buy Lady Clare.
+Accordingly, when the captain and his son had mounted their horses
+and were about to start on their homeward way, Garvestad, putting
+Valders-Roan to his trumps, dug his heels into his sides and rode up
+with a great flourish in front of the churchyard gate.
+
+"How much will you take for that mare of yours, captain?" he asked, as
+he checked his charger with unnecessary vigor close to Lady Clare.
+
+"She is not mine to sell," the captain replied. "Lady Clare belongs to
+my son."
+
+"Well, what will you take for her, then?" Garvestad repeated,
+swaggeringly, turning to Erik.
+
+"Not all the gold in the world could buy her," retorted Erik, warmly.
+
+Valders-Roan, unable to resist the charms of Lady Clare, had in the
+meanwhile been making some cautious overtures toward an acquaintance.
+He arched his mighty neck, rose on his hind legs, while his tremendous
+forehoofs were beating the air, and cut up generally--all for Lady
+Clare's benefit.
+
+She, however, having regarded his performances for awhile with a mild
+and somewhat condescending interest, grew a little tired of them and
+looked out over the fiord, as a belle might do, with a suppressed yawn,
+when her cavalier fails to entertain her. Valders-Roan, perceiving the
+slight, now concluded to make more decided advances. So he put forward
+his nose until it nearly touched Lady Clare's, as if he meant to kiss
+her. But that was more than her ladyship was prepared to put up with.
+Quick as a flash she flung herself back on her haunches, down went her
+ears, and hers was the angriest horse's head that ever had been seen in
+that parish. With an indignant snort she wheeled around, kicking up a
+cloud of dust by the suddenness of the manoeuvre. A less skilled rider
+than Erik would inevitably have been thrown by two such unforeseen
+jerks; and the fact was he had all he could do to keep his seat.
+
+"Oho!" shouted Garvestad, "your mare shies; she'll break your neck some
+day, as likely as not. You had better sell her before she gets you into
+trouble."
+
+"But I shouldn't like to have your broken neck on my conscience," Erik
+replied; "if necks are to be broken by Lady Clare I should prefer to
+have it be my own."
+
+The peasant was not clever enough to make out whether this was jest or
+earnest. With a puzzled frown he stared at the youth and finally broke
+out:
+
+"Then you won't sell her at no price? Anyway, the day you change your
+mind don't forget to notify John Garvestad. If it's spondulix you are
+after, then here's where there's plenty of 'em."
+
+He slapped his left breast-pocket with a great swagger, looking around
+to observe the impression he was making on his audience; then, jerking
+the bridle violently, so as to make his horse rear, he rode off like
+Alexander on Bucephalus, and swung down upon the highway.
+
+It was but a few weeks after this occurrence that Captain Carstens and
+his son were invited to honor John Garvestad by their presence at his
+wedding. They were in doubt, at first, as to whether they ought to
+accept the invitation; for some unpleasant rumors had reached them,
+showing that Garvestad entertained unfriendly feelings toward them.
+He was an intensely vain man; and the thought that Erik Carstens had a
+finer horse than Valders-Roan left him no peace. He had been heard to
+say repeatedly that, if that high-nosed youth persisted in his refusal
+to sell the mare, he would discover his mistake when, perhaps, it would
+be too late to have it remedied. Whatever that meant, it sufficed to
+make both Erik and his father uneasy. But, on the other hand, it would
+be the worst policy possible, under such circumstances, to refuse
+the invitation. For that would be interpreted either as fear or as
+aristocratic exclusiveness; and the captain, while he was new in the
+district, was as anxious to avoid the appearance of the one as of the
+other. Accordingly he accepted the invitation and on the appointed day
+rode with his son into the wide yard of John Garvestad's farm, stopping
+at the pump, where they watered their horses. It was early in
+the afternoon, and both the house and the barn were thronged with
+wedding-guests. From the sitting-room the strains of two fiddles were
+heard, mingled with the scraping and stamping of heavy feet.
+
+Another musical performance was in progress in the barn; and all over
+the yard elderly men and youths were standing in smaller and larger
+groups, smoking their pipes and tasting the beer-jugs, which were passed
+from hand to hand. But the moment Lady Clare was seen all interest in
+minor concerns ceased, and with one accord the crowd moved toward her,
+completely encircling her, and viewing her with admiring glances that
+appreciated all her perfections.
+
+"Did you ever see cleaner-shaped legs on a horse?" someone was heard
+to say, and instantly his neighbor in the crowd joined the chorus of
+praise, and added: "What a snap and spring there is in every bend of her
+knee and turn of her neck and flash of her eye!"
+
+It was while this chorus of admiration was being sung in all keys and
+tones of the whole gamut, that the bridegroom came out of the house, a
+little bit tipsy, perhaps, from the many toasts he had been obliged to
+drink, and bristling with pugnacity to the ends of his fingers and the
+tips of his hair. Every word of praise that he heard sounded in his ears
+like a jeer and an insult to himself. With ruthless thrusts he elbowed
+his way through the throng of guests and soon stood in front of the
+two horses, from which the captain and Erik had not yet had a chance
+to dismount. He returned their greeting with scant courtesy and plunged
+instantly into the matter which he had on his mind.
+
+"I reckon you have thought better of my offer by this time," he said,
+with a surly swagger, to Erik. "What do you hold your mare at to-day?"
+
+"I thought we had settled that matter once for all," the boy replied,
+quietly. "I have no more intention of selling Lady Clare now than I ever
+had."
+
+"Then will ye trade her off for Valders-Roan?" ejaculated Garvestad,
+eagerly.
+
+"No, I won't trade her for Valders-Roan or any other horse in creation."
+
+"Don't be cantankerous, now, young fellow, or you might repent of it."
+
+"I am not cantankerous. But I beg of you kindly to drop this matter. I
+came here, at your invitation, as a guest at your wedding, not for the
+purpose of trading horses."
+
+It was an incautious speech, and was interpreted by everyone present
+as a rebuke to the bridegroom for his violation of the rules of
+hospitality. The captain, anxious to avoid a row, therefore broke in, in
+a voice of friendly remonstrance: "My dear Mr. Garvestad, do let us drop
+this matter. If you will permit us, we should like to dismount and drink
+a toast to your health, wishing you a long life and much happiness."
+
+"Ah, yes, I understand your smooth palaver," the bridegroom growled
+between his teeth. "I have stood your insolence long enough, and, by
+jingo, I won't stand it much longer. What will ye take for your mare,
+I say, or how much do you want to boot, if you trade her for
+Valders-Roan?"
+
+He shouted the last words with furious emphasis, holding his clinched
+fist up toward Erik, and glaring at him savagely.
+
+But now Lady Clare, who became frightened perhaps by the loud talk and
+violent gestures, began to rear and plunge, and by an unforeseen motion
+knocked against the bridegroom, so that he fell backward into the
+horse-trough under the pump, which was full of water. The wedding-guests
+had hardly time to realize what was happening when a great splash sent
+the water flying into their faces, and the burly form of John Garvestad
+was seen sprawling helplessly in the horse-trough. But then--then they
+realized it with a vengeance. And a laugh went up--a veritable storm
+of laughter--which swept through the entire crowd and re-echoed with a
+ghostly hilarity from the mountains. John Garvestad in the meanwhile
+had managed to pick himself out of the horse-trough, and while he stood
+snorting, spitting, and dripping, Captain Carstens and his son politely
+lifted their hats to him and rode away. But as they trotted out of the
+gate they saw their host stretch a big clinched fist toward them, and
+heard him scream with hoarse fury: "I'll make ye smart for that some
+day, so help me God!"
+
+Lady Clare was not sent to the mountains in the summer, as are nearly
+all horses in the Norwegian country districts. She was left untethered
+in an enclosed home pasture about half a mile from the mansion. Here
+she grazed, rolled, kicked up her heels, and gambolled to her heart's
+content. During the long, bright summer nights, when the sun scarcely
+dips beneath the horizon and reappears in an hour, clothed in the breezy
+garments of morning, she was permitted to frolic, race, and play all
+sorts of improvised games with a shaggy, little, plebeian three-year-old
+colt whom she had condescended to honor with her acquaintance. This
+colt must have had some fine feeling under his rough coat, for he never
+presumed in the least upon the acquaintance, being perhaps aware of the
+honor it conferred upon him. He allowed himself to be abused, ignored,
+or petted, as it might suit the pleasure of her royal highness, with a
+patient, even-tempered good-nature which was admirable. When Lady Clare
+(perhaps for fear of making him conceited) took no notice of him, he
+showed neither resentment nor surprise, but walked off with a sheepish
+shake of his head. Thus he slowly learned the lesson to make no
+exhibition of feeling at the sight of his superior; not to run up and
+greet her with a disrespectfully joyous whinny; but calmly wait for her
+to recognize him before appearing to be aware of her presence. It took
+Lady Clare several months to accustom Shag (for that was the colt's
+name) to her ways. She taught him unconsciously the rudiments of good
+manners; but he proved himself docile, and when he once had been reduced
+to his proper place he proved a fairly acceptable companion.
+
+During the first and second week after John Garvestad's wedding Erik
+had kept Lady Clare stabled, having a vague fear that the angry peasant
+might intend to do her harm. But she whinnied so pitifully through the
+long light nights that finally he allowed his compassion to get the
+better of his anxiety, and once more she was seen racing madly about
+the field with Shag, whom she always beat so ignominiously that she felt
+half sorry for him, and as a consolation allowed him gently to claw her
+mane with his teeth. This was a privilege which Shag could not fail to
+appreciate, though she never offered to return the favor by clawing him.
+At any rate, as soon as Lady Clare reappeared in the meadow Shag's cup
+of bliss seemed to be full.
+
+A week passed in this way, nothing happened, and Erik's vigilance was
+relaxed. He went to bed on the evening of July 10th with an easy mind,
+without the remotest apprehension of danger. The sun set about ten
+o'clock, and Lady Clare and Shag greeted its last departing rays with a
+whinny, accompanied by a wanton kickup from the rear--for whatever
+Lady Clare did Shag felt in honor bound to do, and was conscious of no
+disgrace in his abject and ape-like imitation. They had spent an hour,
+perhaps, in such delightful performances, when all of a sudden they were
+startled by a deep bass whinny, which rumbled and shook like distant
+thunder. Then came the tramp, tramp, tramp of heavy hoof-beats, which
+made the ground tremble. Lady Clare lifted her beautiful head and looked
+with fearless curiosity in the direction whence the sound came. Shag, of
+course, did as nearly as he could exactly the same. What they saw was
+a big roan horse with an enormous arched neck, squat feet, and
+long-tasselled fetlocks.
+
+Lady Clare had no difficulty in recognizing Valders-Roan. But how big
+and heavy and ominous he looked in the blood-red after-glow of the
+blood-red sunset. For the first time in her life Lady Clare felt a cold
+shiver of fear run through her. There was, happily, a fence between
+them, and she devoutly hoped that Valders-Roan was not a jumper. At that
+moment, however, two men appeared next to the huge horse, and Lady Clare
+heard the sound of breaking fence-rails. The deep hoarse whinny once
+more made the air shake, and it made poor Lady Clare shake too, for
+now she saw Valders-Roan come like a whirlwind over the field, and so
+powerful were his hoof-beats that a clod of earth which had stuck to one
+of his shoes shot like a bullet through the air.
+
+He looked so gigantic, so brimming with restrained strength, and somehow
+Lady Clare, as she stood quaking at the sight of him, had never seemed
+to herself so dainty, frail, and delicate as she seemed in this moment.
+She felt herself so entirely at his mercy; she was no match for him
+surely. Shag, anxious as ever to take his cue from her, had stationed
+himself at her side, and shook his head and whisked his tail in a
+non-committal manner. Now Valders-Roan had cleared the fence where the
+men had broken it down; then on he came again, tramp, tramp, tramp,
+until he was within half a dozen paces from Lady Clare. There he
+stopped, for back went Lady Clare's pretty ears, while she threw herself
+upon her haunches in an attitude of defence. She was dimly aware that
+this was a foolish thing to do, but her inbred disdain and horror
+of everything rough made her act on instinct instead of reason.
+Valders-Roan, irritated by this uncalled-for action, now threw ceremony
+to the winds, and without further ado trotted up and rubbed his nose
+against hers. That was more than Lady Clare could stand. With an
+hysterical snort she flung herself about, and up flew her heels straight
+into the offending nose, inflicting considerable damage. Shag, being now
+quite clear that the programme was fight, whisked about in exactly the
+same manner, with as close an imitation of Lady Clare's snort as he
+could produce, and a second pair of steel-shod heels came within a hair
+of reducing the enemy's left nostril to the same condition as the right.
+But alas for the generous folly of youth! Shag had to pay dearly for
+that exhibition of devotion. Valders-Roan, enraged by this wanton
+insult, made a dash at Shag, and by the mere impetus of his huge bulk
+nearly knocked him senseless. The colt rolled over, flung all his four
+legs into the air, and as soon as he could recover his footing reeled
+sideways like a drunken man and made haste to retire to a safe distance.
+
+Valders-Roan had now a clear field and could turn his undivided
+attention to Lady Clare. I am not sure that he had not made an example
+of Shag merely to frighten her. Bounding forward with his mighty chest
+expanded and the blood dripping from his nostrils, he struck out with
+a tremendous hind leg and would have returned Lady Clare's blow with
+interest if she had not leaped high into the air. She had just managed
+by her superior alertness to dodge that deadly hoof, and was perhaps not
+prepared for an instant renewal of the attack. But she had barely gotten
+her four feet in contact with the sod when two rows of terrific teeth
+plunged into her withers. The pain was frightful, and with a long,
+pitiful scream Lady Clare sank down upon the ground, and, writhing with
+agony, beat the air with her hoofs. Shag, who had by this time recovered
+his senses, heard the noise of the battle, and, plucking up his courage,
+trotted bravely forward against the victorious Valders-Roan. He was so
+frightened that his heart shot up into his throat. But there lay Lady
+Clare mangled and bleeding. He could not leave her in the lurch, so
+forward he came, trembling, just as Lady Clare was trying to scramble
+to her feet. Led away by his sympathy Shag bent his head down toward
+her and thereby prevented her from rising. And in the same instant
+a stunning blow hit him straight in the forehead, a shower of sparks
+danced before his eyes, and then Shag saw and heard no more. A
+convulsive quiver ran through his body, then he stretched out his neck
+on the bloody grass, heaved a sigh, and died.
+
+Lady Clare, seeing Shag killed by the blow which had been intended for
+herself, felt her blood run cold. She was strongly inclined to run, for
+she could easily beat the heavy Valders-Roan at a race, and her fleet
+legs might yet save her. I cannot say whether it was a generous wrath at
+the killing of her humble champion or a mere blind fury which overcame
+this inclination. But she knew now neither pain nor fear. With a shrill
+scream she rushed at Valders-Roan, and for five minutes a whirling cloud
+of earth and grass and lumps of sod moved irregularly over the field,
+and tails, heads, and legs were seen flung and tossed madly about,
+while an occasional shriek of rage or of pain startled the night, and
+re-echoed with a weird resonance between the mountains.
+
+It was about five o'clock in the morning of July 11th, that Erik awoke,
+with a vague sense that something terrible had happened. His groom
+was standing at his bedside with a terrified face, doubtful whether to
+arouse his young master or allow him to sleep.
+
+"What has happened, Anders?" cried Erik, tumbling out of bed.
+
+"Lady Clare, sir----"
+
+"Lady Clare!" shouted the boy. "What about her? Has she been stolen?"
+
+"No, I reckon not," drawled Anders.
+
+"Then she's dead! Quick, tell me what you know or I shall go crazy!"
+
+"No; I can't say for sure she's dead either," the groom stammered,
+helplessly.
+
+Erik, being too stunned with grief and pain, tumbled in a dazed fashion
+about the room, and scarcely knew how he managed to dress. He felt cold,
+shivery, and benumbed; and the daylight had a cruel glare in it which
+hurt his eyes. Accompanied by his groom, he hastened to the home
+pasture, and saw there the evidence of the fierce battle which had raged
+during the night. A long, black, serpentine track, where the sod had
+been torn up by furious hoof-beats, started from the dead carcass of the
+faithful Shag and moved with irregular breaks and curves up toward the
+gate that connected the pasture with the underbrush of birch and alder.
+Here the fence had been broken down, and the track of the fight suddenly
+ceased. A pool of blood had soaked into the ground, showing that one of
+the horses, and probably the victor, must have stood still for a while,
+allowing the vanquished to escape.
+
+Erik had no need of being told that the horse which had attacked Lady
+Clare was Valders-Roan; and though he would scarcely have been able to
+prove it, he felt positive that John Garvestad had arranged and probably
+watched the fight. Having a wholesome dread of jail, he had not dared to
+steal Lady Clare; but he had chosen this contemptible method to satisfy
+his senseless jealousy. It was all so cunningly devised as to baffle
+legal inquiry. Valders-Roan had gotten astray, and being a heavy beast,
+had broken into a neighbor's field and fought with his filly, chasing
+her away into the mountains. That was the story he would tell, of
+course, and as there had been no witnesses present, there was no way of
+disproving it.
+
+Abandoning, however, for the time being all thought of revenge, Erik
+determined to bend all his energies to the recovery of Lady Clare. He
+felt confident that she had run away from her assailant, and was now
+roaming about in the mountains. He therefore organized a search party
+of all the male servants on the estate, besides a couple of volunteers,
+making in all nine. On the evening of the first day's search they put up
+at a saeter or mountain chalet. Here they met a young man named Tollef
+Morud, who had once been a groom at John Garvestad's. This man had a bad
+reputation; and as the idea occurred to some of them that he might know
+something about Lady Clare's disappearance, they questioned him at great
+length, without, however, eliciting a single crumb of information.
+
+For a week the search was continued, but had finally to be given up.
+Weary, footsore, and heavy hearted, Erik returned home. His grief at the
+loss of Lady Clare began to tell on his health; and his perpetual plans
+for getting even with John Garvestad amounted almost to a mania, and
+caused his father both trouble and anxiety. It was therefore determined
+to send him to the military academy in the capital.
+
+Four or five years passed and Erik became a lieutenant. It was during
+the first year after his graduation from the military academy that he
+was invited to spend the Christmas holidays with a friend, whose parents
+lived on a fine estate about twenty miles from the city. Seated in their
+narrow sleighs, which were drawn by brisk horses, they drove merrily
+along, shouting to each other to make their voices heard above the
+jingling of the bells. About eight o'clock in the evening, when the moon
+was shining brightly and the snow sparkling, they turned in at a wayside
+tavern to order their supper. Here a great crowd of lumbermen had
+congregated, and all along the fences their overworked, half-broken-down
+horses stood, shaking their nose-bags. The air in the public room was so
+filled with the fumes of damp clothes and bad tobacco that Erik and his
+friend, while waiting for their meal, preferred to spend the time under
+the radiant sky. They were sauntering about, talking in a desultory
+fashion, when all of a sudden a wild, joyous whinny rang out upon the
+startled air.
+
+It came from a rusty, black, decrepit-looking mare hitched to a lumber
+sleigh which they had just passed. Erik, growing very serious, paused
+abruptly.
+
+A second whinny, lower than the first, but almost alluring and cajoling,
+was so directly addressed to Erik that he could not help stepping up to
+the mare and patting her on the nose.
+
+"You once had a horse you cared a great deal for, didn't you?" his
+friend remarked, casually.
+
+"Oh, don't speak about it," answered Erik, in a voice that shook with
+emotion; "I loved Lady Clare as I never loved any creature in this
+world--except my father, of course," he added, reflectively.
+
+But what was the matter with the old lumber nag? At the sound of the
+name Lady Clare she pricked up her ears, and lifted her head with a
+pathetic attempt at alertness. With a low, insinuating neighing she
+rubbed her nose against the lieutenant's cheek. He had let his hand
+glide over her long, thin neck, when quite suddenly his fingers slid
+into a deep scar in the withers.
+
+"My God!" he cried, while the tears started to his eyes, "am I awake, or
+am I dreaming?"
+
+"What in the world is the matter?" inquired his comrade, anxiously.
+
+"It is Lady Clare! By the heavens, it is Lady Clare!"
+
+"That old ramshackle of a lumber nag whose every rib you can count
+through her skin is your beautiful thoroughbred?" ejaculated his friend,
+incredulously. "Come now, don't be a goose."
+
+"I'll tell you of it some other time," said Erik, quietly; "but there's
+not a shadow of a doubt that this is Lady Clare."
+
+Yes, strange as it may seem, it was indeed Lady Clare. But oh, who would
+have recognized in this skeleton, covered with a rusty-black skin and
+tousled mane and forelock in which chaff and dirt were entangled--who
+would have recognized in this drooping and rickety creature the proud,
+the dainty, the exquisite Lady Clare? Her beautiful tail, which had once
+been her pride, was now a mere scanty wisp; and a sharp, gnarled ridge
+running along the entire length of her back showed every vertebra of
+her spine through the notched and scarred skin. Poor Lady Clare, she had
+seen hard usage. But now the days of her tribulations are at an end.
+It did not take Erik long to find the half-tipsy lumberman who was
+Lady Clare's owner; nor to agree with him on the price for which he was
+willing to part with her.
+
+There is but little more to relate. By interviews and correspondence
+with the different parties through whose hands the mare had passed,
+Erik succeeded in tracing her to Tollef Morud, the ex-groom of John
+Garvestad. On being promised immunity from prosecution, he was induced
+to confess that he had been hired by his former master to arrange the
+nocturnal fight between Lady Clare and Valders-Roan, and had been
+paid ten dollars for stealing the mare when she had been sufficiently
+damaged. John Garvestad had himself watched the fight from behind the
+fence, and had laughed fit to split his sides, until Valders-Roan seemed
+on the point of being worsted. Then he had interfered to separate them,
+and Tollef had led Lady Clare away, bleeding from a dozen wounds, and
+had hidden her in a deserted lumberman's shed near the saeter where the
+searchers had overtaken him.
+
+Having obtained these facts, Erik took pains to let John Garvestad know
+that the chain of evidence against him was complete, and if he had had
+his own way he would not have rested until his enemy had suffered the
+full penalty of the law. But John Garvestad, suspecting what was in the
+young man's mind, suddenly divested himself of his pride, and cringing
+dike a whipped dog, came and asked Erik's pardon, entreating him not to
+prosecute.
+
+As for Lady Clare, she never recovered her lost beauty. A pretty
+fair-looking mare she became, to be sure, when good feeding and careful
+grooming had made her fat and glossy once more. A long and contented
+old age is, no doubt, in store for her. Having known evil days, she
+appreciates the blessings which the change in her fate has brought her.
+The captain declares she is the best-tempered and steadiest horse in his
+stable.
+
+
+
+
+BONNYBOY
+
+
+
+
+I.
+
+"Oh, you never will amount to anything, Bonnyboy!" said Bonnyboy's
+father, when he had vainly tried to show him how to use a gouge; for
+Bonnyboy had just succeeded in gouging a piece out of his hand, and was
+standing helplessly, letting his blood drop on an engraving of Napoleon
+at Austerlitz, which had been sent to his father for framing. The
+trouble with Bonnyboy was that he was not only awkward--left-handed
+in everything he undertook, as his father put it--but he was so very
+good-natured that it was impossible to get angry with him. His large
+blue innocent eyes had a childlike wonder in them, when he had done
+anything particularly stupid, and he was so willing and anxious to
+learn, that his ill-success seemed a reason for pity rather than for
+wrath. Grim Norvold, Bonnyboy's father, was by trade a carpenter, and
+handy as he was at all kinds of tinkering, he found it particularly
+exasperating to have a son who was so left-handed. There was scarcely
+anything Grim could not do. He could take a watch apart and put it
+together again; he could mend a harness if necessary; he could make a
+wagon; nay, he could even doctor a horse when it got spavin or glanders.
+He was a sort of jack-of-all-trades, and a very useful man in a valley
+where mechanics were few and transportation difficult. He loved work for
+its own sake, and was ill at ease when he had not a tool in his hand.
+The exercise of his skill gave him a pleasure akin to that which the
+fish feels in swimming, the eagle in soaring, and the lark in singing. A
+finless fish, a wingless eagle, or a dumb lark could not have been more
+miserable than Grim was when a succession of holidays, like Easter or
+Christmas, compelled him to be idle.
+
+When his son was born his chief delight was to think of the time when
+he should be old enough to handle a tool, and learn the secrets of his
+father's trade. Therefore, from the time the boy was old enough to sit
+or to crawl in the shavings without getting his mouth and eyes full of
+sawdust, he gave him a place under the turning bench, and talked or sang
+to him while he worked. And Bonnyboy, in the meanwhile amused himself
+by getting into all sorts of mischief. If it had not been for the belief
+that a good workman must grow up in the atmosphere of the shop, Grim
+would have lost patience with his son and sent him back to his mother,
+who had better facilities for taking care of him. But the fact was he
+was too fond of the boy to be able to dispense with him, and he would
+rather bear the loss resulting from his mischief than miss his prattle
+and his pretty dimpled face.
+
+It was when the child was eighteen or nineteen months old that he
+acquired the name Bonnyboy. A woman of the neighborhood, who had called
+at the shop with some article of furniture which she wanted to have
+mended, discovered the infant in the act of investigating a pot of blue
+paint, with a part of which he had accidentally decorated his face.
+
+"Good gracious! what is that ugly thing you have got under your turning
+bench?" she cried, staring at the child in amazement.
+
+"No, he is not an ugly thing," replied the father, with resentment; "he
+is a bonny boy, that's what he is."
+
+The woman, in order to mollify Grim, turned to the boy, and asked, with
+her sweetest manner, "What is your name, child?"
+
+"Bonny boy," murmured the child, with a vaguely offended air--"bonny
+boy."
+
+And from that day the name Bonnyboy clung to him.
+
+
+
+
+II.
+
+To teach Bonnyboy the trade of a carpenter was a task which would have
+exhausted the patience of all the saints in the calendar. If there was
+any possible way of doing a thing wrong, Bonnyboy would be sure to hit
+upon that way. When he was eleven years old he chopped off the third
+joint of the ring-finger on his right hand with a cutting tool while
+working the turning-lathe; and by the time he was fourteen it seemed a
+marvel to his father that he had any fingers left at all. But Bonnyboy
+persevered in spite of all difficulties, was always cheerful and of good
+courage, and when his father, in despair, exclaimed: "Well, you will
+never amount to anything, Bonnyboy," he would look up with his slow,
+winning smile and say:
+
+"Don't worry, father. Better luck next time."
+
+"But, my dear boy, how can I help worrying, when you don't learn
+anything by which you can make your living?"
+
+"Oh, well, father," said Bonnyboy, soothingly (for he was beginning to
+feel sorry on his father's account rather than on his own), "I wouldn't
+bother about that if I were you. I don't worry a bit. Something will
+turn up for me to do, sooner or later."
+
+"But you'll do it badly, Bonnyboy, and then you won't get a second
+chance. And then, who knows but you may starve to death. You'll chop
+off the fingers you have left; and when I am dead and can no longer look
+after you, I am very much afraid you'll manage to chop off your head
+too."
+
+"Well," observed Bonnyboy, cheerfully, "in that case I shall not starve
+to death."
+
+Grim had to laugh in spite of himself at the paternal way in which his
+son comforted him, as if he were the party to be pitied. Bonnyboy's
+unfailing cheerfulness, which had its great charm, began to cause him
+uneasiness, because he feared it was but another form of stupidity. A
+cleverer boy would have been sorry for his mistakes and anxious about
+his own future. But Bonnyboy looked into the future with the serene
+confidence of a child, and nothing under the sun ever troubled him,
+except his father's tendency to worry. For he was very fond of his
+father, and praised him as a paragon of skill and excellence. He
+lavished an abject admiration on everything he did and said. His
+dexterity in the use of tools, and his varied accomplishments as
+a watch-maker and a horse-doctor, filled Bonnyboy with ungrudging
+amazement. He knew it was a hopeless thing for him to aspire to rival
+such genius, and he took the thing philosophically, and did not aspire.
+
+It occurred to Grim one day, when Bonnyboy had made a most discouraging
+exhibition of his awkwardness, that it might be a good thing to ask the
+pastor's advice in regard to him. The pastor had had a long experience
+in educating children, and his own, though they were not all clever,
+promised to turn out well. Accordingly Grim called at the parsonage, was
+well received, and returned home charged to the muzzle with good advice.
+The pastor lent him a book full of stories, and recommended him to read
+them to his son, and afterward question him about every single fact
+which each story contained. This the pastor had found to be a good way
+to develop the intellect of a backward boy.
+
+
+
+
+III.
+
+When Bonnyboy had been confirmed, the question again rose what was
+to become of him. He was now a tall young fellow, red-checked,
+broad-shouldered, and strong, and rather nice-looking. A slow,
+good-natured smile spread over his face when anyone spoke to him, and he
+had a way of flinging his head back, when the tuft of yellow hair which
+usually hung down over his forehead obscured his sight. Most people
+liked him, even though they laughed at him behind his back; but to his
+face nobody laughed, because his strength inspired respect. Nor did he
+know what fear was when he was roused; but that was probably, as people
+thought, because he did not know much of anything. At any rate, on a
+certain occasion he showed that there was a limit to his good-nature,
+and when that limit was reached, he was not as harmless a fellow as he
+looked.
+
+On the neighboring farm of Gimlehaug there was a wedding to which
+Grim and his son were invited. On the afternoon of the second wedding
+day--for peasant weddings in Norway are often celebrated for three
+days--a notorious bully named Ola Klemmerud took it into his head to
+have some sport with the big good-natured simpleton. So, by way of
+pleasantry, he pulled the tuft of hair which hung down upon Bonnyboy's
+forehead.
+
+"Don't do that," said Bonnyboy.
+
+Ola Klemmerud chuckled, and the next time he passed Bonnyboy, pinched
+his ear.
+
+"If you do that again I sha'n't like you," cried Bonnyboy.
+
+The innocence of that remark made the people laugh, and the bully,
+seeing that their sympathy was on his side, was encouraged to continue
+his teasing. Taking a few dancing steps across the floor, he managed
+to touch Bonnyboy's nose with the toe of his boot, which feat again was
+rewarded with a burst of laughter. The poor lad quietly blew his nose,
+wiped the perspiration off his brow with a red handkerchief, and said,
+"Don't make me mad, Ola, or I might hurt you."
+
+This speech struck the company as being immensely funny, and they
+laughed till the tears ran down their cheeks. At this moment Grim
+entered, and perceived at once that Ola Klemmerud was amusing the
+company at his son's expense. He grew hot about his ears, clinched his
+teeth, and stared challengingly at the bully. The latter began to feel
+uncomfortable, but he could not stop at this point without turning the
+laugh against himself, and that he had not the courage to do. So in
+order to avoid rousing the father's wrath, and yet preserving his own
+dignity, he went over to Bonnyboy, rumpled his hair with both his hands,
+and tweaked his nose. This appeared such innocent sport, according to
+his notion, that no rational creature could take offence at it. But
+Grim, whose sense of humor was probably defective, failed to see it in
+that light.
+
+"Let the boy alone," he thundered.
+
+"Well, don't bite my head off, old man," replied Ola. "I haven't hurt
+your fool of a boy. I have only been joking with him."
+
+"I don't think you are troubled with overmuch wit yourself, judging by
+the style of your jokes," was Grim's cool retort.
+
+The company, who plainly saw that Ola was trying to wriggle out of his
+difficulty, but were anxious not to lose an exciting scene, screamed
+with laughter again; but this time at the bully's expense. The blood
+mounted to his head, and his anger got the better of his natural
+cowardice. Instead of sneaking off, as he had intended, he wheeled about
+on his heel and stood for a moment irresolute, clinching his fist in his
+pocket.
+
+"Why don't you take your lunkhead of a son home to his mother, if he
+isn't bright enough to understand fun!" he shouted.
+
+"Now let me see if you are bright enough to understand the same kind of
+fun," cried Grim. Whereupon he knocked off Ola's cap, rumpled his hair,
+and gave his nose such a pull that it was a wonder it did not come off.
+
+The bully, taken by surprise, tumbled a step backward, but recovering
+himself, struck Grim in the face with his clinched fist. At this
+moment. Bonnyboy, who had scarcely taken in the situation; jumped up and
+screamed, "Sit down, Ola Klemmerud, sit down!"
+
+The effect of this abrupt exclamation was so comical, that people nearly
+fell from their benches as they writhed and roared with laughter.
+
+Bonnyboy, who had risen to go to his father's assistance, paused in
+astonishment in the middle of the floor. He could not comprehend, poor
+boy, why everything he said provoked such uncontrollable mirth. He
+surely had no intention of being funny.
+
+So, taken aback a little, he repeated to himself, half wonderingly, with
+an abrupt pause after each word, "Sit--down--Ola--Klemmerud--sit--down!"
+
+But Ola Klemmerud, instead of sitting down, hit Grim repeatedly about
+the face and head, and it was evident that the elder man, in spite
+of his strength, was not a match for him in alertness. This dawned
+presently upon Bonnyboy's slow comprehension, and his good-natured smile
+gave way to a flush of excitement. He took two long strides across the
+floor, pushed his father gently aside, and stood facing his antagonist.
+He repeated once more his invitation to sit down; to which the latter
+responded with a slap which made the sparks dance before Bonnyboy's
+eyes. Now Bonnyboy became really angry. Instead of returning the slap,
+he seized his enemy with a sudden and mighty grab by both his shoulders,
+lifted him up as if he were a bag of hay, and put him down on a chair
+with such force that it broke into splinters under him.
+
+"Will you now sit down?" said Bonnyboy.
+
+Nobody laughed this time, and the bully, not daring to rise, remained
+seated on the floor among the ruins of the chair. Thereupon, with
+imperturbable composure, Bonnyboy turned to his father, brushed off his
+coat with his hands and smoothed his disordered hair. "Now let us go
+home, father," he said, and taking the old man's arm he walked out of
+the room. But hardly had he crossed the threshold before the astonished
+company broke into cheering.
+
+"Good for you, Bonnyboy!" "Well done, Bonnyboy!" "You are a bully boy,
+Bonnyboy!" they cried after him.
+
+But Bonnyboy strode calmly along, quite unconscious of his triumph, and
+only happy to have gotten his father out of the room safe and sound.
+For a good while they walked on in silence. Then, when the effect of
+the excitement had begun to wear away, Grim stopped in the path, gazed
+admiringly at his son, and said, "Well, Bonnyboy, you are a queer
+fellow."
+
+"Oh, yes," answered Bonnyboy, blushing with embarrassment (for though he
+did not comprehend the remark, he felt the approving gaze); "but then,
+you know, I asked him to sit down, and he wouldn't."
+
+"Bless your innocent heart!" murmured his father, as he gazed at
+Bonnyboy's honest face with a mingling of affection and pity.
+
+
+
+
+IV.
+
+When Bonnyboy was twenty years old his father gave up, once for all, his
+attempt to make a carpenter of him. A number of saw-mills had been built
+during the last years along the river down in the valley, and the old
+rapids had been broken up into a succession of mill-dams, one above the
+other. At one of these saw-mills Bonnyboy sought work, and was engaged
+with many others as a mill hand. His business was to roll the logs on
+to the little trucks that ran on rails, and to push them up to the saws,
+where they were taken in charge by another set of men, who fastened and
+watched them while they were cut up into planks. Very little art was,
+indeed, required for this simple task; but strength was required, and of
+this Bonnyboy had enough and to spare. He worked with a will from early
+morn till dewy eve, and was happy in the thought that he had at last
+found something that he could do. It made the simple-hearted fellow
+proud to observe that he was actually gaining his father's regard; or,
+at all events, softening the disappointment which, in a vague way, he
+knew that his dulness must have caused him. If, occasionally, he was
+hurt by a rolling log, he never let any one know it; but even though
+his foot was a mass of agony every time he stepped on it, he would march
+along as stiffly as a soldier. It was as if he felt his father's eye
+upon him long before he saw him.
+
+There was a curious kind of sympathy between them which expressed
+itself, on the father's part, in a need to be near his son. But he
+feared to avow any such weakness, knowing that Bonnyboy would interpret
+it as distrust of his ability to take care of himself, and a desire to
+help him if he got into trouble. Grim, therefore, invented all kinds of
+transparent pretexts for paying visits to the saw-mills. And when he saw
+Bonnyboy, conscious that his eye was resting upon him, swinging his axe
+so that the chips flew about his ears, and the perspiration rained from
+his brow, a dim anxiety often took possession of him, though he could
+give no reason for it. That big brawny fellow, with the frame of a man
+and the brain of a child, with his guileless face and his guileless
+heart, strangely moved his compassion. There was something almost
+beautiful about him, his father thought; but he could not have told what
+it was; nor would he probably have found any one else that shared his
+opinion. That frank and genial gaze of Bonnyboy's, which expressed
+goodness of heart but nothing else, seemed to Grim an "open sesame"
+to all hearts; and that unawakened something which goes so well with
+childhood, but not with adult age, filled him with tenderness and a
+vague anxiety. "My poor lad," he would murmur to himself, as he caught
+sight of Bonnyboy's big perspiring face, with the yellow tuft of hair
+hanging down over his forehead, "clever you are not; but you have that
+which the cleverest of us often lack."
+
+
+
+
+V.
+
+There were sixteen saw-mills in all, and the one at which Bonnyboy was
+employed was the last of the series. They were built on little terraces
+on both banks of the river, and every four of them were supplied with
+power from an artificial dam, in which the water was stored in time of
+drought, and from which it escaped in a mill-race when required for use.
+These four dams were built of big stones, earthwork, and lumber,
+faced with smooth planks, over which a small quantity of water usually
+drizzled into the shallow river-bed. Formerly, before the power was
+utilized, this slope had been covered with seething and swirling
+rapids--a favorite resort of the salmon, which leaped high in the
+spring, and were caught in the box-traps that hung on long beams over
+the water. Now the salmon had small chance of shedding their spawn in
+the cool, bright mountain pools, for they could not leap the dams, and
+if by chance one got into the mill-race, it had a hopeless struggle
+against a current that would have carried an elephant off his feet.
+Bonnyboy, who more than once had seen the beautiful silvery fish spring
+right on to the millwheel, and be flung upon the rocks, had wished that
+he had understood the language of the fishes, so that he might tell them
+how foolish such proceedings were. But merciful though he was, he had
+been much discouraged when, after having put them back into the river,
+they had promptly repeated the experiment.
+
+There were about twenty-five or thirty men employed at the mill where
+Bonnyboy earned his bread in the sweat of his brow, and he was, on the
+whole, on good terms with all of them. They did, to be sure, make fun of
+him occasionally; but sometimes he failed to understand it, and at other
+times he made clumsy but good-humored attempts to repay their gibes
+in kind. They took good care, however, not to rouse his wrath, for the
+reputation he had acquired by his treatment of Ola Klemmerud made them
+afraid to risk a collision.
+
+This was the situation when the great floods of 188- came, and
+introduced a spice of danger into Bonnyboy's monotonous life. The
+mill-races were now kept open night and day, and yet the water burst
+like a roaring cascade over the tops of dams, and the river-bed was
+filled to overflowing with a swiftly-hurrying tawny torrent, which
+filled the air with its rush and swash, and sent hissing showers of
+spray flying through the tree-tops. Bonnyboy and a gang of twenty men
+were working as they had never worked before in their lives, under the
+direction of an engineer, who had been summoned by the mill-owner to
+strengthen the dams; for if but one of them burst, the whole tremendous
+volume of water would be precipitated upon the valley, and the village
+by the lower falls and every farm within half a mile of the river-banks
+would be swept out of existence. Guards were stationed all the way up
+the river to intercept any stray lumber that might be afloat. For if
+a log jam were added to the terrific strain of the flood, there would
+surely be no salvation possible. Yet in spite of all precautions, big
+logs now and then came bumping against the dams, and shot with wild
+gyrations and somersaults down into the brown eddies below.
+
+The engineer, who was standing on the top of a log pile, had shouted
+until he was hoarse, and gesticulated with his cane until his arms were
+lame, but yet there was a great deal to do before he could go to bed
+with an easy conscience. Bonnyboy and his comrades, who had had by far
+the harder part of the task, were ready to drop with fatigue. It was
+now eight o'clock in the evening, and they had worked since six in the
+morning, and had scarcely had time to swallow their scant rations. Some
+of them began to grumble, and the engineer had to coax and threaten them
+to induce them to persevere for another hour. The moon was just rising
+behind the mountain ridges, and the beautiful valley lay, with its green
+fields, sprouting forests, and red-painted farm-houses, at Bonnyboy's
+feet. It was terrible to think that perhaps destruction was to overtake
+those happy and peaceful homes, where men had lived and died for many
+hundred years. Bonnyboy could scarcely keep back the tears when this
+fear suddenly came over him. Was it not strange that, though they knew
+that danger was threatening, they made not the slightest effort to save
+themselves? In the village below men were still working in their
+forges, whose chimneys belched forth fiery smoke, and the sound of their
+hammer-blows could be heard above the roar of the river. Women were
+busy with their household tasks; some boys were playing in the streets,
+damming up the gutters and shrieking with joy when their dams broke. A
+few provident souls had driven their cattle to the neighboring hills;
+but neither themselves nor their children had they thought it necessary
+to remove. The fact was, nobody believed that the dams would break, as
+they had not imagination enough to foresee what would happen if the dams
+did break.
+
+Bonnyboy was wet to the skin, and his knees were a trifle shaky from
+exhaustion. He had been cutting down an enormous mast-tree, which was
+needed for a prop to the dam, and had hauled it down with two horses,
+one of which was a half-broken gray colt, unused to pulling in a team.
+To restrain this frisky animal had required all Bonnyboy's strength,
+and he stood wiping his brow with the sleeve of his shirt. Just at that
+moment a terrified yell sounded from above: "Run for your lives! The
+upper dam is breaking!"
+
+The engineer from the top of the log-pile cast a swift glance up the
+valley, and saw at once from the increasing volume of water that the
+report was true.
+
+"Save yourselves, lads!" he screamed. "Run to the woods!"
+
+And suiting his action to his words, he tumbled down from the log pile,
+and darted up the hill-side toward the forest. The other men, hearing
+the wild rush and roar above them, lost no time in following his
+example. Only Bonnyboy, slow of comprehension as always, did not obey.
+Suddenly there flared up a wild resolution in his face. He pulled out
+his knife, cut the traces, and leaped upon the colt's back. Lashing
+the beast, and shouting at the top of his voice, he dashed down the
+hill-side at a break-neck pace.
+
+"The dam is breaking!" he roared. "Run for the woods!"
+
+He glanced anxiously behind him to see if the flood was overtaking him.
+A great cloud of spray was rising against the sky, and he heard the
+yells of men and the frenzied neighing of horses through the thunderous
+roar. But happily there was time. The dam was giving way gradually,
+and had not yet let loose the tremendous volume of death and desolation
+which it held enclosed within its frail timbers. The colt, catching the
+spirit of excitement in the air, flew like the wind, leaving farm after
+farm behind it, until it reached the village.
+
+"The dam is breaking! Run for your lives!" cried Bonnyboy, with a
+rousing clarion yell which rose above all other poises; and up and down
+the valley the dread tidings spread like wildfire. In an instant all was
+in wildest commotion. Terrified mothers, with babes in their arms, came
+bursting out of the houses, and little girls, hugging kittens or
+cages with canary-birds, clung weeping to their skirts; shouting men,
+shrieking women, crying children, barking dogs, gusty showers sweeping
+from nowhere down upon the distracted fugitives, and above all the
+ominous, throbbing, pulsating roar as of a mighty chorus of cataracts.
+It came nearer and nearer. It filled the great vault of the sky with a
+rush as of colossal wing-beats. Then there came a deafening creaking
+and crashing; then a huge brownish-white rolling wall, upon which the
+moonlight gleamed for an instant, and then the very trump of doom--a
+writhing, brawling, weltering chaos of cattle, dogs, men, lumber,
+houses, barns, whirling and struggling upon the destroying flood.
+
+
+
+
+VI.
+
+It was the morning after the disaster. The sun rose red and threatening,
+circled with a ring of fiery mist. People encamped upon the hill-side
+greeted each other as on the morn of resurrection. For many were found
+among the living who were being mourned as dead. Mothers hugged their
+children with tearful joy, thanking God that they had been spared; and
+husbands who had heard through the night the agonized cries of their
+drowning wives, finding them at dawn safe and sound, felt as if they had
+recovered them from the very gates of death. When all were counted, it
+was ascertained that but very few of the villagers had been overtaken by
+the flood. The timely warning had enabled all to save themselves, except
+some who in their eagerness to rescue their goods had lingered too long.
+Impoverished most of them were by the loss of their houses and cattle.
+The calamity was indeed overwhelming. But when they considered how much
+greater the disaster would have been if the flood had come upon them
+unheralded, they felt that they had cause for gratitude in the midst of
+their sorrow. And who was it that brought the tidings that snatched them
+from the jaws of death? Well, nobody knew. He rode too fast. And each
+was too much startled by the message to take note of the messenger. But
+who could he possibly have been? An angel from Heaven, perhaps sent by
+God in His mercy. That was indeed more than likely. The belief was at
+once accepted that the rescuer was an angel from heaven. But just then
+a lumberman stepped forward who had worked at the mill and said: "It was
+Bonnyboy, Grim Carpenter's son. I saw him jump on his gray colt."
+
+Bonnyboy, Grim Carpenter's son. It couldn't be possible. But the
+lumberman insisted that it was, and they had to believe him, though,
+of course, it was a disappointment. But where was Bonnyboy? He deserved
+thanks, surely. And, moreover, that gray colt was a valuable animal. It
+was to be hoped that it was not drowned.
+
+The water had now subsided, though it yet overflowed the banks; so that
+trees, bent and splintered by the terrific force of the flood, grew far
+out in the river. The foul dams had all been swept away, and the tawny
+torrent ran again with tumultuous rapids in its old channel. Of the
+mills scarcely a vestige was left except slight cavities in the banks,
+and a few twisted beams clinging to the rocks where they had stood. The
+ruins of the village, with jagged chimneys and broken walls, loomed
+out of a half-inundated meadow, through which erratic currents were
+sweeping. Here and there lay a dead cow or dog, and in the branches of
+a maple-tree the carcasses of two sheep were entangled. In this marshy
+field a stooping figure was seen wading about, as if in search of
+something. The water broke about his knees, and sometimes reached up to
+his waist. He stood like one dazed, and stared into the brown swirling
+torrent. Now he poked something with his boat-hook, now bent down and
+purled some dead thing out of a copse of shrubbery in which it had
+been caught. The sun rose higher in the sky, and the red vapors were
+scattered. But still the old man trudged wearily about, with the stony
+stare in his eyes, searching for him whom he had lost. One company after
+another now descended from the hill-sides, and from the high-lying farms
+which had not been reached by the flood came wagons with provisions and
+clothes, and men and women eager and anxious to help. They shouted to
+the old man in the submerged field, and asked what he was looking for.
+But he only shook his head, as if he did not understand.
+
+"Why, that is old Grim the carpenter," said someone. "Has anybody seen
+Bonnyboy?"
+
+But no one had seen Bonnyboy.
+
+"Do you want help?" they shouted to Grim; but they got no answer.
+
+Hour after hour old Grim trudged about in the chilly water searching
+for his son. Then, about noon, when he had worked his way far down the
+river, he caught sight of something which made his heart stand still. In
+a brown pool, in which a half-submerged willow-tree grew, he saw a large
+grayish shape which resembled a horse. He stretched out the boat-hook
+and rolled it over. Dumbly, fearlessly, he stood staring into the pool.
+There lay his son--there lay Bonnyboy stark and dead.
