Welcome,
I'm Joanne and this is Drift Off,
A soft place for you to land at the end of the day.
I'd like to offer you a calming bedtime story tonight,
Softly told,
With a nice,
Soft,
Gentle voice that I hope will help you feel nurtured,
Safe,
And at ease so you can drift off.
So are you ready for a bedtime story?
Well then,
Get comfy and cozy in your bed and snuggle up tight and let me be your guide now.
Sweet dreams my friend,
And good night.
The first story describes a looking glass and the broken fragments.
You must attend to the commencement of this story,
For when we get to the end,
We shall know more than we do now about a very wicked goblin.
He was one of the very worst,
For he was a real demon.
One day,
When he was in a merry mood,
He made a looking glass which had the power of making everything good or beautiful that was reflected in it almost shrink to nothing,
While everything that was worthless and bad looked increased in size and worse than ever.
The most lovely landscapes appeared like boiled spinach,
And the people became hideous and looked as if they stood on their heads and had no bodies.
Their countenances were so distorted that no one could recognize them,
And even one freckle on the face appeared to spread over the whole of the nose and mouth.
The demon said this was very amusing.
When a good thought passed through the mind of anyone,
It was misrepresented in the glass.
And then how the demon laughed at his cunning invention.
All who went to the demon's school,
For he kept a school,
Talked everywhere of the wonders they had seen,
And declared that people could now,
For the first time,
See what the world and mankind were really like.
They carried the glass about everywhere,
Till at last there was not a land nor a people who had not been looked at through this distorted mirror.
They wanted even to fly with it up to heaven to see the angels,
But the higher they flew,
The more slippery the glass became,
And they could scarcely hold it till at last it slipped from their hands,
Fell to the earth,
And was broken into millions of pieces.
But now the looking glass caused more unhappiness than ever,
For some of the fragments were not so large as a grain of sand,
And they flew about the world into every country.
When one of these tiny atoms flew into a person's eye,
It stuck there unknown to him,
And from that moment,
He saw everything through a distorted medium or could see only the worst side of what he looked at,
For even the smallest fragment retained the same power which had belonged to the whole mirror.
Some few persons even got a fragment of the looking glass in their hearts,
And this was very terrible,
For their hearts became cold like a lump of ice.
A few of the pieces were so large that they could be used as window panes.
It would have been a sad thing to look at their friends through them.
Other pieces were made into spectacles.
This was dreadful for those who wore them,
For they could see nothing either rightly or justly.
At all this,
The wicked demon laughed till his sides shook.
It tickled him to see the mischief he had done.
There were still a number of these little fragments of glass floating about in the air,
And now you shall hear what happened with one of them.
One story,
A little boy and a little girl.
In a large town full of houses and people,
There is not room for everybody to have even a little garden.
Therefore,
They are obliged to be satisfied with a few flowers in flower pots.
In one of these large towns lived two poor children who had a garden something larger and better than a few flower pots.
They were not brother and sister,
But they loved each other almost as much as if they had been.
Their parents lived opposite each other in two garrets where the roofs of neighbouring houses projected out towards each other and the water pipe ran between them.
In each house was a little window so that anyone could step across the gutter from one window to the other.
The parents of these children had each a large wooden box in which they cultivated kitchen herbs for their own use,
And a little rose bush in each box which grew splendidly.
Now after a while,
The parents decided to place these two boxes across the water pipe so that they reached from one window to the other and looked like two banks of flowers.
Sweet peas drooped over the boxes and the rose bushes shot forth long branches which were trained round the windows and clustered together almost like an arch of leaves and flowers.
The boxes were very high and the children knew they must not climb upon them without permission,
But they were often,
However,
Allowed to step out together and sit upon their little stools under the rose bushes or play quietly.
In winter,
All this pleasure came to an end,
For the windows were sometimes quite frozen over.
But then they would warm copper pennies on the stove and hold the warm pennies against the frozen pain.
There would be very soon a little round hole through which they could peep and the soft bright eyes of the little boy and girl would beam through the hole at each window as they looked at each other.
Their names were Kai and Gerda.
In summer,
They could be together with one jump from the window,
But in winter they had to go up and down the long staircase and out through the snow before they could meet.
See,
There are the white bees swarming,
Said Kai's old grandmother one day when it was snowing.
Have they a queen bee?
Asked the little boy,
For he knew that the real bees had a queen.
To be sure they have,
Said the grandmother,
She is flying there where the swarm is thickest.
