THE LAST DREAM OF THE OLD OAK TREE. 497

“ Now I am in the house of God,” she said, “and in that house
we are happy.”

And when the sun had set, Anne Lisbeth’s soul had risen to
that region where there is no more anguish, and Anne Lisbeth’s
troubles were over. ‘

THE LAST DREAM OF THE OLD OAK TREE.

A CHRISTMAS TALE,

N the forest, high up on the steep shore, hard by the open
sea-coast, stood a very old Oak Tree. It was exactly
three hundred and sixty-five years old, but that long time

was not more for the Tree than just as many days would be to
us men. We wake by day and sleep through the night, and then
we have our dreams : it is different with the Tree, which keeps
awake through three seasons of the year, and does not get its
sleep till winter comes. ‘Winter is its time for rest, its night after
the long day which is called spring, summer, and autumn.

On many a warm summer day the Ephemera, the fly that lives
but fora day, had danced around his crown—-had lived, enjoyed,
_ and felt happy; and then rested for a moment in quiet bliss the
tiny creature, on one of the great fresh Oak leaves; and then the
Tree always said,

“Poor little thing! Your whole life is but.a single day! How
very short! It’s quite melancholy.”

“Melancholy! Why do you say that?” the Ephemera would
then always reply. “It’s wonderfully bright, warm, and beautiful
all around me, and that makes me rejoice.”.

“But only one day, and then it’s all done

“Done!” repeated the Ephemera. _ “ What’s the meaning of
done? Are you done, too?”

“No; I shall perhaps live for thousands of your days, and my
day is whole seasons long! It’s something so long, that you
can’t at all manage to reckon it out.”

“No? then I don’t understand you. You say you have thou-
sands of my days; but I have thousands of moments, in which I
can be merry and happy. Does all the beauty of this world cease
when you die?”

“No,” replied the Tree; “it will certainly last much longer —
far longer than I can possibly think.”

“Well, then we have the same time, only we reckon diffes
rently,”

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