+
+The cold perspiration broke out upon Grim's brow, and his great breast
+labored. Slowly he stooped down, drew the dead body out of the water,
+and tenderly laid it across his knees. He stared into the sightless
+eyes, and murmuring a blessing, closed them. There was a large
+discolored spot on the forehead, as of a bruise. Grim laid his hand
+softly upon it, and stroked away the yellow tuft of hair.
+
+"My poor lad," he said, while the tears coursed down his wrinkled
+cheeks, "you had a weak head, but your heart, Bonnyboy--your heart was
+good."
+
+
+
+
+THE CHILD OF LUCK
+
+
+
+
+I.
+
+A sunny-tempered little fellow was Hans, and his father declared that he
+had brought luck with him when he came into the world.
+
+"He was such a handsome baby when he was born," said Inga, his mother;
+"but you would scarcely believe it now, running about as he does in
+forest and field, tearing his clothes and scratching his face."
+
+Now, it was true, as Hans's mother said, that he did often tear his
+clothes; and as he had an indomitable curiosity, and had to investigate
+everything that came in his way, it was also no uncommon thing for him
+to come home with his face stung or scratched.
+
+"Why must you drag that child with you wherever you go, Nils?" the
+mother complained to Hans's father, when the little boy was brought to
+her in such a disreputable condition. "Why can't you leave him at home?
+What other man do you know who carries a six-year-old little fellow
+about with him in rain and shine, storm and quiet?
+
+"Well," Nils invariably answered, "I like him and he likes me. He brings
+me luck."
+
+This was a standing dispute between Nils and Inga, his wife, and they
+never came to an agreement. She knew as well as her husband that before
+little Hans was born there was want and misery in their cottage.
+But from the hour the child lifted up its tiny voice, announcing its
+arrival, there had been prosperity and contentment. Their luck had
+turned, Nils said, and it was the child that had turned it. They had
+been married for four years, and though they had no one to provide for
+but themselves, they scarcely managed to keep body and soul together.
+All sorts of untoward things happened. Now a tree which he was cutting
+down fell upon Nils and laid him up for a month; now he got water on his
+knee from a blow he received while rolling logs into the chute; now the
+pig died which was to have provided them with salt pork for the winter,
+and the hens took to the bush, and laid their eggs where nobody except
+the rats and the weasels could find them. But since little Hans had come
+and put an end to all these disasters, his father had a superstitious
+feeling that he could not bear to have him away from him. Therefore
+every morning when he started out for the forest or the river he carried
+Hans on his shoulder. And the little boy sat there, smiling proudly and
+waving his hand to his mother, who stood in the door looking longingly
+after him.
+
+"Hello, little chap!" cried the lumbermen, when they saw him.
+"Good-morning to you and good luck!"
+
+They always cheered up, however bad the weather was, when they saw
+little Hans, for nobody could look at his sunny little face without
+feeling something like a ray of sunlight stealing into his heart.
+Hans had a smile and a wave of his hand for everybody. He knew all the
+lumbermen by name, and they knew him.
+
+They sang as they swung the axe or the boat-hook, and the work went
+merrily when little Hans sat on the top of the log pile and shouted to
+them. But if by chance he was absent for a day or two they missed him.
+No songs were heard, but harsh words, and not infrequently quarrels.
+Now, nobody believed, of course, that little Hans was such a wizard that
+he could make people feel and behave any better than it was in their
+nature to do; but sure it was--at least the lumbermen insisted that it
+was so--there was joy and good-tempered mirth wherever that child went,
+and life seemed a little sadder and poorer to those who knew him when he
+was away.
+
+No one will wonder that Nils sometimes boasted of his little son.
+
+He told not once, but a hundred times, as they sat about the camp-fire
+eating their dinner, that little Hans was a child of luck, and that
+no misfortune could happen while he was near. Lumbermen are naturally
+superstitious, and though perhaps at first they may have had their
+doubts, they gradually came to accept the statement without question.
+They came to regard it as a kind of right to have little Hans sit on the
+top of the log pile when they worked, or running along the chute, while
+the wild-cat strings of logs shot down the steep slide with lightning
+speed. They were not in the least afraid lest the logs should jump the
+chute, as they had often done before, killing or maiming the unhappy man
+that came too near. For was not little Hans's life charmed, so that no
+harm could befall him?
+
+Now, it happened that Inga, little Hans's mother, came one day to the
+river to see how he was getting on. Nils was then standing on a raft
+hooking the floating logs with his boat-hook, while the boy was watching
+him from the shore, shouting to him, throwing chips into the water, and
+amusing himself as best he could. It was early in May, and the river
+was swollen from recent thaws. Below the cataract where the lumbermen
+worked, the broad, brown current moved slowly along with sluggish whirls
+and eddies; but the raft was moored by chains to the shore, so that it
+was in no danger of getting adrift. It was capital fun to see the logs
+come rushing down the slide, plunging with a tremendous splash into the
+river, and then bob up like live things after having bumped against the
+bottom. Little Hans clapped his hands and yelled with delight when a
+string of three or four came tearing along in that way, and dived, one
+after the other, headlong into the water.
+
+"Catch that one, papa!" he cried; "that is a good big fellow. He dived
+like a man, he did. He has washed the dirt off his snout now; that was
+the reason he took such a big plunge."
+
+Nils never failed to reach his boat-hook after the log little Hans
+indicated, for he liked to humor him, and little Hans liked to be
+humored. He had an idea that he was directing his father's work, and
+Nils invented all sorts of innocent devices to flatter little Hans's
+dignity, and make him think himself indispensable. It was of no use,
+therefore, for poor Inga to beg little Hans to go home with her. He had
+so much to do, he said, that he couldn't. He even tried to tear himself
+away from his mother when she took him by the arm and remonstrated with
+him. And then and there the conviction stole upon Inga that her child
+did not love her. She was nothing to him compared to what his father
+was. And was it right for Nils thus to rob her of the boy's affection?
+Little Hans could scarcely be blamed for loving his father better; for
+love is largely dependent upon habit, and Nils had been his constant
+companion since he was a year old. A bitter sense of loneliness and loss
+overcame the poor wife as she stood on the river-bank pleading with her
+child, and finding that she annoyed instead of moving him.
+
+"Won't you come home with mamma, little Hans?" she asked, tearfully.
+"The kitten misses you very much; it has been mewing for you all the
+morning."
+
+"No," said little Hans, thrusting his hands into his pockets, and
+turning about with a manly stride; "we are going to have the lumber
+inspector here to-day? and then papa's big raft is going down the
+river."
+
+"But this dreadful noise, dear; how can you stand it? And the logs
+shooting down that slide and making such a racket. And these great piles
+of lumber, Hans--think, if they should tumble down and kill you!"
+
+"Oh, I'm not afraid, mamma," cried Hans, proudly; and, to show his
+fearlessness, he climbed up the log pile, and soon stood on the top of
+it, waving his cap and shouting.
+
+"Oh, do come down, child--do come down!" begged Inga, anxiously.
+
+She had scarcely uttered the words when she heard a warning shout from
+the slope above, and had just time to lift her eyes, when she saw a
+big black object dart past her, strike the log pile, and break with
+a deafening crash. A long confused rumble of rolling logs followed,
+terrified voices rent the air, and, above it all, the deep and steady
+roar of the cataract. She saw, as through a fog, little Hans, serene and
+smiling as ever, borne down on the top of the rolling lumber, now rising
+up and skipping from log to log, now clapping his hands and screaming
+with pleasure, and then suddenly vanishing in the brown writhing river.
+His laughter was still ringing in her ears; the poor child, he did
+not realize his danger. The rumbling of falling logs continued with
+terrifying persistence. Splash! splash! splash! they went, diving by
+twos, by fours, and by dozens at the very spot where her child had
+vanished. But where was little Hans? Oh, where was he? It was all so
+misty, so unreal and confused. She could not tell whether little Hans
+was among the living or among the dead. But there, all of a sudden, his
+head popped up in the middle of the river; and there was another head
+close to his--it was that of his father! And round about them other
+heads bobbed up; for all the lumbermen who were on the raft had plunged
+into the water with Nils when they saw that little Hans was in danger. A
+dozen more were running down the slope as fast as their legs could carry
+them; and they gave a tremendous cheer when they saw little Hans's face
+above the water. He looked a trifle pale and shivery, and he gave a
+funny little snort, so that the water spurted from his nose. He had lost
+his hat, but he did not seem to be hurt. His little arms clung tightly
+about his father's neck, while Nils, dodging the bobbing logs, struck
+out with all his might for the shore. And when he felt firm bottom under
+his feet, and came stumbling up through the shallow water, looking like
+a drowned rat, what a welcome he received from the lumbermen! They all
+wanted to touch little Hans and pat his cheek, just to make sure that it
+was really he.
+
+"It was wonderful indeed," they said, "that he ever came up out of that
+horrible jumble of pitching and diving logs. He is a child of luck, if
+ever there was one."
+
+Not one of them thought of the boy's mother, and little Hans himself
+scarcely thought of her, elated as he was at the welcome he received
+from the lumbermen. Poor Inga stood dazed, struggling with a horrible
+feeling, seeing her child passed from one to the other, while she
+herself claimed no share in him. Somehow the thought stung her. A sudden
+clearness burst upon her; she rushed forward, with a piercing scream,
+snatched little Hans from his father's arms, and hugging his wet little
+shivering form to her breast, fled like a deer through the underbrush.
+
+From that day little Hans was not permitted to go to the river. It was
+in vain that Nils pleaded and threatened. His wife acted so unreasonably
+when that question was broached that he saw it was useless to discuss
+it. She seized little Hans as a tigress might seize her young, and held
+him tightly clasped, as if daring anybody to take him away from her.
+Nils knew it would require force to get his son back again, and that he
+was not ready to employ. But all joy seemed to have gone out of his
+life since he had lost the daily companionship of little Hans. His work
+became drudgery; and all the little annoyances of life, which formerly
+he had brushed away as one brushes a fly from his nose, became burdens
+and calamities. The raft upon which he had expended so much labor went
+to pieces during a sudden rise of the river the night after little
+Hans's adventure, and three days later Thorkel Fossen was killed
+outright by a string of logs that jumped the chute.
+
+"It isn't the same sort of place since you took little Hans away,"
+the lumbermen would often say to Nils. "There's no sort of luck in
+anything."
+
+Sometimes they taunted him with want of courage, and called him
+a "night-cap" and a "hen-pecked coon," all of which made Nils
+uncomfortable. He made two or three attempts to persuade his wife to
+change her mind in regard to little Hans, but the last time she got so
+frightened that she ran out of the house and hid in the cow stable with
+the boy, crouching in an empty stall, and crying as if her heart would
+break, when little Hans escaped and betrayed her hiding-place. The boy,
+in fact, sympathized with his father, and found his confinement at home
+irksome. The companionship of the cat had no more charm for him; and
+even the brindled calf, which had caused such an excitement when he
+first arrived, had become an old story. Little Halls fretted, was
+mischievous for want of better employment, and gave his mother no end
+of trouble. He longed for the gay and animated life at the river, and he
+would have run away if he had not been watched. He could not imagine how
+the lumbermen could be getting on without him. It seemed to him that all
+work must come to a stop when he was no longer sitting on the top of the
+log piles, or standing on the bank throwing chips into the water.
+
+Now, as a matter of fact, they were not getting on very well at the
+river without little Hans. The luck had deserted them, the lumbermen
+said; and whatever mishaps they had, they attributed to the absence of
+little Hans. They came to look with ill-suppressed hostility at Nils,
+whom they regarded as responsible for their misfortunes. For they could
+scarcely believe that he was quite in earnest in his desire for the
+boy's return, otherwise they could not comprehend how his wife could
+dare to oppose him. The weather was stormy, and the mountain brook which
+ran along the slide concluded to waste no more labor in carving out a
+bed for itself in the rock, when it might as well be using the slide
+which it found ready made. And one fine day it broke into the slide and
+half filled it, so that the logs, when they were started down the steep
+incline, sent the water flying, turned somersaults, stood on end, and
+played no end of dangerous tricks which no one could foresee. Several
+men were badly hurt by beams shooting like rockets through the air, and
+old Mads Furubakken was knocked senseless and carried home for dead.
+Then the lumbermen held a council, and made up their minds to get little
+Hans by fair means or foul. They thought first of sending a delegation
+of four or five men that very morning, but finally determined to march
+up to Nils's cottage in a body and demand the boy. There were twenty
+of them at the very least, and the tops of their long boat-hooks, which
+they carried on their shoulders, were seen against the green forest
+before they were themselves visible.
+
+Nils, who was just out of bed, was sitting on the threshold smoking
+his pipe and pitching a ball to little Hans, who laughed with delight
+whenever he caught it. Inga was bustling about inside the house,
+preparing breakfast, which was to consist of porridge, salt herring,
+and baked potatoes. It had rained during the night, and the sky was yet
+overcast, but the sun was struggling to break through the cloud-banks. A
+couple of thrushes in the alder-bushes about the cottage were rejoicing
+at the change in the weather, and Nils was listening to their song and
+to his son's merry prattle, when he caught sight of the twenty lumbermen
+marching up the hillside. He rose, with some astonishment, and went to
+meet them. Inga, hearing their voices, came to the door, and seeing the
+many men, snatched up little Hans, and with a wildly palpitating heart
+ran into the cottage, bolting the door behind her. She had a vague
+foreboding that this unusual visit meant something hostile to herself,
+and she guessed that Nils had been only the spokesman of his comrades
+in demanding so eagerly the return of the boy to the river. She believed
+all their talk about his luck to be idle nonsense; but she knew that
+Nils had unwittingly spread this belief, and that the lumbermen were
+convinced that little Hans was their good genius, whose presence averted
+disaster. Distracted with fear and anxiety, she stood pressing her ear
+against the crack in the door, and sometimes peeping out to see what
+measures she must take for the child's safety. Would Nils stand by her,
+or would he desert her? But surely--what was Nils thinking about? He was
+extending his hand to each of the men, and receiving them kindly.
+
+Next he would be inviting them to come in and take little Hans. She saw
+one of the men--Stubby Mons by name--step forward, and she plainly heard
+him say:
+
+"We miss the little chap down at the river, Nils. The luck has been
+against us since he left."
+
+"Well, Mons," Nils answered, "I miss the little chap as much as any of
+you; perhaps more. But my wife--she's got a sort of crooked notion that
+the boy won't come home alive if she lets him go to the river. She got a
+bad scare last time, and it isn't any use arguing with her."
+
+"But won't you let us talk to her, Nils?" one of the lumbermen proposed.
+"It is a tangled skein, and I don't pretend to say that I can straighten
+it out. But two men have been killed and one crippled since the little
+chap was taken away. And in the three years he was with us no untoward
+thing happened. Now that speaks for itself, Nils, doesn't it?"
+
+"It does, indeed," said Nils, with an air of conviction.
+
+"And you'll let us talk to your wife, and see if we can't make her
+listen to reason," the man urged.
+
+"You are welcome to talk to her as much as you like," Nils replied,
+knocking out his pipe on the heel of his boot; "but I warn you that
+she's mighty cantankerous."
+
+He rose slowly, and tried to open the door. It was locked. "Open, Inga,"
+he said, a trifle impatiently; "there are some men here who want to see
+you."
+
+
+
+
+II.
+
+Inga sat crouching on the hearth, hugging little Hans to her bosom. She
+shook and trembled with fear, let her eyes wander around the walls, and
+now and then moaned at the thought that now they would take little Hans
+away from her.
+
+"Why don't you open the door for papa?" asked little Hans, wonderingly.
+
+Ah, he too was against her! All the world was against her! And her
+husband was in league with her enemies!
+
+"Open, I say!" cried Nils, vehemently. "What do you mean by locking the
+door when decent people come to call upon us?"
+
+Should she open the door or should she not? Holding little Hans in her
+arms, she rose hesitatingly, and stretched out her hand toward the
+bolt. But all of a sudden, in a paroxysm of fear, she withdrew her hand,
+turned about, and fled with the child through the back door. The alder
+bushes grew close up to the walls of the cottage, and by stooping a
+little she managed to remain unobserved. Her greatest difficulty was
+to keep little Hans from shouting to his father, and she had to put her
+hand over his mouth to keep him quiet; for the boy, who had heard the
+voices without, could not understand why he should not be permitted to
+go out and converse with his friends the lumbermen. The wild eyes and
+agitated face of his mother distressed him, and the little showers of
+last night's rain which the trees shook down upon him made him shiver.
+
+"Why do you run so, mamma?" he asked, when she removed her hand from his
+mouth.
+
+"Because the bad men want to take you away from me, Hans," she answered,
+panting.
+
+"Those were not bad men, mamma," the boy ejaculated. "That was Stubby
+Mons and Stuttering Peter and Lars Skin-breeches. They don't, want to
+hurt me."
+
+He expected that his mamma would be much relieved at receiving this
+valuable information, and return home without delay. But she still
+pressed on, flushed and panting, and cast the same anxious glances
+behind her.
+
+In the meanwhile Nils and his guests had entirely lost their patience.
+Finding his persuasions of no avail, the former began to thump at the
+door with the handle of his axe, and receiving no response, he climbed
+up to the window and looked in. To his amazement there was no one in the
+room. Thinking that Inga might have gone to the cow-stable, he ran to
+the rear of the cottage, and called her name. Still no answer.
+
+"Hans," he cried, "where are you?"
+
+But Hans, too, was as if spirited away. It scarcely occurred to Nils,
+until he had searched the cow-stable and the house in vain, that his
+wife had fled from the harmless lumbermen. Then the thought shot through
+his brain that possibly she was not quite right in her head; that this
+fixed idea that everybody wanted to take her child away from her had
+unsettled her reason. Nils grew hot and cold in the same moment as this
+dreadful apprehension took lodgement in his mind. Might she not, in
+her confused effort to save little Hans, do him harm? In the blind and
+feverish terror which possessed her might she not rush into the water,
+or leap over a precipice? Visions of little Hans drowning, or whirled
+into the abyss in his mother's arms, crowded his fancy as he walked
+back to the lumbermen, and told them that neither his wife nor child was
+anywhere to be found.
+
+"I would ask ye this, lads," he said, finally: "if you would help me
+search for them. For Inga--I reckon she is a little touched in the upper
+story--she has gone off with the boy, and I can't get on without little
+Hans any more than you can."
+
+The men understood the situation at a glance, and promised their aid.
+They had all looked upon Inga as "high-strung" and "queer," and it did
+not surprise them to hear that she had been frightened out of her wits
+at their request for the loan of little Hans. Forming a line, with a
+space of twenty feet between each man, they began to beat the bush,
+climbing the steep slope toward the mountains. Inga, pausing for an
+instant, and peering out between the tree trunks, saw the alder bushes
+wave as they broke through the underbrush. She knew now that she was
+pursued. Tired she was, too, and the boy grew heavier for every step
+that she advanced. And yet if she made him walk, he might run away from
+her. If he heard his father's voice, he would be certain to answer. Much
+perplexed, she looked about her for a hiding-place.
+
+For, as the men would be sure to overtake her, her only safety was in
+hiding. With tottering knees she stumbled along, carrying the heavy
+child, grabbing hold of the saplings for support, and yet scarcely
+keeping from falling. The cold perspiration broke from her brow and a
+strange faintness overcame her.
+
+"You will have to walk, little Hans," she said, at last. "But if you run
+away from me, dear, I shall lie down here and die."
+
+Little Hans promised that he would not run away, and for five minutes
+they walked up a stony path which looked like the abandoned bed of a
+brook.
+
+"You hurt my hand, mamma," whimpered the boy, "you squeeze so hard."
+
+She would have answered, but just then she heard the voices of the
+lumbermen scarcely fifty paces away. With a choking sensation and a
+stitch in her side she pressed on, crying out in spirit for the hills to
+hide her and the mountains to open their gates and receive her. Suddenly
+she stood before a rocky wall some eighty or a hundred feet high. She
+could go no farther. Her strength was utterly exhausted. There was a
+big boulder lying at the base of the rock, and a spreading juniper half
+covered it. Knowing that in another minute she would be discovered,
+she flung herself down behind the boulder, though the juniper needles
+scratched her face, and pulled little Hans down at her side. But,
+strange to say, little Hans fell farther than she had calculated, and
+utterly-vanished from sight. She heard a muffled cry, and reaching her
+hand in the direction where he had fallen, caught hold of his arm. A
+strong, wild smell beat against her, and little Hans, as he was pulled
+out, was enveloped in a most unpleasant odor. But odor or no odor, here
+was the very hiding-place she had been seeking. A deserted wolf's den,
+it was, probably--at least she hoped it was deserted; for if it was not,
+she might be confronted with even uglier customers than the lumbermen.
+But she had no time for debating the question, for she saw the head of
+Stubby Mons emerging from the leaves, and immediately behind him came
+Stuttering Peter, with his long boat-hook. Quick as a flash she slipped
+into the hole, and dragged Hans after her. The juniper-bush entirely
+covered the entrance. She could see everyone who approached, without
+being seen. Unhappily, the boy too caught sight of Stubby Mons, and
+called him by name. The lumberman stopped and pricked up his ears.
+
+"Did you hear anybody call?" he asked his companion.
+
+"N-n-n-n-aw, I d-d-d-d-didn't," answered Stuttering Peter. "There b-be
+lots of qu-qu-qu-qu-eer n-noises in the w-w-w-woods."
+
+Little Hans heard every word that they spoke, and he would have
+cried out again, if it hadn't appeared such great fun to be playing
+hide-and-go-seek with the lumbermen. He had a delicious sense of being
+well hidden, and had forgotten everything except the zest of the game.
+Most exciting it became when Stubby Mons drew the juniper-bush aside and
+peered eagerly behind the boulder. Inga's heart stuck in her throat;
+she felt sure that in the next instant they would be discovered. And as
+ill-luck would have it, there was something alive scrambling about her
+feet and tugging at her skirts. Suddenly she felt a sharp bite, but
+clinched her teeth, and uttered no sound. When her vision again cleared,
+the juniper branch had rebounded into its place, and the face of Stubby
+Mons was gone. She drew a deep breath of relief, but yet did not dare to
+emerge from the den. For one, two, three tremulous minutes she remained
+motionless, feeling all the while that uncomfortable sensation of living
+things about her.
+
+At last she could endure it no longer. Thrusting little Hans before her,
+she crawled out of the hole, and looked back into the small cavern. As
+soon as her eyes grew accustomed to the twilight she uttered a cry of
+amazement, for out from her skirts jumped a little gray furry object,
+and two frisky little customers of the same sort were darting about
+among the stones and tree-roots. The truth dawned upon her, and it
+chilled her to the marrow of her bones. The wolf's den was not deserted.
+The old folks were only out hunting, and the shouting and commotion of
+the searching party had probably prevented them from returning in time
+to look after their family. She seized little Hans by the hand, and
+once more dragged him away over the rough path. He soon became tired and
+fretful, and in spite of all her entreaties began to shout lustily for
+his father. But the men were now so far away that they could not
+hear him. He complained of hunger; and when presently they came to a
+blueberry patch, she flung herself down on the heather and allowed him
+to pick berries. She heard cow-bells and sheep-bells tinkling round
+about her, and concluded that she could not be far from the saeters,
+or mountain dairies. That was fortunate, indeed, for she would not have
+liked to sleep in the woods with wolves and bears prowling about her.
+
+She was just making an effort to rise from the stone upon which she
+was sitting, when the big, good-natured face of a cow broke through the
+leaves and stared at her. There was again help in need. She approached
+the cow, patted it, and calling little Hans, bade him sit down in the
+heather and open his mouth. He obeyed rather wonderingly, but perceived
+his mother's intent when she knelt at his side and began to milk
+into his mouth. It seemed to him that he had never tasted anything so
+delicious as this fresh rich milk, fragrant with the odor of the woods
+and the succulent mountain grass. When his hunger was satisfied, he fell
+again to picking berries, while Inga refreshed herself with milk in the
+same simple fashion. After having rested a full hour, she felt strong
+enough to continue her journey; and hearing the loor, or Alpine horn,
+re-echoing among the mountains, she determined to follow the sound.
+It was singular what luck attended her in the midst of her misfortune.
+Perhaps it was, after all, no idle tale that little Hans was a child of
+luck; and she had done the lumbermen injustice in deriding their faith
+in him. Perhaps there was some guiding Providence in all that had
+happened, destined in the end to lead little Hans to fortune and glory.
+Much encouraged by this thought, she stooped over him and kissed him;
+then took his hand and trudged along over logs and stones, through
+juniper and bramble bushes.
+
+"Mamma," said little Hans, "where are you going?"
+
+"I am going to the saeter," she answered; "where you have wanted so
+often to go."
+
+"Then why don't you follow the cows? They are going there too."
+
+Surely that child had a marvellous mind! She smiled down upon him and
+nodded. By following the cows they arrived in twenty minutes at a neat
+little log cabin, from which the smoke curled up gayly into the clear
+air.
+
+The dairy-maids who spent the summer there tending the cattle both fell
+victims to the charms of little Hans, and offered him and his mother
+their simple hospitality. They told of the lumbermen who had passed
+the saeter huts, and inquired for her; but otherwise they respected her
+silence, and made no attempt to pry into her secrets. The next morning
+she started, after a refreshing sleep, westward toward the coast, where
+she hoped in some way to find a passage to America. For if little Hans
+was really born under a lucky star--which fact she now could scarcely
+doubt--then America was the place for him. There he might rise to become
+President, or a judge, or a parson, or something or other; while in
+Norway he would never be anything but a lumberman like his father. Inga
+had a well-to-do sister, who was a widow, in the nearest town, and she
+would borrow enough money from her to pay their passage to New York.
+
+
+It was early in July when little Hans and his mother arrived in New
+York. The latter had repented bitterly of her rashness in stealing her
+child from his father, and under a blind impulse traversing half the
+globe in a wild-goose chase after fortune. The world was so much bigger
+than she in her quiet valley had imagined; and, what was worse, it wore
+such a cold and repellent look, and was so bewildering and noisy. Inga
+had been very sea-sick during the voyage; and after she stepped ashore
+from the tug that brought her to Castle Garden, the ground kept heaving
+and swelling under her feet, and made her dizzy and miserable. She had
+been very wicked, she was beginning to think, and deserved punishment;
+and if it had not been for a vague and adventurous faith in the great
+future that was in store for her son, she would have been content
+to return home, do penance for her folly, and beg her husband's
+forgiveness. But, in the first place, she had no money to pay for a
+return ticket; and, secondly, it would be a great pity to deprive little
+Hans of the Presidency and all the grandeur that his lucky star might
+here bring him.
+
+Inga was just contemplating this bright vision of Hans's future, when
+she found herself passing through a gate, at which a clerk was seated.
+
+"What is your name?" he asked, through an interpreter.
+
+"Inga Olsdatter Pladsen."
+
+"Age?"
+
+"Twenty-eight a week after Michaelmas."
+
+"Single or married?"
+
+"Married."
+
+"Where is your husband?"
+
+"In Norway."
+
+"Are you divorced from him?"
+
+"Divorced--I! Why, no! Who ever heard of such a thing?"
+
+Inga grew quite indignant at the thought of her being divorced. A
+dozen other questions were asked, at each of which her embarrassment
+increased. When, finally, she declared that she had no money, no
+definite destination, and no relatives or friends in the country, the
+examination was cut short, and after an hour's delay and a wearisome
+cross-questioning by different officials, she was put on board the tug,
+and returned to the steamer in which she had crossed the ocean. Four
+dreary days passed; then there was a tremendous commotion on deck:
+blowing of whistles, roaring of steam, playing of bands, bumping of
+trunks and boxes, and finally the steady pulsation of the engines as the
+big ship stood out to sea. After nine days of discomfort in the stuffy
+steerage and thirty-six hours of downright misery while crossing the
+stormy North Sea, Inga found herself once more in the land of her
+birth. Full of humiliation and shame she met her husband at the
+railroad station, and prepared herself for a deluge of harsh words and
+reproaches. But instead of that he patted her gently on the head, and
+clasped little Hans in his arms and kissed him. They said very little
+to each other as they rode homeward in the cars; but little Hans had a
+thousand things to tell, and his father was delighted to hear them. In
+the evening, when they had reached their native valley, and the boy was
+asleep, Inga plucked up courage and said, "Nils, it is all a mistake
+about little Hans's luck."
+
+"Mistake! Why, no," cried Nils. "What greater luck could he have than to
+be brought safely home to his father?"
+
+Inga had indeed hoped for more; but she said nothing. Nevertheless,
+fate still had strange things in store for little Hans. The story of
+his mother's flight to and return from America was picked up by some
+enterprising journalist, who made a most touching romance of it.
+Hundreds of inquiries regarding little Hans poured in upon the pastor
+and the postmaster; and offers to adopt him, educate him, and I know not
+what else, were made to his parents. But Nils would hear of no adoption;
+nor would he consent to any plan that separated him from the boy. When,
+however, he was given a position as superintendent of a lumber yard in
+the town, and prosperity began to smile upon him, he sent little Hans
+to school, and as Hans was a clever boy, he made the most of his
+opportunities.
+
+And now little Hans is indeed a very big Hans, but a child of luck he is
+yet; for I saw him referred to the other day in the newspapers as one of
+the greatest lumber dealers, and one of the noblest, most generous, and
+public-spirited men in Norway.
+
+
+
+
+THE BEAR THAT HAD A BANK ACCOUNT
+
+
+
+
+I.
+
+You may not believe it, but the bear I am going to tell you about really
+had a bank account! He lived in the woods, as most bears do; but he
+had a reputation which extended over all Norway and more than half of
+England. Earls and baronets came every summer, with repeating-rifles
+of the latest patent, and plaids and field-glasses and portable
+cooking-stoves, intent upon killing him. But Mr. Bruin, whose only
+weapons were a pair of paws and a pair of jaws, both uncommonly good of
+their kind, though not patented, always managed to get away unscathed;
+and that was sometimes more than the earls and the baronets did.
+
+One summer the Crown Prince of Germany came to Norway. He also heard of
+the famous bear that no one could kill, and made up his mind that he was
+the man to kill it. He trudged for two days through bogs, and climbed
+through glens and ravines, before he came on the scent of a bear, and a
+bear's scent, you may know, is strong, and quite unmistakable. Finally
+he discovered some tracks in the moss, like those of a barefooted man,
+or, I should rather say, perhaps, a man-footed bear. The Prince was
+just turning the corner of a projecting rock, when he saw a huge, shaggy
+beast standing on its hind legs, examining in a leisurely manner the
+inside of a hollow tree, while a swarm of bees were buzzing about its
+ears. It was just hauling out a handful of honey, and was smiling with
+a grewsome mirth, when His Royal Highness sent it a bullet right in the
+breast, where its heart must have been, if it had one. But, instead of
+falling down flat, as it ought to have done, out of deference to the
+Prince, it coolly turned its back, and gave its assailant a disgusted
+nod over its shoulder as it trudged away through the underbrush.
+The attendants ranged through the woods and beat the bushes in all
+directions, but Mr. Bruin was no more to be seen that afternoon. It was
+as if he had sunk into the earth; not a trace of him was to be found by
+either dogs or men.
+
+From that time forth the rumor spread abroad that this Gausdale Bruin
+(for that was the name by which he became known) was enchanted. It was
+said that he shook off bullets as a duck does water; that he had the
+evil eye, and could bring misfortune to whomsoever he looked upon.
+The peasants dreaded to meet him, and ceased to hunt him. His size was
+described as something enormous, his teeth, his claws, and his eyes as
+being diabolical beyond human conception. In the meanwhile Mr. Bruin had
+it all his own way in the mountains, killed a young bull or a fat heifer
+for his dinner every day or two, chased in pure sport a herd of sheep
+over a precipice; and as for Lars Moe's bay mare Stella, he nearly
+finished her, leaving his claw-marks on her flank in a way that spoiled
+her beauty forever.
+
+Now Lars Moe himself was too old to hunt; and his nephew was--well, he
+was not old enough. There was, in fact, no one in the valley who was of
+the right age to hunt this Gausdale Bruin. It was of no use that Lars
+Moe egged on the young lads to try their luck, shaming them, or offering
+them rewards, according as his mood might happen to be. He was the
+wealthiest man in the valley, and his mare Stella had been the apple of
+his eye. He felt it as a personal insult that the bear should have dared
+to molest what belonged to him, especially the most precious of all his
+possessions. It cut him to the heart to see the poor wounded beauty,
+with those cruel scratches on her thigh, and one stiff, aching leg done
+up in oil and cotton. When he opened the stable-door, and was greeted
+by Stella's low, friendly neighing, or when she limped forward in her
+box-stall and put her small, clean-shaped head on his shoulder, then
+Lars Moe's heart swelled until it seemed on the point of breaking. And
+so it came to pass that he added a codicil to his will, setting aside
+five hundred dollars of his estate as a reward to the man who, within
+six years, should kill the Gausdale Bruin.
+
+Soon after that, Lars Moe died, as some said, from grief and chagrin;
+though the physician affirmed that it was of rheumatism of the heart.
+At any rate, the codicil relating to the enchanted bear was duly read
+before the church door, and pasted, among other legal notices, in the
+vestibules of the judge's and the sheriff's offices. When the executors
+had settled up the estate, the question arose in whose name or to whose
+credit should be deposited the money which was to be set aside for the
+benefit of the bear-slayer. No one knew who would kill the bear, or if
+any one would kill it. It was a puzzling question.
+
+"Why, deposit it to the credit of the bear," said a jocose executor;
+"then, in the absence of other heirs, his slayer will inherit it. That
+is good old Norwegian practice, though I don't know whether it has ever
+been the law."
+
+"All right," said the other executors, "so long as it is understood who
+is to have the money, it does not matter."
+
+And so an amount equal to $500 was deposited in the county bank to the
+credit of the Gausdale Bruin. Sir Barry Worthington, Bart., who came
+abroad the following summer for the shooting, heard the story, and
+thought it a good one. So, after having vainly tried to earn the prize
+himself, he added another $500 to the deposit, with the stipulation that
+he was to have the skin.
+
+But his rival for parliamentary honors, Robert Stapleton, Esq., the
+great iron-master, who had come to Norway chiefly to outshine Sir Barry,
+determined that he was to have the skin of that famous bear, if any one
+was to have it, and that, at all events, Sir Barry should not have
+it. So Mr. Stapleton added $750 to the bear's bank account, with the
+stipulation that the skin should come to him.
+
+Mr. Bruin, in the meanwhile, as if to resent this unseemly contention
+about his pelt, made worse havoc among the herds than ever, and
+compelled several peasants to move their dairies to other parts of the
+mountains, where the pastures were poorer, but where they would be free
+from his depredations. If the $1,750 in the bank had been meant as
+a bribe or a stipend for good behavior, such as was formerly paid to
+Italian brigands, it certainly could not have been more demoralizing
+in its effect; for all agreed that, since Lars Moe's death, Bruin
+misbehaved worse than ever.
+
+
+
+
+II.
+
+There was an odd clause in Lars Moe's will besides the codicil relating
+to the bear. It read:
+
+"I hereby give and bequeath to my daughter Unna, or, in case of her
+decease, to her oldest living issue, my bay mare Stella, as a token that
+I have forgiven her the sorrow she caused me by her marriage."
+
+It seemed incredible that Lars Moe should wish to play a practical joke
+(and a bad one at that) on his only child, his daughter Unna, because
+she had displeased him by her marriage. Yet that was the common opinion
+in the valley when this singular clause became known. Unna had married
+Thorkel Tomlevold, a poor tenant's son, and had refused her cousin, the
+great lumber-dealer, Morten Janson, whom her father had selected for a
+son-in-law.
+
+She dwelt now in a tenant's cottage, northward in the parish; and her
+husband, who was a sturdy and fine-looking fellow, eked out a living
+by hunting and fishing. But they surely had no accommodations for a
+broken-down, wounded, trotting mare, which could not even draw a plough.
+It is true Unna, in the days of her girlhood, had been very fond of the
+mare, and it is only charitable to suppose that the clause, which was
+in the body of the will, was written while Stella was in her prime,
+and before she had suffered at the paws of the Gausdale Bruin. But even
+granting that, one could scarcely help suspecting malice aforethought in
+the curious provision. To Unna the gift was meant to say, as plainly as
+possible, "There, you see what you have lost by disobeying your father!
+If you had married according to his wishes, you would have been able to
+accept the gift, while now you are obliged to decline it like a beggar."
+
+But if it was Lars Moe's intention to convey such a message to his
+daughter, he failed to take into account his daughter's spirit. She
+appeared plainly but decently dressed at the reading of the will, and
+carried her head not a whit less haughtily than was her wont in her
+maiden days. She exhibited no chagrin when she found that Janson was
+her father's heir and that she was disinherited. She even listened with
+perfect composure to the reading of the clause which bequeathed to her
+the broken-down mare.
+
+It at once became a matter of pride with her to accept her girlhood's
+favorite, and accept it she did! And having borrowed a side-saddle, she
+rode home, apparently quite contented. A little shed, or lean-to, was
+built in the rear of the house, and Stella became a member of Thorkel
+Tomlevold's family. Odd as it may seem, the fortunes of the family took
+a turn for the better from the day she arrived; Thorkel rarely came home
+without big game, and in his traps he caught more than any three other
+men in all the parish.
+
+"The mare has brought us luck," he said to his wife. "If she can't
+plough, she can at all events pull the sleigh to church; and you have as
+good a right as any one to put on airs, if you choose."
+
+"Yes, she has brought us blessing," replied Unna, quietly; "and we are
+going to keep her till she dies of old age."
+
+To the children Stella became a pet, as much as if she had been a dog
+or a cat. The little boy Lars climbed all over her, and kissed her
+regularly good-morning when she put her handsome head in through the
+kitchen-door to get her lump of sugar. She was as gentle as a lamb and
+as intelligent as a dog. Her great brown eyes, with their soft, liquid
+look, spoke as plainly as words could speak, expressing pleasure when
+she was patted; and the low neighing with which she greeted the little
+boy, when she heard his footsteps in the door, was to him like the voice
+of a friend.
+
+He grew to love this handsome and noble animal as he had loved nothing
+on earth except his father and mother.
+
+As a matter of course he heard a hundred times the story of Stella's
+adventure with the terrible Gausdale bear. It was a story that never
+lost its interest, that seemed to grow more exciting the oftener it
+was told. The deep scars of the bear's claws in Stella's thigh were
+curiously examined, and each time gave rise to new questions. The mare
+became quite a heroic character, and the suggestion was frequently
+discussed between Lars and his little sister Marit, whether Stella might
+not be an enchanted princess who was waiting for some one to cut off
+her head, so that she might show herself in her glory. Marit thought the
+experiment well worth trying, but Lars had his doubts, and was unwilling
+to take the risk; yet if she brought luck, as his mother said, then she
+certainly must be something more than an ordinary horse.
+
+Stella had dragged little Lars out of the river when he fell overboard
+from the pier; and that, too, showed more sense than he had ever known a
+horse to have.
+
+There could be no doubt in his mind that Stella was an enchanted
+princess. And instantly the thought occurred to him that the dreadful
+enchanted bear with the evil eye was the sorcerer, and that, when he was
+killed, Stella would resume her human guise. It soon became clear to him
+that he was the boy to accomplish this heroic deed; and it was equally
+plain to him that he must keep his purpose secret from all except Marit,
+as his mother would surely discourage him from engaging in so perilous
+an enterprise. First of all, he had to learn how to shoot; and his
+father, who was the best shot in the valley, was very willing to teach
+him. It seemed quite natural to Thorkel that a hunter's son should take
+readily to the rifle; and it gave him great satisfaction to see how true
+his boy's aim was, and how steady his hand.
+
+"Father," said Lars one day, "you shoot so well, why haven't you ever
+tried to kill the Gausdale Bruin that hurt Stella so badly?"
+
+"Hush, child! you don't know what you are talking about," answered his
+father; "no leaden bullet will harm that wicked beast."
+
+"Why not?"
+
+"I don't like to talk about it--but it is well known that he is
+enchanted."
+
+"But will he then live for ever? Is there no sort of bullet that will
+kill him?" asked the boy.
+
+"I don't know. I don't want to have anything to do with witchcraft,"
+said Thorkel.
+
+The word "witchcraft" set the boy to thinking, and he suddenly
+remembered that he had been warned not to speak to an old woman named
+Martha Pladsen, because she was a witch. Now, she was probably the very
+one who could tell him what he wanted to know. Her cottage lay close
+up under the mountain-side, about two miles from his home. He did not
+deliberate long before going to seek this mysterious person, about
+whom the most remarkable stories were told in the valley. To his
+astonishment, she received him kindly, gave him a cup of coffee with
+rock candy, and declared that she had long expected him. The bullet
+which was to slay the enchanted bear had long been in her possession;
+and she would give it to him if he would promise to give her the beast's
+heart.
+
+He did not have to be asked twice for that; and off he started gayly
+with his prize in his pocket. It was rather an odd-looking bullet,
+made of silver, marked with a cross on one side and with a lot of queer
+illegible figures on the other. It seemed to burn in his pocket, so
+anxious was he to start out at once to release the beloved Stella from
+the cruel enchantment. But Martha had said that the bear could only
+be killed when the moon was full; and until the moon was full he
+accordingly had to bridle his impatience.
+
+
+
+
+III.
+
+It was a bright morning in January, and, as it happened, Lars's
+fourteenth birthday. To his great delight, his mother had gone down to
+the judge's to sell some ptarmigans, and his father had gone to fell
+some timber up in the glen. Accordingly he could secure the rifle
+without being observed. He took an affectionate good-by of Stella,
+who rubbed her soft nose against his own, playfully pulled at his
+coat-collar, and blew her sweet, warm breath into his face. Lars was a
+simple-hearted boy, in spite of his age, and quite a child at heart.
+He had lived so secluded from all society, and breathed so long the
+atmosphere of fairy tales, that he could see nothing at all absurd
+in what he was about to undertake. The youngest son in the story-book
+always did just that sort of thing, and everybody praised and admired
+him for it. Lars meant, for once, to put the story-book hero into the
+shade. He engaged little Marit to watch over Stella while he was gone,
+and under no circumstances to betray him--all of which Marit solemnly
+promised.
+
+With his rifle on his shoulder and his skees on his feet, Lars glided
+slowly along over the glittering surface of the snow, for the mountain
+was steep, and he had to zigzag in long lines before he reached the
+upper heights, where the bear was said to have his haunts. The place
+where Bruin had his winter den had once been pointed out to him, and
+he remembered yet how pale his father was, when he found that he had
+strayed by chance into so dangerous a neighborhood. Lars's heart, too,
+beat rather uneasily as he saw the two heaps of stones, called "The
+Parson" and "The Deacon," and the two huge fir-trees which marked the
+dreaded spot. It had been customary from immemorial time for each person
+who passed along the road to throw a large stone on the Parson's heap,
+and a small one on the Deacon's; but since the Gausdale Bruin had gone
+into winter quarters there, the stone heaps had ceased to grow.
+
+Under the great knotted roots of the fir-trees there was a hole, which
+was more than half-covered with snow; and it was noticeable that there
+was not a track of bird or beast to be seen anywhere around it. Lars,
+who on the way had been buoyed up by the sense of his heroism, began
+now to feel strangely uncomfortable. It was so awfully hushed and still
+round about him; not the scream of a bird--not even the falling of a
+broken bough was to be heard. The pines stood in lines and in clumps,
+solemn, like a funeral procession, shrouded in sepulchral white. Even if
+a crow had cawed it would have been a relief to the frightened boy--for
+it must be confessed that he was a trifle frightened--if only a little
+shower of snow had fallen upon his head from the heavily laden branches,
+he would have been grateful for it, for it would have broken the spell
+of this oppressive silence.
+
+There could be no doubt of it; inside, under those tree-roots slept
+Stella's foe--the dreaded enchanted beast who had put the boldest
+of hunters to flight, and set lords and baronets by the ears for the
+privilege of possessing his skin. Lars became suddenly aware that it
+was a foolhardy thing he had undertaken, and that he had better betake
+himself home. But then, again, had not Witch-Martha said that she had
+been waiting for him; that he was destined by fate to accomplish this
+deed, just as the youngest son had been in the story-book. Yes, to be
+sure, she had said that; and it was a comforting thought.
+
+Accordingly, having again examined his rifle, which he had carefully
+loaded with the silver bullet before leaving home, he started boldly
+forward, climbed up on the little hillock between the two trees, and
+began to pound it lustily with the butt-end of his gun. He listened
+for a moment tremulously, and heard distinctly long, heavy sighs from
+within.
+
+His heart stood still. The bear was awake! Soon he would have to face
+it! A minute more elapsed; Lars's heart shot up into his throat. He
+leaped down, placed himself in front of the entrance to the den, and
+cocked his rifle. Three long minutes passed. Bruin had evidently gone to
+sleep again. Wild with excitement, the boy rushed forward and drove his
+skee-staff straight into the den with all his might. A sullen growl was
+heard, like a deep and menacing thunder. There could be no doubt that
+now the monster would take him to task for his impertinence.
+
+Again the boy seized his rifle; and his nerves, though tense as
+stretched bow-strings, seemed suddenly calm and steady. He lifted the
+rifle to his cheek, and resolved not to shoot until he had a clear aim
+at heart or brain. Bruin, though Lars could hear him rummaging within,
+was in no hurry to come out, But he sighed and growled uproariously,
+and presently showed a terrible, long-clawed paw, which he thrust out
+through his door and then again withdrew. But apparently it took him a
+long while to get his mind clear as to the cause of the disturbance;
+for fully five minutes had elapsed when suddenly a big tuft of moss
+was tossed out upon the snow, followed by a cloud of dust and an angry
+creaking of the tree-roots.
+
+Great masses of snow were shaken from the swaying tops of the firs, and
+fell with light thuds upon the ground. In the face of this unexpected
+shower, which entirely hid the entrance to the den, Lars was obliged to
+fall back a dozen paces; but, as the glittering drizzle cleared away,
+he saw an enormous brown beast standing upon its hind legs, with widely
+distended jaws. He was conscious of no fear, but of a curious numbness
+in his limbs, and strange noises, as of warning shouts and cries,
+filling his ears.
+
+Fortunately, the great glare of the sun-smitten snow dazzled Bruin; he
+advanced slowly, roaring savagely, but staring rather blindly before
+him out of his small, evil-looking eyes. Suddenly, when he was but a few
+yards distant, he raised his great paw, as if to rub away the cobwebs
+that obscured his sight.
+
+It was the moment for which the boy had waited. Now he had a clear aim!
+Quickly he pulled the trigger; the shot reverberated from mountain to
+mountain, and in the same instant the huge brown bulk rolled in the
+snow, gave a gasp, and was dead! The spell was broken! The silver bullet
+had pierced his heart. There was a curious unreality about the whole
+thing to Lars. He scarcely knew whether he was really himself or the
+hero of the fairy-tale.
+
+All that was left for him to do now was to go home and marry Stella, the
+delivered princess.
+
+The noises about him seemed to come nearer and nearer; and now they
+sounded like human voices. He looked about him, and to his amazement
+saw his father and Marit, followed by two wood-cutters, who, with
+raised axes, were running toward him. Then he did not know exactly what
+happened; but he felt himself lifted up by two strong arms, and tears
+fell hot and fast upon his face.
+
+"My boy! my boy!" said the voice in his ears, "I expected to find you
+dead."
+
+"No, but the bear is dead," said Lars, innocently.
+
+"I didn't mean to tell on you, Lars," cried Marit, "but I was so afraid,
+and then I had to."
+
+The rumor soon filled the whole valley that the great Gausdale Bruin was
+dead, and that the boy Lars Tomlevold had killed him. It is needless to
+say that Lars Tomlevold became the parish hero from that day. He did not
+dare to confess in the presence of all this praise and wonder that at
+heart he was bitterly disappointed; for when he came home, throbbing
+with wild expectancy, there stood Stella before the kitchen door,
+munching a piece of bread; and when she hailed him with a low whinny, he
+burst into tears. But he dared not tell any one why he was weeping.