She is the largest of them all and never remains on the earth but flies up to the dark clouds.
Often at midnight,
She flies through the streets of the town and looks in at the windows,
Then the ice freezes on the panes into wonderful shapes that look like flowers and castles.
Yes I have seen them,
Said both the children,
And they knew it must be true.
Can the snow queen come in here?
Asked the little girl.
Only let her come,
Said the boy.
I'll set her on the stove and then she'll melt.
The grandmother smoothed his hair and told him some more tales.
One evening when little Kai was at home,
He climbed on a chair by the window and peeped out through the little hole.
A few flakes of snow were falling,
And one of them,
Rather larger than the rest,
Alighted on the edge of one of the flower boxes.
The snowflake grew larger and larger,
Till at last it became the figure of a woman dressed in garments of white gauze which looked like millions of starry snowflakes linked together.
She was fair and beautiful but made of ice.
Shining and glittery ice.
Still,
She was alive and her eyes sparkled like bright stars,
But there was neither peace nor rest in their glance.
She nodded towards the window and waved her hand.
The little boy was frightened and sprang from the chair.
At the same moment,
It seemed as if a large bird flew by the window.
On the following day,
There was a clear frost,
And very soon came the spring.
The sun shone,
The young green leaves burst forth,
The swallows built their nests,
Windows were opened,
And the children sat once more in the garden on the roof.
How beautiful the roses blossomed this summer.
The little girl had learned a hymn in which roses were spoken of,
And then she thought of their own roses and she sang the hymn to the little boy,
And he sang too.
Roses bloom and cease to be,
But we shall the Christ child see.
The little ones held each other by the hand and kissed the roses and looked at the bright sunshine and spoke to it as if the Christ child were there.
Those were splendid summer days.
How beautiful and fresh it was out among the rose bushes,
Which seemed as if they would never leave off blooming.
One day,
Kai and Gerda sat looking at a book full of pictures of animals and birds,
And then just as the clock in the church tower struck twelve,
Kai said,
Oh,
Something has struck my heart,
And soon after,
There is something in my eye.
The little girl put her arm around his neck and looked into his eye,
But she could see nothing.
I think it's gone,
He said,
But it was not gone.
It was one of those bits of the looking glass,
The magic mirror of which we have spoken,
Which made everything great and good appear small and ugly,
While all that was wicked and bad became more visible,
And every little fault could be plainly seen.
Poor little Kai had also received a small grain in his heart,
Which very quickly turned to a lump of ice.
He felt no more pain,
But the glass was there still.
Why do you cry,
Said he at last?
It makes you look ugly.
There is nothing the matter with me now.
Oh,
See,
He cried suddenly,
That rose is worm eaten,
And this one is quite crooked.
After all,
They are ugly roses,
Just like the box in which they stand.
And then he kicked the boxes with his foot and pulled off the two roses.
Kai,
What are you doing?
Cried the little girl.
When he saw how frightened she was,
He tore off another rose and jumped through his own window away from little Gerda.
When she afterwards brought out the picture book,
He said it was only fit for babies in long clothes.
And when grandmother told any stories,
He would interrupt her,
Or when he could manage it,
He would get behind her chair,
Put on a pair of spectacles,
And imitate her very cleverly to make people laugh.
By and by,
He began to mimic the speech and gait of persons in the street.
All that was peculiar or disagreeable in a person he would imitate directly,
But it was the piece of glass in his eye and the coldness in his heart that made him act like this.
He would even tease little Gerda,
Who loved him with all her heart.
His games,
Too,
Were quite different.
They were not so childish.
One winter's day,
When it snowed,
He brought out a burning glass.
Then,
He held out the tail of his blue coat and let the snowflakes fall upon it.
Look in this glass,
Gerda,
Said he,
And she saw how every flake of snow was magnified and looked like a beautiful flower or a glittering star.
Is it not clever,
Said Kai,
And much more interesting than looking at real flowers?
There is not a single fault in it,
And the snowflakes are quite perfect till they begin to melt.
Soon after,
Kai made his appearance in large,
Thick gloves and with his sledge at his back.
He called upstairs to Gerda.
I've got to leave to go into the great square where the other boys play and ride.
And away he went.
In the great square,
The boldest among the boys would often tie their sledges to the country people's carts and go with them a good way.
But while they were all amusing themselves and Kai with them,
A great sledge came by.
