480 CHARMING.

always stood, with its red walls, on which the green ivy grew;
and the great door of the church flew open, and the organ pealed,
» and they walked up the long aisle of the church.

“Our master first,” said the cake couple ; and made room for
Joanna and Knud, who knelt by the altar, and she bent her head
over him, and tears fell from: her eyes, but they were icy cold,
for it was the ice around her heart that was melting —melting by
his strong love; and the tears fell upon his burning cheeks, and
he awoke, and was sitting under the old willow tree in the strange
Jand, in the cold wintry evening : and icy hail was falling from the
clouds and beating on his face.

“That was the most delicious hour of my life!” he said, “and
it was but-a dream. Oh, Jet me dream again!”

And he closed his eyes once more, and slept and dreamed.

Towards morning there was a great fall of snow. The wind
drifted the snow over him, but he slept on. The villagers came
forth to go to church, and by the road-side sat a journeyman.
He was dead—frozen to death under tke willow tree !

CHARMING.

LFRED the sculptor—you know him? Weall knowhim:
he won the great gold medal, and got a travellingscholar-
ship, went to Italy, and thea came back to his native land.

He was young in those days, and indeed he is young yet, though

he is ten years older than he was then.

After his return he visited one of the little provincial towns on
the island of Seeland. The whole town knew who the stranger
was, and one of the richest persons gave a party in honour of him,
and all who were of any consequence, or possessed any property,
were invited. It was quite an event, and all the town knew of it
without its being announced by beat of drum. Apprentice boys,
and children of poor people, and even some of the poor people
themselves, stood in front of the house, and looked at the lighted
curtain; and the watchman could fancy that 4e was giving a
party, so many people were in the streets. There was quite
an air of festivity about, and in the house was festivity also, for
Mr, Alfred the sculptor was there.

He talked, and told anecdotes, and all listened to him with
pleasure and a certain kind of awe; but none felt such respect
for him as did the elderly widow of an official: she seemed, so
far as Mr. Alfred was concerned, like a fresh piece of blotting-