+
+This story might have ended here, but it has a little sequel. The $1,750
+which Bruin had to his credit in the bank had increased to $2,290;
+and it was all paid to Lars. A few years later, Martin Janson, who had
+inherited the estate of Moe from old Lars, failed in consequence of his
+daring forest speculations, and young Lars was enabled to buy the farm
+at auction at less than half its value. Thus he had the happiness to
+bring his mother back to the place of her birth, of which she had been
+wrongfully deprived; and Stella, who was now twenty-one years old,
+occupied once more her handsome box-stall, as in the days of her glory.
+And although she never proved to be a princess, she was treated as if
+she were one, during the few years that remained to her.
+
+
+
+
+
+[Footnote 1: In Norway confirmation is always preceded by a public examination of
+the candidates in the aisle of the church. The order in which they are
+arranged is supposed to indicate their attainments, but does, as a rule,
+indicate the rank and social position of their parents.]
+
+[Footnote 2: Norwegian snow-shoes.]
+
+[Footnote 3: The genius of cattle, represented as a beautiful maiden disfigured
+by a heifer's tail, which she is always trying to hide, though often
+unsuccessfully.]
+
+
+
+
+
+End of Project Gutenberg's Boyhood in Norway, by Hjalmar Hjorth Boyesen
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+
+BOYHOOD IN NORWAY 
+
+STORIES OF BOY-LIFE IN THE LAND OF THE MIDNIGHT SUN
+
+BY
+
+HJALMAR HJORTH BOYESEN
+
+
+
+
+CONTENTS
+
+THE BATTLE OF THE RAFTS
+THE CLASH OF ARMS
+BICEPS GRIMLUND'S CHRISTMAS VACATION
+THE NIXY'S STRAIN
+THE WONDER CHILD
+"THE SONS OF THE VIKINGS"
+PAUL JESPERSEN'S MASQUERADE
+LADY CLARE  THE STORY OF A HORSE
+BONNYBOY
+THE CHILD OF LUCK
+THE BEAR THAT HAD A BANK ACCOUNT
+
+
+
+
+THE BATTLE OF THE RAFTS
+
+I. THE ORIGIN OF THE WAR
+
+A deadly feud was raging among the boys of Numedale.  The
+East-Siders hated the West-Siders, and thrashed them when they
+got a chance; and the West-Siders, when fortune favored them,
+returned the compliment with interest.  It required considerable
+courage for a boy to venture, unattended by comrades, into the
+territory of the enemy; and no one took the risk unless dire
+necessity compelled him.
+
+The hostile parties had played at war so long that they had
+forgotten that it was play; and now were actually inspired with
+the emotions which they had formerly simulated.  Under the
+leadership of their chieftains, Halvor Reitan and Viggo Hook,
+they held councils of war, sent out scouts, planned midnight
+surprises, and fought at times mimic battles.  I say mimic
+battles, because no one was ever killed; but broken heads and
+bruised limbs many a one carried home from these engagements, and
+unhappily one boy, named Peer Oestmo, had an eye put out by an
+arrow.
+
+It was a great consolation to him that he became a hero to all
+the West-Siders and was promoted for bravery in the field to the
+rank of first lieutenant. He had the sympathy of all his
+companions in arms and got innumerable bites of apples, cancelled
+postage stamps, and colored advertising-labels in token of their
+esteem.
+
+But the principal effect of this first serious wound was to
+invest the war with a breathless and all-absorbing interest.  It
+was now no longer "make believe," but deadly earnest.  Blood had
+flowed; insults had been exchanged in due order, and offended
+honor cried for vengeance.
+
+It was fortunate that the river divided the West-Siders from the
+East-Siders, or it would have been difficult to tell what might
+have happened.  Viggo Hook, the West-Side general, was a
+handsome, high-spirited lad of fifteen, who was the last person
+to pocket an injury, as long as red blood flowed in his veins, as
+he was wont to express it.  He was the eldest son of Colonel Hook
+of the regular army, and meant some day to be a Von Moltke or a
+Napoleon. He felt in his heart that he was destined for something
+great; and in conformity with this conviction assumed a superb
+behavior, which his comrades found very admirable.
+
+He had the gift of leadership in a marked degree, and established
+his authority by a due mixture of kindness and severity.  Those
+boys whom he honored with his confidence were absolutely attached
+to him.  Those whom, with magnificent arbitrariness, he punished
+and persecuted, felt meekly that they had probably deserved it;
+and if they had not, it was somehow in the game.
+
+There never was a more absolute king than Viggo, nor one more
+abjectly courted and admired.  And the amusing part of it was
+that he was at heart a generous and good-natured lad, but
+possessed with a lofty ideal of heroism, which required above all
+things that whatever he said or did must be striking.  He
+dramatized, as it were, every phrase he uttered and every act he
+performed, and modelled himself alternately after Napoleon and
+Wellington, as he had seen them represented in the old engravings
+which decorated the walls in his father's study.
+
+He had read much about heroes of war, ancient and modern, and he
+lived about half his own life imagining himself by turns all
+sorts of grand characters from history or fiction.
+
+His costume was usually in keeping with his own conception of
+these characters, in so far as his scanty opportunities
+permitted.  An old, broken sword of his father's, which had been
+polished until it "flashed" properly, was girded to a brass-
+mounted belt about his waist; an ancient, gold-braided, military
+cap, which was much too large, covered his curly head; and four
+tarnished brass buttons, displaying the Golden Lion of Norway,
+gave a martial air to his blue jacket, although the rest were
+plain horn.
+
+But quite independently of his poor trappings Viggo was to his
+comrades an august personage.  I doubt if the Grand Vizier feels
+more flattered and gratified by the favor of the Sultan than
+little Marcus Henning did, when Viggo condescended to be civil to
+him.
+
+Marcus was small, round-shouldered, spindle-shanked, and
+freckle-faced.  His hair was coarse, straight, and the color of
+maple sirup; his nose was broad and a little flattened at the
+point, and his clothes had a knack of never fitting him.  They
+were made to grow in and somehow he never caught up with them, he
+once said, with no intention of being funny.  His father, who was
+Colonel Hook's nearest neighbor, kept a modest country shop, in
+which you could buy anything, from dry goods and groceries to
+shoes and medicines.  You would have to be very ingenious to ask
+for a thing which Henning could not supply.  The smell in the
+store carried out the same idea; for it was a mixture of all
+imaginable smells under the sun.
+
+Now, it was the chief misery of Marcus that, sleeping, as he did,
+in the room behind the store, he had become so impregnated with
+this curious composite smell that it followed him like an
+odoriferous halo, and procured him a number of unpleasant
+nicknames.  The principal ingredient was salted herring; but
+there was also a suspicion of tarred ropes, plug tobacco, prunes,
+dried codfish, and oiled tarpaulin.
+
+It was not so much kindness of heart as respect for his own
+dignity which made Viggo refrain from calling Marcus a "Muskrat"
+or a "Smelling-Bottle."  And yet Marcus regarded this gracious
+forbearance on his part as the mark of a noble soul.  He had been
+compelled to accept these offensive nicknames, and, finding
+rebellion vain, he had finally acquiesced in them.
+
+He never loved to be called a "Muskrat," though he answered to
+the name mechanically.  But when Viggo addressed him as "base
+minion," in his wrath, or as "Sergeant Henning," in his sunnier
+moods, Marcus felt equally complimented by both terms, and vowed
+in his grateful soul eternal allegiance and loyalty to his chief.
+
+He bore kicks and cuffs with the same admirable equanimity; never
+complained when he was thrown into a dungeon in a deserted pigsty
+for breaches of discipline of which he was entirely guiltless,
+and trudged uncomplainingly through rain and sleet and snow, as
+scout or spy, or what-not, at the behest of his exacting
+commander.
+
+It was all so very real to him that he never would have thought
+of doubting the importance of his mission.  He was rather honored
+by the trust reposed in him, and was only intent upon earning a
+look or word of scant approval from the superb personage whom he
+worshipped.
+
+Halvor Reitan, the chief of the East-Siders, was a big, burly
+peasant lad, with a pimpled face, fierce blue eyes, and a shock
+of towy hair.  But he had muscles as hard as twisted ropes, and
+sinews like steel.
+
+He had the reputation, of which he was very proud, of being the
+strongest boy in the valley, and though he was scarcely sixteen
+years old, he boasted that he could whip many a one of twice his
+years.  He had, in fact, been so praised for his strength that he
+never neglected to accept, or even to create, opportunities for
+displaying it.
+
+His manner was that of a bully; but it was vanity and not malice
+which made him always spoil for a fight.  He and Viggo Hook had
+attended the parson's "Confirmation Class," together, and it was
+there their hostility had commenced.
+
+Halvor, who conceived a dislike of the tall, rather dainty, and
+disdainful Viggo, with his aquiline nose and clear, aristocratic
+features, determined, as he expressed it, to take him down a peg
+or two; and the more his challenges were ignored the more
+persistent he grew in his insults.
+
+He dubbed Viggo "Missy."  He ran against him with such violence
+in the hall that he knocked his head against the wainscoting; he
+tripped him up on the stairs by means of canes and sticks; and he
+hired his partisans who sat behind Viggo to stick pins into him,
+while he recited his lessons.  And when all these provocations
+proved unavailing he determined to dispense with any pretext, but
+simply thrash his enemy within an inch of his life at the first
+opportunity which presented itself.  He grew to hate Viggo and
+was always aching to molest him.
+
+Halvor saw plainly enough that Viggo despised him, and refused to
+notice his challenges, not so much because he was afraid of him,
+as because he regarded himself as a superior being who could
+afford to ignore insults from an inferior, without loss of
+dignity.
+
+During recess the so-called "genteel boys," who had better
+clothes and better manners than the peasant lads, separated
+themselves from the rest, and conversed or played with each
+other.  No one will wonder that such behavior was exasperating to
+the poorer boys.  I am far from defending Viggo's behavior in
+this instance.  He was here, as everywhere, the acknowledged
+leader; and therefore more cordially hated than the rest.  It was
+the Roundhead hating the Cavalier; and the Cavalier making merry
+at the expense of the Roundhead.
+
+There was only one boy in the Confirmation Class who was doubtful
+as to what camp should claim him, and that was little Marcus
+Henning.  He was a kind of amphibious animal who, as he thought,
+really belonged nowhere.  His father was of peasant origin, but
+by his prosperity and his occupation had risen out of the class
+to which he was formerly attached, without yet rising into the
+ranks of the gentry, who now, as always, looked with scorn upon
+interlopers.  Thus it came to pass that little Marcus, whose
+inclinations drew him toward Viggo's party, was yet forced to
+associate with the partisans of Halvor Reitan.
+
+It was not a vulgar ambition "to pretend to be better than he
+was" which inspired Marcus with a desire to change his
+allegiance, but a deep, unreasoning admiration for Viggo Hook. 
+He had never seen any one who united so many superb qualities,
+nor one who looked every inch as noble as he did.
+
+It did not discourage him in the least that his first approaches
+met with no cordial reception.  His offer to communicate to Viggo
+where there was a hawk's nest was coolly declined, and even the
+attractions of fox dens and rabbits' burrows were valiantly
+resisted.  Better luck he had with a pair of fan-tail pigeons,
+his most precious treasure, which Viggo rather loftily consented
+to accept, for, like most genteel boys in the valley, he was an
+ardent pigeon-fancier, and had long vainly importuned his father
+to procure him some of the rarer breeds
+
+He condescended to acknowledge Marcus's greeting after that, and
+to respond to his diffident "Good-morning" and "Good-evening,"
+and Marcus was duly grateful for such favors.  He continued to
+woo his idol with raisins and ginger-snaps from the store, and
+other delicate attentions, and bore the snubs which often fell to
+his lot with humility and patience.
+
+But an event soon occurred which was destined to change the
+relations of the two boys.  Halvor Reitan called a secret meeting
+of his partisans, among whom he made the mistake to include
+Marcus, and agreed with them to lie in ambush at the bend of the
+road, where it entered the forest, and attack Viggo Hook and his
+followers.  Then, he observed, he would "make him dance a jig
+that would take the starch out of him."
+
+The others declared that this would be capital fun, and
+enthusiastically promised their assistance.  Each one selected
+his particular antipathy to thrash, though all showed a marked
+preference for Viggo, whom, however, for reason of politeness,
+they were obliged to leave to the chief.  Only one boy sat
+silent, and made no offer to thrash anybody, and that was Marcus
+Henning.
+
+"Well, Muskrat," cried Halvor Reitan, "whom are you going to take
+on your conscience?"
+
+"No one," said Marcus.
+
+"Put the Muskrat in your pocket, Halvor," suggested one of the
+boys; "he is so small, and he has got such a hard bullet head,
+you might use him as a club."
+
+"Well, one thing is sure," shouted Halvor, as a dark suspicion
+shot through his brain, "if you don't keep mum, you will be a
+mighty sick coon the day after to-morrow."
+
+Marcus made no reply, but got up quietly, pulled a rubber sling
+from his pocket, and began, with the most indifferent manner in
+the world, to shoot stones down the river.  He managed during
+this exercise, which everybody found perfectly natural, to get
+out of the crowd, and, without seeming to have any purpose
+whatever, he continued to put a couple of hundred yards between
+himself and his companion.
+
+"Look a-here, Muskrat," he heard Halvor cry, "you promised to
+keep mum."
+
+Marcus, instead of answering, took to his heels and ran.
+
+"Boys, the scoundrel is going to betray us!" screamed the chief. 
+"Now come, boys!  We've got to catch him, dead or alive."
+
+A volley of stones, big and little, was hurled after the
+fugitive, who now realizing his position ran for dear life.  The
+stones hailed down round about him; occasionally one vicious
+missile would whiz past his ear, and send a cold shudder through
+him.  The tramp of his pursuers sounded nearer and nearer, and
+his one chance of escape was to throw himself into the only boat,
+which he saw on this side of the river, and push out into the
+stream before he was overtaken.
+
+He had his doubts as to whether he could accomplish this, for the
+blood rushed and roared in his ears, the hill-side billowed under
+his feet, and it seemed as if the trees were all running a race
+in the opposite direction, in order to betray him to his enemies.
+
+A stone gave him a thump in the back, but though he felt a
+gradual heat spreading from the spot which it hit, he was
+conscious of no pain.
+
+Presently a larger missile struck him in the neck, and he heard a
+breathless snorting close behind him. That was the end; he gave
+himself up for lost, for those boys would have no mercy on him if
+they captured him.
+
+But in the next moment he heard a fall and an oath, and the voice
+was that of Halvor Reitan.  He breathed a little more freely as
+he saw the river run with its swelling current at his feet. 
+Quite mechanically, without clearly knowing what he did, he
+sprang into the boat, grabbed a boat-hook, and with three strong
+strokes pushed himself out into the deep water.
+
+At that instant a dozen of his pursuers reached the river bank,
+and he saw dimly their angry faces and threatening gestures, and
+heard the stones drop into the stream about him.  Fortunately the
+river was partly dammed, in order to accumulate water for the
+many saw-mills under the falls.  It would therefore have been no
+very difficult feat to paddle across, if his aching arms had had
+an atom of strength left in them.  As soon as he was beyond the
+reach of flying stones he seated himself in the stern, took an
+oar, and after having bathed his throbbing forehead in the cold
+water, managed, in fifteen minutes, to make the further bank. 
+Then he dragged himself wearily up the hill-side to Colonel
+Hook's mansion, and when he had given his message to Viggo, fell
+into a dead faint.
+
+How could Viggo help being touched by such devotion?  He had seen
+the race through a fieldglass from his pigeon-cot, but had been
+unable to make out its meaning, nor had he remotely dreamed that
+he was himself the cause of the cruel chase.  He called his
+mother, who soon perceived that Marcus's coat was saturated with
+blood in the back, and undressing him, she found that a stone,
+hurled by a sling, had struck him, slid a few inches along the
+rib, and had lodged in the fleshy part of his left side.
+
+A doctor was now sent for; the stone was cut out without
+difficulty, and Marcus was invited to remain as Viggo's guest
+until he recovered.  He felt so honored by this invitation that
+he secretly prayed he might remain ill for a month; but the wound
+showed an abominable readiness to heal, and before three days
+were past Marcus could not feign any ailment which his face and
+eye did not belie.
+
+He then, with a heavy heart, betook himself homeward, and
+installed himself once more among his accustomed smells behind
+the store, and pondered sadly on the caprice of the fate which
+had made Viggo a high-nosed, handsome gentleman, and him--Marcus
+Henning--an under-grown, homely, and unrefined drudge.  But in
+spite of his failure to answer this question, there was joy
+within him at the thought that he had saved this handsome face of
+Viggo's from disfigurement, and--who could know?--perhaps would
+earn a claim upon his gratitude.
+
+It was this series of incidents which led to the war between the
+East-Siders and the West-Siders. It was a mere accident that the
+partisans of Viggo Hook lived on the west side of the river, and
+those of Halvor Reitan mostly on the east side.
+
+Viggo, who had a chivalrous sense of fair play, would never have
+molested any one without good cause; but now his own safety, and,
+as he persuaded himself, even his life, was in danger, and he had
+no choice but to take measures in self-defence.  He surrounded
+himself with a trusty body-guard, which attended him wherever he
+went.  He sent little Marcus, in whom he recognized his most
+devoted follower, as scout into the enemy's territory, and
+swelled his importance enormously by lending him his field-glass
+to assist him in his perilous observations.
+
+Occasionally an unhappy East-Sider was captured on the west bank
+of the river, court-martialed, and, with much solemnity,
+sentenced to death as a spy, but paroled for an indefinite
+period, until it should suit his judges to execute the sentence. 
+The East-Siders, when they captured a West-Sider, went to work
+with less ceremony; they simply thrashed their captive soundly
+and let him run, if run he could.
+
+Thus months passed.  The parson's Confirmation Class ceased, and
+both the opposing chieftains were confirmed on the same day; but
+Viggo stood at the head of the candidates, while Halvor had his
+place at the bottom.[1]
+
+[1] In Norway confirmation is always preceded by a public
+examination of the candidates in the aisle of the church.  The
+order in which they are arranged is supposed to indicate their
+attainments, but does, as a rule, indicate the rank and social
+position of their parents.
+
+
+During the following winter the war was prosecuted with much
+zeal, and the West-Siders, in imitation of Robin Hood and his
+Merry Men, armed themselves with cross-bows, and lay in ambush in
+the underbrush, aiming their swift arrows against any intruder
+who ventured to cross the river.
+
+Nearly all the boys in the valley between twelve and sixteen
+became enlisted on the one side or the other, and there were
+councils of war, marches, and counter-marches without number,
+occasional skirmishes, but no decisive engagements.  Peer Oestmo,
+to be sure, had his eye put out by an arrow, as has already been
+related, for the East-Siders were not slow to imitate the example
+of their enemies, in becoming expert archers.
+
+Marcus Henning was captured by a hostile outpost, and was being
+conducted to the abode of the chief, when, by a clever stratagem,
+he succeeded in making his escape.
+
+The East-Siders despatched, under a flag of truce, a most
+insulting caricature of General Viggo, representing him as a
+rooster that seemed on the point of bursting with an excess of
+dignity.
+
+These were the chief incidents of the winter, though there were
+many others of less consequence that served to keep the boys in a
+delightful state of excitement.  They enjoyed the war keenly,
+though they pretended to themselves that they were being ill-used
+and suffered terrible hardships.  They grumbled at their duties,
+brought complaints against their officers to the general, and
+did, in fact, all the things that real soldiers would have been
+likely to do under similar circumstances.
+
+
+II.
+
+THE CLASH OF ARMS
+
+When the spring is late in Norway, and the heat comes with a
+sudden rush, the mountain streams plunge with a tremendous noise
+down into the valleys, and the air is filled far and near with
+the boom and roar of rushing waters.  The glaciers groan, and
+send their milk-white torrents down toward the ocean.  The
+snow-patches in the forest glens look gray and soiled, and the
+pines perspire a delicious resinous odor which cheers the soul
+with the conviction that spring has come.
+
+But the peasant looks anxiously at the sun and the river at such
+times, for he knows that there is danger of inundation.  The
+lumber, which the spring floods set afloat in enormous
+quantities, is carried by the rivers to the cities by the sea;
+there it is sorted according to the mark it bears, showing the
+proprietor, and exported to foreign countries.
+
+In order to prevent log-jams, which are often attended with
+terrible disasters, men are stationed night and day at the
+narrows of the rivers.  The boys, to whom all excitement is
+welcome, are apt to congregate in large numbers at such places,
+assisting or annoying the watchers, riding on the logs, or
+teasing the girls who stand up on the hillside, admiring the
+daring feats of the lumbermen.
+
+It was on such a spring day, when the air was pungent with the
+smell of sprouting birch and pine, that General Viggo and his
+trusty army had betaken themselves to the cataract to share in
+the sport.  They were armed with their bows, as usual, knowing
+that they were always liable to be surprised by their vigilant
+enemy.  Nor were they in this instance disappointed, for Halvor
+Reitan, with fifty or sixty followers, was presently visible on
+the east side, and it was a foregone conclusion that if they met
+there would be a battle.
+
+The river, to be sure, separated them, but the logs were at times
+so densely packed that it was possible for a daring lad to run
+far out into the river, shoot his arrow and return to shore,
+leaping from log to log.  The Reitan party was the first to begin
+this sport, and an arrow hit General Viggo's hat before he gave
+orders to repel the assault.
+
+Cool and dignified as he was, he could not consent to skip and
+jump on the slippery logs, particularly as he had no experience
+in this difficult exercise, while the enemy apparently had much.
+Paying no heed to the jeers of the lumbermen, who supposed he was
+afraid, he drew his troops up in line and addressed them as
+follows:
+
+"Soldiers: You have on many previous occasions given me proof of
+your fidelity to duty and your brave and fearless spirit.  I know
+that I can, now as always, trust you to shed glory upon our arms,
+and to maintain our noble fame and honorable traditions.
+
+"The enemy is before us.  You have heard and seen his challenge. 
+It behooves us to respond gallantly.  To jump and skip like
+rabbits is unmilitary and unsoldierlike.  I propose that each of
+us shall select two large logs, tie them together, procure, if
+possible, a boat-hook or an oar, and, sitting astride the logs,
+boldly push out into the river.  If we can advance in a tolerably
+even line, which I think quite possible, we can send so deadly a
+charge into the ranks of our adversaries that they will be
+compelled to flee.  Then we will land on the east side, occupy
+the heights, and rout our foe.
+
+"Now let each man do his duty.  Forward, march!"
+
+The lumbermen, whose sympathies were with the East-Siders, found
+this performance highly diverting, but Viggo allowed himself in
+nowise to be disturbed by their laughter or jeers.  He marched
+his troops down to the river-front, commanded "Rest arms!" and
+repeated once more his instructions; then, flinging off his coat
+and waistcoat, he seized a boat-hook and ran some hundred yards
+along the bank of the stream.
+
+The river-bed was here expanded to a wide basin, in which the
+logs floated lazily down to the cataract below.  Trees and
+underbrush, which usually stood on dry land, were half-submerged
+in the yellow water, and the current gurgled slowly about their
+trunks with muddy foam and bubbles.  Now and then a heap of
+lumber would get wedged in between the jutting rocks above the
+waterfall, and then the current slackened, only to be suddenly
+accelerated, when the exertions of the men had again removed the
+obstruction.
+
+It was an exciting spectacle to see these daring fellows leap
+from log to log, with birch-bark shoes on their feet.  They would
+ride on a heap of lumber down to the very edge of the cataract,
+dexterously jump off at the critical moment, and after half a
+dozen narrow escapes, reach the shore, only to repeat the
+dangerous experiment, as soon as the next opportunity offered
+itself.
+
+It was the example of these hardy and agile lumbermen, trained
+from childhood to sport with danger, which inspired Viggo and his
+followers with a desire to show their mettle.
+
+"Sergeant Henning," said the General to his ever-faithful shadow,
+"take a squad of five men with you, and cut steering-poles for
+those for whom boat-hooks cannot be procured.  You will be the
+last to leave shore.  Report to me if any one fails to obey
+orders."
+
+"Shall be done, General," Marcus responded, with a deferential
+military salute.
+
+"The bows, you understand, will be slung by the straps across the
+backs of the men, while they steer and push with their poles."
+
+"Certainly, General," said Marcus, with another salute.
+
+"You may go."
+
+"All right, General," answered Marcus, with a third salute.
+
+And now began the battle.  The East-Siders, fearing that a
+stratagem was intended, when they saw the enemy moving up the
+stream, made haste to follow their example, capturing on their
+way every stray log that came along.  They sent ineffectual
+showers of arrows into the water, while the brave General Viggo,
+striding two big logs which he had tied together with a piece of
+rope, and with a boat-hook in his hand, pushed proudly at the
+head of his army into the middle of the wide basin.
+
+Halvor Reitan was clever enough to see what it meant, and he was
+not going to allow the West-Siders to gain the heights above him,
+and attack him in the rear.  He meant to prevent the enemy from
+landing, or, still better, he would meet him half-way, and drive
+him back to his own shore.
+
+The latter, though not the wiser course, was the plan which
+Halvor Reitan adopted.  To have a tussle with the high-nosed
+Viggo in the middle of the basin, to dislodge him from his
+raft--that seemed to Halvor a delightful project.  He knew that
+Viggo was a good swimmer, so he feared no dangerous consequences;
+and even if he had, it would not have restrained him.  He was so
+much stronger than Viggo, and here was his much-longed-for
+opportunity.
+
+With great despatch he made himself a raft of two logs, and
+seating himself astride them, with his legs in the water, put off
+from shore.  He shouted to his men to follow him, and they needed
+no urging. Viggo was now near the middle of the basin, with
+twenty or thirty picked archers close behind him.  They fired
+volley after volley of arrows against the enemy, and twice drove
+him back to the shore.
+
+But Halvor Reitan, shielding his face with a piece of bark which
+he had picked up, pushed forward in spite of their onslaught,
+though one arrow knocked off his red-peaked cap, and another
+scratched his ear.  Now he was but a dozen feet from his foe. He
+cared little for his bow now; the boat-hook was a far more
+effectual weapon.
+
+Viggo saw at a glance that he meant to pull his raft toward him,
+and, relying upon his greater strength, fling him into the water.
+
+His first plan would therefore be to fence with his own boat-
+hook, so as to keep his antagonist at a distance.
+
+When Halvor made the first lunge at the nose of his raft, he
+foiled the attempt with his own weapon, and managed dexterously
+to give the hostile raft a downward push, which increased the
+distance between them.
+
+"Take care, General!"  said a respectful voice close to Viggo's
+ear.  "There is a small log jam down below, which is getting
+bigger every moment. When it is got afloat, it will be dangerous
+out here."
+
+"What are you doing here, Sergeant?"  asked the General,
+severely.  "Did I not tell you to be the last to leave the
+shore?"
+
+"You did, General," Marcus replied, meekly, "and I obeyed.  But I
+have pushed to the front so as to be near you."
+
+"I don't need you, Sergeant," Viggo responded, "you may go to the
+rear."
+
+The booming of the cataract nearly drowned his voice and Marcus
+pretended not to hear it.  A huge lumber mass was piling itself
+up among the rocks jutting out of the rapids, and a dozen men
+hanging like flies on the logs, sprang up and down with axes in
+their hands.  They cut one log here and another there; shouted
+commands; and fell into the river amid the derisive jeers of the
+spectators; they scrambled out again and, dripping wet, set to
+work once more with a cheerful heart, to the mighty music of the
+cataract, whose thundering rhythm trembled and throbbed in the
+air.
+
+The boys who were steering their rafts against each other in the
+comparatively placid basin were too absorbed in their mimic
+battle to heed what was going on below.  Halvor and Viggo were
+fighting desperately with their boat-hooks, the one attacking and
+the other defending himself with great dexterity. They scarcely
+perceived, in their excitement, that the current was dragging
+them slowly toward the cataract; nor did they note the warning
+cries of the men and women on the banks.
+
+Viggo's blood was hot, his temples throbbed, his eyes flashed. 
+He would show this miserable clown who had dared to insult him,
+that the trained skill of a gentleman is worth more than the rude
+strength of a bully.  With beautiful precision he foiled every
+attack; struck Halvor's boat-hook up and down, so that the water
+splashed about him, manoeuvring at the same time his own raft
+with admirable adroitness.
+
+Cheer upon cheer rent the air, after each of his successful
+sallies, and his comrades, selecting their antagonists from among
+the enemy, now pressed forward, all eager to bear their part in
+the fray.
+
+Splash!  splash!  splash!  one East-Sider was dismounted, got an
+involuntary bath, but scrambled up on his raft again.  The next
+time it was a West-Sider who got a ducking, but seemed none the
+worse for it.  There was a yelling and a cheering, now from one
+side and now from the other, which made everyone forget that
+something was going on at that moment of greater importance than
+the mimic warfare of boys.
+
+All the interest of the contending parties was concentrated on
+the duel of their chieftains.  It seemed now really that Halvor
+was getting the worst of it.  He could not get close enough to
+use his brawny muscles; and in precision of aim and adroitness of
+movement he was not Viggo's match.
+
+Again and again he thrust his long-handled boat-hook angrily
+against the bottom (for the flooded parts of the banks were very
+shallow), to push the raft forward, but every time Viggo managed
+to turn it sideward, and Halvor had to exert all his presence of
+mind to keep his seat.  Wild with rage he sprang up on his
+slender raft and made a vicious lunge at his opponent, who warded
+the blow with such force that the handle of the boat-hook broke,
+and Halvor lost his balance and fell into the water.
+
+At this same instant a tremendous crash was heard from below,
+followed by a long rumble as of mighty artillery.  A scream of
+horror went up from the banks, as the great lumber mass rolled
+down into the cataract, making a sudden suction which it seemed
+impossible that the unhappy boys could resist.
+
+The majority of both sides, seeing their danger, beat, by means
+of their boat-hooks, a hasty retreat, and as they were in shallow
+water were hauled ashore by the lumbermen, who sprang into the
+river to save them.
+
+When the clouds of spray had cleared away, only three figures
+were visible.  Viggo, still astride of his raft, was fighting,
+not for his own life, but for that of his enemy, Halvor, who was
+struggling helplessly in the white rapids.  Close behind his
+commander stood little Marcus on his raft, holding on, with one
+hand to the boat-hook which he had hewn, with all his might, into
+Viggo's raft, and with the other grasping the branch of a
+half-submerged tree.
+
+"Save yourself, General!"  he yelled, wildly. "Let go there.  I
+can't hold on much longer."
+
+But Viggo did not heed.  He saw nothing but the pale, frightened
+face of his antagonist, who might lose his life.  With a
+desperate effort he flung his boat-hook toward him and succeeded
+this time in laying hold of the leather girdle about his waist. 
+One hundred feet below yawned the foaming, weltering abyss, from
+which the white smoke ascended.  If Marcus lost his grip, if the
+branch snapped no human power could save them; they were all dead
+men.
+
+By this time the people on the shore had discovered that three
+lives were hanging on the brink of eternity.  Twenty men had
+waded waist-deep into the current and had flung a stout rope to
+the noble little fellow who was risking his own life for his
+friend.
+
+"Keep your hold, my brave lad!"  they cried; "hold on another
+minute!"
+
+"Grab the rope!"  screamed others.
+
+Marcus clinched his teeth, and his numb arms trembled, mist
+gathered in his eyes--his heart stood still.  But with a clutch
+that seemed superhuman he held on.  He had but one thought--
+Viggo, his chief!  Viggo, his idol!  Viggo, his general!  He must
+save him or die with him.  One end of the rope was hanging on the
+branch and was within easy reach; but he did not venture to seize
+it, lest the wrench caused by his motion might detach his hold on
+Viggo's raft.
+
+Viggo, who just now was pulling Halvor out of the water, saw in
+an instant that he had by adding his weight to the raft,
+increased the chance of both being carried to their death.  With
+quick resolution he plunged the beak of his own boat-hook into
+Marcus's raft, and shouted to Halvor to save himself.  The
+latter, taking in the situation at a glance, laid hold of the
+handle of the boat-hook and together they pulled up alongside of
+Marcus and leaped aboard his raft, whereupon Viggo's raft drifted
+downward and vanished in a flash in the yellow torrent.
+
+At that very instant Marcus's strength gave out; he relaxed his
+grip on the branch, which slid out of his hand, and they would
+inevitably have darted over the brink of the cataract if Viggo
+had not, with great adroitness, snatched the rope from the branch
+of the half-submerged tree.
+
+A wild shout, half a cheer, half a cry of relief, went up from
+the banks, as the raft with the three lads was slowly hauled
+toward the shore by the lumbermen who had thrown the rope.
+
+Halvor Reitan was the first to step ashore.  But no joyous
+welcome greeted him from those whose sympathies had, a little
+while ago, been all on his side.  He hung around uneasily for
+some minutes, feeling perhaps that he ought to say something to
+Viggo who had saved his life, but as he could not think of
+anything which did not seem foolish, he skulked away unnoticed
+toward the edge of the forest.
+
+But when Viggo stepped ashore, carrying the unconscious Marcus in
+his arms, how the crowd rushed forward to gaze at him, to press
+his hands, to call down God's blessing upon him!  He had never
+imagined that he was such a hero.  It was Marcus, not he, to whom
+their ovation was due.  But poor Marcus--it was well for him that
+he had fainted from over-exertion; for otherwise he would have
+fainted from embarrassment at the honors which would have been
+showered upon him.
+
+The West-Siders, marching two abreast, with their bows slung
+across their shoulders, escorted their general home, cheering and
+shouting as they went.  When they were half-way up the hillside,
+Marcus opened his eyes, and finding himself so close to his
+beloved general, blushed crimson, scarlet, and purple, and all
+the other shades that an embarrassed blush is capable of
+assuming.
+
+"Please, General," he stammered, "don't bother about me."
+
+Viggo had thought of making a speech exalting the heroism of his
+faithful follower.  But he saw at a glance that his praise would
+be more grateful to Marcus, if he received it in private.
+
+When, however, the boys gave him a parting cheer, in front of his
+father's mansion, he forgot his resolution, leaped up on the
+steps, and lifting the blushing Marcus above his head; called
+out:
+
+"Three cheers for the bravest boy in Norway!"
+
+
+
+BICEPS GRIMLUND'S CHRISTMAS VACATION
+
+I.
+
+The great question which Albert Grimlund was debating was fraught
+with unpleasant possibilities. He could not go home for the
+Christmas vacation, for his father lived in Drontheim, which is
+so far away from Christiania that it was scarcely worth while
+making the journey for a mere two-weeks' holiday.  Then, on the
+other hand, he had an old great-aunt who lived but a few miles
+from the city.  She had, from conscientious motives, he feared,
+sent him an invitation to pass Christmas with her.  But Albert
+had a poor opinion of Aunt Elsbeth.  He thought her a very
+tedious person. She had a dozen cats, talked of nothing but
+sermons and lessons, and asked him occasionally, with pleasant
+humor, whether he got many whippings at school.  She failed to
+comprehend that a boy could not amuse himself forever by looking
+at the pictures in the old family Bible, holding yarn, and
+listening to oft-repeated stories, which he knew by heart,
+concerning the doings and sayings of his grandfather.  Aunt
+Elsbeth, after a previous experience with her nephew, had come to
+regard boys as rather a reprehensible kind of animal, who
+differed in many of their ways from girls, and altogether to the
+boys' disadvantage.
+
+Now, the prospect of being "caged" for two weeks with this
+estimable lady was, as I said, not at all pleasant to Albert.  He
+was sixteen years old, loved out-door sports, and had no taste
+for cats.  His chief pride was his muscle, and no boy ever made
+his acquaintance without being invited to feel the size and
+hardness of his biceps.  This was a standing joke in the Latin
+school, and Albert was generally known among his companions as
+"Biceps" Grimlund.  He was not very tall for his age, but
+broad-shouldered and deep-chested, with something in his glance,
+his gait, and his manners which showed that he had been born and
+bred near the sea.  He cultivated a weather-beaten complexion,
+and was particularly proud when the skin "peeled" on his nose,
+which it usually did in the summer-time, during his visits to his
+home in the extreme north.  Like most blond people, when
+sunburnt, he was red, not brown; and this became a source of
+great satisfaction when he learned that Lord Nelson had the same
+peculiarity.  Albert's favorite books were the sea romances of
+Captain Marryat, whose "Peter Simple" and "Midshipman Easy" he
+held to be the noblest products of human genius.  It was a bitter
+disappointment to him that his father forbade his going to sea
+and was educating him to be a "landlubber," which he had been
+taught by his boy associates to regard as the most contemptible
+thing on earth.
+
+Two days before Christmas, Biceps Grimlund was sitting in his
+room, looking gloomily out of the window.  He wished to postpone
+as long as possible his departure for Aunt Elsbeth's
+country-place, for he foresaw that both he and she were doomed to
+a surfeit of each other's company during the coming fortnight. 
+At last he heaved a deep sigh and languidly began to pack his
+trunk.  He had just disposed the dear Marryat books on top of his
+starched shirts, when he heard rapid footsteps on the stairs, and
+the next moment the door burst open, and his classmate, Ralph
+Hoyer, rushed breathlessly into the room.
+
+"Biceps," he cried, "look at this!  Here is a letter from my
+father, and he tells me to invite one of my classmates to come
+home with me for the vacation.  Will you come?  Oh, we shall have
+grand times, I tell you!  No end of fun!"
+
+Albert, instead of answering, jumped up and danced a jig on the
+floor, upsetting two chairs and breaking the wash-pitcher.
+
+"Hurrah!"  he cried, "I'm your man.  Shake hands on it, Ralph! 
+You have saved me from two weeks of cats and yarn and moping! 
+Give us your paw!  I never was so glad to see anybody in all my
+life."
+
+And to prove it, he seized Ralph by the shoulders, gave him a
+vigorous whirl and forced him to join in the dance.
+
+"Now, stop your nonsense," Ralph protested, laughing; "if you
+have so much strength to waste, wait till we are at home in
+Solheim, and you'll have a chance to use it profitably."
+
+Albert flung himself down on his old rep-covered sofa.  It seemed
+to have some internal disorder, for its springs rattled and a
+vague musical twang indicated that something or other had
+snapped.  It had seen much maltreatment, that poor old piece of
+furniture, and bore visible marks of it.  When, after various
+exhibitions of joy, their boisterous delight had quieted down,
+both boys began to discuss their plans for the vacation.
+
+"But I fear my groom may freeze, down there in the street," Ralph
+ejaculated, cutting short the discussion; "it is bitter cold, and
+he can't leave the horses.  Hurry up, now, old man, and I'll help
+you pack."
+
+It did not take them long to complete the packing.  Albert sent a
+telegram to his father, asking permission to accept Ralph's
+invitation; but, knowing well that the reply would be favorable,
+did not think it necessary to wait for it.  With the assistance
+of his friend he now wrapped himself in two overcoats, pulled a
+pair of thick woollen stockings over the outside of his boots and
+a pair of fur-lined top-boots outside of these, girded himself
+with three long scarfs, and pulled his brown otter-skin cap down
+over his ears.  He was nearly as broad as he was long, when he
+had completed these operations, and descended into the street
+where the big double-sleigh (made in the shape of a huge white
+swan) was awaiting them.  They now called at Ralph's lodgings,
+whence he presently emerged in a similar Esquimau costume,
+wearing a wolf-skin coat which left nothing visible except the
+tip of his nose and the steam of his breath.  Then they started
+off merrily with jingling bells, and waved a farewell toward many
+a window, wherein were friends and acquaintances.  They felt in
+so jolly a mood, that they could not help shouting their joy in
+the face of all the world, and crowing over all poor wretches who
+were left to spend the holidays in the city.
+
+
+II.
+
+Solheim was about twenty miles from the city, and it was nine
+o'clock in the evening when the boys arrived there.  The moon was
+shining brightly, and the Milky Way, with its myriad stars,
+looked like a luminous mist across the vault of the sky.  The
+aurora borealis swept down from the north with white and pink
+radiations which flushed the dark blue sky for an instant, and
+vanished. The earth was white, as far as the eye could reach
+--splendidly, dazzlingly white.  And out of the white radiance
+rose the great dark pile of masonry called Solheim, with its tall
+chimneys and dormer-windows and old-fashioned gables.  Round
+about stood the tall leafless maples and chestnut-trees,
+sparkling with frost and stretching their gaunt arms against the
+heavens.  The two horses, when they swung up before the great
+front-door, were so white with hoar-frost that they looked shaggy
+like goats, and no one could tell what was their original color.
+Their breath was blown in two vapory columns from their nostrils
+and drifted about their heads like steam about a locomotive.
+
+The sleigh-bells had announced the arrival of the guests, and a
+great shout of welcome was heard from the hall of the house,
+which seemed alive with grownup people and children.  Ralph
+jumped out of the sleigh, embraced at random half a dozen people,
+one of whom was his mother, kissed right and left, protesting
+laughingly against being smothered in affection, and finally
+managed to introduce his friend, who for the moment was feeling a
+trifle lonely.
+
+"Here, father," he cried.  "Biceps, this is my father; and,
+father, this is my Biceps----"
+
+"What stuff you are talking, boy," his father exclaimed.  "How
+can this young fellow be your biceps----"
+
+"Well, how can a man keep his senses in such confusion?"  said
+the son of the house.  "This is my friend and classmate, Albert
+Grimlund, alias Biceps Grimlund, and the strongest man in the
+whole school.  Just feel his biceps, mother, and you'll see."
+
+"No, I thank you.  I'll take your word for it," replied Mrs.
+Hoyer.  "As I intend to treat him as a friend of my son should be
+treated, I hope he will not feel inclined to give me any proof of
+his muscularity."
+
+When, with the aid of the younger children, the travellers had
+divested themselves of their various wraps and overcoats, they
+were ushered into the old-fashioned sitting-room.  In one corner
+roared an enormous, many-storied, iron stove.  It had a picture
+in relief, on one side, of Diana the Huntress, with her nymphs
+and baying hounds.  In the middle of the room stood a big table,
+and in the middle of the table a big lamp, about which the entire
+family soon gathered.  It was so cosey and homelike that Albert,
+before he had been half an hour in the room, felt gratefully the
+atmosphere of mutual affection which pervaded the house.  It
+amused him particularly to watch the little girls, of whom there
+were six, and to observe their profound admiration for their big
+brother.  Every now and then one of them, sidling up to him while
+he sat talking, would cautiously touch his ear or a curl of his
+hair; and if he deigned to take any notice of her, offering her,
+perhaps, a perfunctory kiss, her pride and pleasure were charming
+to witness.
+
+Presently the signal was given that supper was ready, and various
+savory odors, which escaped, whenever a door was opened, served
+to arouse the anticipations of the boys to the highest pitch. 
+Now, if I did not have so much else to tell you, I should stop
+here and describe that supper.  There were twenty-two people who
+sat down to it; but that was nothing unusual at Solheim, for it
+was a hospitable house, where every wayfarer was welcome, either
+to the table in the servants' hall or to the master's table in
+the dining-room.
+
+
+III.
+
+At the stroke of ten all the family arose, and each in turn
+kissed the father and mother good-night; whereupon Mr. Hoyer took
+the great lamp from the table and mounted the stairs, followed by
+his pack of noisy boys and girls.  Albert and Ralph found
+themselves, with four smaller Hoyers, in an enormous low-ceiled
+room with many windows.  In three corners stood huge canopied
+bedsteads, with flowered-chintz curtains and mountainous
+eiderdown coverings which swelled up toward the ceiling. In the
+middle of the wall, opposite the windows, a big iron stove, like
+the one in the sitting-room (only that it was adorned with a
+bunch of flowers, peaches, and grapes, and not with Diana and her
+nymphs), was roaring merrily, and sending a long red sheen from
+its draught-hole across the floor.
+
+Around the big warm stove the boys gathered (for it was
+positively Siberian in the region of the windows), and while
+undressing played various pranks upon each other, which created
+much merriment. But the most laughter was provoked at the expense
+of Finn Hoyer, a boy of fourteen, whose bare back his brother
+insisted upon exhibiting to his guest; for it was decorated with
+a facsimile of the picture on the stove, showing roses and
+luscious peaches and grapes in red relief.  Three years before,
+on Christmas Eve, the boys had stood about the red-hot stove,
+undressing for their bath, and Finn, who was naked, had, in the
+general scrimmage to get first into the bath-tub, been pushed
+against the glowing iron, the ornamentation of which had been
+beautifully burned upon his back. He had to be wrapped in oil and
+cotton after that adventure, and he recovered in due time, but
+never quite relished the distinction he had acquired by his
+pictorial skin.
+
+It was long before Albert fell asleep; for the cold kept up a
+continual fusillade, as of musketry, during the entire night. 
+The woodwork of the walls snapped and cracked with loud reports;
+and a little after midnight a servant came in and stuffed the
+stove full of birch-wood, until it roared like an angry lion. 
+This roar finally lulled Albert to sleep, in spite of the
+startling noises about him.
+
+The next morning the boys were aroused at seven o'clock by a
+servant, who brought a tray with the most fragrant coffee and hot
+rolls.  It was in honor of the guest that, in accordance with
+Norse custom, this early meal was served; and all the boys,
+carrying pillows and blankets, gathered on Albert's and Ralph's
+bed and feasted right royally. So it seemed to them, at least;
+for any break in the ordinary routine, be it ever so slight, is
+an event to the young.  Then they had a pillow-fight, thawed at
+the stove the water in the pitchers (for it was frozen hard), and
+arrayed themselves to descend and meet the family at the nine
+o'clock breakfast. When this repast was at an end, the question
+arose how they were to entertain their guest, and various plans
+were proposed.  But to all Ralph's propositions his mother
+interposed the objection that it was too cold.
+
+"Mother is right," said Mr. Hoyer; "it is so cold that 'the chips
+jump on the hill-side.' You'll have to be content with indoor
+sports to-day."
+
+"But, father, it is not more than twenty degrees below zero," the
+boy demurred.  "I am sure we can stand that, if we keep in
+motion.  I have been out at thirty without losing either ears or
+nose."
+
+He went to the window to observe the thermometer; but the dim
+daylight scarcely penetrated the fantastic frost-crystals, which,
+like a splendid exotic flora, covered the panes.  Only at the
+upper corner, where the ice had commenced to thaw, a few timid
+sunbeams were peeping in, making the lamp upon the table seem
+pale and sickly.  Whenever the door to the hall was opened a
+white cloud of vapor rolled in; and every one made haste to shut
+the door, in order to save the precious heat.  The boys, being
+doomed to remain indoors, walked about restlessly, felt each
+other's muscle, punched each other, and sometimes, for want of
+better employment, teased the little girls.  Mr. Hoyer, seeing
+how miserable they were, finally took pity on them, and, after
+having thawed out a window-pane sufficiently to see the
+thermometer outside, gave his consent to a little expedition on
+skees[2] down to the river.
+
+[2] Norwegian snow-shoes.
+
+
+And now, boys, you ought to have seen them! Now there was life in
+them!  You would scarcely have dreamed that they were the same
+creatures who, a moment ago, looked so listless and miserable.
+What rollicking laughter and fun, while they bundled one another
+in scarfs, cardigan-jackets, fur-lined top-boots, and overcoats!
+
+"You had better take your guns along, boys," said the father, as
+they stormed out through the front door; "you might strike a
+couple of ptarmigan, or a mountain-cock, over on the west side."
+
+"I am going to take your rifle, if you'll let me," Ralph
+exclaimed.  "I have a fancy we might strike bigger game than
+mountain-cock.  I shouldn't object to a wolf or two."
+
+"You are welcome to the rifle," said his father; "but I doubt
+whether you'll find wolves on the ice so early in the day."