It was painted white,
And in it sat someone wrapped in a rough white fur and wearing a white cap.
The sledge drove twice round the square,
And Kai fastened his own little sledge to it so that when it went away,
He followed with it.
It went faster and faster right through the next street,
So Kai sat still and they drove out through the town gate.
Then the snow began to fall so heavily that the little boy could not see before him,
But still they drove on.
Then he suddenly loosened the cord so that the large sled might go on without him,
But it was of no use.
His little carriage held fast and away they went like the wind.
Then he called out loudly,
But nobody heard him,
While the snow beat upon him and the sledge flew onwards.
Every now and then,
It gave a jump as if it were going over hedges and ditches.
The snowflakes became larger and larger till they appeared like great white chickens.
All at once they sprang on one side,
The great sledge stopped,
And the person who had driven it rose up.
The fur and the cap,
Which were made entirely of snow,
Fell off,
And he saw a lady,
Tall and white.
It was the Snow Queen.
We have driven well,
Said she,
But why do you tremble?
Here,
Creep into my warm fur.
Then she seated him beside her in the sledge,
And as she wrapped the fur around him,
He felt as if he were sinking into a snowdrift.
Are you still cold?
She asked,
As she kissed him on the forehead.
The kiss was colder than ice.
It went quite through to his heart.
He felt as if he were going to die,
But only for a moment.
He soon seemed quite well again,
And did not notice the cold around him.
My sledge,
Don't forget my sledge,
Was his first thought.
And then he looked and saw that it was bound fast to one of the white chickens,
Which flew behind him with the sledge at its back.
The Snow Queen kissed Little Kai again,
And by this time he had forgotten Little Gerda,
His grandmother,
And all at home.
Now you must have no more kisses,
She said,
Or I should kiss you to death.
Kai looked at her,
And saw that she was so beautiful.
He could not imagine a more lovely and intelligent face.
She did not now seem to be made of ice,
As when he had seen her through his window and she had nodded to him.
In his eyes she was perfect,
And she did not feel at all afraid.
He told her he could do mental arithmetic,
As far as fractions,
And that he knew the number of square miles and the number of inhabitants in the country.
And she always smiled so that he thought he did not know enough yet.
And she looked round the vast expanse,
As she flew higher and higher with him upon a black cloud,
While the storm blew and howled,
As if it were singing old songs.
They flew over woods and lakes,
Over sea and land.
Below them roared the wild wind,
The wolves howled,
And the snow crackled.
Over them flew the black screaming crows,
And above all shone the moon clear and bright.
And so Kai passed through the long winter's night,
And by day he slept at the feet of the Snow Queen.
Third Story The Flower Garden But how fared little Gerda during Kai's absence.
What had become of him no one knew,
Nor could anyone give the slightest information.
Many tears were shed for him,
And little Gerda wept bitterly for a long time.
She said she knew he must be dead,
That he was drowned in the river which flowed close by the school.
Oh,
Indeed those long winter days were very dreary,
But at last spring came with warm sunshine.
Kai is dead and gone,
Said little Gerda.
I don't believe it,
Said the sunshine.
He is dead and gone,
She said to the sparrows.
We don't believe it,
They replied.
And at last little Gerda began to doubt it herself.
I will put on my new red shoes,
She said one morning,
Those that Kai has never seen,
And then I will go down to the river and ask for him.
It was quite early when she kissed her old grandmother,
Who was still asleep.
She put on her red shoes and went quite alone out of the town gates toward the river.
Is it true that you have taken my little playmate away from me,
She said to the river?
I will give you my red shoes if you will give them back to me.
And it seemed as if the waves nodded to her in a strange manner.
Then she took off her red shoes and threw them both into the river.
They fell near the bank and the little waves carried them back to the land,
But she thought the shoes had not been thrown out far enough.
Then she crept into a boat that lay among the reeds and threw the shoes again from the farther end of the boat into the water,
But it was not fastened,
And her movement sent it gliding away from the land.
When she saw this,
She hastened to reach the end of the boat,
But before she could so,
It was more than a yard from the bank and drifting away faster than ever.
Little Gerda was very much frightened and began to cry.
Little Gerda sat quite still with only her stockings on her feet.
The red shoes floated after her,
But she could not reach them because the boat kept so much in advance.
The banks on each side of the river were very pretty.
There were beautiful flowers,
Old trees,
Sloping fields in which cows and sheep were grazing,
But not a man to be seen.