+
+Mr. Hoyer took the rifle from its case, examined it carefully,
+and handed it to Ralph.  Albert, who was a less experienced
+hunter than Ralph, preferred a fowling-piece to the rifle;
+especially as he had no expectation of shooting anything but
+ptarmigan. Powder-horns, cartridges, and shot were provided; and
+quite proudly the two friends started off on their skees, gliding
+over the hard crust of the snow, which, as the sun rose higher,
+was oversown with thousands of glittering gems.  The boys looked
+like Esquimaux, with their heads bundled up in scarfs, and
+nothing visible except their eyes and a few hoary locks of hair
+which the frost had silvered.
+
+
+IV.
+
+"What was that?"  cried Albert, startled by a sharp report which
+reverberated from the mountains. They had penetrated the forest
+on the west side, and ranged over the ice for an hour, in a vain
+search for wolves.
+
+"Hush," said Ralph, excitedly; and after a moment of intent
+listening he added, "I'll be drawn and quartered if it isn't
+poachers!"
+
+"How do you know?"
+
+"These woods belong to father, and no one else has any right to
+hunt in them.  He doesn't mind if a poor man kills a hare or two,
+or a brace of ptarmigan; but these chaps are after elk; and if
+the old gentleman gets on the scent of elk-hunters, he has no
+more mercy than Beelzebub."
+
+"How can you know that they are after elk?"
+
+"No man is likely to go to the woods for small game on a day like
+this.  They think the cold protects them from pursuit and
+capture."
+
+"What are you going to do about it?"
+
+"I am going to play a trick on them.  You know that the sheriff,
+whose duty it is to be on the lookout for elk-poachers, would
+scarcely send out a posse when the cold is so intense.  Elk, you
+know, are becoming very scarce, and the law protects them.  No
+man is allowed to shoot more than one elf a year, and that one on
+his own property.  Now, you and I will play deputy-sheriffs, and
+have those poachers securely in the lock-up before night."
+
+"But suppose they fight?"
+
+"Then we'll fight back."
+
+Ralph was so aglow with joyous excitement at the thought of this
+adventure, that Albert had not the heart to throw cold water on
+his enthusiasm.  Moreover, he was afraid of being thought
+cowardly by his friend if he offered objections.  The
+recollection of Midshipman Easy and his daring pranks flashed
+through his brain, and he felt an instant desire to rival the
+exploits of his favorite hero. If only the enterprise had been on
+the sea he would have been twice as happy, for the land always
+seemed to him a prosy and inconvenient place for the exhibition
+of heroism.
+
+"But, Ralph," he exclaimed, now more than ready to bear his part
+in the expedition, "I have only shot in my gun.  You can't shoot
+men with bird-shot."
+
+"Shoot men!  Are you crazy? Why, I don't intend to shoot anybody.
+
+I only wish to capture them.  My rifle is a breech-loader and has
+six cartridges. Besides, it has twice the range of theirs (for
+there isn't another such rifle in all Odalen), and by firing one
+shot over their heads I can bring them to terms, don't you see?"
+
+Albert, to be frank, did not see it exactly; but he thought it
+best to suppress his doubts.  He scented danger in the air, and
+his blood bounded through his veins.
+
+"How do you expect to track them?"  he asked, breathlessly.
+
+"Skee-tracks in the snow can be seen by a bat, born blind,"
+answered Ralph, recklessly.
+
+They were now climbing up the wooded slope on the western side of
+the river.  The crust of the frozen snow was strong enough to
+bear them; and as it was not glazed, but covered with an inch of
+hoar-frost, it retained the imprint of their feet with
+distinctness.  They were obliged to carry their skees, on account
+both of the steepness of the slope and the density of the
+underbrush.  Roads and paths were invisible under the white pall
+of the snow, and only the facility with which they could retrace
+their steps saved them from the fear of going astray.  Through
+the vast forest a deathlike silence reigned; and this silence was
+not made up of an infinity of tiny sounds, like the silence of a
+summer day when the crickets whirr in the treetops and the bees
+drone in the clover-blossoms.  No; this silence was dead,
+chilling, terrible.  The huge pine-trees now and then dropped a
+load of snow on the heads of the bold intruders, and it fell with
+a thud, followed by a noiseless, glittering drizzle.  As far as
+their eyes could reach, the monotonous colonnade of brown
+tree-trunks, rising out of the white waste, extended in all
+directions.  It reminded them of the enchanted forest in
+"Undine," through which a man might ride forever without finding
+the end.  It was a great relief when, from time to time, they met
+a squirrel out foraging for pine-cones or picking up a scanty
+living among the husks of last year's hazel-nuts.  He was lively
+in spite of the weather, and the faint noises of his small
+activities fell gratefully upon ears already ap-palled by the
+awful silence.  Occasionally they scared up a brace of grouse
+that seemed half benumbed, and hopped about in a melancholy
+manner under the pines, or a magpie, drawing in its head and
+ruffling up its feathers against the cold, until it looked frowsy
+and disreputable.
+
+"Biceps," whispered Ralph, who had suddenly discovered something
+interesting in the snow, "do you see that?"
+
+"Je-rusalem!"  ejaculated Albert, with thoughtless delight, "it
+is a hoof-track!"
+
+"Hold your tongue, you blockhead," warned his friend, too excited
+to be polite, "or you'll spoil the whole business!"
+
+"But you asked me," protested Albert, in a huff.
+
+"But I didn't shout, did I?"
+
+Again the report of a shot tore a great rent in the wintry
+stillness and rang out with sharp reverberations.
+
+"We've got them," said Ralph, examining the lock of his rifle. 
+"That shot settles them."
+
+"If we don't look out, they may get us instead," grumbled Albert,
+who was still offended.
+
+Ralph stood peering into the underbrush, his eyes as wild as
+those of an Indian, his nostrils dilated, and all his senses
+intensely awake.  His companion, who was wholly unskilled in
+woodcraft, could see no cause for his agitation, and feared that
+he was yet angry.  He did not detect the evidences of large game
+in the immediate neighborhood.  He did not see, by the bend of
+the broken twigs and the small tufts of hair on the briar-bush,
+that an elk had pushed through that very copse within a few
+minutes; nor did he sniff the gamy odor with which the large
+beast had charged the air.  In obedience to his friend's gesture,
+he flung himself down on hands and knees and cautiously crept
+after him through the thicket.  He now saw without difficulty a
+place where the elk had broken through the snow crust, and he
+could also detect a certain aimless bewilderment in the tracks,
+owing, no doubt, to the shot and the animal's perception of
+danger on two sides.  Scarcely had he crawled twenty feet when he
+was startled by a noise of breaking branches, and before he had
+time to cock his gun, he saw an enormous bull-elk tearing through
+the underbrush, blowing two columns of steam from his nostrils,
+and steering straight toward them.  At the same instant Ralph's
+rifle blazed away, and the splendid beast, rearing on its hind
+legs, gave a wild snort, plunged forward and rolled on its side
+in the snow.  Quick as a flash the young hunter had drawn his
+knife, and, in accordance with the laws of the chase, had driven
+it into the breast of the animal.  But the glance from the dying
+eyes--that glance, of which every elk-hunter can tell a moving
+tale--pierced the boy to the very heart!  It was such a touching,
+appealing, imploring glance, so soft and gentle and unresentful.
+
+"Why did you harm me," it seemed to say, "who never harmed any
+living thing--who claimed only the right to live my frugal life
+in the forest, digging up the frozen mosses under the snow, which
+no mortal creature except myself can eat?"
+
+The sanguinary instinct--the fever for killing, which every boy
+inherits from savage ancestors--had left Ralph, before he had
+pulled the knife from the bleeding wound.  A miserable feeling of
+guilt stole over him.  He never had shot an elk before; and his
+father, who was anxious to preserve the noble beasts from
+destruction, had not availed himself of his right to kill one for
+many years.  Ralph had, indeed, many a time hunted rabbits,
+hares, mountain-cock, and capercaillie.  But they had never
+destroyed his pleasure by arousing pity for their deaths; and he
+had always regarded himself as being proof against sentimental
+emotions.
+
+"Look here, Biceps," he said, flinging the knife into the snow,
+"I wish I hadn't killed that bull."
+
+"I thought we were hunting for poachers," answered Albert,
+dubiously; "and now we have been poaching ourselves."
+
+"By Jiminy!  So we have; and I never once thought of it," cried
+the valiant hunter.  "I am afraid we are off my father's
+preserves too.  It is well the deputy sheriffs are not abroad, or
+we might find ourselves decorated with iron bracelets before
+night."
+
+"But what did you do it for?"
+
+"Well, I can't tell.  It's in the blood, I fancy.  The moment I
+saw the track and caught the wild smell, I forgot all about the
+poachers, and started on the scent like a hound."
+
+The two boys stood for some minutes looking at the dead animal,
+not with savage exultation, but with a dim regret.  The blood
+which was gushing from the wound in the breast froze in a solid
+lump the very moment it touched the snow, although the cold had
+greatly moderated since the morning.
+
+"I suppose we'll have to skin the fellow," remarked Ralph,
+lugubriously; "it won't do to leave that fine carcass for the
+wolves to celebrate Christmas with."
+
+"All right," Albert answered, "I am not much of a hand at
+skinning, but I'll do the best I can."
+
+They fell to work rather reluctantly at the unwonted task, but
+had not proceeded far when they perceived that they had a full
+day's job before them.
+
+"I've no talent for the butcher's trade," Ralph exclaimed in
+disgust, dropping his knife into the snow.  "There's no help for
+it, Biceps, we'll have to bury the carcass, pile some logs on the
+top of it, and send a horse to drag it home to-morrow.  If it
+were not Christmas Eve to-night we might take a couple of men
+along and shoot a dozen wolves or more.  For there is sure to be
+pandemonium here before long, and a concert in G-flat that'll
+curdle the marrow of your bones with horror."
+
+"Thanks," replied the admirer of Midshipman Easy, striking a
+reckless naval attitude.  "The marrow of my bones is not so
+easily curdled.  I've been on a whaling voyage, which is more
+than you have."
+
+Ralph was about to vindicate his dignity by referring to his own
+valiant exploits, when suddenly his keen eyes detected a slight
+motion in the underbrush on the slope below.
+
+"Biceps," he said, with forced composure, "those poachers are
+tracking us."
+
+"What do you mean?"  asked Albert, in vague alarm.
+
+"Do you see the top of that young birch waving?"
+
+"Well, what of that!"
+
+"Wait and see.  It's no good trying to escape.  They can easily
+overtake us.  The snow is the worst tell-tale under the sun."
+
+"But why should we wish to escape?  I thought we were going to
+catch them."
+
+"So we were; but that was before we turned poachers ourselves. 
+Now those fellows will turn the tables on us--take us to the
+sheriff and collect half the fine, which is fifty dollars, as
+informers."
+
+"Je-rusalem!"  cried Biceps, "isn't it a beautiful scrape we've
+gotten into?"
+
+"Rather," responded his friend, coolly.
+
+"But why meekly allow ourselves to be captured?  Why not defend
+ourselves?"
+
+"My dear Biceps, you don't know what you are talking about. 
+Those fellows don't mind putting a bullet into you, if you run. 
+Now, I'd rather pay fifty dollars any day, than shoot a man even
+in self-defence."
+
+"But they have killed elk too.  We heard them shoot twice. 
+Suppose we play the same game on them that they intend to play on
+us.  We can play informers too, then we'll at least be quits."
+
+"Biceps, you are a brick!  That's a capital idea!  Then let us
+start for the sheriff's; and if we get there first, we'll inform
+both on ourselves and on them.  That'll cancel the fine.  Quick,
+now!"
+
+No persuasions were needed to make Albert bestir himself.  He
+leaped toward his skees, and following his friend, who was a few
+rods ahead of him, started down the slope in a zigzag line,
+cautiously steering his way among the tree trunks.  The boys had
+taken their departure none too soon; for they were scarcely five
+hundred yards down the declivity, when they heard behind them
+loud exclamations and oaths.  Evidently the poachers had stopped
+to roll some logs (which were lying close by) over the carcass,
+probably meaning to appropriate it; and this gave the boys an
+advantage, of which they were in great need.  After a few moments
+they espied an open clearing which sloped steeply down toward the
+river.  Toward this Ralph had been directing his course; for
+although it was a venturesome undertaking to slide down so steep
+and rugged a hill, he was determined rather to break his neck
+than lower his pride, and become the laughing-stock of the
+parish.
+
+One more tack through alder copse and juniper jungle--hard
+indeed, and terribly vexatious--and he saw with delight the great
+open slope, covered with an unbroken surface of glittering snow. 
+The sun (which at midwinter is but a few hours above the horizon)
+had set; and the stars were flashing forth with dazzling
+brilliancy.  Ralph stopped, as he reached the clearing, to give
+Biceps an opportunity to overtake him; for Biceps, like all
+marine animals, moved with less dexterity on the dry land.
+
+"Ralph," he whispered breathlessly, as he pushed himself up to
+his companion with a vigorous thrust of his skee-staff, "there
+are two awful chaps close behind us.  I distinctly heard them
+speak."
+
+"Fiddlesticks," said Ralph; "now let us see what you are made of!
+
+Don't take my track, or you may impale me like a roast pig on a
+spit. Now, ready!--one, two, three!"
+
+"Hold on there, or I shoot," yelled a hoarse voice from out of
+the underbrush; but it was too late; for at the same instant the
+two boys slid out over the steep slope, and, wrapped in a whirl
+of loose snow, were scudding at a dizzying speed down the
+precipitous hill-side.  Thump, thump, thump, they went, where
+hidden wood-piles or fences obstructed their path, and out they
+shot into space, but each time came down firmly on their feet,
+and dashed ahead with undiminished ardor.  Their calves ached,
+the cold air whistled in their ears, and their eyelids became
+stiff and their sight half obscured with the hoar-frost that
+fringed their lashes.  But onward they sped, keeping their
+balance with wonderful skill, until they reached the gentler
+slope which formed the banks of the great river.  Then for the
+first time Ralph had an opportunity to look behind him, and he
+saw two moving whirls of snow darting downward, not far from his
+own track.  His heart beat in his throat; for those fellows had
+both endurance and skill, and he feared that he was no match for
+them.  But suddenly--he could have yelled with delight--the
+foremost figure leaped into the air, turned a tremendous
+somersault, and, coming down on his head, broke through the crust
+of the snow and vanished, while his skees started on an
+independent journey down the hill-side.  He had struck an exposed
+fence-rail, which, abruptly checking his speed, had sent him
+flying like a rocket.
+
+The other poacher had barely time to change his course, so as to
+avoid the snag; but he was unable to stop and render assistance
+to his fallen comrade.  The boys, just as they were shooting out
+upon the ice, saw by his motions that he was hesitating whether
+or not he should give up the chase.  He used his staff as a brake
+for a few moments, so as to retard his speed; but discovering,
+perhaps, by the brightening starlight, that his adversaries were
+not full-grown men, he took courage, started forward again, and
+tried to make up for the time he had lost.  If he could but reach
+the sheriff's house before the boys did, he could have them
+arrested and collect the informer's fee, instead of being himself
+arrested and fined as a poacher.  It was a prize worth racing
+for!  And, moreover, there were two elks, worth twenty-five
+dollars apiece, buried in the snow under logs. These also would
+belong to the victor!  The poacher dashed ahead, straining every
+nerve, and reached safely the foot of the steep declivity.  The
+boys were now but a few hundred yards ahead of him.
+
+"Hold on there," he yelled again, "or I shoot!"
+
+He was not within range, but he thought he could frighten the
+youngsters into abandoning the race.  The sheriff's house was but
+a short distance up the river.  Its tall, black chimneys could he
+seen looming up against the starlit sky.  There was no slope now
+to accelerate their speed.  They had to peg away for dear life,
+pushing themselves forward with their skee-staves, laboring like
+plough-horses, panting, snorting, perspiring.  Ralph turned his
+head once more.  The poacher was gaining upon them; there could
+be no doubt of it.  He was within the range of Ralph's rifle; and
+a sturdy fellow he was, who seemed good for a couple of miles
+yet.  Should Ralph send a bullet over his head to frighten him?
+No; that might give the poacher an excuse for sending back a
+bullet with a less innocent purpose.  Poor Biceps, he was panting
+and puffing in his heavy wraps like a steamboat!  He did not once
+open his mouth to speak; but, exerting his vaunted muscle to the
+utmost, kept abreast of his friend, and sometimes pushed a pace
+or two ahead of him.  But it cost him a mighty effort!  And yet
+the poacher was gaining upon him!  They could see the long
+broadside of windows in the sheriff's mansion, ablaze with
+Christmas candles. They came nearer and nearer!  The church-bells
+up on the bend were ringing in the festival.  Five minutes more
+and they would be at their goal.  Five minutes more!  Surely they
+had strength enough left for that small space of time.  So had
+the poacher, probably!  The question was, which had the most. 
+Then, with a short, sharp resonance, followed by a long
+reverberation, a shot rang out and a bullet whizzed past Ralph's
+ear.  It was the poacher who had broken the peace.  Ralph, his
+blood boiling with wrath, came to a sudden stop, flung his rifle
+to his cheek and cried, "Drop that gun!"
+
+The poacher, bearing down with all his might on the skee-staff,
+checked his speed.  In the meanwhile Albert hurried on, seeing
+that the issue of the race depended upon him.
+
+"Don't force me to hurt ye!"  shouted the poacher, threateningly,
+to Ralph, taking aim once more.
+
+"You can't," Ralph shouted back.  "You haven't another shot."
+
+At that instant sounds of sleigh-bells and voices were heard, and
+half a dozen people, startled by the shot, were seen rushing out
+from the sheriff's mansion.  Among them was Mr. Bjornerud
+himself, with one of his deputies.
+
+"In the name of the law, I command you to cease," he cried, when
+he saw down the two figures in menacing attitudes.  But before he
+could say another word, some one fell prostrate in the road
+before him, gasping:
+
+"We have shot an elk; so has that man down on the ice.  We give
+ourselves up."
+
+Mr. Bjornerud, making no answer, leaped over the prostrate
+figure, and, followed by the deputy, dashed down upon the ice.
+
+"In the name of the law!"  he shouted again, and both rifles were
+reluctantly lowered.
+
+"I have shot an elk," cried Ralph, eagerly, "and this man is a
+poacher, we heard him shoot."
+
+"I have killed an elk," screamed the poacher, in the same moment,
+"and so has this fellow."
+
+The sheriff was too astonished to speak.  Never before, in his
+experience, had poachers raced for dear life to give themselves
+into custody.  He feared that they were making sport of him; in
+that case, however, he resolved to make them suffer for their
+audacity.
+
+"You are my prisoners," he said, after a moment's hesitation. 
+"Take them to the lock-up, Olsen, and handcuff them securely," he
+added, turning to his deputy.
+
+There were now a dozen men--most of them guests and attendants of
+the sheriff's household--standing in a ring about Ralph and the
+poacher.  Albert, too, had scrambled to his feet and had joined
+his comrade.
+
+"Will you permit me, Mr. Sheriff," said Ralph, making the officer
+his politest bow, "to send a message to my father, who is
+probably anxious about us?"
+
+"And who is your father, young man?"  asked the sheriff, not
+unkindly; "I should think you were doing him an ill-turn in
+taking to poaching at your early age."
+
+"My father is Mr. Hoyer, of Solheim," said the boy, not without
+some pride in the announcement.
+
+"What--you rascal, you!  Are you trying to, play pranks on an old
+man?"  cried the officer of the law, grasping Ralph cordially by
+the hand. "You've grown to be quite a man, since I saw you last. 
+Pardon me for not recognizing the son of an old neighbor."
+
+"Allow me to introduce to you my friend, Mr. Biceps--I mean, Mr.
+Albert Grimlund."
+
+"Happy to make your acquaintance, Mr. Biceps Albert; and now you
+must both come and eat the Christmas porridge with us.  I'll send
+a messenger to Mr. Hoyer without delay."
+
+The sheriff, in a jolly mood, and happy to have added to the
+number of his Christmas guests, took each of the two young men by
+the arm, as if he were going to arrest them, and conducted them
+through the spacious front hall into a large cosey room, where,
+having divested themselves of their wraps, they told the story of
+their adventure.
+
+"But, my dear sir," Mr. Bjornerud exclaimed, "I don't see how you
+managed to go beyond your father's preserves.  You know he bought
+of me the whole forest tract, adjoining his own on the south,
+about three months ago.  So you were perfectly within your
+rights; for your father hasn't killed an elk on his land for
+three years."
+
+"If that is the case, Mr. Sheriff," said Ralph, "I must beg of
+you to release the poor fellow who chased us.  I don't wish any
+informer's fee, nor have I any desire to get him into trouble."
+
+"I am sorry to say I can't accommodate you," Bjornerud replied. 
+"This man is a notorious poacher and trespasser, whom my deputies
+have long been tracking in vain.  Now that I have him I shall
+keep him.  There's no elk safe in Odalen so long as that rascal
+is at large."
+
+"That may be; but I shall then turn my informer's fee over to
+him, which will reduce his fine from fifty dollars to twenty-five
+dollars."
+
+"To encourage him to continue poaching?"
+
+"Well, I confess I have a little more sympathy with poachers,
+since we came so near being poachers ourselves.  It was only an
+accident that saved us!"
+
+
+
+THE NIXY'S STRAIN
+
+Little Nils had an idea that he wanted to be something great in
+the world, but he did not quite know how to set about it.  He had
+always been told that, having been born on a Sunday, he was a
+luck-child, and that good fortune would attend him on that
+account in whatever he undertook.
+
+He had never, so far, noticed anything peculiar about himself,
+though, to be sure, his small enterprises did not usually come to
+grief, his snares were seldom empty, and his tiny stamping-mill,
+which he and his friend Thorstein had worked at so faithfully,
+was now making a merry noise over in the brook in the Westmo
+Glen, so that you could hear it a hundred yards away.
+
+The reason of this, his mother told him, according to the
+superstition of her people, was that the Nixy and the Hulder[3]
+and the gnomes favored him because he was a Sunday child.  What
+was more, she assured him, that he would see them some day, and
+then, if he conducted himself cleverly, so as to win their favor,
+he would, by their aid, rise high in the world, and make his
+fortune.
+
+[3] The genius of cattle, represented as a beautiful maiden
+disfigured by a heifer's tail, which she is always trying to
+hide, though often unsuccessfully.
+
+
+Now this was exactly what Nils wanted, and therefore he was not a
+little anxious to catch a glimpse of the mysterious creatures who
+had so whimsical a reason for taking an interest in him. Many and
+many a time he sat at the waterfall where the Nixy was said to
+play the harp every midsummer night, but although he sometimes
+imagined that he heard a vague melody trembling through the rush
+and roar of the water, and saw glimpses of white limbs flashing
+through the current, yet never did he get a good look at the
+Nixy.
+
+Though he roamed through the woods early and late, setting snares
+for birds and rabbits, and was ever on the alert for a sight of
+the Hulder's golden hair and scarlet bodice, the tricksy sprite
+persisted in eluding him.
+
+He thought sometimes that he heard a faint, girlish giggle, full
+of teasing provocation and suppressed glee, among the underbrush,
+and once he imagined that he saw a gleam of scarlet and gold
+vanish in a dense alder copse.
+
+But very little good did that do him, when he could not fix the
+vision, talk with it face to face, and extort the fulfilment of
+the three regulation wishes.
+
+"I am probably not good enough," thought Nils.  "I know I am a
+selfish fellow, and cruel, too, some-times, to birds and beasts. 
+I suppose she won't have anything to do with me, as long as she
+isn't satisfied with my behavior."
+
+Then he tried hard to be kind and considerate; smiled at his
+little sister when she pulled his hair, patted Sultan, the dog,
+instead of kicking him, when he was in his way, and never
+complained or sulked when he was sent on errands late at night or
+in bad weather.
+
+But, strange to say, though the Nixy's mysterious melody still
+sounded vaguely through the water's roar, and the Hulder seemed
+to titter behind the tree-trunks and vanish in the underbrush, a
+real, unmistakable view was never vouchsafed to Nils, and the
+three wishes which were to make his fortune he had no chance of
+propounding.
+
+He had fully made up his mind what his wishes were to be, for he
+was determined not to be taken by surprise.  He knew well the
+fate of those foolish persons in the fairy tales who offend their
+benevolent protectors by bouncing against them head foremost, as
+it were, with a greedy cry for wealth.
+
+Nils was not going to be caught that way.  He would ask first for
+wisdom--that was what all right-minded heroes did--then for good
+repute among men, and lastly--and here was the rub--lastly he was
+inclined to ask for a five-bladed knife, like the one the
+parson's Thorwald had got for a Christmas present.
+
+But he had considerable misgiving about the expediency of this
+last wish.  If he had a fair renown and wisdom, might he not be
+able to get along without a five-bladed pocket-knife?  But no;
+there was no help for it.  Without that five-bladed pocket-knife
+neither wisdom nor fame would satisfy him.  It would be the drop
+of gall in his cup of joy.
+
+After many days' pondering, it occurred to him, as a way out of
+the difficulty, that it would, perhaps, not offend the Hulder if
+he asked, not for wealth, but for a moderate prosperity.  If he
+were blessed with a moderate prosperity, he could, of course, buy
+a five-bladed pocket-knife with corkscrew and all other
+appurtenances, and still have something left over.
+
+He had a dreadful struggle with this question, for he was well
+aware that the proper things to wish were long life and happiness
+for his father and mother, or something in that line.  But,
+though he wished his father and mother well, he could not make up
+his mind to forego his own precious chances on their account. 
+Moreover, he consoled himself with the reflection that if he
+attained the goal of his own desires he could easily bestow upon
+them, of his bounty, a reasonable prospect of long life and
+happiness.
+
+You see Nils was by no means so good yet as he ought to be.  He
+was clever enough to perceive that he had small chance of seeing
+the Hulder, as long as his heart was full of selfishness and envy
+and greed.
+
+For, strive as he might, he could not help feeling envious of the
+parson's Thorwald, with his elaborate combination pocket-knife
+and his silver watch-chain, which he unfeelingly flaunted in the
+face of an admiring community.  It was small consolation for Nils
+to know that there was no watch but only a key attached to it;
+for a silver watch-chain, even without a watch, was a
+sufficiently splendid possession to justify a boy in fording it
+over his less fortunate comrades.
+
+Nils's father, who was a poor charcoal-burner, could never afford
+to make his son such a present, even if he worked until he was as
+black as a chimney-sweep.  For what little money he earned was
+needed at once for food and clothes for the family; and there
+were times when they were obliged to mix ground birch-bark with
+their flour in order to make it last longer.
+
+It was easy enough for a rich man's son to be good, Nils thought.
+
+It was small credit to him if he was not envious, having never
+known want and never gone to bed on birch-bark porridge.  But for
+a poor boy not to covet all the nice things which would make life
+so pleasant, if he had them, seemed next to impossible.
+
+Still Nils kept on making good resolutions and breaking them, and
+then piecing them together again and breaking them anew.
+
+If it had not been for his desire to see the Hulder and the Nixy,
+and making them promise the fulfilment of the three wishes, he
+would have given up the struggle, and resigned himself to being a
+bad boy because he was born so.  But those teasing glimpses of
+the Hulder's scarlet bodice and golden hair, and the vague
+snatches of wondrous melody that rose from the cataract in the
+silent summer nights, filled his soul with an intense desire to
+see the whole Hulder, with her radiant smile and melancholy eyes,
+and to hear the whole melody plainly enough to be written down on
+paper and learned by heart.
+
+It was with this longing to repeat the few haunting notes that
+hummed in his brain that Nils went to the schoolmaster one day
+and asked him for the loan of his fiddle.  But the schoolmaster,
+hearing that Nils could not play, thought his request a foolish
+one and refused.
+
+Nevertheless, that visit became an important event, and a
+turning-point in the boy's life.  For he was moved to confide in
+the schoolmaster, who was a kindly old man, and fond of clever
+boys; and he became interested in Nils.  Though he regarded
+Nils's desire to record the Nixy's strains as absurd, he offered
+to teach him to play.  There was good stuff in the lad, he
+thought, and when he had out-grown his fantastic nonsense, he
+might, very likely, make a good fiddler.
+
+Thus it came to pass that the charcoal-burner's son learned to
+play the violin.  He had not had half a dozen lessons before he
+set about imitating the Nixy's notes which he had heard in the
+waterfall.
+
+"It was this way," he said to the schoolmaster, pressing his ear
+against the violin, while he ran the bow lightly over the
+strings; "or rather it was this way," making another ineffectual
+effort.  "No, no, that wasn't it, either.  It's no use,
+schoolmaster:  I shall never be able to do it!"  he cried,
+flinging the violin on the table and rushing out of the door.
+
+When he returned the next day he was heartily ashamed of his
+impatience.  To try to catch the Nixy's notes after half a dozen
+lessons was, of course, an absurdity.
+
+The master told him simply to banish such folly from his brain,
+to apply himself diligently to his scales, and not to bother
+himself about the Nixy.
+
+That seemed to be sound advice and Nils accepted it with
+contrition.  He determined never to repeat his silly experiment. 
+But when the next midsummer night came, a wild yearning possessed
+him, and he stole out noiselessly into the forest, and sat down
+on a stone by the river, listening intently.
+
+For a long while he heard nothing but the monotonous boom of the
+water plunging into the deep.  But, strangely enough, there was a
+vague, hushed rhythm in this thundering roar; and after a while
+he seemed to hear a faint strain, ravishingly sweet, which
+vibrated on the air for an instant and vanished.
+
+It seemed to steal upon his ear unawares, and the moment he
+listened, with a determination to catch it, it was gone.  But
+sweet it was--inexpressibly sweet.
+
+Let the master talk as much as he liked, catch it he would and
+catch it he must.  But he must acquire greater skill before he
+would be able to render something so delicate and elusive.
+
+Accordingly Nils applied himself with all his might and main to
+his music, in the intervals between his work.
+
+He was big enough now to accompany his father to the woods, and
+help him pile turf and earth on the heap of logs that were to be
+burned to charcoal.  He did not see the Hulder face to face,
+though he was constantly on the watch for her; but once or twice
+he thought he saw a swift flash of scarlet and gold in the
+underbrush, and again and again he thought he heard her soft,
+teasing laughter in the alder copses.  That, too, he imagined he
+might express in music; and the next time he got hold of the
+schoolmaster's fiddle he quavered away on the fourth string, but
+produced nothing that had the remotest resemblance to melody,
+much less to that sweet laughter.
+
+He grew so discouraged that he could have wept.  He had a wild
+impulse to break the fiddle, and never touch another as long as
+he lived.  But he knew he could not live up to any such
+resolution. The fiddle was already too dear to him to be
+renounced for a momentary whim.  But it was like an unrequited
+affection, which brought as much sorrow as joy.
+
+There was so much that Nils burned to express; but the fiddle
+refused to obey him, and screeched something utterly discordant,
+as it seemed, from sheer perversity.
+
+It occurred to Nils again, that unless the Nixy took pity on him
+and taught him that marvellous, airy strain he would never catch
+it.  Would he then ever be good enough to win the favor of the
+Nixy?
+
+For in the fairy tales it is always the bad people who come to
+grief, while the good and merciful ones are somehow rewarded.
+
+It was evidently because he was yet far from being good enough
+that both Hulder and Nixy eluded him.  Sunday child though he
+was, there seemed to be small chance that he would ever be able
+to propound his three wishes.
+
+Only now, the third wish was no longer a five-bladed
+pocket-knife, but a violin of so fine a ring and delicate
+modulation that it might render the Nixy's strain.
+
+While these desires and fancies fought in his heart, Nils grew to
+be a young man; and he still was, what he had always been--a
+charcoal-burner. He went to the parson for half a year to prepare
+for confirmation; and by his gentleness and sweetness of
+disposition attracted not only the good man himself, but all with
+whom he came in contact.  His answers were always thoughtful, and
+betrayed a good mind.
+
+He was not a prig, by any means, who held aloof from sport and
+play; he could laugh with the merriest, run a race with the
+swiftest, and try a wrestling match with the strongest.
+
+There was no one among the candidates for confirmation, that
+year, who was so well liked as Nils.  Gentle as he was and
+soft-spoken, there was a manly spirit in him, and that always
+commands respect among boys.
+
+He received much praise from the pastor, and no one envied him
+the kind words that were addressed to him; for every one felt
+that they were deserved.  But the thought in Nils's mind during
+all the ceremony in the church and in the parsonage was this:
+
+"Now, perhaps, I shall be good enough to win the Nixy's favor. 
+Now I shall catch the wondrous strain."
+
+It did not occur to him, in his eagerness, that such a reflection
+was out of place in church; nor was it, perhaps, for the Nixy's
+strain was constantly associated in his mind with all that was
+best in him; with his highest aspirations, and his constant
+strivings for goodness and nobleness in thought and deed.
+
+It happened about this time that the old schoolmaster died, and
+in his will it was found that he had bequeathed his fiddle to
+Nils.  He had very little else to leave, poor fellow; but if he
+had been a Croesus he could not have given his favorite pupil
+anything that would have delighted him more.
+
+Nils played now early and late, except when he was in the woods
+with his father.  His fame went abroad through all the valley as
+the best fiddler in seven parishes round, and people often came
+from afar to hear him.  There was a peculiar quality in his
+playing--something strangely appealing, that brought the tears to
+one's eyes--yet so elusive that it was impossible to repeat or
+describe it.
+
+It was rumored among the villagers that he had caught the Nixy's
+strain, and that it was that which touched the heart so deeply in
+his improvisations.  But Nils knew well that he had not caught
+the Nixy's strain; though a faint echo--a haunting undertone--of
+that vaguely remembered snatch of melody, heard now and then in
+the water's roar, would steal at times into his music, when he
+was, perhaps, himself least aware of it.
+
+Invitations now came to him from far and wide to play at wedding
+and dancing parties and funerals.  There was no feast complete
+without Nils; and soon this strange thing was noticed, that
+quarrels and brawls, which in those days were common enough in
+Norway, were rare wherever Nils played.
+
+It seemed as if his calm and gentle presence called forth all
+that was good in the feasters and banished whatever was evil. 
+Such was his popularity that he earned more money by his fiddling
+in a week than his father had ever done by charcoal-burning in a
+month.
+
+A half-superstitious regard for him became general among the
+people; first, because it seemed impossible that any man could
+play as he did without the aid of some supernatural power; and
+secondly, because his gentle demeanor and quaint, terse sayings
+inspired them with admiration.  It was difficult to tell by whom
+the name, Wise Nils, was first started, but it was felt by all to
+be appropriate, and it therefore clung to the modest fiddler, in
+spite of all his protests.
+
+Before he was twenty-five years old it became the fashion to go
+to him and consult him in difficult situations; and though he
+long shrank from giving advice, his reluctance wore away, when it
+became evident to him that he could actually benefit the people.
+
+There was nothing mysterious in his counsel.  All he said was as
+clear and rational as the day-light.  But the good folk were
+nevertheless inclined to attribute a higher authority to him; and
+would desist from vice or folly for his sake, when they would not
+for their own sake.  It was odd, indeed: this Wise Nils, the
+fiddler, became a great man in the valley, and his renown went
+abroad and brought him visitors, seeking his counsel, from
+distant parishes.  Rarely did anyone leave him disappointed, or
+at least without being benefited by his sympathetic advice.
+
+One summer, during the tourist season, a famous foreign musician
+came to Norway, accompanied by a rich American gentleman.  While
+in his neighborhood, they heard the story of the rustic fiddler,
+and became naturally curious to see him.
+
+They accordingly went to his cottage, in order to have some sport
+with him, for they expected to find a vain and ignorant
+charlatan, inflated by the flattery of his more ignorant
+neighbors.  But Nils received them with a simple dignity which
+quite disarmed them.  They had come to mock; they stayed to
+admire.  This peasant's artless speech, made up of ancient
+proverbs and shrewd common-sense, and instinct with a certain
+sunny beneficence, impressed them wonderfully.
+
+And when, at their request, he played some of his improvisations,
+the renowned musician exclaimed that here was, indeed, a great
+artist lost to the world.  In spite of the poor violin, there was
+a marvellously touching quality in the music; something new and
+alluring which had never been heard before.
+
+But Nils himself was not aware of it.  Occasionally, while he
+played, the Nixy's haunting strain would flit through his brain,
+or hover about it, where he could feel it, as it were, but yet be
+unable to catch it.  This was his regret--his constant chase for
+those elusive notes that refused to be captured.
+
+But he consoled himself many a time with the reflection that it
+was the fiddle's fault, not his own.  With a finer instrument,
+capable of rendering more delicate shades of sound, he might yet
+surprise the Nixy's strain, and record it unmistakably in black
+and white.
+
+The foreign musician and his American friend departed, but
+returned at the end of two weeks. They then offered to accompany
+Nils on a concert tour through all the capitals of Europe and the
+large cities of America, and to insure him a sum of money which
+fairly made him dizzy.
+
+Nils begged for time to consider, and the next day surprised them
+by declining the startling offer.
+
+He was a peasant, he said, and must remain a peasant.  He
+belonged here in his native valley, where he could do good, and
+was happy in the belief that he was useful.
+
+Out in the great world, of which he knew nothing, he might indeed
+gather wealth, but he might lose his peace of mind, which was
+more precious than wealth.  He was content with a moderate
+prosperity, and that he had already attained.  He had enough, and
+more than enough, to satisfy his modest wants, and to provide
+those who were dear to him with reasonable comfort in their
+present condition of life.
+
+The strangers were amazed at a man's thus calmly refusing a
+fortune that was within his easy grasp, for they did not doubt
+that Nils, with his entirely unconventional manner of playing,
+and yet with that extraordinary moving quality in his play, would
+become the rage both in Europe and America, as a kind of
+heaven-born, untutored genius, and fill both his own pockets and
+theirs with shekels.
+
+They made repeated efforts to persuade him, but it was all in
+vain.  With smiling serenity, he told them that he had uttered
+his final decision.  They then took leave of him, and a month
+after their departure there arrived from Germany a box addressed
+to Nils.  He opened it with some trepidation, and it was found to
+contain a Cremona violin --a genuine Stradivarius.
+
+The moment Nils touched the strings with the bow, a thrill of
+rapture went through him, the like of which he had never
+experienced.  The divine sweetness and purity of the tone that
+vibrated through those magic chambers resounded through all his
+being, and made him feel happy and exalted.
+
+It occurred to him, while he was coaxing the intoxicating music
+from his instrument, that tonight would be midsummer night.  Now
+was his chance to catch the Nixy's strain, for this exquisite
+violin would be capable of rendering the very chant of the
+archangels in the morning of time.
+
+To-night he would surprise the Nixy, and the divine strain should
+no more drift like a melodious mist through his brain; for at
+midsummer night the Nixy always plays the loudest, and then, if
+ever, is the time to learn what he felt must be the highest
+secret of the musical art.
+
+Hugging his Stradivarius close to his breast, to protect it from
+the damp night-air, Nils hurried through the birch woods down to
+the river.  The moon was sailing calmly through a fleecy film of
+cloud, and a light mist hovered over the tops of the forest.
+
+The fiery afterglow of the sunset still lingered in the air,
+though the sun had long been hidden, but the shadows of the trees
+were gaunt and dark, as in the light of the moon.
+
+The sound of the cataract stole with a whispering rush through
+the underbrush, for the water was low at midsummer, and a good
+deal of it was diverted to the mill, which was working busily
+away, with its big water-wheel going round and round.
+
+Nils paused close to the mill, and peered intently into the
+rushing current; but nothing appeared. Then he stole down to the
+river-bank, where he seated himself on a big stone, barely out of
+reach of the spray, which blew in gusts from the cataract. He sat
+for a long while motionless, gazing with rapt intentness at the
+struggling, foaming rapids, but he saw or heard nothing.
+
+Then all of a sudden it seemed to him that the air began to
+vibrate faintly with a vague, captivating rhythm.  Nils could
+hear his heart beat in his throat.  With trembling eagerness he
+unwrapped the violin and raised it to his chin.
+
+Now, surely, there was a note.  It belonged on the A string.  No,
+not there.  On the E string, perhaps. But no, not there, either.
+
+Look!  What is that?
+
+A flash, surely, through the water of a beautiful naked arm.
+
+And there--no, not there--but somewhere from out of the gentle
+rush of the middle current there seemed to come to him a
+marvellous mist of drifting sound--ineffably, rapturously sweet!
+
+With a light movement Nils runs his bow over the strings, but not
+a ghost, not a semblance, can he reproduce of the swift,
+scurrying flight of that wondrous melody.  Again and again he
+listens breathlessly, and again and again despair overwhelms him.
+
+Should he, then, never see the Nixy, and ask the fulfilment of
+his three wishes?
+
+Curiously enough, those three wishes which once were so great a
+part of his life had now almost escaped him.  It was the Nixy's
+strain he had been intent upon, and the wishes had lapsed into
+oblivion.
+
+And what were they, really, those three wishes, for the sake of
+which he desired to confront the Nixy?
+
+Well, the first--the first was--what was it, now?  Yes, now at
+length he remembered.  The first was wisdom.
+
+Well, the people called him Wise Nils now, so, perhaps, that wish
+was superfluous.  Very likely he had as much wisdom as was good
+for him.  At all events, he had refused to acquire more by going
+abroad to acquaint himself with the affairs of the great world.
+
+Then the second wish; yes, he could recall that. It was fame.  It
+was odd indeed; that, too, he had refused, and what he possessed
+of it was as much, or even far more, than he desired.  But when
+he called to mind the third and last of his boyish wishes, a
+moderate prosperity or a good violin--for that was the
+alternative--he had to laugh outright, for both the violin and
+the prosperity were already his.
+
+Nils lapsed into deep thought, as he sat there in the summer
+night, with the crowns of the trees above him and the brawling
+rapids swirling about him.
+
+Had not the Nixy bestowed upon him her best gift already in
+permitting him to hear that exquisite ghost of a melody, that
+shadowy, impalpable strain, which had haunted him these many
+years?  In pursuing that he had gained the goal of his desires,
+till other things he had wished for had come to him unawares, as
+it were, and almost without his knowing it.  And now what had he
+to ask of the Nixy, who had blessed him so abundantly?
+
+The last secret, the wondrous strain, forsooth, that he might
+imprison it in notes, and din it in the ears of an unappreciative
+multitude!  Perhaps it were better, after all, to persevere
+forever in the quest, for what would life have left to offer him
+if the Nixy's strain was finally caught, when all were finally
+attained, and no divine melody haunted the brain, beyond the
+powers even of a Stradivarius to lure from its shadowy realm?
+
+Nils walked home that night plunged in deep meditation.  He vowed
+to himself that he would never more try to catch the Nixy's
+strain.  But the next day, when he seized the violin, there it
+was again, and, strive as he might, he could not forbear trying
+to catch it.
+
+Wise Nils is many years older now; has a good wife and several
+children, and is a happy man; but to this day, resolve as he
+will, he has never been able to abandon the effort to catch the
+Nixy's strain. Sometimes he thinks he has half caught it, but
+when he tries to play it, it is always gone.
+
+
+
+THE WONDER CHILD
+
+I.
+
+A very common belief in Norway, as in many other lands, is that
+the seventh child of the seventh child can heal the sick by the
+laying on of hands.  Such a child is therefore called a wonder
+child.  Little Carina Holt was the seventh in a family of eight
+brothers and sisters, but she grew to be six years old before it
+became generally known that she was a wonder child.  Then people
+came from afar to see her, bringing their sick with them; and
+morning after morning, as Mrs. Holt rolled up the shades, she
+found invalids, seated or standing in the snow, gazing with
+devout faith and anxious longing toward Carina's window.
+
+It seemed a pity to send them away uncomforted, when the look and
+the touch cost Carina so little.  But there was another fear that
+arose in the mother's breast, and that was lest her child should
+be harmed by the veneration with which she was regarded, and
+perhaps come to believe that she was something more than a common
+mortal.  What was more natural than that a child who was told by
+grown-up people that there was healing in her touch, should at
+last come to believe that she was something apart and
+extraordinary?
+
+It would have been a marvel, indeed, if the constant attention
+she attracted, and the pilgrimages that were made to her, had
+failed to make any impression upon her sensitive mind.  Vain she
+was not, and it would have been unjust to say that she was
+spoiled.  She had a tender nature, full of sympathy for sorrow
+and suffering.  She was constantly giving away her shoes, her
+stockings, nay, even her hood and cloak, to poor little invalids,
+whose misery appealed to her merciful heart.  It was of no use to
+scold her; you could no more prevent a stream from flowing than
+Carina from giving.  It was a spontaneous yielding to an impulse
+that was too strong to be resisted.
+
+But to her father there was something unnatural in it; he would
+have preferred to have her frankly selfish, as most children are,
+not because he thought it lovely, but because it was childish and
+natural.  Her unusual goodness gave him a pang more painful than
+ever the bad behavior of her brothers had occasioned.  On the
+other hand, it delighted him to see her do anything that ordinary
+children did.  He was charmed if she could be induced to take
+part in a noisy romp, play tag, or dress her dolls.  But there
+followed usually after each outbreak of natural mirth a shy
+withdrawal into herself, a resolute and quiet retirement, as if
+she, were a trifle ashamed of her gayety.  There was nothing
+morbid in these moods, no brooding sadness or repentance, but a
+touching solemnity, a serene, almost cheerful seriousness, which
+in one of her years seemed strange.
+
+Mr. Holt had many a struggle with himself as to how he should
+treat Carina's delusion; and he made up his mind, at last, that
+it was his duty to do everything in his power to dispel and
+counteract it.  When he happened to overhear her talking to her
+dolls one day, laying her hands upon them, and curing them of
+imaginary diseases, he concluded it was high time for him to act.
+
+He called Carina to him, remonstrated kindly with her, and
+forbade her henceforth to see the people who came to her for the
+purpose of being cured.  But it distressed him greatly to see how
+reluctantly she consented to obey him.
+
+When Carina awoke the morning after this promise had been
+extorted from her, she heard the dogs barking furiously in the
+yard below.  Her elder sister, Agnes, was standing half dressed
+before the mirror, holding the end of one blond braid between her
+teeth, while tying the other with a pink ribbon.  Seeing that
+Carina was awake, she gave her a nod in the glass, and, removing
+her braid, observed that there evidently were sick pilgrims under
+the window.  She could sympathize with Sultan and Hector, she
+averred, in their dislike of pilgrims.
+
+"Oh, I wish they would not come!"  sighed Carina.  "It will be so
+hard for me to send them away."
+
+"I thought you liked curing people," exclaimed Agnes.
+
+"I do, sister, but papa has made me promise never to do it
+again."
+
+She arose and began to dress, her sister assisting her, chatting
+all the while like a gay little chirruping bird that neither gets
+nor expects an answer.  She was too accustomed to Carina's moods
+to be either annoyed or astonished; but she loved her all the
+same, and knew that her little ears were wide open, even though
+she gave no sign of listening.
+
+Carina had just completed her simple toilet when Guro, the
+chamber-maid, entered, and announced that there were some sick
+folk below who wished to see the wonder child.
+
+"Tell them I cannot see them," answered Carina, with a tremulous
+voice; "papa does not permit me."
+
+"But this man, Atle Pilot, has come from so far away in this
+dreadful cold," pleaded Guro, "and his son is so very bad, poor
+thing; he's lying down in the boat, and he sighs and groans fit
+to move a stone."
+
+"Don't!  Don't tell her that," interposed Agnes, motioning to the
+girl to begone.  "Don't you see it is hard enough for her
+already?"
+
+There was something in the air, as the two sisters descended the
+stairs hand in hand, which foreboded calamity.  The pastor had
+given out from the pulpit last Sunday that he would positively
+receive no invalids at his house; and he had solemnly charged
+every one to refrain from bringing their sick to his daughter. 
+He had repeated this announcement again and again, and he was now
+very much annoyed at his apparent powerlessness to protect his
+child from further imposition.  Loud and angry speech was heard
+in his office, and a noise as if the furniture were being knocked
+about.  The two little girls remained standing on the stairs,
+each gazing at the other's frightened face.  Then there was a
+great bang, and a stalwart, elderly sailor came tumbling head
+foremost out into the hall.  His cap was flung after him through
+the crack of the door.  Agnes saw for an instant her father's
+face, red and excited; and in his bearing there was something
+wild and strange, which was so different from his usual gentle
+and dignified appearance.  The sailor stood for a while
+bewildered, leaning against the wall; then he stooped slowly and
+picked up his cap.  But the moment he caught sight of Carina his
+embarrassment vanished, and his rough features were illuminated
+with an intense emotion.
+
+"Come, little miss, and help me," he cried, in a hoarse,
+imploring whisper.  "Halvor, my son--he is the only one God gave
+me--he is sick; he is going to die, miss, unless you take pity on
+him."
+
+"Where is he?"  asked Carina.
+
+"He's down in the boat, miss, at the pier.  But I'll carry him up
+to you, if you like.  We have been rowing half the night in the
+cold, and he is very low."
+
+"No, no; you mustn't bring him here," said Agnes, seeing by
+Carina's face that she was on the point of yielding.  "Father
+would be so angry."
+
+"He may kill me if he likes," exclaimed the sailor, wildly.  "It
+doesn't matter to me.  But Halvor he's the only one I have, miss,
+and his mother died when he was born, and he is young, miss, and
+he will have many years to live, if you'll only have mercy on
+him."
+
+"But, you know, I shouldn't dare, on papa's account, to have you
+bring him here," began Carina, struggling with her tears.
+
+"Ah, yes!  Then you will go to him.  God bless you for that!" 
+cried the poor man, with agonized eagerness.  And interpreting
+the assent he read in Carina's eye, he caught her up in his arms,
+snatched a coat from a peg in the wall, and wrapping her in it,
+tore open the door.  Carina made no outcry, and was not in the
+least afraid.  She felt herself resting in two strong arms,
+warmly wrapped and borne away at a great speed over the snow. 
+But Agnes, seeing her sister vanish in that sudden fashion, gave
+a scream which called her father to the door.
+
+"What has happened?"  he asked.  "Where is Carina?"
+
+"That dreadful Atle Pilot took her and ran away with her."
+
+"Ran away with her?"  cried the pastor in alarm. "How?  Where?"
+
+"Down to the pier."
+
+It was a few moments' work for the terrified father to burst open
+the door, and with his velvet skull-cap on his head, and the
+skirts of his dressing-gown flying wildly about him, rush down
+toward the beach.  He saw Atle Pilot scarcely fifty feet in
+advance of him, and shouted to him at the top of his voice.  But
+the sailor only redoubled his speed, and darted out upon the
+pier, hugging tightly to his breast the precious burden he
+carried.  So blindly did he rush ahead that the pastor expected
+to see him plunge headlong into the icy waves.  But, as by a
+miracle, he suddenly checked himself, and grasping with one hand
+the flag-pole, swung around it, a foot or two above the black
+water, and regained his foothold upon the planks.  He stood for
+an instant irresolute, staring down into a boat which lay moored
+to the end of the pier.  What he saw resembled a big bundle,
+consisting of a sheepskin coat and a couple of horse blankets.
+
+"Halvor," he cried, with a voice that shook with emotion, "I have
+brought her."
+
+There was presently a vague movement under the horse-blankets,
+and after a minute's struggle a pale yellowish face became
+visible.  It was a young face--the face of a boy of fifteen or
+sixteen.  But, oh, what suffering was depicted in those sunken
+eyes, those bloodless, cracked lips, and the shrunken yellow skin
+which clung in premature wrinkles about the emaciated features! 
+An old and worn fur cap was pulled down over his ears, but from
+under its rim a few strands of blond hair were hanging upon his
+forehead.
+
+Atle had just disentangled Carina from her wrappings, and was
+about to descend the stairs to the water when a heavy hand seized
+him by the shoulder, and a panting voice shouted in his ear:
+
+"Give me back my child."
+
+He paused, and turned his pathetically bewildered face toward the
+pastor.  "You wouldn't take him from me, parson," he stammered,
+helplessly; "no, you wouldn't.  He's the only one I've got."
+
+"I don't take him from you," the parson thundered, wrathfully. 
+"But what right have you to come and steal my child, because
+yours is ill?"
+
+"When life is at stake, parson," said the pilot, imploringly,
+"one gets muddled about right and wrong.  I'll do your little
+girl no harm.  Only let her lay her blessed hands upon my poor
+boy's head, and he will be well."
+
+"I have told you no, man, and I must put a stop to this stupid
+idolatry, which will ruin my child, and do you no good.  Give her
+back to me, I say, at once."
+
+The pastor held out his hand to receive Carina, who stared at him
+with large pleading eyes out of the grizzly wolf-skin coat.
+
+"Be good to him, papa," she begged.  "Only this once."
+
+"No, child; no parleying now; come instantly."
+
+And he seized her by main force, and tore her out of the pilot's
+arms.  But to his dying day he remembered the figure of the
+heart-broken man, as he stood outlined against the dark horizon,
+shaking his clinched fists against the sky, and crying out, in a
+voice of despair:
+
+"May God show you the same mercy on the Judgment Day as you have
+shown to me!"
+
+
+II.
+
+Six miserable days passed.  The weather was stormy, and tidings
+of shipwreck and calamity filled the air.  Scarcely a visitor
+came to the parsonage who had not some tale of woe to relate. 
+The pastor, who was usually so gentle and cheerful, wore a dismal
+face, and it was easy to see that something was weighing on his
+mind.
+
+"May God show you the same mercy on the Judgment Day as you have
+shown to me!"
+
+These words rang constantly in his ears by night and by day.  Had
+he not been right, according to the laws of God and man, in
+defending his household against the assaults of ignorance and
+superstition?  Would he have been justified in sacrificing his
+own child, even if he could thereby save another's?  And,
+moreover, was it not all a wild, heathenish delusion, which it
+was his duty as a servant of God to stamp out and root out at all
+hazards?  Yes, there could be no doubt of it; he had but
+exercised his legal right.  He had done what was demanded of him
+by laws human and divine.  He had nothing to reproach himself
+for.  And yet, with a haunting persistency, the image of the
+despairing pilot praying God for vengeance stared at him from
+every dark corner, and in the very church bells, as they rang out
+their solemn invitation to the house of God, he seemed to hear
+the rhythm and cadence of the heart-broken father's imprecation. 
+In the depth of his heart there was a still small voice which
+told him that, say what he might, he had acted cruelly.  If he
+put himself in Atle Pilot's place, bound as he was in the iron
+bonds of superstition, how different the case would look?  He saw
+himself, in spirit, rowing in a lonely boat through the stormy
+winter night to his pastor, bringing his only son, who was at the
+point of death, and praying that the pastor's daughter might lay
+her hands upon him, as Christ had done to the blind, the halt,
+and the maimed.  And his pastor received him with wrath, nay,
+with blows, and sent him away uncomforted.  It was a hideous
+picture indeed, and Mr. Holt would have given years of his life
+to be rid of it.
+
+It was on the sixth day after Atle's visit that the pastor,
+sitting alone in his study, called Carina to him.  He had
+scarcely seen her during the last six days, or at least talked
+with her.  Her sweet innocent spirit would banish the shadows
+that darkened his soul.
+
+"Carina," he said, in his old affectionate way, "papa wants to
+see you.  Come here and let me talk a little with you."
+
+But could he trust his eyes?  Carina, who formerly had run so
+eagerly into his arms, stood hesitating, as if she hoped to be
+excused.
+
+"Well, my little girl," he asked, in a tone of apprehension,
+"don't you want to talk with papa?"
+
+"I would rather wait till some other time, papa," she managed to
+stammer, while her little face flushed with embarrassment.
+
+Mr. Holt closed the door silently, flung himself into a chair,
+and groaned.  That was a blow from where he had least expected
+it.  The child had judged him and found him wanting.  His Carina,
+his darling, who had always been closest to his heart, no longer
+responded to his affection!  Was the pilot's prayer being
+fulfilled?  Was he losing his own child in return for the one he
+had refused to save?  With a pang in his breast, which was like
+an aching wound, he walked up and down on the floor and marvelled
+at his own blindness.  He had erred indeed; and there was no hope
+that any chance would come to him to remedy the wrong.
+
+The twilight had deepened into darkness while he revolved this
+trouble in his mind.  The night was stormy, and the limbs of the
+trees without were continually knocking and bumping against the
+walls of the house.  The rusty weather-vane on the roof whined
+and screamed, and every now and then the sleet dashed against the
+window-panes like a handful of shot.  The wind hurled itself
+against the walls, so that the timbers creaked and pulled at the
+shutters, banged stray doors in out-of-the-way garrets, and then,
+having accomplished its work, whirled away over the fields with a
+wild and dismal howl.  The pastor sat listening mournfully to
+this tempestuous commotion.  Once he thought he heard a noise as
+of a door opening near by him, and softly closing; but as he saw
+no one, he concluded it was his overwrought fancy that had played
+him a trick.  He seated himself again in his easy-chair before
+the stove, which spread a dim light from its draught-hole into
+the surrounding gloom.
+
+While he sat thus absorbed in his meditations, he was startled at
+the sound of something resembling a sob.  He arose to strike a
+light, but found that his match-safe was empty.  But what was
+that?  A step without, surely, and the groping of hands for the
+door-knob.
+
+"Who is there?"  cried the pastor, with a shivering uneasiness.
+
+He sprang forward and opened the door.  A broad figure,
+surmounted by a sou'wester, loomed up in the dark.
+
+"What do you want?"  asked Mr. Holt, with forced calmness.
+
+"I want to know," answered a gruff, hoarse voice, "if you'll come
+to my son now, and help him into eternity?"
+
+The pastor recognized Atle Pilot's voice, though it seemed
+harsher and hoarser than usual.
+
+"Sail across the fjord on a night like this?"  he exclaimed.
+
+"That's what I ask you."
+
+"And the boy is dying, you say?"
+
+"Can't last till morning."
+
+"And has he asked for the sacrament?"
+
+The pilot stepped across the threshold and entered the room.  He
+proceeded slowly to pull off his mittens; then looking up at the
+pastor's face, upon which a vague sheen fell from the stove, he
+broke out:
+
+"Will you come or will you not? You wouldn't help him to live;
+now will you help him to die?"
+
+The words, thrust forth with a slow, panting emphasis, hit the
+pastor like so many blows.
+
+"I will come," he said, with solemn resolution. "Sit down till I
+get ready."
+
+He had expected some expression of gratification or thanks, for
+Atle well knew what he had asked. It was his life the pastor
+risked, but this time in his calling as a physician, not of
+bodies, but of souls.  It struck him, while he took leave of his
+wife, that there was something resentful and desperate in the
+pilot's manner, so different from his humble pleading at their
+last meeting.
+
+As he embraced the children one by one, and kissed them, he
+missed Carina, but was told that she had probably gone to the
+cow-stable with the dairy-maid, who was her particular friend. 
+So he left tender messages for her, and, summoning Atle, plunged
+out into the storm.  A servant walked before him with a lantern,
+and lighted the way down to the pier, where the boat lay tossing
+upon the waves.
+
+"But, man," cried the pastor, seeing that the boat was empty,
+"where are your boatmen?"
+
+"I am my own boatman," answered Atle, gloomily.  "You can hold
+the sheet, I the tiller."
+
+Mr. Holt was ashamed of retiring now, when he had given his word.
+
+But it was with a sinking heart that he stepped into the frail
+skiff, which seemed scarcely more than a nutshell upon the
+tempestuous deep.  He was on the point of asking his servant,
+unacquainted though he was with seamanship, to be the third man
+in the boat; but the latter, anticipating his intention, had made
+haste to betake himself away.  To venture out into this roaring
+darkness, with no beacon to guide them, and scarcely a landmark
+discernible, was indeed to tempt Providence.
+
+But by the time he had finished this reflection, the pastor felt
+himself rushing along at a tremendous speed, and short, sharp
+commands rang in his ears, which instantly engrossed all his
+attention.  To his eyes the sky looked black as ink, except for a
+dark-blue unearthly shimmer that now and then flared up from the
+north, trembled, and vanished.  By this unsteady illumination it
+was possible to catch a momentary glimpse of a head, and a peak,
+and the outline of a mountain.  The small sail was double-reefed,
+yet the boat careened so heavily that the water broke over the
+gunwale.  The squalls beat down upon them with tumultuous roar
+and smoke, as of snow-drifts, in their wake; but the little boat,
+climbing the top of the waves and sinking into the dizzy black
+pits between them, sped fearlessly along and the pastor began to
+take heart.  Then, with a fierce cutting distinctness, came the
+command out of the dark.
+
+"Pull out the reefs!"
+
+"Are you crazy, man?"  shouted the pastor.  "Do you want to sail
+straight into eternity?"
+
+"Pull out the reefs!"  The command was repeated with wrathful
+emphasis.
+
+"Then we are dead men, both you and I."
+
+"So we are, parson--dead men.  My son lies dead at home, though
+you might have saved him. So, now, parson, we are quits."
+
+With a fierce laugh he rose up, and still holding the tiller,
+stretched his hand to tear out the reefs.  But at that instant,
+just as a quivering shimmer broke across the sky, something rose
+up from under the thwart and stood between them.  Atle started
+back with a hoarse scream.
+
+"In Heaven's name, child!"  he cried.  "Oh, God, have mercy upon
+me!"
+
+And the pastor, not knowing whether he saw a child or a vision,
+cried out in the same moment:  "Carina, my darling!  Carina, how
+came you here?"
+
+It was Carina, indeed; but the storm whirled her tiny voice away
+over the waves, and her father, folding her with one arm to his
+breast, while holding the sheet with the other, did not hear what
+she answered to his fervent exclamation.  He only knew that her
+dear little head rested close to his heart, and that her yellow
+hair blew across his face.
+
+"I wanted to save that poor boy, papa," were the only words that
+met his ears.  But he needed no more to explain the mystery.  It
+was Carina, who, repenting of her unkindness to him, had stolen
+into his study, while he sat in the dark, and there she had heard
+Atle Pilot's message.  Even if this boy was sick unto death, she
+might perhaps cure him, and make up for her father's harshness. 
+Thus reasoned the sage Carina; and she had gone secretly and
+prepared for the voyage, and battled with the storm, which again
+and again threw her down on her road to the pier.  It was a
+miracle that she got safely into the boat, and stowed herself
+away snugly under the stern thwart.
+
+The clearing in the north gradually spread over the sky, and the
+storm abated.  Soon they had the shore in view, and the lights of
+the fishermen's cottages gleamed along the beach of the headland.
+Presently they ran into smoother water; a star or two flashed
+forth, and wide blue expanses appeared here and there on the
+vault of the sky.  They spied the red lanterns marking the wharf,
+about which a multitude of boats lay, moored to stakes, and with
+three skilful tacks Atle made the harbor.  It was here, standing
+on the pier, amid the swash and swirl of surging waters, that the
+pilot seized Carina's tiny hand in his big and rough one.
+
+"Parson," he said, with a breaking voice, "I was going to run
+afoul of you, and wreck myself with you; but this child, God
+bless her! she ran us both into port, safe and sound."
+
+But Carina did not hear what he said, for she lay sweetly
+sleeping in her father's arms.
+
+
+
+"THE SONS OF THE VIKINGS"
+I.
+
+When Hakon Vang said his prayers at night, he usually finished
+with these words:  "And I thank thee, God, most of all, because
+thou madest me a Norseman, and not a German or an Englishman or a
+Swede."
+
+To be a Norseman appears to the Norse boy a claim to distinction.
+
+God has made so many millions of Englishmen and Russians and
+Germans, that there can be no particular honor in being one of so
+vast a herd; while of Norsemen He has made only a small and
+select number, whom He looks after with special care; upon whom
+He showers such favors as poverty and cold (with a view to
+keeping them good and hardy), and remoteness from all the
+glittering temptations that beset the nations in whom He takes a
+less paternal interest.  Thus at least reasons, in a dim way, the
+small boy in Norway; thus he is taught to reason by his parents
+and instructors.
+
+As for Hakon Vang, he strutted along the beach like a
+turkey-cock, whenever he thought of his glorious descent from the
+Vikings--those daring pirates that stole thrones and kingdoms,
+and mixed their red Norse blood in the veins of all the royal
+families of Europe.  The teacher of history (who was what is
+called a Norse-Norseman) had on one occasion, with more patriotic
+zeal than discretion, undertaken to pick out those boys in his
+class who were of pure Norse descent; whose blood was untainted
+by any foreign admixture.  The delighted pride of this small band
+made them an object of envy to all the rest of the school. 
+Hakon, when his name was mentioned, felt as if he had added a
+yard to his height.  Tears of joy started to his eyes; and to
+give vent to his overcharged feelings, he broke into a war-whoop;
+for which he received five black marks and was kept in at recess.
+
+But he minded that very little; all great men, he reflected, have
+had to suffer for their country.
+
+What Hakon loved above all things to study--nay, the only thing
+he loved to study--was the old Sagas, which are tales, poems, and
+histories of the deeds of the Norsemen in ancient times.  With
+eleven of his classmates, who were about his own age and as Norse
+as himself, he formed a brotherhood which was called "The Sons of
+the Vikings."  They gave each other tremendously bloody surnames,
+in the style of the Sagas--names that reeked with gore and
+heroism.  Hakon himself assumed the pleasing appellation
+"Skull-splitter," and his classmate Frithjof Ronning was dubbed
+Vargr-i-Veum, which means Wolf-in-the-Temple.  One Son of the
+Vikings was known as Ironbeard, another as Erling the Lop-Sided,
+a third as Thore the Hound, a fourth as Aslak Stone-Skull.  But a
+serious difficulty, which came near disrupting the brotherhood,
+arose over these very names.  It was felt that Hakon had taken an
+unfair advantage of the rest in selecting the bloodiest name at
+the outset (before anyone else had had an opportunity to choose),
+and there was a general demand that he should give it up and
+allow all to draw lots for it.  But this Hakon stoutly refused to
+do; and declared that if anyone wanted his name he would have to
+fight for it, in good old Norse fashion.
+
+A holm-gang or duel was then arranged; that is, a ring was marked
+out with stones; the combatants stepped within it, and he who
+could drive his antagonist outside of the stone ring was declared
+to be the victor.  Frithjof, who felt that he had a better claim
+to be named Skull-Splitter than Hakon, was the first to accept
+the challenge; but after a terrible combat was forced to bite the
+dust.  His conqueror was, however, filled with such a glowing
+admiration of his valor (as combatants in the Sagas frequently
+are), that he proposed that they should swear eternal friendship
+and foster-brotherhood, and seal their compact, according to
+Norse custom, by the ceremony called "Mingling of Blood."  It is
+needless to say that this seemed to all the boys a most
+delightful proposition; and they entered upon the august rite
+with a deep sense of its solemnity.
+
+First a piece of sod, about twelve feet square, was carefully
+raised upon wooden stakes representing spears, so as to form a
+green roof over the foster-brothers.  Then, sitting upon the
+black earth, where the turf had been removed, they bared their
+arms to the shoulder, and in the presence of his ten brethren, as
+witnesses, each swore that he would regard the other as his true
+brother and love him and treat him as such, and avenge his death
+if he survived him; in solemn testimony of which each drew a
+knife and opened a vein in his arm, letting their blood mingle
+and flow together.  Hakon, however, in his heroic zeal, drove the
+knife into his flesh rather recklessly, and when the blood had
+flowed profusely for five minutes, he grew a trifle uneasy. 
+Frithjof, after having bathed his arm in a neighboring brook, had
+no difficulty in stanching the blood, but the poor
+Skull-Splitter's wound, in spite of cold water and bandages, kept
+pouring forth its warm current without sign of abatement.  Hakon
+grew paler and paler, and would have burst into tears, if he had
+not been a "Son of the Vikings."  It would have been a relief to
+him, for the moment, not to have been a "Son of the Vikings." 
+For he was terribly frightened, and thought surely he was going
+to bleed to death.  The other Vikings, too, began to feel rather
+alarmed at such a prospect; and when Erling the Lop-Sided (the
+pastor's son) proposed that they should carry Hakon to the
+doctor, no one made any objection.  But the doctor unhappily
+lived so far away that Hakon might die before he got there.
+
+"Well, then," said Wolf-in-the Temple, "let us take him to old
+Witch-Martha.  She can stanch blood and do lots of other queer
+things."
+
+"Yes, and that is much more Norse, too," suggested Thore the
+Hound; "wise women learned physic and bandaged wounds in the
+olden time.  Men were never doctors."
+
+"Yes, Witch-Martha is just the right style," said Erling the
+Lop-Sided down in his boots; for he had naturally a shrill voice
+and gave himself great pains to produce a manly bass.
+
+"We must make a litter to carry the Skull-Splitter on," exclaimed
+Einar Bowstring-Twanger (the sheriff's son); "he'll never get to
+Witch-Martha alive if he is to walk."
+
+This suggestion was favorably received, the boys set to work with
+a will, and in a few minutes had put together a litter of green
+twigs and branches.  Hakon, who was feeling curiously
+light-headed and exhausted, allowed himself to be placed upon it
+in a reclining position; and its swinging motion, as his friends
+carried it along, nearly rocked him to sleep.  The fear of death
+was but vaguely present to his mind; but his self-importance grew
+with every moment, as he saw his blood trickle through the leaves
+and drop at the roadside.  He appeared to himself a brave Norse
+warrior who was being carried by his comrades from the
+battle-field, where he had greatly distinguished himself.  And
+now to be going, to the witch who, by magic rhymes and
+incantations, was to stanch the ebbing stream of his life--what
+could be more delightful?
+
+
+II.
+
+Witch Martha lived in a small lonely cottage down by the river. 
+Very few people ever went to see her in the day-time; but at
+night she often had visitors.  Mothers who suspected that their
+children were changelings, whom the Trolds had put in the cradle,
+taking the human infants away; girls who wanted to "turn the
+hearts" of their lovers, and lovers who wanted to turn the hearts
+of the girls; peasants who had lost money or valuables and wanted
+help to trace the thief--these and many others sought secret
+counsel with Witch-Martha, and rarely went away uncomforted.  She
+was an old weather-beaten woman with a deeply wrinkled,
+smoky-brown face, and small shrewd black eyes.  The floor in her
+cottage was strewn with sand and fresh juniper twigs; from the
+rafters under the ceiling hung bunches of strange herbs; and in
+the windows were flower-pots with blooming plants in them.
+
+Martha was stooping at the hearth, blowing and puffing at the
+fire under her coffee-pot, when the Sons of the Vikings knocked
+at the door.  Wolf-in-the-Temple was the man who took the lead;
+and when Witch-Martha opened the upper half of the door (she
+never opened both at the same time) she was not a little
+astonished to see the Captain's son, Frithjof Ronning, staring up
+at her with an anxious face.
+
+"What cost thou want, lad?"  she asked, gruffly; "thou hast gone
+astray surely, and I'll show thee the way home."
+
+"I am Wolf-in-the-Temple," began Frithjof, thrusting out his
+chest, and raising his head proudly.
+
+"Dear me, you don't say so!"  exclaimed Martha.
+
+"My comrade and foster-brother Skull-Splitter has been wounded;
+and I want thee, old crone, to stanch his blood before he bleeds
+to death."
+
+"Dear, dear me, how very strange!"  ejaculated the Witch, and
+shook her aged head.
+
+She had been accustomed to extraordinary requests; but the
+language of this boy struck her as being something of the
+queerest she had yet heard.
+
+"Where is thy Skull-Splitter, lad?"  she asked, looking at him
+dubiously.
+
+"Right here in the underbrush," Wolf-in-the-Temple retorted,
+gallantly; "stir thy aged stumps now, and thou shalt be right
+royally rewarded."
+
+He had learned from Walter Scott's romances that this was the
+proper way to address inferiors, and he prided himself not a
+little on his jaunty condescension.  Imagine then his surprise
+when the "old crone" suddenly turned on him with an angry scowl
+and said:
+
+"If thou canst not keep a civil tongue in thy head, I'll bring a
+thousand plagues upon thee, thou umnannerly boy."
+
+By this threat Wolf-in-the-Temple's courage was sadly shaken.  He
+knew Martha's reputation as a witch, and had no desire to test in
+his own person whether rumor belied her.
+
+"Please, mum, I beg of you," he said, with a sudden change of
+tone; "my friend Hakon Vang is bleeding to death; won't you
+please help him?"
+
+"Thy friend Hakon Vang!"  cried Martha, to whom that name was
+very familiar; "bring him in, as quick as thou canst, and I'll do
+what I can for him."
+
+Wolf-in- the-Temple put two fingers into his mouth and gave a
+loud shrill whistle, which was answered from the woods, and
+presently the small procession moved up to the door, carrying
+their wounded comrade between them.  The poor Skull-Splitter was
+now as white as a sheet, and the drowsiness of his eyes and the
+laxness of his features showed that help came none too early. 
+Martha, in hot haste, grabbed a bag of herbs, thrust it into a
+pot of warm water, and clapped it on the wound.  Then she began
+to wag her head slowly to and fro, and crooned, to a soft and
+plaintive tune, words which sounded to the ears of the boys
+shudderingly strange:
+
+"I conjure in water, I conjure in lead,
+I conjure with herbs that grew o'er the dead;
+I conjure with flowers that I plucked, without shoon,          
+When the ghosts were abroad, in the wane of the moon.
+I conjure with spirits of earth and air
+That make the wind sigh and cry in despair;
+I conjure by him within sevenfold rings
+That sits and broods at the roots of things.
+I conjure by him who healeth strife,
+Who plants and waters the germs of life.
+I conjure, I conjure, I bid thee be still,
+Thou ruddy stream, thou hast flowed thy fill!
+Return to thy channel and nurture his life
+Till his destined measure of years be rife."
+
+
+She sang the last two lines with sudden energy; and when she
+removed her hand from the wound, the blood had ceased to flow. 
+The poor Skull-Splitter was sleeping soundly; and his friends,
+shivering a little with mysterious fears, marched up and down
+whispering to one another.  They set a guard of honor at the
+leafy couch of their wounded comrade; intercepted the green worms
+and other insects that kept dropping down upon him from the alder
+branches overhead, and brushed away the flies that would fain
+disturb his slumbers.  They were all steeped to the core in old
+Norse heroism; and they enjoyed the situation hugely.  All the
+life about them was half blotted out; they saw it but dimly. 
+That light of youthful romance, which never was on sea or land,
+transformed all the common things that met their vision into
+something strange and wonderful.  They strained their ears to
+catch the meaning of the song of the birds, so that they might
+learn from them the secrets of the future, as Sigurd the Volsung
+did, after he had slain the dragon, Fafnir.  The woods round
+about them were filled with dragons and fabulous beasts, whose
+tracks they detected with the eyes of faith; and they started out
+every morning, during the all too brief vacation, on imaginary
+expeditions against imaginary monsters.
+
+When at the end of an hour the Skull-Splitter woke from his
+slumber, much refreshed, Witch-Martha bandaged his arm carefully,
+and Wolf-in-the Temple (having no golden arm-rings) tossed her,
+with magnificent superciliousness, his purse, which contained six
+cents.  But she flung it back at him with such force that he had
+to dodge with more adroitness than dignity.
+
+"I'll get my claws into thee some day, thou foolish lad," she
+said, lifting her lean vulture-like hand with a threatening
+gesture.
+
+"No, please don't, Martha, I didn't mean anything," cried the
+boy, in great alarm; "you'll forgive me, won't you, Martha?"
+
+"I'll bid thee begone, and take thy foolish tongue along with
+thee," she answered, in a mollified tone.
+
+And the Sons of the Vikings, taking the hint, shouldered the
+litter once more, and reached Skull-Splitter's home in time for
+supper.
+
+
+III.
+
+The Sons of the Vikings were much troubled.  Every heroic deed
+which they plotted had this little disadvantage, that they were
+in danger of going to jail for it.  They could not steal cattle
+and horses, because they did not know what to do with them when
+they had got them; they could not sail away over the briny deep
+in search of fortune or glory, because they had no ships; and
+sail-boats were scarcely big enough for daring voyages to the
+blooming South which their ancestors had ravaged.  The precious
+vacation was slipping away, and as yet they had accomplished
+nothing that could at all be called heroic.  It was while the
+brotherhood was lamenting this fact that Wolf-in-the-Temple had a
+brilliant idea.  He procured his father's permission to invite
+his eleven companions to spend a day and a night at the Ronning
+saeter, or mountain dairy, far up in the highlands.  The only
+condition Mr. Ronning made was that they were to be accompanied
+by his man, Brumle-Knute, who was to be responsible for their
+safety.  But the boys determined privately to make Brumle-Knute
+their prisoner, in case he showed any disposition to spoil their
+sport.  To spend a day and a night in the woods, to imagine
+themselves Vikings, and behave as they imagined Vikings would
+behave, was a prospect which no one could contemplate without the
+most delightful excitement.  There, far away from sheriffs and
+pastors and maternal supervision, they might perhaps find the
+long-desired chance of performing their heroic deed.
+
+It was a beautiful morning early in August that the boys started
+from Strandholm, Mr. Ronning's estate, accompanied by
+Brumle-Knute.  The latter was a middle-aged, round-shouldered
+peasant, who had the habit of always talking to himself.  To look
+at him you would have supposed that he was a rough and stupid
+fellow who would have quite enough to do in looking after
+himself.  But the fact was, that Brumle-Knute was the best shot,
+the best climber--and altogether the most keen-eyed hunter in the
+whole valley.  It was a saying that he could scent game so well
+that he never needed a dog; and that he could imitate to
+perfection the call of every game bird that inhabited the
+mountain glens.  Sweet-tempered he was not; but so reliable,
+skilful, and vigilant, and moreover so thorough a woodsman, that
+the boys could well afford to put up with his gruff temper.
+
+The Sons of the Vikings were all mounted on ponies; and
+Wolf-in-the-Temple, who had been elected chieftain, led the
+troop.  At his side rode Skull-Splitter, who was yet a trifle
+pale after his blood-letting, but brimming over with ambition to
+distinguish himself.  They had all tied their trousers to their
+legs with leather thongs, in order to be perfectly "Old Norse;"
+and some of them had turned their plaids and summer overcoats
+inside out, displaying the gorgeous colors of the lining. 
+Loosely attached about their necks and flying in the wind, these
+could easily serve for scarlet or purple cloaks wrought on Syrian
+looms.  Most of the boys carried also wooden swords and shields,
+and the chief had a long loor or Alpine horn.  Only the valiant
+Ironbeard, whose father was a military man, had a real sword and
+a real scabbard into the bargain.  Wolf-in-the-Temple, and Erling
+the Lop-Sided, had each an old fowling-piece; and Brumle-Knute
+carried a double-barrelled rifle.  This, to be sure, was not;
+quite historically correct; but firearms are so useful in the
+woods, even if they are not correct, that it was resolved not to
+notice the irregularity; for there were boars in the mountains,
+besides wolves and foxes and no end of smaller game.
+
+For an hour or more the procession rode, single file, up the
+steep and rugged mountain-paths; but the boys were all in high
+spirits and enjoyed themselves hugely.  The mere fact that they
+were Vikings, on a daring foraging expedition into a neighboring
+kingdom, imparted a wonderful zest to everything they did and
+said.  It might be foolish, but it was on that account none the
+less delightful.  They sent out scouts to watch for the approach
+of an imaginary enemy; they had secret pass-words and signs; they
+swore (Viking style) by Thor's hammer and by Odin's eye.  They
+talked appalling nonsense to each other with a delicious
+sentiment of its awful blood-curdling character.  It was about
+noon when they reached the Strandholm saeter, which consisted of
+three turf-thatched log-cabins or chalets, surrounded by a green
+inclosure of half a dozen acres.  The wide highland plain, eight
+or ten miles long, was bounded on the north and west by throngs
+of snow-hooded mountain peaks, which rose, one behind another, in
+glittering grandeur; and in the middle of the plain there were
+two lakes or tarns, connected by a river which was milky white
+where it entered the lakes and clear as crystal where it escaped.
+
+"Now, Vikings," cried Wolf-in-the-Temple, when the boys had done
+justice to their dinner, "it behooves us to do valiant deeds, and
+to prove ourselves worthy of our fathers."
+
+"Hear, hear," shouted Ironbeard, who was fourteen years old and
+had a shadow of a moustache, "I am in for great deeds, hip, hip,
+hurrah!"
+
+"Hold your tongue when you hear me speak," commanded the
+chieftain, loftily; "we will lie in wait at the ford, between the
+two tarns, and capture the travellers who pass that way.  If
+perchance a princess from the neighboring kingdom pass, on the
+way to her dominions, we will hold her captive until her father,
+the king, comes to ransom her with heaps of gold in rings and
+fine garments and precious weapons."
+
+"But what are we to do with her when we have caught her?"  asked
+the Skull-Splitter, innocently.
+
+"We will keep her imprisoned in the empty saeter hut,"
+Wolf-in-the-Temple responded.  "Now, are you ready? We'll leave
+the horses here on the croft, until our return."
+
+The question now was to elude Brumle-Knute's vigilance; for the
+Sons of the Vikings had good reasons for fearing that he might
+interfere with their enterprise.  They therefore waited until
+Brumle-knute was invited by the dairymaid to sit down to dinner. 
+No sooner had the door closed upon his stooping figure, than they
+stole out through a hole in the fence, crept on all-fours among
+the tangled dwarf-birches and the big gray boulders, and
+following close in the track of their leader, reached the ford
+between the lakes.  There they observed two enormous heaps of
+stones known as the Parson and the Deacon; for it had been the
+custom from immemorial times for every traveller to fling a big
+stone as a "sacrifice" for good luck upon the Parson's heap and a
+small stone upon the Deacon's.  Behind these piles of stone the
+boys hid themselves, keeping a watchful eye on the road and
+waiting for their chief's signal to pounce upon unwary
+travellers.  They lay for about fifteen minutes in expectant
+silence, and were on the point of losing their patience.
+
+"Look here, Wolf-in-the-Temple," cried Erling the Lop-Sided, "you
+may think this is fun, but I don't.  Let us take the raft there
+and go fishing.  The tarn is simply crowded with perch and bass."
+
+"Hold your disrespectful tongue," whispered the chief, warningly,
+"or I'll discipline you so you'll remember it till your dying
+day."
+
+"Ho, ho!" laughed the rebel, jeeringly; "big words and fat pork
+don't stick in the throat.  Wait till I get you alone and we
+shall see who'll be disciplined."
+
+Erling had risen and was about to emerge from his hiding-place,
+when suddenly hoof-beats were heard, and a horse was seen
+approaching, carrying on its back a stalwart peasant lass, in
+whose lap a pretty little girl of twelve or thirteen was sitting.
+
+The former was clad in scarlet bodice, a black embroidered skirt,
+and a snowy-white kerchief was tied about her head.  Her blonde
+hair hung in golden profusion down over her back and shoulders. 
+The little girl was city-clad, and had a sweet and appealing
+face.  She was chattering guilelessly with her companion, asking
+more questions than she could possibly expect to have answered. 
+Nearer and nearer they came to the great stone heaps, dreaming of
+no harm.
+
+"And, Gunbjor," the Skull-Splitter heard the little girl say,
+"you don't really believe that there are trolds and fairies in
+the mountains, do you?"
+
+"Them as are wiser than I am have believed that," was Gunbjor's
+answer; "but we don't hear so much about the trolds nowadays as
+they did when my granny was young.  Then they took young girls
+into the mountain and----"
+
+Here came a wild, piercing yell, as the Sons of the Vikings
+rushed forward from behind the rocks, and with a terrible
+war-whoop swooped down upon the road.  Wolf-in-the-Temple, who
+led the band, seized the horse by the bridle, and flourishing his
+sword threateningly, addressed the frightened peasant lass.
+
+"Is this, perchance, the Princess Kunigunde, the heir to the
+throne of my good friend, King Bjorn the Victorious?" he asked,
+with a magnificent air, seizing the trembling little girl by the
+wrist.
+
+"Nay," Gunbjor answered, as soon as she could find her voice,
+"this is the Deacon's Maggie, as is going to the saeter with me
+to spend Sunday."
+
+"She cannot proceed on her way," said the chieftain, decisively,
+"she is my prisoner."
+
+Gunbjor, who had been frightened out of her wits by the small
+red- and blue-cloaked men, swarming among the stones, taking them
+to be trolds or fairies, now gradually recovered her senses.  She
+recognized in Erling the Lop-Sided the well-known features of the
+parson's son; and as soon as she had made this discovery she had
+no great difficulty in identifying the rest.  "Never you fear,
+pet," she said to the child in her lap, "these be bad boys as
+want to frighten us.  I'll give them a switching if they don't
+look out."
+
+"The Princess Kunigunde is my prisoner until it please her noble
+father to ransom her for ten pounds of silver," repeated
+Wolf-in-the-Temple, putting his arm about little Maggie's waist
+and trying to lift her from the saddle.
+
+"You keep yer hands off the child, or I'll give you ten pounds of
+thrashing," cried Gunbjor, angrily.
+
+"She shall be treated with the respect due to her rank,"
+Wolf-in-the-Temple proceeded, loftily.  "I give King Bjorn the
+Victorious three moons in which to bring me the ransom."
+
+"And I'll give you three boxes on the ear, and a cut with my
+whip, into the bargain, if you don't let the horse alone, and
+take yer hands off the child."
+
+"Vikings!"  cried the chief, "lay hands on her! Tear her from the
+saddle!  She has defied us!  She deserves no mercy."
+
+With a tremendous yell the boys rushed forward, brandishing their
+swords above their heads, and pulled Gunbjor from the saddle. 
+But she held on to her charge with a vigorous clutch, and as soon
+as her feet touched the ground she began with her disengaged hand
+to lay about her, with her whip, in a way that proved extremely
+unpleasant.  Wolf-in-the-Temple, against whom her assault was
+especially directed, received some bad cuts across his face, and
+Ironbeard was driven backward into the ford, where he fell, full
+length, and rose dripping wet and mortified.  Thore the Hound got
+a thump in his head from Gunbjor's stalwart elbows, and
+Skull-Splitter, who had more courage than discretion, was pitched
+into the water with no more ceremony than if he had been a
+superfluous kitten.  The fact was--I cannot disguise it--within
+five minutes the whole valiant band of the Sons of the Vikings
+were routed by that terrible switch, wielded by the intrepid
+Gunbjor.  When the last of her foes had bitten the dust, she
+calmly remounted her pony, and with the Deacon's Maggie in her
+lap rode, at a leisurely pace, across the ford.
+
+"Good-by, lads," she said, nodding her head at them over her
+shoulder; "ye needn't be afraid.  I won't tell on you."
+
+
+IV.
+
+To have been routed by a woman was a terrible humiliation to the
+valiant Sons of the Vikings.  They were silent and moody during
+the evening, and sat staring into the big bonfire on the saeter
+green with stern and melancholy features.  They had suffered
+defeat in battle, and it behooved them to avenge it.  About nine
+o'clock they retired into their bunks in the log cabin, but no
+sooner was Brumle-Knute's rhythmic snoring perceived than
+Wolf-in-the-Temple put his head out and called to his comrades to
+meet him in front of the house for a council of war.  Instantly
+they scrambled out of their alcoves, pulled on their coats and
+trousers; and noiselessly stole out into the night.  The sun was
+yet visible, but a red veil of fiery mist was drawn across his
+face; and a magic air of fairy-tales and strange unreality was
+diffused over mountains, plains and lakes.  The river wound like
+a huge, blood-red serpent through the mountain pastures, and the
+snow-hooded peaks blazed with fiery splendor.
+
+The boys were quite stunned at the sight of such magnificence,
+and stood for some minutes gazing at the landscape, before giving
+heed to the summons of the chief.
+
+"Comrades," said Wolf-in-the-Temple, solemnly, "what is life
+without honor?"
+
+There was not a soul present who could answer that conundrum, and
+after a fitting pause the chief was forced to answer it himself.
+
+"Life without honor, comrades," he said, severely, "life--without
+honor is--nothing."
+
+"Hear, hear!"  cried Ironbeard; "good for you, old man!"
+
+"Silence!"  thundered Wolf-in-the-Temple, "I must beg the
+gentlemen to observe the proprieties."
+
+This tremendous phrase rarely failed to restore order, and the
+flippant Ironbeard was duly rebuked by the glances of displeasure
+which met him on all sides.  But in the meanwhile the chief had
+lost the thread of his speech and could not recover it. 
+"Vikings," he resumed, clearing his throat vehemently, "we have
+been--that is to say--we have sustained----"
+
+"A thrashing," supplied the innocent Skull-Splitter.
+
+But the awful stare which was fixed upon him convinced him that
+he had made a mistake; and he shrunk into an abashed silence. 
+"We must do something to retrieve our honor," continued the
+chief, earnestly; "we must--take steps--to to get upon our legs
+again," he finished, blushing with embarrassment.
+
+"I would suggest that we get upon our legs first, and take the
+steps afterward," remarked the flippant Ironbeard, with a sly
+wink at Thore the Hound.
+
+The chief held it to be beneath his dignity to notice this
+interruption, and after having gazed for a while in silence at
+the blood-red mountain peaks, he continued, more at his ease:
+
+"I propose, comrades, that we go on a bear hunt.  Then, when we
+return with a bear-skin or two, our honor will be all right; no
+one will dare laugh at us.  The brave boy-hunters will be the
+admiration and pride of the whole valley."
+
+"But Brummle-Knute," observed the Skull-Splitter; "do you think
+he will allow us to go bear-hunting?"
+
+"What do we care whether he allows us or not?" cried
+Wolf-in-the-Temple, scornfully; "he sleeps like a log; and I
+propose that we tie his hands and feet before we start."
+
+This suggestion met with enthusiastic approval, and all the boys
+laughed heartily at the idea of Brumle-Knute waking up and
+finding himself tied with ropes, like a calf that is carried to
+market.
+
+"Now, comrades," commanded the chief, with a flourish of his
+sword, "get to bed quickly.  I'll call you at four o'clock; we'll
+then start to chase the monarch of the mountains."
+
+The Sons of the Vikings scrambled into their bunks with great
+despatch; and though their beds consisted of pine twigs, covered
+with a coarse sheet, and a bat, of straw for a pillow, they fell
+asleep without rocking, and slept more soundly than if they had
+rested on silken bolsters filled with eiderdown. 
+Wolf-in-the-Temple was as good as his word, and waked them
+promptly at four o'clock; and their first task, after having
+filled their knapsacks with provisions, was to tie Brumle-Knute's
+hands and feet with the most cunning slip-knots, which would
+tighten more, the more he struggled to unloose them.  Ironbeard,
+who had served a year before the mast, was the contriver of this
+daring enterprise; and he did it so cleverly that Brumle-Knute
+never suspected that his liberty was being interfered with.  He
+snorted a little and rubbed imaginary cobwebs from his face; but
+soon lapsed again into a deep, snoring unconsciousness.
+
+The faces of the Sons of the Vikings grew very serious as they
+started out on this dangerous expedition.  There was more than
+one of them who would not have objected to remaining at home, but
+who feared to incur the charge of cowardice if he opposed the
+wishes of the rest.  Wolf-in-the-Temple walked at the head of the
+column, as they hastened with stealthy tread out of the saeter
+inclosure, and steered their course toward the dense pine forest,
+the tops of which were visible toward the east, where the
+mountain sloped toward the valley.  He carried his fowling-piece,
+loaded with shot, in his right hand, and a powder-horn and other
+equipments for the chase were flung across his shoulder.  Erling
+the Lop-Sided was similarly armed, and Ironbeard, glorying in a
+real sword, unsheathed it every minute and let it flash in the
+sun.  It was a great consolation to the rest of the Vikings to
+see these formidable weapons; for they were not wise enough to
+know that grown-up bears are not killed with shot, and that a
+fowling-piece is a good deal more dangerous than no weapon at
+all, in the hands of an inexperienced hunter.
+
+The sun, who had exchanged his flaming robe de nuit for the rosy
+colors of morning, was now shooting his bright shafts of light
+across the mountain plain, and cheering the hearts of the Sons of
+the Vikings.  The air was fresh and cool; and it seemed a luxury
+to breathe it.  It entered the lungs in a pure, vivifying stream
+like an elixir of life, and sent the blood dancing through the
+veins.  It was impossible to mope in such air; and Ironbeard
+interpreted the general mood when he struck up the tune:
+
+"We wander with joy on the far mountain path,
+We follow the star that will guide us;"
+
+but before he had finished the third verse, it occurred to the
+chief that they were bear-hunters, and that it was very
+unsportsmanlike behavior to sing on the chase.  For all that they
+were all very jolly, throbbing with excitement at the thought of
+the adventures which they were about to encounter; and concealing
+a latent spark of fear under an excess of bravado.  At the end of
+an hour's march they had reached the pine forest; and as they
+were all ravenously hungry they sat down upon the stones, where a
+clear mountain brook ran down the slope, and unpacked their
+provisions.  Wolf-in-the-Temple had just helped himself, in old
+Norse fashion, to a slice of smoked ham, having slashed a piece
+off at random with his knife, when Erling the Lop-Sided observed
+that that ham had a very curious odor.  Everyone had to test its
+smell; and they all agreed that it did have a singular flavor,
+though its taste was irreproachable.
+
+"It smells like a menagerie," said the Skull-Splitter, as he
+handed it to Thore the Hound.
+
+"But the bread and the biscuit smell just the same," said Thore
+the Hound; "in fact, it is the air that smells like a menagerie."
+
+"Boys," cried Wolf-in-the-Temple, "do you see that track in the
+mud?"
+
+"Yes; it is the track of a barefooted man," suggested the
+innocent Skull-Splitter.
+
+Ironbeard and Erling the Lop-Sided flung themselves down among
+the stones and investigated the tracks; and they were no longer
+in doubt as to where the pungent wild odor came from, which they
+had attributed to the ham.
+
+"Boys," said Erling, looking up with an excited face, "a she-bear
+with one or two cubs has been here within a few minutes."
+
+"This is her drinking-place," said Ironbeard:  "the tracks are
+many and well-worn; if she hasn't been here this morning, she is
+sure to come before long."
+
+"We are in luck indeed," Wolf-in-the-Temple observed, coolly; "we
+needn't go far for our bear.  He will be coming for us."
+
+At that moment the note of an Alpine horn was heard; but it was
+impossible to determine how far it was away; for the echo took up
+the note and flung it back and forth with clear and strong
+reverberations from mountain to mountain.
+
+"It is Brumle-Knute who is calling us," said Thore the Hound. 
+"The dairymaid must have released him.  Shall we answer?"
+
+"Never," cried the chief, proudly; "I forbid you to answer.  Here
+we have our heroic deed in sight, and I want no one to spoil it. 
+If there is a coward among us, let him take to his heels; no one
+shall detain him."
+
+There were perhaps several who would have liked to accept the
+invitation; but no one did.  Skull-Splitter, by way of diversion,
+plumped backward into the brook, and sat down in the cool pool up
+to his waist.  But nobody laughed at his mishap; because they had
+their minds full of more serious thoughts.  Wolf-in-the-Temple,
+who had climbed up on a big moss-grown boulder, stood, gun in
+hand, and peered in among the bushes.
+
+"Boys," he whispered, "drop down on your bellies--quick."
+
+All, crowding behind a rock, obeyed, pushing themselves into
+position with hands and feet.  With wildly beating hearts the
+Vikings gazed up among the gray wilderness of stone and
+underbrush, and first one, then another, caught sight of
+something brown and hairy that came toddling down toward them,
+now rolling like a ball of yarn, now turning a somersault, and
+now again pegging industriously along on four clumsy paws.  It
+was the prettiest little bear cub that ever woke on its mossy
+lair in the woods.  Now it came shuffling down in a boozy way to
+take its morning bath.  It seemed but half awake; and
+Skull-Splitter imagined that it was a trifle cross, because its
+mother had waked it too early.  Evidently it had made no toilet
+as yet, for bits of moss were sticking in its hair; and it yawned
+once or twice, and shook its head disgustedly.  Skull-Splitter
+knew so well that feeling and could sympathize with the poor
+young cub.  But Wolf-in-the-Temple, who watched it no less
+intently, was filled with quite different emotions.  Here was his
+heroic deed, for which he had hungered so long.  To shoot a
+bear--that was a deed worthy of a Norseman.  One step more--then
+two--and then--up rose the bear cub on its hind legs and rubbed
+its eyes with its paws.  Now he had a clean shot--now or never;
+and pulling the trigger Wolf-in-the-Temple blazed away and sent a
+handful of shot into the carcass of the poor little bear.  Up
+jumped all the Sons of the Vikings from behind their stones, and,
+with a shout of triumph, ran up the path to where the cub was
+lying.  It had rolled itself up into a brown ball, and whimpered
+like a child in pain.  But at that very moment there came an
+ominous growl out of the underbrush, and a crackling and creaking
+of branches was heard which made the hearts of the boys stand
+still.
+
+"Erling," cried Wolf-in-the-Temple, "hand me your gun, and load
+mine for me as quick as you can."
+
+The words were scarcely out of his mouth when the head of a big
+brown she-bear became visible among the bushes.  She paused in
+the path, where her cub was lying, turned him over with her paw,
+licked his face, grumbled with a low soothing tone, snuffed him
+all over and rubbed her nose against his snout.  But unwarily she
+must have touched some sore spot; for the cub gave a sharp yelp
+of pain and writhed and whimpered as he looked up into his
+mother's eyes, clumsily returning her caresses.  The boys, half
+emerged from their hiding-places, stood watching this
+demonstration of affection not without sympathy; and
+Skull-Splitter, for one, heartily wished that the chief had not
+wounded the little bear.  Quite ignorant as he was of the nature
+of bears, he allowed his compassion to get the better of his
+judgment.  It seemed such a pity that the poor little beast
+should lie there and suffer with one eye put out and forty or
+fifty bits of lead distributed through its body.  It would be
+much more merciful to put it out of its misery altogether.  And
+accordingly when Erling the Lop-Sided handed him his gun to pass
+on to the chief, Skull-Splitter started forward, flung the gun to
+his cheek, and blazed away at the little bear once more, entirely
+heedless of consequences.  It was a random, unskilful shot, which
+was about equally shared by the cub and its mother.  And the
+latter was not in a mood to be trifled with.  With an angry roar
+she rose on her hind legs and advanced against the unhappy
+Skull-Splitter with two uplifted paws.  In another moment she
+would give him one of her vigorous "left-handers," which would
+probably pacify him forever.  Ironbeard gave a scream of terror
+and Thore the Hound broke down an alder-sapling in his
+excitement.  But Wolf-in-the-Temple, remembering that he had
+sworn foster-brotherhood with this brave and foolish little lad,
+thought that now was the time to show his heroism.  Here it was
+no longer play, but dead earnest.  Down he leaped from his rock,
+and just as the she-bear was within a foot of the Skull-Splitter,
+he dealt her a blow in the head with the butt end of his gun
+which made the sparks dance before her eyes.  She turned suddenly
+toward her new assailant, growling savagely, and scratched her
+ear with her paw.  And Skull-Splitter, who had slipped on the
+pine needles and fallen, scrambled to his feet again, leaving his
+gun on the ground, and with a few aimless steps tumbled once more
+into the brook.  Ironbeard, seeing that he was being outdone by
+his chief, was quick to seize the gun, and rushing forward dealt
+the she-bear another blow, which, instead of disabling her, only
+exasperated her further.  She glared with her small bloodshot
+eyes now at the one, now at the other boy, as if in doubt which
+she would tackle first.  It was an awful moment; one or the other
+might have saved himself by flight, but each was determined to
+stand his ground.  Vikings could die, but never flee.  With a
+furious growl the she-bear started toward her last assailant,
+lifting her terrible paw.  Ironbeard backed a few steps, pointing
+his gun before him; and with benumbing force the paw descended
+upon the gun-barrel, striking it out of his hands.
+
+It seemed all of a sudden to the boy as if his arms were asleep
+up to the shoulders; he had a stinging sensation in his flesh and
+a humming in his ears, which made him fear that his last hour had
+come.  If the bear renewed the attack now, he was utterly
+defenceless.  He was not exactly afraid, but he was numb all
+over.  It seemed to matter little what became of him.
+
+But now a strange thing happened.  To his unutterable
+astonishment he saw the she-bear drop down on all fours and vent
+her rage on the gun, which, in a trice, was bent and broken into
+a dozen fragments.  But in this diversion she was interrupted by
+Wolf-in-the-Temple, who hammered away again at her head with the
+heavy end of his weapon.  Again she rose, and presented two rows
+of white teeth which looked as if they meant business.  It was
+the chief's turn now to meet his fate; and it was the more
+serious because his helper was disarmed and could give him no
+assistance.  With a wildly thumping heart he raised the butt end
+of his gun and dashed forward, when as by a miracle a shot was
+heard--a sharp, loud shot that rumbled away with manifold
+reverberations among the mountains.  In the same instant the huge
+brown bear tumbled forward, rolled over, with a gasping growl,
+and was dead.
+
+"O Brumle-Knute!  Brumle-Knute!" yelled the boys in joyous
+chorus, as they saw their resuer coming forward from behind the
+rocks, "how did you find us?"
+
+"I heard yer shots and I saw yer tracks," said Brumle-Knute,
+dryly; "but when ye go bear-hunting another time ye had better
+load with bullets instead of bird-shot."
+
+"But Brumle-Knute, we only wanted to shoot the little bear,"
+protested Wolf-in-the-Temple.
+
+"That may be," Brumle-Knute replied; "but the big bears, they are
+a curiously unreasonable lot--they are apt to get mad when you
+fire at their little ones.  Next time you must recollect to take
+the big bear into account."
+
+I need not tell you that the Sons of the Vikings became great
+heroes when the rumor of their bear hunt was noised abroad
+through the valley.  But, for all that, they determined to
+disband their brotherhood.  Wolf-in-the-Temple expressed the
+sentiment of all when, at their last meeting, he made a speech,
+in which these words occurred:
+
+"Brothers, the world isn't quite the same now as it was in the
+days when our Viking forefathers spread the terror of their name
+through the South.  We are not so strong as they were, nor so
+hardy.  When we mingle blood, we have to send for a surgeon.  If
+we steal princesses we may go to jail for it--or--or--well--never
+mind--what else may happen.  Heroism isn't appreciated as once it
+was in this country; and I, for one, won't try to be a hero any
+more.  I resign my chieftainship now, when I can do it with
+credit.  Let us all make our bows of adieu as bear hunters; and
+if we don't do anything more in the heroic line it is not because
+we can't, but because we won't."
+
+
+
+PAUL JESPERSEN'S MASQUERADE
+
+There was great excitement in the little Norse town, Bumlebro,
+because there was going to be a masquerade.  Everybody was busy
+inventing the character which he was to represent, and the
+costume in which he was to represent it.
+
+Miss Amelia Norbeck, the apothecary's daughter, had intended to
+be Marie Antoinette, but had to give it up because the silk
+stockings were too dear, although she had already procured the
+beauty-patches and the powdered wig.
+
+Miss Arctander, the judge's daughter, was to be Night, in black
+tulle, spangled with silver stars, and Miss Hanna Broby was to be
+Morning, in white tulle and pink roses.
+
+There had never BEEN a masquerade in Bumlebro, and there would
+not have been one now, if it had not been for the enterprise of
+young Arctander and young Norbeck, who had just returned from the
+military academy in the capital, and were anxious to exhibit
+themselves to the young girls in their glory.
+
+Of course, they could not afford to be exclusive, for there were
+but twenty or thirty families in the town that laid any claims to
+gentility, and they had all to be invited in order to fill the
+hall and pay the bills.  Thus it came to pass that Paul
+Jespersen, the book-keeper in the fish-exporting firm of Broby &
+Larsen, received a card, although, to be sure, there had been a
+long debate in the committee as to where the line should be
+drawn.
+
+Paul Jespersen was uncommonly elated when he read the invitation,
+which was written on a gilt-edged card, requesting the pleasure
+of Mr. Jespersen's company at a bal masque Tuesday, January 3d,
+in the Association Hall.
+
+"The pleasure of his company!"
+
+Think of it!  He felt so flattered that he blushed to the tips of
+his ears.  It must have been Miss Clara Broby who had induced
+them to be so polite to him, for those insolent cadets, who only
+nodded patronizingly to him in response to his deferential
+greeting, would never have asked for "the pleasure of his
+company."
+
+Having satisfied himself on this point, Paul went to call upon
+Miss Clara in the evening, in order to pay her some compliment
+and consult her in regard to his costume; but Miss Clara, as it
+happened, was much more interested in her own costume than in
+that of Mr. Jespersen, and offered no useful suggestions.
+
+"What character would you advise me to select, Mr. Jespersen?" 
+she inquired, sweetly.  "My sister Hanna, you know, is going to
+be Morning, so I can't be that, and it seems to me Morning would
+have suited me just lovely."
+
+"Go as Beauty," suggested Mr. Jespersen, blushing at the thought
+of his audacity.
+
+"So I will, Mr. Jespersen," she answered, laughing, "if you will
+go as the Beast."
+
+Paul, being a simple-hearted fellow, failed to see any sarcasm in
+this, but interpreted it rather as a hint that Miss Clara desired
+his escort, as Beauty, of course, only would be recognizable in
+her proper character by the presence of the Beast.
+
+"I shall be delighted, Miss Clara," he said, beaming with
+pleasure.  "If you will be my Beauty, I'll be your Beast."
+
+Miss Clara did not know exactly how to take this, and was rather
+absent-minded during the rest of the interview.  She had been
+chaffing Mr. Jespersen, of course, but she did not wish to be
+absolutely rude to him, because he was her father's employee,
+and, as she often heard her father say, a very valuable and
+trustworthy young man.
+
+When Paul got home he began at once to ponder upon his character
+as Beast, and particularly as Miss Clara's Beast.  It occurred to
+him that his uncle, the furrier, had an enormous bear-skin, with
+head, eyes, claws, and all that was necessary, and without delay
+he went to try it on.
+
+His uncle, feeling that this event was somehow to redound to the
+credit of the family, agreed to make the necessary alterations at
+a trifling cost, and when the night of the masquerade arrived,
+Paul was so startled at his appearance that he would have run
+away from himself if such a thing had been possible.  He had
+never imagined that he would make such a successful Beast.
+
+By an ingenious contrivance with a string, which he pulled with
+his hand, he was able to move his lower jaw, which, with its red
+tongue and terrible teeth, presented an awful appearance.  By
+patching the skin a little behind, his head was made to fit
+comfortably into the bear's head, and his mild blue eyes looked
+out of the holes from which the bear's eyes had been removed. 
+The skin was laced with thin leather thongs from the neck down,
+but the long, shaggy fur made the lacing invisible.
+
+Paul Jespersen practiced ursine behavior before the looking-glass
+for about half an hour.  Then, being uncomfortably warm, he
+started down-stairs, and determined to walk to the Association
+Hall.  He chuckled to himself at the thought of the sensation he
+would make, if he should happen to meet anybody on the road.
+
+Having never attended a masquerade before, he did not know that
+dressing-rooms were provided for the maskers, and, being averse
+to needless expenditure, he would as soon have thought of flying
+as of taking a carriage.  There was, in fact, but one carriage on
+runners in the town, and that was already engaged by half a dozen
+parties.
+
+The moon was shining faintly upon the snow, and there was a sharp
+frost in the air when Paul Jespersen put his hairy head out of
+the street-door and reconnoitred the territory.
+
+There was not a soul to be seen, except an old beggar woman who
+was hobbling along, supporting herself with two sticks.  Paul
+darted, as quickly as his unwieldly bulk would allow, into the
+middle of the street.  He enjoyed intensely the fun of walking
+abroad in such a monstrous guise.  He contemplated with boyish
+satisfaction his shadow which stretched, long and black and
+horrible, across the snow.
+
+It was a bit slippery, and he had to manoeuvre carefully in order
+to keep right side up.  Presently he caught up with the beggar
+woman.
+
+"Good-evening!"  he said.
+
+The old woman turned about, stared at him horror-stricken; then,
+as soon as she had collected her senses, took to her heels,
+yelling at the top of her voice.  A big mastiff, who had just
+been let loose for the night, began to bark angrily in a back
+yard, and a dozen comrades responded from other yards, and came
+bounding into the street.
+
+"Hello!"  thought Paul Jespersen.  "Now look out for trouble."
+
+He felt anything but hilarious when he saw the pack of angry dogs
+dancing and leaping about him, barking in a wildly discordant
+chorus.
+
+"Why, Hector, you fool, don't you know me?" he said, coaxingly,
+to the judge's mastiff.  "And you, Sultan, old man!  You ought to
+be ashamed of yourself!  Here, Caro, that's a good fellow! Come,
+now, don't excite yourself!"
+
+But Hector, Sultan, and Caro were all proof against such
+blandishments, and as for Bismarck, the apothecary's collie, he
+grew every moment more furious, and showed his teeth in a very
+uncomfortable fashion.
+
+To defend one's self was not to be thought of, for what defence
+is possible to a sham bear against a dozen genuine dogs?  Paul
+could use neither his teeth nor his claws to any purpose, while
+the dogs could use theirs, as he presently discovered, with
+excellent effect.
+
+He had just concluded to seek safety in flight, when suddenly he
+felt a bite in his left calf, and saw the brute Bismarck tug away
+at his leg as if it had been a mutton-chop.  He had scarcely
+recovered from this surprise when he heard a sharp report, and a
+bullet whizzed away over his head, after having neatly put a hole
+through the right ear.  Paul concluded, with reason, that things
+were getting serious.
+
+If he could only get hold of that blockhead, the judge's groom,
+who was violating the law about fire-arms, he would give him an
+exhibition in athletics which he would not soon forget; but,
+being for the moment deprived of this pleasure, he knew of
+nothing better to do than to dodge through the nearest
+street-door, and implore the protection of the very first
+individual he might meet.
+
+It so happened that Paul selected the house of two middle-aged
+milliners for this experiment.
+
+Jemina and Malla Hansen were just seated at the table drinking
+tea with their one constant visitor, the post-office clerk,
+Mathias, when, all of a sudden, they heard a tremendous racket in
+the hall, and the furious barking of dogs.
+
+With a scream of fright, the two old maids jumyed up, dropping
+their precious tea-cups, and old Mathias, who had tipped his
+chair a little backward, lost his balance, and pointed his heels
+toward the ceiling.  Before he had time to pick himself up the
+door was burst open and a great hairy monster sprang into the
+room.
+
+"Mercy upon us!"  cried Jemina.  "It is the devil!"
+
+But now came the worst of it all.  The bear put his paw on his
+heart, and with the politest bow in the world, remarked:
+
+"Pardon me, ladies, if I intrude."
+
+He had meant to say more, but his audience had vanished; only the
+flying tails of Mathias's coat were seen, as he slammed the door
+on them, in his precipitate flight.
+
+"Police!  police!"  someone shouted out of the window of the
+adjoining room.
+
+Police!  Now, with all due respect for the officers of the law,
+Paul Jespersen had no desire to meet them at the present moment. 
+To be hauled up at the station-house and fined for street
+disorder--nay, perhaps be locked up for the night, if, as was
+more than likely, the captain of police was at the masquerade,
+was not at all to Paul's taste.  Anything rather than that!  He
+would be the laughing stock of the whole town if, after his
+elaborate efforts, he were to pass the night in a cell, instead
+of dancing with Miss Clara Broby.
+
+Hearing the cry for police repeated, Paul looked about him for
+some means of escape.  It occurred to him that he had seen a
+ladder in the hall leading up to the loft.  There he could easily
+hide himself until the crowd had dispersed.
+
+Without further reflection, he rushed out through the door by
+which he had entered, climbed the ladder, thrust open a
+trap-door, and, to his astonishment, found himself under the
+wintry sky.
+
+The roof sloped steeply, and he had to balance carefully in order
+to avoid sliding down into the midst of the noisy mob of dogs and
+street-boys who were laying siege to the door.
+
+With the utmost caution he crawled along the roof-tree, trembling
+lest he should be discovered by some lynx-eyed villain in the
+throng of his pursuers.  Happily, the broad brick chimney
+afforded him some shelter, of which he was quick to take
+advantage.  Rolling himself up into the smallest possible
+compass, he sat for a long time crouching behind the chimney;
+while the police were rummaging under the beds and in the closets
+of the house, in the hope of finding him.
+
+He had, of course, carefully closed the trap-door by which he had
+reached the comparative safety of his present position; and he
+could not help chuckling to himself at the thought of having
+outwitted the officers of the law.
+
+The crowd outside, after having made night hideous by their
+whoops and yells, began, at the end of an hour, to grow weary;
+and the dogs being denied entrance to the house, concluded that
+they had no further business there, and slunk off to their
+respective kennels.
+
+The people, too, scattered, and only a few patient loiterers hung
+about the street door, hoping for fresh developments.  It seemed
+useless to Paul to wait until these provoking fellows should take
+themselves away.  They were obviously prepared to make a night of
+it, and time was no object to them.
+
+It was then that Paul, in his despair, resolved upon a daring
+stratagem.  Mr. Broby's house was in the same block as that of
+the Misses Hansen, only it was at the other end of the block.  By
+creeping along the roof-trees of the houses, which, happily,
+differed but slightly in height, he could reach the Broby house,
+where, no doubt, Miss Clara was now waiting for him, full of
+impatience.
+
+He did not deliberate long before testing the practicability of
+this plan.  The tanner Thoresen's house was reached without
+accident, although he barely escaped being detected by a small
+boy who was amusing himself throwing snow-balls at the chimney. 
+It was a slow and wearisome mode of locomotion--pushing himself
+forward on his belly; but, as long as the streets were deserted,
+it was a pretty safe one.
+
+He gave a start whenever he heard a dog bark; for the echoes of
+the ear-splitting concert they had given him were yet ringing in
+his brain.
+
+It was no joke being a bear, he thought, and if he had suspected
+that it was such a serious business, he would not so rashly have
+undertaken it.  But now there was no way of getting out of it;
+for he had nothing on but his underclothes under the bear-skin.
+
+At last he reached the Broby house, and drew a sigh of relief at
+the thought that he was now at the end of his journey.
+
+He looked about him for a trap-door by which he could descend
+into the interior, but could find none.  There was an inch of
+snow on the roof, glazed with frost: and if there was a
+trap-door, it was securely hidden.
+
+To jump or slide down was out of the question, for he would, in
+that case, risk breaking his neck.  If he cried for help, the
+groom, who was always ready with his gun, might take a fancy to
+shoot at him; and that would be still more unpleasant.  It was a
+most embarrassing situation.
+
+Paul's eyes fell upon a chimney; and the thought flashed through
+his head that there was the solution of the difficulty.  He
+observed that no smoke was coming out of it, so that he would run
+no risk of being converted into smoked ham during the descent.
+
+He looked down through the long, black tunnel.  It was a great,
+spacious, old-fashioned chimney, and abundantly wide enough for
+his purpose.
+
+A pleasant sound of laughter and merry voices came to him from
+the kitchen below.  It was evident the girls were having a
+frolic.  So, without further ado, Paul Jespersen stuffed his
+great hairy bulk into the chimney and proceeded to let himself
+down.
+
+There were notches and iron rings in the brick wall, evidently
+put there for the convenience of the chimney-sweeps; and he found
+his task easier than he had anticipated.  The soot, to be sure,
+blinded his eyes, but where there was nothing to be seen, that
+was no serious disadvantage.
+
+In fact, everything was going as smoothly as possible, when
+suddenly he heard a girl's voice cry out:
+
+"Gracious goodness!  what is that in the chimney?"
+
+"Probably the chimney-sweep," a man's voice answered.
+
+"Chimney-sweep at this time of night!"
+
+Paul, bracing himself against the walls, looked down and saw a
+cluster of anxious faces all gazing up toward him.  A candle
+which one of the girls held in her hand showed him that the
+distance down to the hearth was but short; so, to make an end of
+their uncertainty, he dropped himself down--quietly, as he
+thought, but by the force of his fall blowing the ashes about in
+all directions.
+
+A chorus of terrified screams greeted him.  One girl fainted, one
+leaped up on a table, and the rest made for the door.
+
+And there sat poor Paul, in the ashes on the hearth, utterly
+bewildered by the consternation he had occasioned.  He picked
+himself up by and by, rubbed the soot out of his eyes with the
+backs of his paws, and crawled out upon the floor.
+
+He had just managed to raise himself upon his hind-legs, when an
+awful apparition became visible in the door, holding a candle. 
+It was now Paul's turn to be frightened.  The person who stood
+before him bore a close resemblance to the devil.
+
+"What is all this racket about?"  he cried, in a tone of
+authority.
+
+Paul felt instantly relieved, for the voice was that of his
+revered chief, Mr. Broby, who, he now recollected, was to figure
+at the masquerade as Mephistopheles.  Behind him peeped forth the
+faces of his two daughters, one as Morning and the other as
+Spring.
+
+"May I ask what is the cause of this unseemly noise?"  repeated
+Mr. Broby, advancing to the middle of the room.  The light of his
+candle now fell upon the huge bear whom, after a slight start, he
+recognized as a masker.
+
+"Excuse me, Mr. Broby," said Paul, "but Miss Clara did me the
+honor----"
+
+"Oh yes, papa," Miss Clara interrupted him, stepping forth in all
+her glory of tulle and flowers; "it is Paul Jespersen, who was
+going to be my Beast."
+
+"And it is you who have frightened my servants half out of their
+wits, Jespersen?"  said Mr. Broby, laughing.
+
+"He tumbled down through the chimney, sir," declared the cook,
+who had half-recovered from her fright.
+
+"Well," said Mr. Broby, with another laugh, "I admit that was a
+trifle unconventional.  Next time you call, Jespersen, you must
+come through the door."
+
+He thought Jespersen had chosen to play a practical joke on the
+servants, and, though he did not exactly like it, he was in no
+mood for scolding.  After having been carefully brushed and
+rolled in the snow, Paul offered his escort to Miss Clara; and
+she had not the heart to tell him that she was not at all Beauty,
+but Spring.  And Paul was not enough of an expert to know the
+difference.
+
+
+
+LADY CLARE
+THE STORY OF A HORSE
+
+The king was dead, and among the many things he left behind him
+which his successor had no use for were a lot of fancy horses. 
+There were long-barrelled English hunters, all legs and neck;
+there were Kentucky racers, graceful, swift, and strong; and two
+Arabian steeds, which had been presented to his late majesty by
+the Sultan of Turkey.  To see the beautiful beasts prancing and
+plunging, as they were being led through the streets by grooms in
+the royal livery, was enough to make the blood dance in the veins
+of any lover of horse-flesh.  And to think that they were being
+led ignominiously to the auction mart to be sold under the
+hammer--knocked down to the highest bidder!  It was a sin and a
+shame surely!  And they seemed to feel it themselves; and that
+was the reason they acted so obstreperously, sometimes lifting
+the grooms off their feet as they reared and snorted and struck
+sparks with their steel-shod hoofs from the stone pavement.
+
+Among the crowd of schoolboys who followed the equine procession,
+shrieking and yelling with glee and exciting the horses by their
+wanton screams, was a handsome lad of fourteen, named Erik
+Carstens.  He had fixed his eyes admiringly on a coal-black,
+four-year-old mare, a mere colt, which brought up the rear of the
+procession.  How exquisitely she was fashioned!  How she danced
+over the ground with a light mazurka step, as if she were shod
+with gutta-percha and not with iron!  And then she had a head so
+daintily shaped, small and spirited, that it was a joy to look at
+her.  Erik, who, in spite of his youth, was not a bad judge of a
+horse, felt his heart beat like a trip-hammer, and a mighty
+yearning took possession of him to become the owner of that mare.
+
+Though he knew it was time for dinner he could not tear himself
+away, but followed the procession up one street and down another,
+until it stopped at the horse market.  There a lot of jockeys and
+coarse-looking dealers were on hand; and an opportunity was
+afforded them to try the horses before the auction began.  They
+forced open the mouths of the beautiful animals, examined their
+teeth, prodded them with whips to see if they were gentle, and
+poked them with their fingers or canes.  But when a loutish
+fellow, in a brown corduroy suit, indulged in that kind of
+behavior toward the black mare she gave a resentful whinny and
+without further ado grabbed him with her teeth by the coat
+collar, lifted him up and shook him as if he had been a bag of
+straw.  Then she dropped him in the mud, and raised her dainty
+head with an air as if to say that she held him to be beneath
+contempt.  The fellow, however, was not inclined to put up with
+that kind of treatment.  With a volley of oaths he sprang up and
+would have struck the mare in the mouth with his clinched fist,
+if Erik had not darted forward and warded off the blow.
+
+"How dare you strike that beautiful creature?" he cried,
+indignantly.
+
+"Hold your jaw, you gosling, or I'll hit you instead," retorted
+the man.
+
+But by that time one of the royal grooms had made his appearance
+and the brute did not dare carry out his threat.  While the groom
+strove to quiet the mare, a great tumult arose in some other part
+of the market-place.  There was a whinnying, plunging, rearing,
+and screaming, as if the whole field had gone mad.  The black
+mare joined in the concert, and stood with her ears pricked up
+and her head raised in an attitude of panicky expectation.  Quite
+fearlessly Erik walked up to her, patted her on the neck and
+spoke soothingly to her.
+
+"Look out," yelled the groom, "or she'll trample you to jelly!"
+
+But instead of that, the mare rubbed her soft nose against the
+boy's cheek, with a low, friendly neighing, as if she wished to
+thank him for his gallant conduct.  And at that moment Erik's
+heart went out to that dumb creature with an affection which he
+had never felt toward any living thing before.  He determined,
+whatever might happen, to bid on her and to buy her, whatever she
+might prove to be worth.  He knew he had a few thousand dollars
+in the bank--his inheritance from his mother, who had died when
+he was a baby--and he might, perhaps, be able to persuade his
+father to sanction the purchase.  At any rate, he would have some
+time to invent ways and means; for his father, Captain Carstens,
+was now away on the great annual drill, and would not return for
+some weeks.
+
+As a mere matter of form, he resolved to try the mare before
+bidding on her; and slipping a coin into the groom's hand he
+asked for a saddle.  It turned out, however, that all the saddles
+were in use, and Erik had no choice but to mount bareback.
+
+"Ride her on the snaffle.  She won't stand the curb," shouted the
+groom, as the mare, after plunging to the right and to the left,
+darted through the gate to the track, and, after kicking up a
+vast deal of tan-bark, sped like a bullet down the race-course.
+
+"Good gracious, how recklessly that boy rides!" one jockey
+observed to another; "but he has got a good grip with his knees
+all the same."
+
+"Yes, he sits like a daisy," the second replied, critically; "but
+mind my word, Lady Clare will throw him yet.  She never could
+stand anybody but the princess on her back: and that was the
+reason her Royal Highness was so fond of her.  Mother of Moses,
+won't there be a grand rumpus when she comes back again and finds
+Lady Clare gone!  I should not like to be in the shoes of the man
+who has ordered Lady Clare under the hammer."
+
+"But look at the lad!  I told you Lady Clare wouldn't stand no
+manner of nonsense from boys."
+
+"She is kicking like a Trojan!  She'll make hash of him if he
+loses his seat."
+
+"Yes, but he sticks like a burr.  That's a jewel of a lad, I tell
+ye.  He ought to have been a jockey."
+
+Up the track came Lady Clare, black as the ace of spades, acting
+like the Old Harry.  Something had displeased her, obviously, and
+she held Erik responsible for it.  Possibly she had just waked up
+to the fact that she, who had been the pet of a princess, was now
+being ridden by an ordinary commoner.  At all events, she had
+made up her mind to get rid of the commoner without further
+ceremony.  Putting her fine ears back and dilating her nostrils,
+she suddenly gave a snort and a whisk with her tail, and up went
+her heels toward the eternal stars--that is, if there had been
+any stars visible just then.  Everybody's heart stuck in his
+throat; for fleet-footed racers were speeding round and round,
+and the fellow who got thrown in the midst of all these trampling
+hoofs would have small chance of looking upon the sun again. 
+People instinctively tossed their heads up to see how high he
+would go before coming down again; but, for a wonder, they saw
+nothing, except a cloud of dust mixed with tan-bark, and when
+that had cleared away they discovered the black mare and her
+rider, apparently on the best of terms, dashing up the track at a
+breakneck pace.
+
+Erik was dripping with perspiration when he dismounted, and Lady
+Clare's glossy coat was flecked with foam.  She was not aware,
+apparently, that if she had any reputation to ruin she had
+damaged it most effectually.  Her behavior on the track and her
+treatment of the horse-dealer were by this time common property,
+and every dealer and fancier made a mental note that Lady Clare
+was the number in the catalogue which he would not bid on.  All
+her beauty and her distinguished ancestry counted for nothing, as
+long as she had so uncertain a temper.  Her sire, Potiphar, it
+appeared, had also been subject to the same infirmities of
+temper, and there was a strain of savagery in her blood which
+might crop out when you least expected it.
+
+Accordingly, when a dozen fine horses had been knocked down at
+good prices, and Lady Clare's turn came, no one came forward to
+inspect her, and no one could be found to make a bid.
+
+"Well, well, gentlemen," cried the auctioneer, "here we have a
+beautiful thoroughbred mare, the favorite mount of Her Royal
+Highness the Princess, and not a bid do I hear.  She's a beauty,
+gentlemen, sired by the famous Potiphar who won the Epsom
+Handicap and no end of minor stakes.  Take a look at her,
+gentlemen!  Did you ever see a horse before that was raven black
+from nose to tail?  I reckon you never did.  But such a horse is
+Lady Clare.  The man who can find a single white hair on her can
+have her for a gift.  Come forward, gentlemen, come forward.  Who
+will start her--say at five hundred?"
+
+A derisive laugh ran through the crowd, and a voice was heard to
+cry, "Fifty."
+
+"Fifty!"  repeated the auctioneer, in a deeply grieved and
+injured tone; "fifty did you say, sir? Fifty?  Did I hear
+rightly? I hope, for the sake of the honor of this fair city,
+that my ears deceived me."
+
+Here came a long and impressive pause, during which the
+auctioneer, suddenly abandoning his dramatic manner, chatted
+familiarly with a gentleman who stood near him.  The only one in
+the crowd whom he had impressed with the fact that the honor of
+the city was at stake in this sale was Erik Carstens.  He had
+happily discovered a young and rich lieutenant of his father's
+company, and was trying to persuade him to bid in the mare for
+him.
+
+"But, my dear boy," Lieutenant Thicker exclaimed, "what do you
+suppose the captain will say to me if I aid and abet his son in
+defying the paternal authority?"
+
+"Oh, you needn't bother about that," Erik rejoined eagerly.  "If
+father was at home, I believe he would allow me to buy this mare.
+
+But I am a minor yet, and the auctioneer would not accept my bid.
+
+Therefore I thought you might be kind enough to bid for me."
+
+The lieutenant made no answer, but looked at the earnest face of
+the boy with unmistakable sympathy.  The auctioneer assumed again
+an insulted, affronted, pathetically entreating or scornfully
+repelling tone, according as it suited his purpose; and the price
+of Lady Clare crawled slowly and reluctantly up from fifty to
+seventy dollars.  There it stopped, and neither the auctioneer's
+tears nor his prayers could apparently coax it higher.
+
+"Seventy dollars!"  he cried, as if he were really too shocked to
+speak at all; "seven-ty dollars! Make it eighty!  Oh, it is a sin
+and a shame, gentlemen, and the fair fame of this beautiful city
+is eternally ruined.  It will become a wagging of the head and a
+byword among the nations.  Sev-en-ty dollars!"--then hotly and
+indignantly--"seventy dollars!--fifth and last time, seventy
+dollars!"--here he raised his hammer threateningly--"seventy
+dollars!"
+
+"One hundred!"  cried a high boyish voice, and in an instant
+every neck was craned and every eye was turned toward the corner
+where Erik Carstens was standing, half hidden behind the broad
+figure of Lieutenant Thicker.
+
+"Did I hear a hundred?"  repeated the auctioneer, wonderingly. 
+"May I ask who was the gentleman who said a hundred?"
+
+An embarrassing silence followed.  Erik knew that if he
+acknowledged the bid he would suffer the shame of having it
+refused.  But his excitement and his solicitude for the fair fame
+of his native city had carried him away so completely that the
+words had escaped from his lips before he was fully aware of
+their import.
+
+"May I ask," repeated the wielder of the hammer, slowly and
+emphatically, "may I ask the gentleman who offered one hundred
+dollars for Lady Clare to come forward and give his name?"
+
+He now looked straight at Erik, who blushed to the edge of his
+hair, but did not stir from the spot.  From sheer embarrassment
+he clutched the lieutenant's arm, and almost pinched it.
+
+"Oh, I beg your pardon," the officer exclaimed, addressing the
+auctioneer, as if he had suddenly been aroused from a fit of
+abstraction; "I made the bid of one hundred dollars, or--or--at
+any rate, I make it now."
+
+The same performance, intended to force up the price, was
+repeated once more, but with no avail, and at the end of two
+minutes Lady Clare was knocked down to Lieutenant Thicker.
+
+"Now I have gone and done it like the blooming idiot that I am,"
+observed the lieutenant, when Lady Clare was led into his stable
+by a liveried groom.  "What an overhauling the captain will give
+me when he gets home."
+
+"You need have no fear," Erik replied.  "I'll sound father as
+soon as he gets home; and if he makes any trouble I'll pay you
+that one hundred dollars, with interest, the day I come of age."
+
+Well, the captain came home, and having long had the intention to
+present his son with a saddle-horse, he allowed himself to be
+cajoled into approving of the bargain.  The mare was an exquisite
+creature, if ever there was one, and he could well understand how
+Erik had been carried away; Lieutenant Thicker, instead of being
+hauled over the coals, as he had expected, received thanks for
+his kind and generous conduct toward the son of his superior
+officer.  As for Erik himself, he had never had any idea that a
+boy's life could be so glorious as his was now.  Mounted on that
+splendid, coal-black mare, he rode through the city and far out
+into the country at his father's side; and never did it seem to
+him that he had loved his father so well as he did during these
+afternoon rides.  The captain was far from suspecting that in
+that episode of the purchase of Lady Clare his own relation to
+his son had been at stake.  Not that Erik would not have obeyed
+his father, even if he had turned out his rough side and taken
+the lieutenant to task for his kindness; but their relation would
+in that case have lacked the warm intimacy (which in nowise
+excludes obedience and respect) and that last touch of devoted
+admiration which now bound them together.
+
+That fine touch of sympathy in the captain's disposition which
+had enabled him to smile indulgently at his son's enthusiasm for
+the horse made the son doubly anxious not to abuse such kindness,
+and to do everything in his power to deserve the confidence which
+made his life so rich and happy.  Though, as I have said, Captain
+Carstens lacked the acuteness to discover how much he owed to
+Lady Clare, he acknowledged himself in quite a different way her
+debtor.  He had never really been aware what a splendid specimen
+of a boy his son was until he saw him on the back of that
+spirited mare, which cut up with him like the Old Harry, and yet
+never succeeded in flurrying, far less in unseating him.  The
+captain felt a glow of affection warming his breast at the sight
+of this, and his pride in Erik's horsemanship proved a
+consolation to him when the boy's less distinguished performances
+at school caused him fret and worry.
+
+"A boy so full of pluck must amount to something, even if he does
+not take kindly to Latin," he reflected many a time.  "I am
+afraid I have made a mistake in having him prepared for college. 
+In the army now, and particularly in the cavalry, he would make a
+reputation in twenty minutes."
+
+And a cavalryman Erik might, perhaps, have become if his father
+had not been transferred to another post, and compelled to take
+up his residence in the country.  It was nominally a promotion,
+but Captain Carstens was ill pleased with it, and even had some
+thought of resigning rather than give up his delightful city
+life, and move far northward into the region of cod and herring. 
+However, he was too young a man to retire on a pension, as yet,
+and so he gradually reconciled himself to the thought, and sailed
+northward in the month of April with his son and his entire
+household.  It had long been a question whether Lady Clare should
+make the journey with them; for Captain Carstens maintained that
+so high-bred an animal would be very sensitive to climatic
+changes and might even die on the way.  Again, he argued that it
+was an absurdity to bring so fine a horse into a rough country,
+where the roads are poor and where nature, in mercy, provides all
+beasts with rough, shaggy coats to protect them from the cold. 
+How would Lady Clare, with her glossy satin coat, her slender
+legs that pirouetted so daintily over the ground, and her
+exquisite head, which she carried so proudly--how would she look
+and what kind of figure would she cut among the shaggy, stunted,
+sedate-looking nags of the Sognefiord district?  But the captain,
+though what he said was irrefutable, had to suspend all argument
+when he saw how utterly wretched Erik became at the mere thought
+of losing Lady Clare.  So he took his chances; and, after having
+ordered blankets of three different thicknesses for three
+different kinds of weather, shipped the mare with the rest of his
+family for his new northern home.
+
+As the weather proved unusually mild during the northward voyage
+Lady Clare arrived in Sogn without accident or adventure.  And
+never in all her life had she looked more beautiful than she did
+when she came off the steamer, and half the population of the
+valley turned out to see her.  It is no use denying that she was
+as vain as any other professional beauty, and the way she danced
+and pirouetted on the gangplank, when Erik led her on to the
+pier, filled the rustics with amazement.  They had come to look
+at the new captain and his family; but when Lady Clare appeared
+she eclipsed the rest of the company so completely that no one
+had eyes for anybody but her.  As the sun was shining and the
+wind was mild, Erik had taken off her striped overcoat (which
+covered her from nose to tail), for he felt in every fibre of his
+body the sensation she was making, and blushed with pleasure as
+if the admiring exclamations had been intended for himself.
+
+"Look at that horse," cried young and old, with eyes as big as
+saucers, pointing with their fingers at Lady Clare.
+
+"Handsome carcass that mare has," remarked a stoutish man, who
+knew what he was talking about; "and head and legs to match."
+
+"She beats your Valders-Roan all hollow, John Garvestad," said a
+young tease who stood next to him in the crowd.
+
+"My Valders-Roan has never seen his match yet, and never will,
+according to my reckoning," answered John Garvestad.
+
+"Ho!  ho!"  shouted the young fellow, with a mocking laugh; "that
+black mare is a hand taller at the very least, and I bet you
+she's a high-flyer.  She has got the prettiest legs I ever
+clapped eyes on."
+
+"They'd snap like clay pipes in the mountains," replied
+Garvestad, contemptuously.
+
+Erik, as he blushingly ascended the slope to his new home,
+leading Lady Clare by a halter, had no suspicion of the
+sentiments which she had aroused in John Garvestad's breast.  He
+was only blissfully conscious of the admiration she had excited;
+and he promised himself a good deal of fun in future in showing
+off his horsemanship.  He took Lady Clare to the stable, where a
+new box-stall had been made for her, examined the premises
+carefully and nailed a board over a crevice in the wall where he
+suspected a draught.  He instructed Anders, the groom, with
+emphatic and anxious repetitions regarding her care, showed him
+how to make Lady Clare's bed, how to comb her mane, how to brush
+her (for she refused to endure currying), how to blanket her, and
+how to read the thermometer which he nailed to one of the posts
+of the stall.  The latter proved to be a more difficult task than
+he had anticipated; and the worst of it was that he was not sure
+that Anders knew any more on the subject of his instruction at
+the end of the lesson than he had at the beginning.  To make sure
+that he had understood him he asked him to enter the stall and
+begin the process of grooming.  But no sooner had the unhappy
+fellow put his nose inside the door than Lady Clare laid back her
+ears in a very ugly fashion, and with a vicious whisk of her tail
+waltzed around and planted two hoof-marks in the door, just where
+the groom's nose had that very instant vanished.  A second and a
+third trial had similar results; and as the box-stall was new and
+of hard wood, Erik had no wish to see it further damaged.
+
+"I won't have nothin' to do with that hoss, that's as certain as
+my name is Anders," the groom declared; and Erik, knowing that
+persuasion would be useless, had henceforth to be his own groom. 
+The fact was he could not help sympathizing with that
+fastidiousness of Lady Clare which made her object to be handled
+by coarse fingers and roughly curried, combed, and washed like a
+common plebeian nag.  One does not commence life associating with
+a princess for nothing.  Lady Clare, feeling in every nerve her
+high descent and breeding, had perhaps a sense of having come
+down in the world, and, like many another irrational creature of
+her sex, she kicked madly against fate and exhibited the
+unloveliest side of her character.  But with all her skittishness
+and caprice she was steadfast in one thing, and that was her love
+for Erik.  As the days went by in country monotony, he began to
+feel it as a privilege rather than a burden to have the exclusive
+care of her.  The low, friendly neighing with which she always
+greeted him, as soon as he opened the stable-door, was as
+intelligible and dear to him as the warm welcome of a friend. 
+And when with dainty alertness she lifted her small, beautiful
+head, over which the fine net-work of veins meandered, above the
+top of the stall, and rubbed her nose caressingly against his
+cheek, before beginning to snuff at his various pockets for the
+accustomed lump of sugar, he felt a glow of affection spread from
+his heart and pervade his whole being.  Yes, he loved this
+beautiful animal with a devotion which, a year ago, he would
+scarcely have thought it possible to bestow upon a horse.  No one
+could have persuaded him that Lady Clare had not a soul which
+(whether it was immortal or not) was, at all events, as distinct
+and clearly defined as that of any person with whom he was
+acquainted.  She was to him a personality--a dear, charming
+friend, with certain defects of character (as who has not?) which
+were, however, more than compensated for by her devotion to him. 
+She was fastidious, quick-tempered, utterly unreasonable where
+her feelings were involved; full of aristocratic prejudice, which
+only her sex could excuse; and whimsical, proud, and capricious. 
+It was absurd, of course, to contend that these qualities were in
+themselves admirable; but, on the other hand, few of us would not
+consent to overlook them in a friend who loved us as well as Lady
+Clare loved Erik.
+
+The fame of Lady Clare spread through the parish like fire in
+withered grass.  People came from afar to look at her, and
+departed full of wonder at her beauty.  When the captain and his
+son rode together to church on Sunday morning, men, women, and
+children stood in rows at the roadside staring at the wonderful
+mare as if she had been a dromedary or a rhinoceros.  And when
+she was tied in the clergyman's stable a large number of the men
+ignored the admonition of the church bells and missed the sermon,
+being unable to tear themselves away from Lady Clare's charms. 
+But woe to him who attempted to take liberties with her; there
+were two or three horsy young men who had narrow escapes from
+bearing the imprint of her iron shoes for the rest of their days.
+
+That taught the others a lesson, and now Lady Clare suffered from
+no annoying familiarities, but was admired at a respectful
+distance, until the pastor, vexed at her rivalry with his sermon,
+issued orders to have the stable-door locked during service.
+
+There was one person besides the pastor who was ill pleased at
+the reputation Lady Clare was making.  That was John Garvestad,
+the owner of Valders-Roan.  John was the richest man in the
+parish, and always made a point of keeping fine horses. 
+Valders-Roan, a heavily built, powerful horse, with a tremendous
+neck and chest and long tassels on his fetlocks, but rather squat
+in the legs, had hitherto held undisputed rank as the finest
+horse in all Sogn.  By the side of Lady Clare he looked as a
+stout, good-looking peasant lad with coltish manners might have
+looked by the side of the daughter of a hundred earls.
+
+But John Garvestad, who was naturally prejudiced in favor of his
+own horse, could scarcely be blamed for failing to recognize her
+superiority.  He knew that formerly, on Sundays, the men were
+wont to gather with admiring comment about Valders-Roan; while
+now they stood craning their necks, peering through the windows
+of the parson's stable, in order to catch a glimpse of Lady
+Clare, and all the time Valders-Roan was standing tied to the
+fence, in full view of all, utterly neglected.  This spectacle
+filled him with such ire that he hardly could control himself. 
+His first impulse was to pick a quarrel with Erik; but a second
+and far brighter idea presently struck him.  He would buy Lady
+Clare.  Accordingly, when the captain and his son had mounted
+their horses and were about to start on their homeward way,
+Garvestad, putting Valders-Roan to his trumps, dug his heels into
+his sides and rode up with a great flourish in front of the
+churchyard gate.
+
+"How much will you take for that mare of yours, captain?"  he
+asked, as he checked his charger with unnecessary vigor close to
+Lady Clare.
+
+"She is not mine to sell," the captain replied.  "Lady Clare
+belongs to my son."
+
+"Well, what will you take for her, then?"  Garvestad repeated,
+swaggeringly, turning to Erik.
+
+"Not all the gold in the world could buy her," retorted Erik,
+warmly.
+
+Valders-Roan, unable to resist the charms of Lady Clare, had in
+the meanwhile been making some cautious overtures toward an
+acquaintance.  He arched his mighty neck, rose on his hind legs,
+while his tremendous forehoofs were beating the air, and cut up
+generally--all for Lady Clare's benefit.
+
+She, however, having regarded his performances for awhile with a
+mild and somewhat condescending interest, grew a little tired of
+them and looked out over the fiord, as a belle might do, with a
+suppressed yawn, when her cavalier fails to entertain her. 
+Valders-Roan, perceiving the slight, now concluded to make more
+decided advances.  So he put forward his nose until it nearly
+touched Lady Clare's, as if he meant to kiss her.  But that was
+more than her ladyship was prepared to put up with.  Quick as a
+flash she flung herself back on her haunches, down went her ears,
+and hers was the angriest horse's head that ever had been seen in
+that parish.  With an indignant snort she wheeled around, kicking
+up a cloud of dust by the suddenness of the manoeuvre.  A less
+skilled rider than Erik would inevitably have been thrown by two
+such unforeseen jerks; and the fact was he had all he could do to
+keep his seat.
+
+"Oho!"  shouted Garvestad, "your mare shies; she'll break your
+neck some day, as likely as not.  You had better sell her before
+she gets you into trouble."
+
+"But I shouldn't like to have your broken neck on my conscience,"
+Erik replied; "if necks are to be broken by Lady Clare I should
+prefer to have it be my own."
+
+The peasant was not clever enough to make out whether this was
+jest or earnest.  With a puzzled frown he stared at the youth and
+finally broke out:
+
+"Then you won't sell her at no price?  Anyway, the day you change
+your mind don't forget to notify John Garvestad.  If it's
+spondulix you are after, then here's where there's plenty of
+'em."
+
+He slapped his left breast-pocket with a great swagger, looking
+around to observe the impression he was making on his audience;
+then, jerking the bridle violently, so as to make his horse rear,
+he rode off like Alexander on Bucephalus, and swung down upon the
+highway.
+
+It was but a few weeks after this occurrence that Captain
+Carstens and his son were invited to honor John Garvestad by
+their presence at his wedding.  They were in doubt, at first, as
+to whether they ought to accept the invitation; for some
+unpleasant rumors had reached them, showing that Garvestad
+entertained unfriendly feelings toward them.  He was an intensely
+vain man; and the thought that Erik Carstens had a finer horse
+than Valders-Roan left him no peace.  He had been heard to say
+repeatedly that, if that high-nosed youth persisted in his
+refusal to sell the mare, he would discover his mistake when,
+perhaps, it would be too late to have it remedied.  Whatever that
+meant, it sufficed to make both Erik and his father uneasy.  But,
+on the other hand, it would be the worst policy possible, under
+such circumstances, to refuse the invitation.  For that would be
+interpreted either as fear or as aristocratic exclusiveness; and
+the captain, while he was new in the district, was as anxious to
+avoid the appearance of the one as of the other.  Accordingly he
+accepted the invitation and on the appointed day rode with his
+son into the wide yard of John Garvestad's farm, stopping at the
+pump, where they watered their horses.  It was early in the
+afternoon, and both the house and the barn were thronged with
+wedding-guests.  From the sitting-room the strains of two fiddles
+were heard, mingled with the scraping and stamping of heavy feet.
+
+Another musical performance was in progress in the barn; and all
+over the yard elderly men and youths were standing in smaller and
+larger groups, smoking their pipes and tasting the beer-jugs,
+which were passed from hand to hand.  But the moment Lady Clare
+was seen all interest in minor concerns ceased, and with one
+accord the crowd moved toward her, completely encircling her, and
+viewing her with admiring glances that appreciated all her
+perfections.
+
+"Did you ever see cleaner-shaped legs on a horse?"  someone was
+heard to say, and instantly his neighbor in the crowd joined the
+chorus of praise, and added: "What a snap and spring there is in
+every bend of her knee and turn of her neck and flash of her
+eye!"
+
+It was while this chorus of admiration was being sung in all keys
+and tones of the whole gamut, that the bridegroom came out of the
+house, a little bit tipsy, perhaps, from the many toasts he had
+been obliged to drink, and bristling with pugnacity to the ends
+of his fingers and the tips of his hair.  Every word of praise
+that he heard sounded in his ears like a jeer and an insult to
+himself.  With ruthless thrusts he elbowed his way through the
+throng of guests and soon stood in front of the two horses, from
+which the captain and Erik had not yet had a chance to dismount. 
+He returned their greeting with scant courtesy and plunged
+instantly into the matter which he had on his mind.
+
+"I reckon you have thought better of my offer by this time," he
+said, with a surly swagger, to Erik.  "What do you hold your mare
+at to-day?"
+
+"I thought we had settled that matter once for all," the boy
+replied, quietly.  "I have no more intention of selling Lady
+Clare now than I ever had."
+
+"Then will ye trade her off for Valders-Roan?" ejaculated
+Garvestad, eagerly.
+
+"No, I won't trade her for Valders-Roan or any other horse in
+creation."
+
+"Don't be cantankerous, now, young fellow, or you might repent of
+it."
+
+"I am not cantankerous.  But I beg of you kindly to drop this
+matter.  I came here, at your invitation, as a guest at your
+wedding, not for the purpose of trading horses."
+
+It was an incautious speech, and was interpreted by everyone
+present as a rebuke to the bridegroom for his violation of the
+rules of hospitality.  The captain, anxious to avoid a row,
+therefore broke in, in a voice of friendly remonstrance: "My dear
+Mr. Garvestad, do let us drop this matter.  If you will permit
+us, we should like to dismount and drink a toast to your health,
+wishing you a long life and much happiness."
+
+"Ah, yes, I understand your smooth palaver," the bridegroom
+growled between his teeth.  "I have stood your insolence long
+enough, and, by jingo, I won't stand it much longer.  What will
+ye take for your mare, I say, or how much do you want to boot, if
+you trade her for Valders-Roan?"
+
+He shouted the last words with furious emphasis, holding his
+clinched fist up toward Erik, and glaring at him savagely.
+
+But now Lady Clare, who became frightened perhaps by the loud
+talk and violent gestures, began to rear and plunge, and by an
+unforeseen motion knocked against the bridegroom, so that he fell
+backward into the horse-trough under the pump, which was full of
+water.  The wedding-guests had hardly time to realize what was
+happening when a great splash sent the water flying into their
+faces, and the burly form of John Garvestad was seen sprawling
+helplessly in the horse-trough.  But then--then they realized it
+with a vengeance.  And a laugh went up--a veritable storm of
+laughter--which swept through the entire crowd and re-echoed with
+a ghostly hilarity from the mountains.  John Garvestad in the
+meanwhile had managed to pick himself out of the horse-trough,
+and while he stood snorting, spitting, and dripping, Captain
+Carstens and his son politely lifted their hats to him and rode
+away.  But as they trotted out of the gate they saw their host
+stretch a big clinched fist toward them, and heard him scream
+with hoarse fury: "I'll make ye smart for that some day, so help
+me God!"
+
+Lady Clare was not sent to the mountains in the summer, as are
+nearly all horses in the Norwegian country districts.  She was
+left untethered in an enclosed home pasture about half a mile
+from the mansion.  Here she grazed, rolled, kicked up her heels,
+and gambolled to her heart's content.  During the long, bright
+summer nights, when the sun scarcely dips beneath the horizon and
+reappears in an hour, clothed in the breezy garments of morning,
+she was permitted to frolic, race, and play all sorts of
+improvised games with a shaggy, little, plebeian three-year-old
+colt whom she had condescended to honor with her acquaintance. 
+This colt must have had some fine feeling under his rough coat,
+for he never presumed in the least upon the acquaintance, being
+perhaps aware of the honor it conferred upon him.  He allowed
+himself to be abused, ignored, or petted, as it might suit the
+pleasure of her royal highness, with a patient, even-tempered
+good-nature which was admirable.  When Lady Clare (perhaps for
+fear of making him conceited) took no notice of him, he showed
+neither resentment nor surprise, but walked off with a sheepish
+shake of his head.  Thus he slowly learned the lesson to make no
+exhibition of feeling at the sight of his superior; not to run up
+and greet her with a disrespectfully joyous whinny; but calmly
+wait for her to recognize him before appearing to be aware of her
+presence.  It took Lady Clare several months to accustom Shag
+(for that was the colt's name) to her ways.  She taught him
+unconsciously the rudiments of good manners; but he proved
+himself docile, and when he once had been reduced to his proper
+place he proved a fairly acceptable companion.
+
+During the first and second week after John Garvestad's wedding
+Erik had kept Lady Clare stabled, having a vague fear that the
+angry peasant might intend to do her harm.  But she whinnied so
+pitifully through the long light nights that finally he allowed
+his compassion to get the better of his anxiety, and once more
+she was seen racing madly about the field with Shag, whom she
+always beat so ignominiously that she felt half sorry for him,
+and as a consolation allowed him gently to claw her mane with his
+teeth.  This was a privilege which Shag could not fail to
+appreciate, though she never offered to return the favor by
+clawing him.  At any rate, as soon as Lady Clare reappeared in
+the meadow Shag's cup of bliss seemed to be full.
+
+A week passed in this way, nothing happened, and Erik's vigilance
+was relaxed.  He went to bed on the evening of July 10th with an
+easy mind, without the remotest apprehension of danger.  The sun
+set about ten o'clock, and Lady Clare and Shag greeted its last
+departing rays with a whinny, accompanied by a wanton kickup from
+the rear--for whatever Lady Clare did Shag felt in honor bound to
+do, and was conscious of no disgrace in his abject and ape-like
+imitation.  They had spent an hour, perhaps, in such delightful
+performances, when all of a sudden they were startled by a deep
+bass whinny, which rumbled and shook like distant thunder.  Then
+came the tramp, tramp, tramp of heavy hoof-beats, which made the
+ground tremble.  Lady Clare lifted her beautiful head and looked
+with fearless curiosity in the direction whence the sound came. 
+Shag, of course, did as nearly as he could exactly the same. 
+What they saw was a big roan horse with an enormous arched neck,
+squat feet, and long-tasselled fetlocks.
+
+Lady Clare had no difficulty in recognizing Valders-Roan.  But
+how big and heavy and ominous he looked in the blood-red
+after-glow of the blood-red sunset.  For the first time in her
+life Lady Clare felt a cold shiver of fear run through her. 
+There was, happily, a fence between them, and she devoutly hoped
+that Valders-Roan was not a jumper.  At that moment, however, two
+men appeared next to the huge horse, and Lady Clare heard the
+sound of breaking fence-rails.  The deep hoarse whinny once more
+made the air shake, and it made poor Lady Clare shake too, for
+now she saw Valders-Roan come like a whirlwind over the field,
+and so powerful were his hoof-beats that a clod of earth which
+had stuck to one of his shoes shot like a bullet through the air.
+
+He looked so gigantic, so brimming with restrained strength, and
+somehow Lady Clare, as she stood quaking at the sight of him, had
+never seemed to herself so dainty, frail, and delicate as she
+seemed in this moment.  She felt herself so entirely at his
+mercy; she was no match for him surely.  Shag, anxious as ever to
+take his cue from her, had stationed himself at her side, and
+shook his head and whisked his tail in a non-committal manner. 
+Now Valders-Roan had cleared the fence where the men had broken
+it down; then on he came again, tramp, tramp, tramp, until he was
+within half a dozen paces from Lady Clare.  There he stopped, for
+back went Lady Clare's pretty ears, while she threw herself upon
+her haunches in an attitude of defence.  She was dimly aware that
+this was a foolish thing to do, but her inbred disdain and horror
+of everything rough made her act on instinct instead of reason. 
+Valders-Roan, irritated by this uncalled-for action, now threw
+ceremony to the winds, and without further ado trotted up and
+rubbed his nose against hers.  That was more than Lady Clare
+could stand.  With an hysterical snort she flung herself about,
+and up flew her heels straight into the offending nose,
+inflicting considerable damage.  Shag, being now quite clear that
+the programme was fight, whisked about in exactly the same
+manner, with as close an imitation of Lady Clare's snort as he
+could produce, and a second pair of steel-shod heels came within
+a hair of reducing the enemy's left nostril to the same condition
+as the right.  But alas for the generous folly of youth!  Shag
+had to pay dearly for that exhibition of devotion.  Valders-Roan,
+enraged by this wanton insult, made a dash at Shag, and by the
+mere impetus of his huge bulk nearly knocked him senseless.  The
+colt rolled over, flung all his four legs into the air, and as
+soon as he could recover his footing reeled sideways like a
+drunken man and made haste to retire to a safe distance.
+
+Valders-Roan had now a clear field and could turn his undivided
+attention to Lady Clare.  I am not sure that he had not made an
+example of Shag merely to frighten her.  Bounding forward with
+his mighty chest expanded and the blood dripping from his
+nostrils, he struck out with a tremendous hind leg and would have
+returned Lady Clare's blow with interest if she had not leaped
+high into the air.  She had just managed by her superior
+alertness to dodge that deadly hoof, and was perhaps not prepared
+for an instant renewal of the attack.  But she had barely gotten
+her four feet in contact with the sod when two rows of terrific
+teeth plunged into her withers.  The pain was frightful, and with
+a long, pitiful scream Lady Clare sank down upon the ground, and,
+writhing with agony, beat the air with her hoofs.  Shag, who had
+by this time recovered his senses, heard the noise of the battle,
+and, plucking up his courage, trotted bravely forward against the
+victorious Valders-Roan.  He was so frightened that his heart
+shot up into his throat.  But there lay Lady Clare mangled and
+bleeding.  He could not leave her in the lurch, so forward he
+came, trembling, just as Lady Clare was trying to scramble to her
+feet.  Led away by his sympathy Shag bent his head down toward
+her and thereby prevented her from rising.  And in the same
+instant a stunning blow hit him straight in the forehead, a
+shower of sparks danced before his eyes, and then Shag saw and
+heard no more.  A convulsive quiver ran through his body, then he
+stretched out his neck on the bloody grass, heaved a sigh, and
+died.
+
+Lady Clare, seeing Shag killed by the blow which had been
+intended for herself, felt her blood run cold.  She was strongly
+inclined to run, for she could easily beat the heavy Valders-Roan
+at a race, and her fleet legs might yet save her.  I cannot say
+whether it was a generous wrath at the killing of her humble
+champion or a mere blind fury which overcame this inclination. 
+But she knew now neither pain nor fear.  With a shrill scream she
+rushed at Valders-Roan, and for five minutes a whirling cloud of
+earth and grass and lumps of sod moved irregularly over the
+field, and tails, heads, and legs were seen flung and tossed
+madly about, while an occasional shriek of rage or of pain
+startled the night, and re-echoed with a weird resonance between
+the mountains.
+
+It was about five o'clock in the morning of July 11th, that Erik
+awoke, with a vague sense that something terrible had happened. 
+His groom was standing at his bedside with a terrified face,
+doubtful whether to arouse his young master or allow him to
+sleep.
+
+"What has happened, Anders?"  cried Erik, tumbling out of bed.
+
+"Lady Clare, sir----"
+
+"Lady Clare!"  shouted the boy.  "What about her? Has she been
+stolen?"
+
+"No, I reckon not," drawled Anders.
+
+"Then she's dead!  Quick, tell me what you know or I shall go
+crazy!"
+
+"No; I can't say for sure she's dead either," the groom
+stammered, helplessly.
+
+Erik, being too stunned with grief and pain, tumbled in a dazed
+fashion about the room, and scarcely knew how he managed to
+dress.  He felt cold, shivery, and benumbed; and the daylight had
+a cruel glare in it which hurt his eyes.  Accompanied by his
+groom, he hastened to the home pasture, and saw there the
+evidence of the fierce battle which had raged during the night. 
+A long, black, serpentine track, where the sod had been torn up
+by furious hoof-beats, started from the dead carcass of the
+faithful Shag and moved with irregular breaks and curves up
+toward the gate that connected the pasture with the underbrush of
+birch and alder.  Here the fence had been broken down, and the
+track of the fight suddenly ceased.  A pool of blood had soaked
+into the ground, showing that one of the horses, and probably the
+victor, must have stood still for a while, allowing the
+vanquished to escape.
+
+Erik had no need of being told that the horse which had attacked
+Lady Clare was Valders-Roan; and though he would scarcely have
+been able to prove it, he felt positive that John Garvestad had
+arranged and probably watched the fight.  Having a wholesome
+dread of jail, he had not dared to steal Lady Clare; but he had
+chosen this contemptible method to satisfy his senseless
+jealousy.  It was all so cunningly devised as to baffle legal
+inquiry.  Valders-Roan had gotten astray, and being a heavy
+beast, had broken into a neighbor's field and fought with his
+filly, chasing her away into the mountains.  That was the story
+he would tell, of course, and as there had been no witnesses
+present, there was no way of disproving it.
+
+Abandoning, however, for the time being all thought of revenge,
+Erik determined to bend all his energies to the recovery of Lady
+Clare.  He felt confident that she had run away from her
+assailant, and was now roaming about in the mountains.  He
+therefore organized a search party of all the male servants on
+the estate, besides a couple of volunteers, making in all nine. 
+On the evening of the first day's search they put up at a saeter
+or mountain chalet.  Here they met a young man named Tollef
+Morud, who had once been a groom at John Garvestad's.  This man
+had a bad reputation; and as the idea occurred to some of them
+that he might know something about Lady Clare's disappearance,
+they questioned him at great length, without, however, eliciting
+a single crumb of information.
+
+For a week the search was continued, but had finally to be given
+up.  Weary, footsore, and heavy hearted, Erik returned home.  His
+grief at the loss of Lady Clare began to tell on his health; and
+his perpetual plans for getting even with John Garvestad amounted
+almost to a mania, and caused his father both trouble and
+anxiety.  It was therefore determined to send him to the military
+academy in the capital.
+
+Four or five years passed and Erik became a lieutenant.  It was
+during the first year after his graduation from the military
+academy that he was invited to spend the Christmas holidays with
+a friend, whose parents lived on a fine estate about twenty miles
+from the city.  Seated in their narrow sleighs, which were drawn
+by brisk horses, they drove merrily along, shouting to each other
+to make their voices heard above the jingling of the bells. 
+About eight o'clock in the evening, when the moon was shining
+brightly and the snow sparkling, they turned in at a wayside
+tavern to order their supper.  Here a great crowd of lumbermen
+had congregated, and all along the fences their overworked, half-
+broken-down horses stood, shaking their nose-bags.  The air in
+the public room was so filled with the fumes of damp clothes and
+bad tobacco that Erik and his friend, while waiting for their
+meal, preferred to spend the time under the radiant sky.  They
+were sauntering about, talking in a desultory fashion, when all
+of a sudden a wild, joyous whinny rang out upon the startled air.
+
+It came from a rusty, black, decrepit-looking mare hitched to a
+lumber sleigh which they had just passed.  Erik, growing very
+serious, paused abruptly.
+
+A second whinny, lower than the first, but almost alluring and
+cajoling, was so directly addressed to Erik that he could not
+help stepping up to the mare and patting her on the nose.
+
+"You once had a horse you cared a great deal for, didn't you?" 
+his friend remarked, casually.
+
+"Oh, don't speak about it," answered Erik, in a voice that shook
+with emotion; "I loved Lady Clare as I never loved any creature
+in this world--except my father, of course," he added,
+reflectively.
+
+But what was the matter with the old lumber nag?  At the sound of
+the name Lady Clare she pricked up her ears, and lifted her head
+with a pathetic attempt at alertness.  With a low, insinuating
+neighing she rubbed her nose against the lieutenant's cheek.  He
+had let his hand glide over her long, thin neck, when quite
+suddenly his fingers slid into a deep scar in the withers.
+
+"My God!"  he cried, while the tears started to his eyes, "am I
+awake, or am I dreaming?"
+
+"What in the world is the matter?"  inquired his comrade,
+anxiously.
+
+"It is Lady Clare!  By the heavens, it is Lady Clare!"
+
+"That old ramshackle of a lumber nag whose every rib you can
+count through her skin is your beautiful thoroughbred?" 
+ejaculated his friend, incredulously.  "Come now, don't be a
+goose."
+
+"I'll tell you of it some other time," said Erik, quietly; "but
+there's not a shadow of a doubt that this is Lady Clare."
+
+Yes, strange as it may seem, it was indeed Lady Clare.  But oh,
+who would have recognized in this skeleton, covered with a
+rusty-black skin and tousled mane and forelock in which chaff and
+dirt were entangled--who would have recognized in this drooping
+and rickety creature the proud, the dainty, the exquisite Lady
+Clare?  Her beautiful tail, which had once been her pride, was
+now a mere scanty wisp; and a sharp, gnarled ridge running along
+the entire length of her back showed every vertebra of her spine
+through the notched and scarred skin.  Poor Lady Clare, she had
+seen hard usage.  But now the days of her tribulations are at an
+end.  It did not take Erik long to find the half-tipsy lumberman
+who was Lady Clare's owner; nor to agree with him on the price
+for which he was willing to part with her.
+
+There is but little more to relate.  By interviews and
+correspondence with the different parties through whose hands the
+mare had passed, Erik succeeded in tracing her to Tollef Morud,
+the ex-groom of John Garvestad.  On being promised immunity from
+prosecution, he was induced to confess that he had been hired by
+his former master to arrange the nocturnal fight between Lady
+Clare and Valders-Roan, and had been paid ten dollars for
+stealing the mare when she had been sufficiently damaged.  John
+Garvestad had himself watched the fight from behind the fence,
+and had laughed fit to split his sides, until Valders-Roan seemed
+on the point of being worsted.  Then he had interfered to
+separate them, and Tollef had led Lady Clare away, bleeding from
+a dozen wounds, and had hidden her in a deserted lumberman's shed
+near the saeter where the searchers had overtaken him.
+
+Having obtained these facts, Erik took pains to let John
+Garvestad know that the chain of evidence against him was
+complete, and if he had had his own way he would not have rested
+until his enemy had suffered the full penalty of the law.  But
+John Garvestad, suspecting what was in the young man's mind,
+suddenly divested himself of his pride, and cringing dike a
+whipped dog, came and asked Erik's pardon, entreating him not to
+prosecute.
+
+As for Lady Clare, she never recovered her lost beauty.  A pretty
+fair-looking mare she became, to be sure, when good feeding and
+careful grooming had made her fat and glossy once more.  A long
+and contented old age is, no doubt, in store for her.  Having
+known evil days, she appreciates the blessings which the change
+in her fate has brought her.  The captain declares she is the
+best-tempered and steadiest horse in his stable.
+
+
+
+BONNYBOY
+
+I.
+
+"Oh, you never will amount to anything, Bonnyboy!"  said
+Bonnyboy's father, when he had vainly tried to show him how to
+use a gouge; for Bonnyboy had just succeeded in gouging a piece
+out of his hand, and was standing helplessly, letting his blood
+drop on an engraving of Napoleon at Austerlitz, which had been
+sent to his father for framing.  The trouble with Bonnyboy was
+that he was not only awkward--left-handed in everything he
+undertook, as his father put it--but he was so very good-natured
+that it was impossible to get angry with him.  His large blue
+innocent eyes had a childlike wonder in them, when he had done
+anything particularly stupid, and he was so willing and anxious
+to learn, that his ill-success seemed a reason for pity rather
+than for wrath.  Grim Norvold, Bonnyboy's father, was by trade a
+carpenter, and handy as he was at all kinds of tinkering, he
+found it particularly exasperating to have a son who was so
+left-handed.  There was scarcely anything Grim could not do.  He
+could take a watch apart and put it together again; he could mend
+a harness if necessary; he could make a wagon; nay, he could even
+doctor a horse when it got spavin or glanders.  He was a sort of
+jack-of-all-trades, and a very useful man in a valley where
+mechanics were few and transportation difficult.  He loved work
+for its own sake, and was ill at ease when he had not a tool in
+his hand.  The exercise of his skill gave him a pleasure akin to
+that which the fish feels in swimming, the eagle in soaring, and
+the lark in singing.  A finless fish, a wingless eagle, or a dumb
+lark could not have been more miserable than Grim was when a
+succession of holidays, like Easter or Christmas, compelled him
+to be idle.
+
+When his son was born his chief delight was to think of the time
+when he should be old enough to handle a tool, and learn the
+secrets of his father's trade.  Therefore, from the time the boy
+was old enough to sit or to crawl in the shavings without getting
+his mouth and eyes full of sawdust, he gave him a place under the
+turning bench, and talked or sang to him while he worked.  And
+Bonnyboy, in the meanwhile amused himself by getting into all
+sorts of mischief.  If it had not been for the belief that a good
+workman must grow up in the atmosphere of the shop, Grim would
+have lost patience with his son and sent him back to his mother,
+who had better facilities for taking care of him.  But the fact
+was he was too fond of the boy to be able to dispense with him,
+and he would rather bear the loss resulting from his mischief
+than miss his prattle and his pretty dimpled face.
+
+It was when the child was eighteen or nineteen months old that he
+acquired the name Bonnyboy.  A woman of the neighborhood, who had
+called at the shop with some article of furniture which she
+wanted to have mended, discovered the infant in the act of
+investigating a pot of blue paint, with a part of which he had
+accidentally decorated his face.
+
+"Good gracious! what is that ugly thing you have got under your
+turning bench?" she cried, staring at the child in amazement.
+
+"No, he is not an ugly thing," replied the father, with
+resentment; "he is a bonny boy, that's what he is."
+
+The woman, in order to mollify Grim, turned to the boy, and
+asked, with her sweetest manner, "What is your name, child?"
+
+"Bonny boy," murmured the child, with a vaguely offended
+air--"bonny boy."
+
+And from that day the name Bonnyboy clung to him.
+
+
+II.
+
+To teach Bonnyboy the trade of a carpenter was a task which would
+have exhausted the patience of all the saints in the calendar. 
+If there was any possible way of doing a thing wrong, Bonnyboy
+would be sure to hit upon that way.  When he was eleven years old
+he chopped off the third joint of the ring-finger on his right
+hand with a cutting tool while working the turning-lathe; and by
+the time he was fourteen it seemed a marvel to his father that he
+had any fingers left at all.  But Bonnyboy persevered in spite of
+all difficulties, was always cheerful and of good courage, and
+when his father, in despair, exclaimed:  "Well, you will never
+amount to anything, Bonnyboy," he would look up with his slow,
+winning smile and say:
+
+"Don't worry, father.  Better luck next time."
+
+"But, my dear boy, how can I help worrying, when you don't learn
+anything by which you can make your living?"
+
+"Oh, well, father," said Bonnyboy, soothingly (for he was
+beginning to feel sorry on his father's account rather than on
+his own), "I wouldn't bother about that if I were you.  I don't
+worry a bit.  Something will turn up for me to do, sooner or
+later."
+
+"But you'll do it badly, Bonnyboy, and then you won't get a
+second chance.  And then, who knows but you may starve to death. 
+You'll chop off the fingers you have left; and when I am dead and
+can no longer look after you, I am very much afraid you'll manage
+to chop off your head too."
+
+"Well," observed Bonnyboy, cheerfully, "in that case I shall not
+starve to death."
+
+Grim had to laugh in spite of himself at the paternal way in
+which his son comforted him, as if he were the party to be
+pitied.  Bonnyboy's unfailing cheerfulness, which had its great
+charm, began to cause him uneasiness, because he feared it was
+but another form of stupidity.  A cleverer boy would have been
+sorry for his mistakes and anxious about his own future.  But
+Bonnyboy looked into the future with the serene confidence of a
+child, and nothing under the sun ever troubled him, except his
+father's tendency to worry.  For he was very fond of his father,
+and praised him as a paragon of skill and excellence.  He
+lavished an abject admiration on everything he did and said.  His
+dexterity in the use of tools, and his varied accomplishments as
+a watch-maker and a horse-doctor, filled Bonnyboy with ungrudging
+amazement.  He knew it was a hopeless thing for him to aspire to
+rival such genius, and he took the thing philosophically, and did
+not aspire.
+
+It occurred to Grim one day, when Bonnyboy had made a most
+discouraging exhibition of his awkwardness, that it might be a
+good thing to ask the pastor's advice in regard to him.  The
+pastor had had a long experience in educating children, and his
+own, though they were not all clever, promised to turn out well. 
+Accordingly Grim called at the parsonage, was well received, and
+returned home charged to the muzzle with good advice.  The pastor
+lent him a book full of stories, and recommended him to read them
+to his son, and afterward question him about every single fact
+which each story contained.  This the pastor had found to be a
+good way to develop the intellect of a backward boy.
+
+
+III.
+
+When Bonnyboy had been confirmed, the question again rose what
+was to become of him.  He was now a tall young fellow,
+red-checked, broad-shouldered, and strong, and rather
+nice-looking.  A slow, good-natured smile spread over his face
+when anyone spoke to him, and he had a way of flinging his head
+back, when the tuft of yellow hair which usually hung down over
+his forehead obscured his sight.  Most people liked him, even
+though they laughed at him behind his back; but to his face
+nobody laughed, because his strength inspired respect.  Nor did
+he know what fear was when he was roused; but that was probably,
+as people thought, because he did not know much of anything.  At
+any rate, on a certain occasion he showed that there was a limit
+to his good-nature, and when that limit was reached, he was not
+as harmless a fellow as he looked.
+
+On the neighboring farm of Gimlehaug there was a wedding to which
+Grim and his son were invited.  On the afternoon of the second
+wedding day--for peasant weddings in Norway are often celebrated
+for three days--a notorious bully named Ola Klemmerud took it
+into his head to have some sport with the big good-natured
+simpleton.  So, by way of pleasantry, he pulled the tuft of hair
+which hung down upon Bonnyboy's forehead.
+
+"Don't do that," said Bonnyboy.
+
+Ola Klemmerud chuckled, and the next time he passed Bonnyboy,
+pinched his ear.
+
+"If you do that again I sha'n't like you," cried Bonnyboy.
+
+The innocence of that remark made the people laugh, and the
+bully, seeing that their sympathy was on his side, was encouraged
+to continue his teasing.  Taking a few dancing steps across the
+floor, he managed to touch Bonnyboy's nose with the toe of his
+boot, which feat again was rewarded with a burst of laughter. 
+The poor lad quietly blew his nose, wiped the perspiration off
+his brow with a red handkerchief, and said, "Don't make me mad,
+Ola, or I might hurt you."
+
+This speech struck the company as being immensely funny, and they
+laughed till the tears ran down their cheeks.  At this moment
+Grim entered, and perceived at once that Ola Klemmerud was
+amusing the company at his son's expense.  He grew hot about his
+ears, clinched his teeth, and stared challengingly at the bully. 
+The latter began to feel uncomfortable, but he could not stop at
+this point without turning the laugh against himself, and that he
+had not the courage to do.  So in order to avoid rousing the
+father's wrath, and yet preserving his own dignity, he went over
+to Bonnyboy, rumpled his hair with both his hands, and tweaked
+his nose.  This appeared such innocent sport, according to his
+notion, that no rational creature could take offence at it.  But
+Grim, whose sense of humor was probably defective, failed to see
+it in that light.
+
+"Let the boy alone," he thundered.
+
+"Well, don't bite my head off, old man," replied Ola.  "I haven't
+hurt your fool of a boy.  I have only been joking with him."
+
+"I don't think you are troubled with overmuch wit yourself,
+judging by the style of your jokes," was Grim's cool retort.
+
+The company, who plainly saw that Ola was trying to wriggle out
+of his difficulty, but were anxious not to lose an exciting
+scene, screamed with laughter again; but this time at the bully's
+expense.  The blood mounted to his head, and his anger got the
+better of his natural cowardice.  Instead of sneaking off, as he
+had intended, he wheeled about on his heel and stood for a moment
+irresolute, clinching his fist in his pocket.
+
+"Why don't you take your lunkhead of a son home to his mother, if
+he isn't bright enough to understand fun!"  he shouted.
+
+"Now let me see if you are bright enough to understand the same
+kind of fun," cried Grim.  Whereupon he knocked off Ola's cap,
+rumpled his hair, and gave his nose such a pull that it was a
+wonder it did not come off.
+
+The bully, taken by surprise, tumbled a step backward, but
+recovering himself, struck Grim in the face with his clinched
+fist.  At this moment.  Bonnyboy, who had scarcely taken in the
+situation; jumped up and screamed, "Sit down, Ola Klemmerud, sit
+down!"
+
+The effect of this abrupt exclamation was so comical, that people
+nearly fell from their benches as they writhed and roared with
+laughter.
+
+Bonnyboy, who had risen to go to his father's assistance, paused
+in astonishment in the middle of the floor.  He could not
+comprehend, poor boy, why everything he said provoked such
+uncontrollable mirth.  He surely had no intention of being funny.
+
+So, taken aback a little, he repeated to himself, half
+wonderingly, with an abrupt pause after each word,
+"Sit--down--Ola--Klemmerud--sit--down!"
+
+But Ola Klemmerud, instead of sitting down, hit Grim repeatedly
+about the face and head, and it was evident that the elder man,
+in spite of his strength, was not a match for him in alertness. 
+This dawned presently upon Bonnyboy's slow comprehension, and his
+good-natured smile gave way to a flush of excitement.  He took
+two long strides across the floor, pushed his father gently
+aside, and stood facing his antagonist.  He repeated once more
+his invitation to sit down; to which the latter responded with a
+slap which made the sparks dance before Bonnyboy's eyes.  Now
+Bonnyboy became really angry.  Instead of returning the slap, he
+seized his enemy with a sudden and mighty grab by both his
+shoulders, lifted him up as if he were a bag of hay, and put him
+down on a chair with such force that it broke into splinters
+under him.
+
+"Will you now sit down?"  said Bonnyboy.
+
+Nobody laughed this time, and the bully, not daring to rise,
+remained seated on the floor among the ruins of the chair. 
+Thereupon, with imperturbable composure, Bonnyboy turned to his
+father, brushed off his coat with his hands and smoothed his
+disordered hair.  "Now let us go home, father," he said, and
+taking the old man's arm he walked out of the room.  But hardly
+had he crossed the threshold before the astonished company broke
+into cheering.
+
+"Good for you, Bonnyboy!"  "Well done, Bonnyboy!" "You are a
+bully boy, Bonnyboy!"  they cried after him.
+
+But Bonnyboy strode calmly along, quite unconscious of his
+triumph, and only happy to have gotten his father out of the room
+safe and sound.  For a good while they walked on in silence. 
+Then, when the effect of the excitement had begun to wear away,
+Grim stopped in the path, gazed admiringly at his son, and said,
+"Well, Bonnyboy, you are a queer fellow."
+
+"Oh, yes," answered Bonnyboy, blushing with embarrassment (for
+though he did not comprehend the remark, he felt the approving
+gaze); "but then, you know, I asked him to sit down, and he
+wouldn't."
+
+"Bless your innocent heart!"  murmured his father, as he gazed at
+Bonnyboy's honest face with a mingling of affection and pity.
+
+
+IV.
+
+When Bonnyboy was twenty years old his father gave up, once for
+all, his attempt to make a carpenter of him.  A number of
+saw-mills had been built during the last years along the river
+down in the valley, and the old rapids had been broken up into a
+succession of mill-dams, one above the other.  At one of these
+saw-mills Bonnyboy sought work, and was engaged with many others
+as a mill hand.  His business was to roll the logs on to the
+little trucks that ran on rails, and to push them up to the saws,
+where they were taken in charge by another set of men, who
+fastened and watched them while they were cut up into planks. 
+Very little art was, indeed, required for this simple task; but
+strength was required, and of this Bonnyboy had enough and to
+spare.  He worked with a will from early morn till dewy eve, and
+was happy in the thought that he had at last found something that
+he could do.  It made the simple-hearted fellow proud to observe
+that he was actually gaining his father's regard; or, at all
+events, softening the disappointment which, in a vague way, he
+knew that his dulness must have caused him.  If, occasionally, he
+was hurt by a rolling log, he never let any one know it; but even
+though his foot was a mass of agony every time he stepped on it,
+he would march along as stiffly as a soldier.  It was as if he
+felt his father's eye upon him long before he saw him.
+
+There was a curious kind of sympathy between them which expressed
+itself, on the father's part, in a need to be near his son.  But
+he feared to avow any such weakness, knowing that Bonnyboy would
+interpret it as distrust of his ability to take care of himself,
+and a desire to help him if he got into trouble.  Grim,
+therefore, invented all kinds of transparent pretexts for paying
+visits to the saw-mills.  And when he saw Bonnyboy, conscious
+that his eye was resting upon him, swinging his axe so that the
+chips flew about his ears, and the perspiration rained from his
+brow, a dim anxiety often took possession of him, though he could
+give no reason for it.  That big brawny fellow, with the frame of
+a man and the brain of a child, with his guileless face and his
+guileless heart, strangely moved his compassion.  There was
+something almost beautiful about him, his father thought; but he
+could not have told what it was; nor would he probably have found
+any one else that shared his opinion.  That frank and genial gaze
+of Bonnyboy's, which expressed goodness of heart but nothing
+else, seemed to Grim an "open sesame" to all hearts; and that
+unawakened something which goes so well with childhood, but not
+with adult age, filled him with tenderness and a vague anxiety. 
+"My poor lad," he would murmur to himself, as he caught sight of
+Bonnyboy's big perspiring face, with the yellow tuft of hair
+hanging down over his forehead, "clever you are not; but you have
+that which the cleverest of us often lack."
+
+
+V.
+
+There were sixteen saw-mills in all, and the one at which
+Bonnyboy was employed was the last of the series.  They were
+built on little terraces on both banks of the river, and every
+four of them were supplied with power from an artificial dam, in
+which the water was stored in time of drought, and from which it
+escaped in a mill-race when required for use.  These four dams
+were built of big stones, earthwork, and lumber, faced with
+smooth planks, over which a small quantity of water usually
+drizzled into the shallow river-bed.  Formerly, before the power
+was utilized, this slope had been covered with seething and
+swirling rapids--a favorite resort of the salmon, which leaped
+high in the spring, and were caught in the box-traps that hung on
+long beams over the water.  Now the salmon had small chance of
+shedding their spawn in the cool, bright mountain pools, for they
+could not leap the dams, and if by chance one got into the mill-
+race, it had a hopeless struggle against a current that would
+have carried an elephant off his feet.  Bonnyboy, who more than
+once had seen the beautiful silvery fish spring right on to the
+millwheel, and be flung upon the rocks, had wished that he had
+understood the language of the fishes, so that he might tell them
+how foolish such proceedings were.  But merciful though he was,
+he had been much discouraged when, after having put them back
+into the river, they had promptly repeated the experiment.
+
+There were about twenty-five or thirty men employed at the mill
+where Bonnyboy earned his bread in the sweat of his brow, and he
+was, on the whole, on good terms with all of them.  They did, to
+be sure, make fun of him occasionally; but sometimes he failed to
+understand it, and at other times he made clumsy but good-humored
+attempts to repay their gibes in kind.  They took good care,
+however, not to rouse his wrath, for the reputation he had
+acquired by his treatment of Ola Klemmerud made them afraid to
+risk a collision.
+
+This was the situation when the great floods of 188- came, and
+introduced a spice of danger into Bonnyboy's monotonous life. 
+The mill-races were now kept open night and day, and yet the
+water burst like a roaring cascade over the tops of dams, and the
+river-bed was filled to overflowing with a swiftly-hurrying tawny
+torrent, which filled the air with its rush and swash, and sent
+hissing showers of spray flying through the tree-tops.  Bonnyboy
+and a gang of twenty men were working as they had never worked
+before in their lives, under the direction of an engineer, who
+had been summoned by the mill-owner to strengthen the dams; for
+if but one of them burst, the whole tremendous volume of water
+would be precipitated upon the valley, and the village by the
+lower falls and every farm within half a mile of the river-banks
+would be swept out of existence.  Guards were stationed all the
+way up the river to intercept any stray lumber that might be
+afloat.  For if a log jam were added to the terrific strain of
+the flood, there would surely be no salvation possible.  Yet in
+spite of all precautions, big logs now and then came bumping
+against the dams, and shot with wild gyrations and somersaults
+down into the brown eddies below.
+
+The engineer, who was standing on the top of a log pile, had
+shouted until he was hoarse, and gesticulated with his cane until
+his arms were lame, but yet there was a great deal to do before
+he could go to bed with an easy conscience.  Bonnyboy and his
+comrades, who had had by far the harder part of the task, were
+ready to drop with fatigue.  It was now eight o'clock in the
+evening, and they had worked since six in the morning, and had
+scarcely had time to swallow their scant rations.  Some of them
+began to grumble, and the engineer had to coax and threaten them
+to induce them to persevere for another hour.  The moon was just
+rising behind the mountain ridges, and the beautiful valley lay,
+with its green fields, sprouting forests, and red-painted
+farm-houses, at Bonnyboy's feet.  It was terrible to think that
+perhaps destruction was to overtake those happy and peaceful
+homes, where men had lived and died for many hundred years. 
+Bonnyboy could scarcely keep back the tears when this fear
+suddenly came over him.  Was it not strange that, though they
+knew that danger was threatening, they made not the slightest
+effort to save themselves?  In the village below men were still
+working in their forges, whose chimneys belched forth fiery
+smoke, and the sound of their hammer-blows could be heard above
+the roar of the river.  Women were busy with their household
+tasks; some boys were playing in the streets, damming up the
+gutters and shrieking with joy when their dams broke.  A few
+provident souls had driven their cattle to the neighboring hills;
+but neither themselves nor their children had they thought it
+necessary to remove.  The fact was, nobody believed that the dams
+would break, as they had not imagination enough to foresee what
+would happen if the dams did break.
+
+Bonnyboy was wet to the skin, and his knees were a trifle shaky
+from exhaustion.  He had been cutting down an enormous mast-tree,
+which was needed for a prop to the dam, and had hauled it down
+with two horses, one of which was a half-broken gray colt, unused
+to pulling in a team.  To restrain this frisky animal had
+required all Bonnyboy's strength, and he stood wiping his brow
+with the sleeve of his shirt.  Just at that moment a terrified
+yell sounded from above: "Run for your lives!  The upper dam is
+breaking!"
+
+The engineer from the top of the log-pile cast a swift glance up
+the valley, and saw at once from the increasing volume of water
+that the report was true.
+
+"Save yourselves, lads!"  he screamed.  "Run to the woods!"
+
+And suiting his action to his words, he tumbled down from the log
+pile, and darted up the hill-side toward the forest.  The other
+men, hearing the wild rush and roar above them, lost no time in
+following his example.  Only Bonnyboy, slow of comprehension as
+always, did not obey.  Suddenly there flared up a wild resolution
+in his face.  He pulled out his knife, cut the traces, and leaped
+upon the colt's back.  Lashing the beast, and shouting at the top
+of his voice, he dashed down the hill-side at a break-neck pace.
+
+"The dam is breaking!" he roared.  "Run for the woods!"
+
+He glanced anxiously behind him to see if the flood was
+overtaking him.  A great cloud of spray was rising against the
+sky, and he heard the yells of men and the frenzied neighing of
+horses through the thunderous roar.  But happily there was time. 
+The dam was giving way gradually, and had not yet let loose the
+tremendous volume of death and desolation which it held enclosed
+within its frail timbers.  The colt, catching the spirit of
+excitement in the air, flew like the wind, leaving farm after
+farm behind it, until it reached the village.
+
+"The dam is breaking!  Run for your lives!" cried Bonnyboy, with
+a rousing clarion yell which rose above all other poises; and up
+and down the valley the dread tidings spread like wildfire.  In
+an instant all was in wildest commotion.  Terrified mothers, with
+babes in their arms, came bursting out of the houses, and little
+girls, hugging kittens or cages with canary-birds, clung weeping
+to their skirts; shouting men, shrieking women, crying children,
+barking dogs, gusty showers sweeping from nowhere down upon the
+distracted fugitives, and above all the ominous, throbbing,
+pulsating roar as of a mighty chorus of cataracts.  It came
+nearer and nearer.  It filled the great vault of the sky with a
+rush as of colossal wing-beats.  Then there came a deafening
+creaking and crashing; then a huge brownish-white rolling wall,
+upon which the moonlight gleamed for an instant, and then the
+very trump of doom--a writhing, brawling, weltering chaos of
+cattle, dogs, men, lumber, houses, barns, whirling and struggling
+upon the destroying flood.
+
+
+VI.
+
+It was the morning after the disaster.  The sun rose red and
+threatening, circled with a ring of fiery mist.  People encamped
+upon the hill-side greeted each other as on the morn of
+resurrection.  For many were found among the living who were
+being mourned as dead.  Mothers hugged their children with
+tearful joy, thanking God that they had been spared; and husbands
+who had heard through the night the agonized cries of their
+drowning wives, finding them at dawn safe and sound, felt as if
+they had recovered them from the very gates of death.  When all
+were counted, it was ascertained that but very few of the
+villagers had been overtaken by the flood.  The timely warning
+had enabled all to save themselves, except some who in their
+eagerness to rescue their goods had lingered too long. 
+Impoverished most of them were by the loss of their houses and
+cattle.  The calamity was indeed overwhelming.  But when they
+considered how much greater the disaster would have been if the
+flood had come upon them unheralded, they felt that they had
+cause for gratitude in the midst of their sorrow.  And who was it
+that brought the tidings that snatched them from the jaws of
+death? Well, nobody knew.  He rode too fast.  And each was too
+much startled by the message to take note of the messenger.  But
+who could he possibly have been?  An angel from Heaven, perhaps
+sent by God in His mercy.  That was indeed more than likely.  The
+belief was at once accepted that the rescuer was an angel from
+heaven.  But just then a lumberman stepped forward who had worked
+at the mill and said:  "It was Bonnyboy, Grim Carpenter's son.  I
+saw him jump on his gray colt."
+
+Bonnyboy, Grim Carpenter's son.  It couldn't be possible.  But
+the lumberman insisted that it was, and they had to believe him,
+though, of course, it was a disappointment.  But where was
+Bonnyboy?  He deserved thanks, surely.  And, moreover, that gray
+colt was a valuable animal.  It was to be hoped that it was not
+drowned.
+
+The water had now subsided, though it yet overflowed the banks;
+so that trees, bent and splintered by the terrific force of the
+flood, grew far out in the river.  The foul dams had all been
+swept away, and the tawny torrent ran again with tumultuous
+rapids in its old channel.  Of the mills scarcely a vestige was
+left except slight cavities in the banks, and a few twisted beams
+clinging to the rocks where they had stood.  The ruins of the
+village, with jagged chimneys and broken walls, loomed out of a
+half-inundated meadow, through which erratic currents were
+sweeping.  Here and there lay a dead cow or dog, and in the
+branches of a maple-tree the carcasses of two sheep were
+entangled.  In this marshy field a stooping figure was seen
+wading about, as if in search of something.  The water broke
+about his knees, and sometimes reached up to his waist.  He stood
+like one dazed, and stared into the brown swirling torrent.  Now
+he poked something with his boat-hook, now bent down and purled
+some dead thing out of a copse of shrubbery in which it had been
+caught.  The sun rose higher in the sky, and the red vapors were
+scattered.  But still the old man trudged wearily about, with the
+stony stare in his eyes, searching for him whom he had lost.  One
+company after another now descended from the hill-sides, and from
+the high-lying farms which had not been reached by the flood came
+wagons with provisions and clothes, and men and women eager and
+anxious to help.  They shouted to the old man in the submerged
+field, and asked what he was looking for.  But he only shook his
+head, as if he did not understand.
+
+"Why, that is old Grim the carpenter," said someone.  "Has
+anybody seen Bonnyboy?"
+
+But no one had seen Bonnyboy.
+
+"Do you want help?"  they shouted to Grim; but they got no
+answer.
+
+Hour after hour old Grim trudged about in the chilly water
+searching for his son.  Then, about noon, when he had worked his
+way far down the river, he caught sight of something which made
+his heart stand still.  In a brown pool, in which a
+half-submerged willow-tree grew, he saw a large grayish shape
+which resembled a horse.  He stretched out the boat-hook and
+rolled it over.  Dumbly, fearlessly, he stood staring into the
+pool.  There lay his son--there lay Bonnyboy stark and dead.
+
+The cold perspiration broke out upon Grim's brow, and his great
+breast labored.  Slowly he stooped down, drew the dead body out
+of the water, and tenderly laid it across his knees.  He stared
+into the sightless eyes, and murmuring a blessing, closed them. 
+There was a large discolored spot on the forehead, as of a
+bruise.  Grim laid his hand softly upon it, and stroked away the
+yellow tuft of hair.
+
+"My poor lad," he said, while the tears coursed down his wrinkled
+cheeks, "you had a weak head, but your heart, Bonnyboy--your
+heart was good."
+
+
+
+THE CHILD OF LUCK
+
+I.
+
+A sunny-tempered little fellow was Hans, and his father declared
+that he had brought luck with him when he came into the world.
+
+"He was such a handsome baby when he was born," said Inga, his
+mother; "but you would scarcely believe it now, running about as
+he does in forest and field, tearing his clothes and scratching
+his face."
+
+Now, it was true, as Hans's mother said, that he did often tear
+his clothes; and as he had an indomitable curiosity, and had to
+investigate everything that came in his way, it was also no
+uncommon thing for him to come home with his face stung or
+scratched.
+
+"Why must you drag that child with you wherever you go, Nils?" 
+the mother complained to Hans's father, when the little boy was
+brought to her in such a disreputable condition.  "Why can't you
+leave him at home? What other man do you know who carries a
+six-year-old little fellow about with him in rain and shine,
+storm and quiet?
+
+"Well," Nils invariably answered, "I like him and he likes me. 
+He brings me luck."
+
+This was a standing dispute between Nils and Inga, his wife, and
+they never came to an agreement.  She knew as well as her husband
+that before little Hans was born there was want and misery in
+their cottage.  But from the hour the child lifted up its tiny
+voice, announcing its arrival, there had been prosperity and
+contentment.  Their luck had turned, Nils said, and it was the
+child that had turned it.  They had been married for four years,
+and though they had no one to provide for but themselves, they
+scarcely managed to keep body and soul together.  All sorts of
+untoward things happened.  Now a tree which he was cutting down
+fell upon Nils and laid him up for a month; now he got water on
+his knee from a blow he received while rolling logs into the
+chute; now the pig died which was to have provided them with salt
+pork for the winter, and the hens took to the bush, and laid
+their eggs where nobody except the rats and the weasels could
+find them.  But since little Hans had come and put an end to all
+these disasters, his father had a superstitious feeling that he
+could not bear to have him away from him.  Therefore every
+morning when he started out for the forest or the river he
+carried Hans on his shoulder.  And the little boy sat there,
+smiling proudly and waving his hand to his mother, who stood in
+the door looking longingly after him.
+
+"Hello, little chap!"  cried the lumbermen, when they saw him. 
+"Good-morning to you and good luck!"
+
+They always cheered up, however bad the weather was, when they
+saw little Hans, for nobody could look at his sunny little face
+without feeling something like a ray of sunlight stealing into
+his heart.  Hans had a smile and a wave of his hand for
+everybody.  He knew all the lumbermen by name, and they knew him.
+
+They sang as they swung the axe or the boat-hook, and the work
+went merrily when little Hans sat on the top of the log pile and
+shouted to them.  But if by chance he was absent for a day or two
+they missed him.  No songs were heard, but harsh words, and not
+infrequently quarrels.  Now, nobody believed, of course, that
+little Hans was such a wizard that he could make people feel and
+behave any better than it was in their nature to do; but sure it
+was--at least the lumbermen insisted that it was so--there was
+joy and good-tempered mirth wherever that child went, and life
+seemed a little sadder and poorer to those who knew him when he
+was away.
+
+No one will wonder that Nils sometimes boasted of his little son.
+
+He told not once, but a hundred times, as they sat about the
+camp-fire eating their dinner, that little Hans was a child of
+luck, and that no misfortune could happen while he was near. 
+Lumbermen are naturally superstitious, and though perhaps at
+first they may have had their doubts, they gradually came to
+accept the statement without question.  They came to regard it as
+a kind of right to have little Hans sit on the top of the log
+pile when they worked, or running along the chute, while the
+wild-cat strings of logs shot down the steep slide with lightning
+speed.  They were not in the least afraid lest the logs should
+jump the chute, as they had often done before, killing or maiming
+the unhappy man that came too near.  For was not little Hans's
+life charmed, so that no harm could befall him?
+
+Now, it happened that Inga, little Hans's mother, came one day to
+the river to see how he was getting on.  Nils was then standing
+on a raft hooking the floating logs with his boat-hook, while the
+boy was watching him from the shore, shouting to him, throwing
+chips into the water, and amusing himself as best he could.  It
+was early in May, and the river was swollen from recent thaws. 
+Below the cataract where the lumbermen worked, the broad, brown
+current moved slowly along with sluggish whirls and eddies; but
+the raft was moored by chains to the shore, so that it was in no
+danger of getting adrift.  It was capital fun to see the logs
+come rushing down the slide, plunging with a tremendous splash
+into the river, and then bob up like live things after having
+bumped against the bottom.  Little Hans clapped his hands and
+yelled with delight when a string of three or four came tearing
+along in that way, and dived, one after the other, headlong into
+the water.
+
+"Catch that one, papa!"  he cried; "that is a good big fellow. 
+He dived like a man, he did.  He has washed the dirt off his
+snout now; that was the reason he took such a big plunge."
+
+Nils never failed to reach his boat-hook after the log little
+Hans indicated, for he liked to humor him, and little Hans liked
+to be humored.  He had an idea that he was directing his father's
+work, and Nils invented all sorts of innocent devices to flatter
+little Hans's dignity, and make him think himself indispensable. 
+It was of no use, therefore, for poor Inga to beg little Hans to
+go home with her.  He had so much to do, he said, that he
+couldn't.  He even tried to tear himself away from his mother
+when she took him by the arm and remonstrated with him.  And then
+and there the conviction stole upon Inga that her child did not
+love her.  She was nothing to him compared to what his father
+was.  And was it right for Nils thus to rob her of the boy's
+affection? Little Hans could scarcely be blamed for loving his
+father better; for love is largely dependent upon habit, and Nils
+had been his constant companion since he was a year old.  A
+bitter sense of loneliness and loss overcame the poor wife as she
+stood on the river-bank pleading with her child, and finding that
+she annoyed instead of moving him.
+
+"Won't you come home with mamma, little Hans?"  she asked,
+tearfully.  "The kitten misses you very much; it has been mewing
+for you all the morning."
+
+"No," said little Hans, thrusting his hands into his pockets, and
+turning about with a manly stride; "we are going to have the
+lumber inspector here to-day? and then papa's big raft is going
+down the river."
+
+"But this dreadful noise, dear; how can you stand it? And the
+logs shooting down that slide and making such a racket.  And
+these great piles of lumber, Hans--think, if they should tumble
+down and kill you!"
+
+"Oh, I'm not afraid, mamma," cried Hans, proudly; and, to show
+his fearlessness, he climbed up the log pile, and soon stood on
+the top of it, waving his cap and shouting.
+
+"Oh, do come down, child--do come down!" begged Inga, anxiously.
+
+She had scarcely uttered the words when she heard a warning shout
+from the slope above, and had just time to lift her eyes, when
+she saw a big black object dart past her, strike the log pile,
+and break with a deafening crash.  A long confused rumble of
+rolling logs followed, terrified voices rent the air, and, above
+it all, the deep and steady roar of the cataract.  She saw, as
+through a fog, little Hans, serene and smiling as ever, borne
+down on the top of the rolling lumber, now rising up and skipping
+from log to log, now clapping his hands and screaming with
+pleasure, and then suddenly vanishing in the brown writhing
+river.  His laughter was still ringing in her ears; the poor
+child, he did not realize his danger.  The rumbling of falling
+logs continued with terrifying persistence.  Splash!  splash! 
+splash!  they went, diving by twos, by fours, and by dozens at
+the very spot where her child had vanished.  But where was little
+Hans?  Oh, where was he?  It was all so misty, so unreal and
+confused.  She could not tell whether little Hans was among the
+living or among the dead.  But there, all of a sudden, his head
+popped up in the middle of the river; and there was another head
+close to his--it was that of his father!  And round about them
+other heads bobbed up; for all the lumbermen who were on the raft
+had plunged into the water with Nils when they saw that little
+Hans was in danger.  A dozen more were running down the slope as
+fast as their legs could carry them; and they gave a tremendous
+cheer when they saw little Hans's face above the water.  He
+looked a trifle pale and shivery, and he gave a funny little
+snort, so that the water spurted from his nose.  He had lost his
+hat, but he did not seem to be hurt.  His little arms clung
+tightly about his father's neck, while Nils, dodging the bobbing
+logs, struck out with all his might for the shore.  And when he
+felt firm bottom under his feet, and came stumbling up through
+the shallow water, looking like a drowned rat, what a welcome he
+received from the lumbermen!  They all wanted to touch little
+Hans and pat his cheek, just to make sure that it was really he.
+
+"It was wonderful indeed," they said, "that he ever came up out
+of that horrible jumble of pitching and diving logs.  He is a
+child of luck, if ever there was one."
+
+Not one of them thought of the boy's mother, and little Hans
+himself scarcely thought of her, elated as he was at the welcome
+he received from the lumbermen.  Poor Inga stood dazed,
+struggling with a horrible feeling, seeing her child passed from
+one to the other, while she herself claimed no share in him. 
+Somehow the thought stung her.  A sudden clearness burst upon
+her; she rushed forward, with a piercing scream, snatched little
+Hans from his father's arms, and hugging his wet little shivering
+form to her breast, fled like a deer through the underbrush.
+
+From that day little Hans was not permitted to go to the river. 
+It was in vain that Nils pleaded and threatened.  His wife acted
+so unreasonably when that question was broached that he saw it
+was useless to discuss it.  She seized little Hans as a tigress
+might seize her young, and held him tightly clasped, as if daring
+anybody to take him away from her.  Nils knew it would require
+force to get his son back again, and that he was not ready to
+employ.  But all joy seemed to have gone out of his life since he
+had lost the daily companionship of little Hans.  His work became
+drudgery; and all the little annoyances of life, which formerly
+he had brushed away as one brushes a fly from his nose, became
+burdens and calamities.  The raft upon which he had expended so
+much labor went to pieces during a sudden rise of the river the
+night after little Hans's adventure, and three days later Thorkel
+Fossen was killed outright by a string of logs that jumped the
+chute.
+
+"It isn't the same sort of place since you took little Hans
+away," the lumbermen would often say to Nils.  "There's no sort
+of luck in anything."
+
+Sometimes they taunted him with want of courage, and called him a
+"night-cap" and a "hen-pecked coon," all of which made Nils
+uncomfortable.  He made two or three attempts to persuade his
+wife to change her mind in regard to little Hans, but the last
+time she got so frightened that she ran out of the house and hid
+in the cow stable with the boy, crouching in an empty stall, and
+crying as if her heart would break, when little Hans escaped and
+betrayed her hiding-place.  The boy, in fact, sympathized with
+his father, and found his confinement at home irksome.  The
+companionship of the cat had no more charm for him; and even the
+brindled calf, which had caused such an excitement when he first
+arrived, had become an old story.  Little Halls fretted, was
+mischievous for want of better employment, and gave his mother no
+end of trouble.  He longed for the gay and animated life at the
+river, and he would have run away if he had not been watched.  He
+could not imagine how the lumbermen could be getting on without
+him.  It seemed to him that all work must come to a stop when he
+was no longer sitting on the top of the log piles, or standing on
+the bank throwing chips into the water.
+
+Now, as a matter of fact, they were not getting on very well at
+the river without little Hans.  The luck had deserted them, the
+lumbermen said; and whatever mishaps they had, they attributed to
+the absence of little Hans.  They came to look with
+ill-suppressed hostility at Nils, whom they regarded as
+responsible for their misfortunes.  For they could scarcely
+believe that he was quite in earnest in his desire for the boy's
+return, otherwise they could not comprehend how his wife could
+dare to oppose him.  The weather was stormy, and the mountain
+brook which ran along the slide concluded to waste no more labor
+in carving out a bed for itself in the rock, when it might as
+well be using the slide which it found ready made.  And one fine
+day it broke into the slide and half filled it, so that the logs,
+when they were started down the steep incline, sent the water
+flying, turned somersaults, stood on end, and played no end of
+dangerous tricks which no one could foresee.  Several men were
+badly hurt by beams shooting like rockets through the air, and
+old Mads Furubakken was knocked senseless and carried home for
+dead.  Then the lumbermen held a council, and made up their minds
+to get little Hans by fair means or foul.  They thought first of
+sending a delegation of four or five men that very morning, but
+finally determined to march up to Nils's cottage in a body and
+demand the boy.  There were twenty of them at the very least, and
+the tops of their long boat-hooks, which they carried on their
+shoulders, were seen against the green forest before they were
+themselves visible.
+
+Nils, who was just out of bed, was sitting on the threshold
+smoking his pipe and pitching a ball to little Hans, who laughed
+with delight whenever he caught it.  Inga was bustling about
+inside the house, preparing breakfast, which was to consist of
+porridge, salt herring, and baked potatoes.  It had rained during
+the night, and the sky was yet overcast, but the sun was
+struggling to break through the cloud-banks.  A couple of
+thrushes in the alder-bushes about the cottage were rejoicing at
+the change in the weather, and Nils was listening to their song
+and to his son's merry prattle, when he caught sight of the
+twenty lumbermen marching up the hillside.  He rose, with some
+astonishment, and went to meet them.  Inga, hearing their voices,
+came to the door, and seeing the many men, snatched up little
+Hans, and with a wildly palpitating heart ran into the cottage,
+bolting the door behind her.  She had a vague foreboding that
+this unusual visit meant something hostile to herself, and she
+guessed that Nils had been only the spokesman of his comrades in
+demanding so eagerly the return of the boy to the river.  She
+believed all their talk about his luck to be idle nonsense; but
+she knew that Nils had unwittingly spread this belief, and that
+the lumbermen were convinced that little Hans was their good
+genius, whose presence averted disaster.  Distracted with fear
+and anxiety, she stood pressing her ear against the crack in the
+door, and sometimes peeping out to see what measures she must
+take for the child's safety.  Would Nils stand by her, or would
+he desert her? But surely--what was Nils thinking about? He was
+extending his hand to each of the men, and receiving them kindly.
+
+Next he would be inviting them to come in and take little Hans. 
+She saw one of the men--Stubby Mons by name--step forward, and
+she plainly heard him say:
+
+"We miss the little chap down at the river, Nils.  The luck has
+been against us since he left."
+
+"Well, Mons," Nils answered, "I miss the little chap as much as
+any of you; perhaps more.  But my wife--she's got a sort of
+crooked notion that the boy won't come home alive if she lets him
+go to the river.  She got a bad scare last time, and it isn't any
+use arguing with her."
+
+"But won't you let us talk to her, Nils?"  one of the lumbermen
+proposed.  "It is a tangled skein, and I don't pretend to say
+that I can straighten it out.  But two men have been killed and
+one crippled since the little chap was taken away.  And in the
+three years he was with us no untoward thing happened.  Now that
+speaks for itself, Nils, doesn't it?"
+
+"It does, indeed," said Nils, with an air of conviction.
+
+"And you'll let us talk to your wife, and see if we can't make
+her listen to reason," the man urged.
+
+"You are welcome to talk to her as much as you like," Nils
+replied, knocking out his pipe on the heel of his boot; "but I
+warn you that she's mighty cantankerous."
+
+He rose slowly, and tried to open the door.  It was locked. 
+"Open, Inga," he said, a trifle impatiently; "there are some men
+here who want to see you."
+
+
+II.
+
+Inga sat crouching on the hearth, hugging little Hans to her
+bosom.  She shook and trembled with fear, let her eyes wander
+around the walls, and now and then moaned at the thought that now
+they would take little Hans away from her.
+
+"Why don't you open the door for papa?"  asked little Hans,
+wonderingly.
+
+Ah, he too was against her!  All the world was against her!  And
+her husband was in league with her enemies!
+
+"Open, I say!"  cried Nils, vehemently.  "What do you mean by
+locking the door when decent people come to call upon us?"
+
+Should she open the door or should she not? Holding little Hans
+in her arms, she rose hesitatingly, and stretched out her hand
+toward the bolt.  But all of a sudden, in a paroxysm of fear, she
+withdrew her hand, turned about, and fled with the child through
+the back door.  The alder bushes grew close up to the walls of
+the cottage, and by stooping a little she managed to remain
+unobserved.  Her greatest difficulty was to keep little Hans from
+shouting to his father, and she had to put her hand over his
+mouth to keep him quiet; for the boy, who had heard the voices
+without, could not understand why he should not be permitted to
+go out and converse with his friends the lumbermen.  The wild
+eyes and agitated face of his mother distressed him, and the
+little showers of last night's rain which the trees shook down
+upon him made him shiver.
+
+"Why do you run so, mamma?"  he asked, when she removed her hand
+from his mouth.
+
+"Because the bad men want to take you away from me, Hans," she
+answered, panting.
+
+"Those were not bad men, mamma," the boy ejaculated.  "That was
+Stubby Mons and Stuttering Peter and Lars Skin-breeches.  They
+don't, want to hurt me."
+
+He expected that his mamma would be much relieved at receiving
+this valuable information, and return home without delay.  But
+she still pressed on, flushed and panting, and cast the same
+anxious glances behind her.
+
+In the meanwhile Nils and his guests had entirely lost their
+patience.  Finding his persuasions of no avail, the former began
+to thump at the door with the handle of his axe, and receiving no
+response, he climbed up to the window and looked in.  To his
+amazement there was no one in the room.  Thinking that Inga might
+have gone to the cow-stable, he ran to the rear of the cottage,
+and called her name.  Still no answer.
+
+"Hans," he cried, "where are you?"
+
+But Hans, too, was as if spirited away.  It scarcely occurred to
+Nils, until he had searched the cow- stable and the house in
+vain, that his wife had fled from the harmless lumbermen.  Then
+the thought shot through his brain that possibly she was not
+quite right in her head; that this fixed idea that everybody
+wanted to take her child away from her had unsettled her reason. 
+Nils grew hot and cold in the same moment as this dreadful
+apprehension took lodgement in his mind.  Might she not, in her
+confused effort to save little Hans, do him harm?  In the blind
+and feverish terror which possessed her might she not rush into
+the water, or leap over a precipice?  Visions of little Hans
+drowning, or whirled into the abyss in his mother's arms, crowded
+his fancy as he walked back to the lumbermen, and told them that
+neither his wife nor child was anywhere to be found.
+
+"I would ask ye this, lads," he said, finally: "if you would help
+me search for them.  For Inga--I reckon she is a little touched
+in the upper story--she has gone off with the boy, and I can't
+get on without little Hans any more than you can."
+
+The men understood the situation at a glance, and promised their
+aid.  They had all looked upon Inga as "high-strung" and "queer,"
+and it did not surprise them to hear that she had been frightened
+out of her wits at their request for the loan of little Hans. 
+Forming a line, with a space of twenty feet between each man,
+they began to beat the bush, climbing the steep slope toward the
+mountains.  Inga, pausing for an instant, and peering out between
+the tree trunks, saw the alder bushes wave as they broke through
+the underbrush.  She knew now that she was pursued.  Tired she
+was, too, and the boy grew heavier for every step that she
+advanced.  And yet if she made him walk, he might run away from
+her.  If he heard his father's voice, he would be certain to
+answer.  Much perplexed, she looked about her for a hiding-place.
+
+For, as the men would be sure to overtake her, her only safety
+was in hiding.  With tottering knees she stumbled along, carrying
+the heavy child, grabbing hold of the saplings for support, and
+yet scarcely keeping from falling.  The cold perspiration broke
+from her brow and a strange faintness overcame her.
+
+"You will have to walk, little Hans," she said, at last.  "But if
+you run away from me, dear, I shall lie down here and die."
+
+Little Hans promised that he would not run away, and for five
+minutes they walked up a stony path which looked like the
+abandoned bed of a brook.
+
+"You hurt my hand, mamma," whimpered the boy, "you squeeze so
+hard."
+
+She would have answered, but just then she heard the voices of
+the lumbermen scarcely fifty paces away.  With a choking
+sensation and a stitch in her side she pressed on, crying out in
+spirit for the hills to hide her and the mountains to open their
+gates and receive her.  Suddenly she stood before a rocky wall
+some eighty or a hundred feet high.  She could go no farther. 
+Her strength was utterly exhausted.  There was a big boulder
+lying at the base of the rock, and a spreading juniper half
+covered it.  Knowing that in another minute she would be
+discovered, she flung herself down behind the boulder, though the
+juniper needles scratched her face, and pulled little Hans down
+at her side.  But, strange to say, little Hans fell farther than
+she had calculated, and utterly-vanished from sight.  She heard a
+muffled cry, and reaching her hand in the direction where he had
+fallen, caught hold of his arm.  A strong, wild smell beat
+against her, and little Hans, as he was pulled out, was enveloped
+in a most unpleasant odor.  But odor or no odor, here was the
+very hiding-place she had been seeking.  A deserted wolf's den,
+it was, probably--at least she hoped it was deserted; for if it
+was not, she might be confronted with even uglier customers than
+the lumbermen.  But she had no time for debating the question,
+for she saw the head of Stubby Mons emerging from the leaves, and
+immediately behind him came Stuttering Peter, with his long boat-
+hook.  Quick as a flash she slipped into the hole, and dragged
+Hans after her.  The juniper-bush entirely covered the entrance. 
+She could see everyone who approached, without being seen. 
+Unhappily, the boy too caught sight of Stubby Mons, and called
+him by name.  The lumberman stopped and pricked up his ears.
+
+"Did you hear anybody call?"  he asked his companion.
+
+"N-n-n-n-aw, I d-d-d-d-didn't," answered Stuttering Peter. 
+"There b-be lots of qu-qu-qu-qu-eer n-noises in the w-w-w-woods."
+
+Little Hans heard every word that they spoke, and he would have
+cried out again, if it hadn't appeared such great fun to be
+playing hide-and-go-seek with the lumbermen.  He had a delicious
+sense of being well hidden, and had forgotten everything except
+the zest of the game.  Most exciting it became when Stubby Mons
+drew the juniper-bush aside and peered eagerly behind the
+boulder.  Inga's heart stuck in her throat; she felt sure that in
+the next instant they would be discovered.  And as ill-luck would
+have it, there was something alive scrambling about her feet and
+tugging at her skirts.  Suddenly she felt a sharp bite, but
+clinched her teeth, and uttered no sound.  When her vision again
+cleared, the juniper branch had rebounded into its place, and the
+face of Stubby Mons was gone.  She drew a deep breath of relief,
+but yet did not dare to emerge from the den.  For one, two, three
+tremulous minutes she remained motionless, feeling all the while
+that uncomfortable sensation of living things about her.
+
+At last she could endure it no longer.  Thrusting little Hans
+before her, she crawled out of the hole, and looked back into the
+small cavern.  As soon as her eyes grew accustomed to the
+twilight she uttered a cry of amazement, for out from her skirts
+jumped a little gray furry object, and two frisky little
+customers of the same sort were darting about among the stones
+and tree-roots.  The truth dawned upon her, and it chilled her to
+the marrow of her bones.  The wolf's den was not deserted.  The
+old folks were only out hunting, and the shouting and commotion
+of the searching party had probably prevented them from returning
+in time to look after their family.  She seized little Hans by
+the hand, and once more dragged him away over the rough path.  He
+soon became tired and fretful, and in spite of all her entreaties
+began to shout lustily for his father.  But the men were now so
+far away that they could not hear him.  He complained of hunger;
+and when presently they came to a blueberry patch, she flung
+herself down on the heather and allowed him to pick berries.  She
+heard cow-bells and sheep-bells tinkling round about her, and
+concluded that she could not be far from the saeters, or mountain
+dairies.  That was fortunate, indeed, for she would not have
+liked to sleep in the woods with wolves and bears prowling about
+her.
+
+She was just making an effort to rise from the stone upon which
+she was sitting, when the big, good-natured face of a cow broke
+through the leaves and stared at her.  There was again help in
+need.  She approached the cow, patted it, and calling little
+Hans, bade him sit down in the heather and open his mouth.  He
+obeyed rather wonderingly, but perceived his mother's intent when
+she knelt at his side and began to milk into his mouth.  It
+seemed to him that he had never tasted anything so delicious as
+this fresh rich milk, fragrant with the odor of the woods and the
+succulent mountain grass.  When his hunger was satisfied, he fell
+again to picking berries, while Inga refreshed herself with milk
+in the same simple fashion.  After having rested a full hour, she
+felt strong enough to continue her journey; and hearing the loor,
+or Alpine horn, re-echoing among the mountains, she determined to
+follow the sound.  It was singular what luck attended her in the
+midst of her misfortune.  Perhaps it was, after all, no idle tale
+that little Hans was a child of luck; and she had done the
+lumbermen injustice in deriding their faith in him.  Perhaps
+there was some guiding Providence in all that had happened,
+destined in the end to lead little Hans to fortune and glory. 
+Much encouraged by this thought, she stooped over him and kissed
+him; then took his hand and trudged along over logs and stones,
+through juniper and bramble bushes.
+
+"Mamma," said little Hans, "where are you going?"
+
+"I am going to the saeter," she answered; "where you have wanted
+so often to go."
+
+"Then why don't you follow the cows? They are going there too."
+
+Surely that child had a marvellous mind!  She smiled down upon
+him and nodded.  By following the cows they arrived in twenty
+minutes at a neat little log cabin, from which the smoke curled
+up gayly into the clear air.
+
+The dairy-maids who spent the summer there tending the cattle
+both fell victims to the charms of little Hans, and offered him
+and his mother their simple hospitality.  They told of the
+lumbermen who had passed the saeter huts, and inquired for her;
+but otherwise they respected her silence, and made no attempt to
+pry into her secrets.  The next morning she started, after a
+refreshing sleep, westward toward the coast, where she hoped in
+some way to find a passage to America.  For if little Hans was
+really born under a lucky star--which fact she now could scarcely
+doubt--then America was the place for him.  There he might rise
+to become President, or a judge, or a parson, or something or
+other; while in Norway he would never be anything but a lumberman
+like his father.  Inga had a well-to-do sister, who was a widow,
+in the nearest town, and she would borrow enough money from her
+to pay their passage to New York.
+
+
+It was early in July when little Hans and his mother arrived in
+New York.  The latter had repented bitterly of her rashness in
+stealing her child from his father, and under a blind impulse
+traversing half the globe in a wild-goose chase after fortune. 
+The world was so much bigger than she in her quiet valley had
+imagined; and, what was worse, it wore such a cold and repellent
+look, and was so bewildering and noisy.  Inga had been very
+sea-sick during the voyage; and after she stepped ashore from the
+tug that brought her to Castle Garden, the ground kept heaving
+and swelling under her feet, and made her dizzy and miserable. 
+She had been very wicked, she was beginning to think, and
+deserved punishment; and if it had not been for a vague and
+adventurous faith in the great future that was in store for her
+son, she would have been content to return home, do penance for
+her folly, and beg her husband's forgiveness.  But, in the first
+place, she had no money to pay for a return ticket; and,
+secondly, it would be a great pity to deprive little Hans of the
+Presidency and all the grandeur that his lucky star might here
+bring him.
+
+Inga was just contemplating this bright vision of Hans's future,
+when she found herself passing through a gate, at which a clerk
+was seated.
+
+"What is your name?"  he asked, through an interpreter.
+
+"Inga Olsdatter Pladsen."
+
+"Age?"
+
+"Twenty-eight a week after Michaelmas."
+
+"Single or married?"
+
+"Married."
+
+"Where is your husband?"
+
+"In Norway."
+
+"Are you divorced from him?"
+
+"Divorced--I!  Why, no!  Who ever heard of such a thing?"
+
+Inga grew quite indignant at the thought of her being divorced. 
+A dozen other questions were asked, at each of which her
+embarrassment increased.  When, finally, she declared that she
+had no money, no definite destination, and no relatives or
+friends in the country, the examination was cut short, and after
+an hour's delay and a wearisome cross-questioning by different
+officials, she was put on board the tug, and returned to the
+steamer in which she had crossed the ocean.  Four dreary days
+passed; then there was a tremendous commotion on deck: blowing of
+whistles, roaring of steam, playing of bands, bumping of trunks
+and boxes, and finally the steady pulsation of the engines as the
+big ship stood out to sea.  After nine days of discomfort in the
+stuffy steerage and thirty-six hours of downright misery while
+crossing the stormy North Sea, Inga found herself once more in
+the land of her birth.  Full of humiliation and shame she met her
+husband at the railroad station, and prepared herself for a
+deluge of harsh words and reproaches.  But instead of that he
+patted her gently on the head, and clasped little Hans in his
+arms and kissed him.  They said very little to each other as they
+rode homeward in the cars; but little Hans had a thousand things
+to tell, and his father was delighted to hear them.  In the
+evening, when they had reached their native valley, and the boy
+was asleep, Inga plucked up courage and said, "Nils, it is all a
+mistake about little Hans's luck."
+
+"Mistake!  Why, no," cried Nils.  "What greater luck could he
+have than to be brought safely home to his father?"
+
+Inga had indeed hoped for more; but she said nothing. 
+Nevertheless, fate still had strange things in store for little
+Hans.  The story of his mother's flight to and return from
+America was picked up by some enterprising journalist, who made a
+most touching romance of it.  Hundreds of inquiries regarding
+little Hans poured in upon the pastor and the postmaster; and
+offers to adopt him, educate him, and I know not what else, were
+made to his parents.  But Nils would hear of no adoption; nor
+would he consent to any plan that separated him from the boy. 
+When, however, he was given a position as superintendent of a
+lumber yard in the town, and prosperity began to smile upon him,
+he sent little Hans to school, and as Hans was a clever boy, he
+made the most of his opportunities.
+
+And now little Hans is indeed a very big Hans, but a child of
+luck he is yet; for I saw him referred to the other day in the
+newspapers as one of the greatest lumber dealers, and one of the
+noblest, most generous, and public-spirited men in Norway.
+
+
+
+THE BEAR THAT HAD A BANK ACCOUNT
+
+I.
+
+You may not believe it, but the bear I am going to tell you about
+really had a bank account!  He lived in the woods, as most bears
+do; but he had a reputation which extended over all Norway and
+more than half of England.  Earls and baronets came every summer,
+with repeating-rifles of the latest patent, and plaids and
+field-glasses and portable cooking-stoves, intent upon killing
+him.  But Mr. Bruin, whose only weapons were a pair of paws and a
+pair of jaws, both uncommonly good of their kind, though not
+patented, always managed to get away unscathed; and that was
+sometimes more than the earls and the baronets did.
+
+One summer the Crown Prince of Germany came to Norway.  He also
+heard of the famous bear that no one could kill, and made up his
+mind that he was the man to kill it.  He trudged for two days
+through bogs, and climbed through glens and ravines, before he
+came on the scent of a bear, and a bear's scent, you may know, is
+strong, and quite unmistakable.  Finally he discovered some
+tracks in the moss, like those of a barefooted man, or, I should
+rather say, perhaps, a man-footed bear.  The Prince was just
+turning the corner of a projecting rock, when he saw a huge,
+shaggy beast standing on its hind legs, examining in a leisurely
+manner the inside of a hollow tree, while a swarm of bees were
+buzzing about its ears.  It was just hauling out a handful of
+honey, and was smiling with a grewsome mirth, when His Royal
+Highness sent it a bullet right in the breast, where its heart
+must have been, if it had one.  But, instead of falling down
+flat, as it ought to have done, out of deference to the Prince,
+it coolly turned its back, and gave its assailant a disgusted nod
+over its shoulder as it trudged away through the underbrush.  The
+attendants ranged through the woods and beat the bushes in all
+directions, but Mr. Bruin was no more to be seen that afternoon. 
+It was as if he had sunk into the earth; not a trace of him was
+to be found by either dogs or men.
+
+From that time forth the rumor spread abroad that this Gausdale
+Bruin (for that was the name by which he became known) was
+enchanted.  It was said that he shook off bullets as a duck does
+water; that he had the evil eye, and could bring misfortune to
+whomsoever he looked upon.  The peasants dreaded to meet him, and
+ceased to hunt him.  His size was described as something
+enormous, his teeth, his claws, and his eyes as being diabolical
+beyond human conception.  In the meanwhile Mr. Bruin had it all
+his own way in the mountains, killed a young bull or a fat heifer
+for his dinner every day or two, chased in pure sport a herd of
+sheep over a precipice; and as for Lars Moe's bay mare Stella, he
+nearly finished her, leaving his claw-marks on her flank in a way
+that spoiled her beauty forever.
+
+Now Lars Moe himself was too old to hunt; and his nephew
+was--well, he was not old enough.  There was, in fact, no one in
+the valley who was of the right age to hunt this Gausdale Bruin. 
+It was of no use that Lars Moe egged on the young lads to try
+their luck, shaming them, or offering them rewards, according as
+his mood might happen to be.  He was the wealthiest man in the
+valley, and his mare Stella had been the apple of his eye.  He
+felt it as a personal insult that the bear should have dared to
+molest what belonged to him, especially the most precious of all
+his possessions.  It cut him to the heart to see the poor wounded
+beauty, with those cruel scratches on her thigh, and one stiff,
+aching leg done up in oil and cotton.  When he opened the
+stable-door, and was greeted by Stella's low, friendly neighing,
+or when she limped forward in her box-stall and put her small,
+clean-shaped head on his shoulder, then Lars Moe's heart swelled
+until it seemed on the point of breaking.  And so it came to pass
+that he added a codicil to his will, setting aside five hundred
+dollars of his estate as a reward to the man who, within six
+years, should kill the Gausdale Bruin.
+
+Soon after that, Lars Moe died, as some said, from grief and
+chagrin; though the physician affirmed that it was of rheumatism
+of the heart.  At any rate, the codicil relating to the enchanted
+bear was duly read before the church door, and pasted, among
+other legal notices, in the vestibules of the judge's and the
+sheriff's offices.  When the executors had settled up the estate,
+the question arose in whose name or to whose credit should be
+deposited the money which was to be set aside for the benefit of
+the bear-slayer.  No one knew who would kill the bear, or if any
+one would kill it.  It was a puzzling question.
+
+"Why, deposit it to the credit of the bear," said a jocose
+executor; "then, in the absence of other heirs, his slayer will
+inherit it.  That is good old Norwegian practice, though I don't
+know whether it has ever been the law."
+
+"All right," said the other executors, "so long as it is
+understood who is to have the money, it does not matter."
+
+And so an amount equal to $500 was deposited in the county bank
+to the credit of the Gausdale Bruin.  Sir Barry Worthington,
+Bart., who came abroad the following summer for the shooting,
+heard the story, and thought it a good one.  So, after having
+vainly tried to earn the prize himself, he added another $500 to
+the deposit, with the stipulation that he was to have the skin.
+
+But his rival for parliamentary honors, Robert Stapleton, Esq.,
+the great iron-master, who had come to Norway chiefly to outshine
+Sir Barry, determined that he was to have the skin of that famous
+bear, if any one was to have it, and that, at all events, Sir
+Barry should not have it.  So Mr. Stapleton added $750 to the
+bear's bank account, with the stipulation that the skin should
+come to him.
+
+Mr. Bruin, in the meanwhile, as if to resent this unseemly
+contention about his pelt, made worse havoc among the herds than
+ever, and compelled several peasants to move their dairies to
+other parts of the mountains, where the pastures were poorer, but
+where they would be free from his depredations.  If the $1,750 in
+the bank had been meant as a bribe or a stipend for good
+behavior, such as was formerly paid to Italian brigands, it
+certainly could not have been more demoralizing in its effect;
+for all agreed that, since Lars Moe's death, Bruin misbehaved
+worse than ever.
+
+
+II.
+
+There was an odd clause in Lars Moe's will besides the codicil
+relating to the bear.  It read:
+
+"I hereby give and bequeath to my daughter Unna, or, in case of
+her decease, to her oldest living issue, my bay mare Stella, as a
+token that I have forgiven her the sorrow she caused me by her
+marriage."
+
+It seemed incredible that Lars Moe should wish to play a
+practical joke (and a bad one at that) on his only child, his
+daughter Unna, because she had displeased him by her marriage. 
+Yet that was the common opinion in the valley when this singular
+clause became known.  Unna had married Thorkel Tomlevold, a poor
+tenant's son, and had refused her cousin, the great
+lumber-dealer, Morten Janson, whom her father had selected for a
+son-in-law.
+
+She dwelt now in a tenant's cottage, northward in the parish; and
+her husband, who was a sturdy and fine-looking fellow, eked out a
+living by hunting and fishing.  But they surely had no
+accommodations for a broken-down, wounded, trotting mare, which
+could not even draw a plough.  It is true Unna, in the days of
+her girlhood, had been very fond of the mare, and it is only
+charitable to suppose that the clause, which was in the body of
+the will, was written while Stella was in her prime, and before
+she had suffered at the paws of the Gausdale Bruin.  But even
+granting that, one could scarcely help suspecting malice
+aforethought in the curious provision.  To Unna the gift was
+meant to say, as plainly as possible, "There, you see what you
+have lost by disobeying your father! If you had married according
+to his wishes, you would have been able to accept the gift, while
+now you are obliged to decline it like a beggar."
+
+But if it was Lars Moe's intention to convey such a message to
+his daughter, he failed to take into account his daughter's
+spirit.  She appeared plainly but decently dressed at the reading
+of the will, and carried her head not a whit less haughtily than
+was her wont in her maiden days.  She exhibited no chagrin when
+she found that Janson was her father's heir and that she was
+disinherited.  She even listened with perfect composure to the
+reading of the clause which bequeathed to her the broken-down
+mare.
+
+It at once became a matter of pride with her to accept her
+girlhood's favorite, and accept it she did!  And having borrowed
+a side-saddle, she rode home, apparently quite contented.  A
+little shed, or lean-to, was built in the rear of the house, and
+Stella became a member of Thorkel Tomlevold's family.  Odd as it
+may seem, the fortunes of the family took a turn for the better
+from the day she arrived; Thorkel rarely came home without big
+game, and in his traps he caught more than any three other men in
+all the parish.
+
+"The mare has brought us luck," he said to his wife.  "If she
+can't plough, she can at all events pull the sleigh to church;
+and you have as good a right as any one to put on airs, if you
+choose."
+
+"Yes, she has brought us blessing," replied Unna, quietly; "and
+we are going to keep her till she dies of old age."
+
+To the children Stella became a pet, as much as if she had been a
+dog or a cat.  The little boy Lars climbed all over her, and
+kissed her regularly good-morning when she put her handsome head
+in through the kitchen-door to get her lump of sugar.  She was as
+gentle as a lamb and as intelligent as a dog.  Her great brown
+eyes, with their soft, liquid look, spoke as plainly as words
+could speak, expressing pleasure when she was patted; and the low
+neighing with which she greeted the little boy, when she heard
+his footsteps in the door, was to him like the voice of a friend.
+
+He grew to love this handsome and noble animal as he had loved
+nothing on earth except his father and mother.
+
+As a matter of course he heard a hundred times the story of
+Stella's adventure with the terrible Gausdale bear.  It was a
+story that never lost its interest, that seemed to grow more
+exciting the oftener it was told.  The deep scars of the bear's
+claws in Stella's thigh were curiously examined, and each time
+gave rise to new questions.  The mare became quite a heroic
+character, and the suggestion was frequently discussed between
+Lars and his little sister Marit, whether Stella might not be an
+enchanted princess who was waiting for some one to cut off her
+head, so that she might show herself in her glory.  Marit thought
+the experiment well worth trying, but Lars had his doubts, and
+was unwilling to take the risk; yet if she brought luck, as his
+mother said, then she certainly must be something more than an
+ordinary horse.
+
+Stella had dragged little Lars out of the river when he fell
+overboard from the pier; and that, too, showed more sense than he
+had ever known a horse to have.
+
+There could be no doubt in his mind that Stella was an enchanted
+princess.  And instantly the thought occurred to him that the
+dreadful enchanted bear with the evil eye was the sorcerer, and
+that, when he was killed, Stella would resume her human guise. 
+It soon became clear to him that he was the boy to accomplish
+this heroic deed; and it was equally plain to him that he must
+keep his purpose secret from all except Marit, as his mother
+would surely discourage him from engaging in so perilous an
+enterprise.  First of all, he had to learn how to shoot; and his
+father, who was the best shot in the valley, was very willing to
+teach him.  It seemed quite natural to Thorkel that a hunter's
+son should take readily to the rifle; and it gave him great
+satisfaction to see how true his boy's aim was, and how steady
+his hand.
+
+"Father," said Lars one day, "you shoot so well, why haven't you
+ever tried to kill the Gausdale Bruin that hurt Stella so badly?"
+
+"Hush, child!  you don't know what you are talking about,"
+answered his father; "no leaden bullet will harm that wicked
+beast."
+
+"Why not?"
+
+"I don't like to talk about it--but it is well known that he is
+enchanted."
+
+"But will he then live for ever? Is there no sort of bullet that
+will kill him?"  asked the boy.
+
+"I don't know.  I don't want to have anything to do with
+witchcraft," said Thorkel.
+
+The word "witchcraft" set the boy to thinking, and he suddenly
+remembered that he had been warned not to speak to an old woman
+named Martha Pladsen, because she was a witch.  Now, she was
+probably the very one who could tell him what he wanted to know. 
+Her cottage lay close up under the mountain-side, about two miles
+from his home.  He did not deliberate long before going to seek
+this mysterious person, about whom the most remarkable stories
+were told in the valley.  To his astonishment, she received him
+kindly, gave him a cup of coffee with rock candy, and declared
+that she had long expected him.  The bullet which was to slay the
+enchanted bear had long been in her possession; and she would
+give it to him if he would promise to give her the beast's heart.
+
+He did not have to be asked twice for that; and off he started
+gayly with his prize in his pocket.  It was rather an odd-looking
+bullet, made of silver, marked with a cross on one side and with
+a lot of queer illegible figures on the other.  It seemed to burn
+in his pocket, so anxious was he to start out at once to release
+the beloved Stella from the cruel enchantment.  But Martha had
+said that the bear could only be killed when the moon was full;
+and until the moon was full he accordingly had to bridle his
+impatience.
+
+
+III.
+
+It was a bright morning in January, and, as it happened, Lars's
+fourteenth birthday.  To his great delight, his mother had gone
+down to the judge's to sell some ptarmigans, and his father had
+gone to fell some timber up in the glen.  Accordingly he could
+secure the rifle without being observed.  He took an affectionate
+good-by of Stella, who rubbed her soft nose against his own,
+playfully pulled at his coat-collar, and blew her sweet, warm
+breath into his face.  Lars was a simple-hearted boy, in spite of
+his age, and quite a child at heart.  He had lived so secluded
+from all society, and breathed so long the atmosphere of fairy
+tales, that he could see nothing at all absurd in what he was
+about to undertake.  The youngest son in the story-book always
+did just that sort of thing, and everybody praised and admired
+him for it.  Lars meant, for once, to put the story-book hero
+into the shade.  He engaged little Marit to watch over Stella
+while he was gone, and under no circumstances to betray him--all
+of which Marit solemnly promised.
+
+With his rifle on his shoulder and his skees on his feet, Lars
+glided slowly along over the glittering surface of the snow, for
+the mountain was steep, and he had to zigzag in long lines before
+he reached the upper heights, where the bear was said to have his
+haunts.  The place where Bruin had his winter den had once been
+pointed out to him, and he remembered yet how pale his father
+was, when he found that he had strayed by chance into so
+dangerous a neighborhood.  Lars's heart, too, beat rather
+uneasily as he saw the two heaps of stones, called "The Parson"
+and "The Deacon," and the two huge fir-trees which marked the
+dreaded spot.  It had been customary from immemorial time for
+each person who passed along the road to throw a large stone on
+the Parson's heap, and a small one on the Deacon's; but since the
+Gausdale Bruin had gone into winter quarters there, the stone
+heaps had ceased to grow.
+
+Under the great knotted roots of the fir-trees there was a hole,
+which was more than half-covered with snow; and it was noticeable
+that there was not a track of bird or beast to be seen anywhere
+around it.  Lars, who on the way had been buoyed up by the sense
+of his heroism, began now to feel strangely uncomfortable.  It
+was so awfully hushed and still round about him; not the scream
+of a bird --not even the falling of a broken bough was to be
+heard.  The pines stood in lines and in clumps, solemn, like a
+funeral procession, shrouded in sepulchral white.  Even if a crow
+had cawed it would have been a relief to the frightened boy--for
+it must be confessed that he was a trifle frightened--if only a
+little shower of snow had fallen upon his head from the heavily
+laden branches, he would have been grateful for it, for it would
+have broken the spell of this oppressive silence.
+
+There could be no doubt of it; inside, under those tree-roots
+slept Stella's foe--the dreaded enchanted beast who had put the
+boldest of hunters to flight, and set lords and baronets by the
+ears for the privilege of possessing his skin.  Lars became
+suddenly aware that it was a foolhardy thing he had undertaken,
+and that he had better betake himself home.  But then, again, had
+not Witch-Martha said that she had been waiting for him; that he
+was destined by fate to accomplish this deed, just as the
+youngest son had been in the story-book.  Yes, to be sure, she
+had said that; and it was a comforting thought.
+
+Accordingly, having again examined his rifle, which he had
+carefully loaded with the silver bullet before leaving home, he
+started boldly forward, climbed up on the little hillock between
+the two trees, and began to pound it lustily with the butt-end of
+his gun.  He listened for a moment tremulously, and heard
+distinctly long, heavy sighs from within.
+
+His heart stood still.  The bear was awake! Soon he would have to
+face it!  A minute more elapsed; Lars's heart shot up into his
+throat.  He leaped down, placed himself in front of the entrance
+to the den, and cocked his rifle.  Three long minutes passed. 
+Bruin had evidently gone to sleep again.  Wild with excitement,
+the boy rushed forward and drove his skee-staff straight into the
+den with all his might.  A sullen growl was heard, like a deep
+and menacing thunder.  There could be no doubt that now the
+monster would take him to task for his impertinence.
+
+Again the boy seized his rifle; and his nerves, though tense as
+stretched bow-strings, seemed suddenly calm and steady.  He
+lifted the rifle to his cheek, and resolved not to shoot until he
+had a clear aim at heart or brain.  Bruin, though Lars could hear
+him rummaging within, was in no hurry to come out, But he sighed
+and growled uproariously, and presently showed a terrible,
+long-clawed paw, which he thrust out through his door and then
+again withdrew.  But apparently it took him a long while to get
+his mind clear as to the cause of the disturbance; for fully five
+minutes had elapsed when suddenly a big tuft of moss was tossed
+out upon the snow, followed by a cloud of dust and an angry
+creaking of the tree-roots.
+
+Great masses of snow were shaken from the swaying tops of the
+firs, and fell with light thuds upon the ground.  In the face of
+this unexpected shower, which entirely hid the entrance to the
+den, Lars was obliged to fall back a dozen paces; but, as the
+glittering drizzle cleared away, he saw an enormous brown beast
+standing upon its hind legs, with widely distended jaws.  He was
+conscious of no fear, but of a curious numbness in his limbs, and
+strange noises, as of warning shouts and cries, filling his ears.
+
+Fortunately, the great glare of the sun-smitten snow dazzled
+Bruin; he advanced slowly, roaring savagely, but staring rather
+blindly before him out of his small, evil-looking eyes. 
+Suddenly, when he was but a few yards distant, he raised his
+great paw, as if to rub away the cobwebs that obscured his sight.
+
+It was the moment for which the boy had waited.  Now he had a
+clear aim! Quickly he pulled the trigger; the shot reverberated
+from mountain to mountain, and in the same instant the huge brown
+bulk rolled in the snow, gave a gasp, and was dead!  The spell
+was broken!  The silver bullet had pierced his heart.  There was
+a curious unreality about the whole thing to Lars.  He scarcely
+knew whether he was really himself or the hero of the fairy-tale.
+
+All that was left for him to do now was to go home and marry
+Stella, the delivered princess.
+
+The noises about him seemed to come nearer and nearer; and now
+they sounded like human voices.  He looked about him, and to his
+amazement saw his father and Marit, followed by two wood-cutters,
+who, with raised axes, were running toward him.  Then he did not
+know exactly what happened; but he felt himself lifted up by two
+strong arms, and tears fell hot and fast upon his face.
+
+"My boy! my boy!"  said the voice in his ears, "I expected to
+find you dead."
+
+"No, but the bear is dead," said Lars, innocently.
+
+"I didn't mean to tell on you, Lars," cried Marit, "but I was so
+afraid, and then I had to."
+
+The rumor soon filled the whole valley that the great Gausdale
+Bruin was dead, and that the boy Lars Tomlevold had killed him. 
+It is needless to say that Lars Tomlevold became the parish hero
+from that day.  He did not dare to confess in the presence of all
+this praise and wonder that at heart he was bitterly
+disappointed; for when he came home, throbbing with wild
+expectancy, there stood Stella before the kitchen door, munching
+a piece of bread; and when she hailed him with a low whinny, he
+burst into tears.  But he dared not tell any one why he was
+weeping.
+
+This story might have ended here, but it has a little sequel. 
+The $1,750 which Bruin had to his credit in the bank had
+increased to $2,290; and it was all paid to Lars.  A few years
+later, Martin Janson, who had inherited the estate of Moe from
+old Lars, failed in consequence of his daring forest
+speculations, and young Lars was enabled to buy the farm at
+auction at less than half its value.  Thus he had the happiness
+to bring his mother back to the place of her birth, of which she
+had been wrongfully deprived; and Stella, who was now twenty-one
+years old, occupied once more her handsome box-stall, as in the
+days of her glory.  And although she never proved to be a
+princess, she was treated as if she were one, during the few
+years that remained to her.
+
+
+
+
+
+End of Project Gutenberg Etext of Boyhood in Norway, by Hjalmar Boyesen
+
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