Perhaps the river will carry me to Little Kai,
Thought Gerda.
And then she became more cheerful and raised her head and looked at the beautiful green banks.
And so the boat sailed on for hours.
At length she came to a large cherry orchard in which stood a small red house with strange red and blue windows.
It had also a thatched roof,
And outside were two wooden soldiers that presented arms to her as she sailed past.
Gerda called out to them,
For she thought they were alive,
But of course they did not answer.
And as the boat drifted nearer to the shore,
She saw what they really were.
Gerda called still louder,
And there came a very old woman out of the house leaning on a crutch.
She wore a large hat to shade her from the sun,
And on it were painted all sorts of pretty flowers.
You poor little child,
Said the old woman,
How did you manage to come all this distance into the wild world on such a rapid rolling stream?
And then the old woman walked in the water,
Seized the boat with her crutch,
Drew it to the land,
And lifted Gerda out.
And Gerda was glad to feel herself on dry ground,
Although she was rather afraid of the strange old woman.
Come and tell me who you are,
Said she,
And how came you here?
Then Gerda told her everything,
And when she had finished,
Gerda asked if she had not seen little Kai,
And the old woman told her he had not passed by that way.
Then she took Gerda by the hand and led her into the little house,
And the old woman closed the door.
The windows were very high,
And as the panes were red,
Blue,
And yellow,
The daylight shone through them in all sorts of singular colors.
On the table stood beautiful cherries,
And Gerda had permission to eat as many as she would.
While she was eating them,
The old woman combed out her long flaxen ringlets with a golden comb,
And the glossy curls hung down on each side of the little round,
Pleasant face,
Which looked fresh and blooming as a rose.
I have long been wishing for a dear little maiden like you,
Said the old woman,
And now you must stay with me and see how happily we shall live together.
And while she went on combing little Gerda's hair,
She thought less and less about Kai for the old woman could conjure,
Although she was not a wicked witch,
She conjured only a little for her own amusement.
She went into the garden and stretched out her crutch towards all the rose trees,
And they immediately sunk into the dark earth so that no one could tell where they had once stood.
The old woman was afraid that if little Gerda saw roses,
She would think of those at home and run away.
Then she took Gerda into the flower garden.
How fragrant and beautiful it was!
Every flower that could be thought of for every season of the year was here in full bloom.
No picture book could have more beautiful colors.
Gerda jumped for joy and played till the sun went down behind the tall cherry trees.
Then she slept in an elegant bed with red silk pillows embroidered with colored violets.
And then she dreamed as pleasantly as a queen on her wedding day.
The next day,
And for many days after,
Gerda played with the flowers in the warm sunshine.
She knew every flower,
And yet,
Although there were so many of them,
It seemed as if one were missing,
But which it was she could not tell.
One day,
As she sat looking at the old woman's hat with the painted flowers on it,
She saw that the prettiest of them all was a rose.
The old woman had forgotten to take it from her hat when she made all the roses sink into the earth.
Are there no roses here?
Cried Gerda.
She ran out into the garden and examined all the beds and searched and searched.
There was not one to be found.
Then she sat down and wept,
And her tears fell just on the place where one of the rose trees had sunk down.
The warm tears moistened the earth,
And the rose tree sprouted up at once,
And Gerda embraced it and kissed the roses,
And thought of the beautiful roses at home.
Oh,
How I've been detained,
Said the little maiden.
My poor old grandmother,
Sighed Gerda.
She is longing to see me,
And grieving for me as she did for little Kai.
She tucked up her little dress,
And then she ran to the other end of the garden.
The door was fastened,
But she pressed against the rusty latch.
The door sprang open,
And little Gerda ran out with bare feet into the wide world.
She looked back three times,
But no one seemed to be following her.
She could run no longer,
So she sat down to rest on a great stone,
And when she looked around,
She saw that the summer was over.
Oh,
How I've wasted my time,
Said little Gerda.
I must not rest any longer,
And she rose up to go on.
Her little feet were wounded and sore,
And everything around her looked so cold and bleak.
The long willow trees were quite yellow.
The dew drops fell like water.
Leaf after leaf dropped from the trees.
How dark and weary the whole world appeared.
Fourth Story The Prince and Princess Gerda was obliged to rest again,
And just opposite the place where she sat,
She saw a great crow come hopping across the snow toward her.
He stood looking at her for some time,
And then he wagged his head and said,
Caw caw,
Good day good day,
And then he asked her where she was going all alone in the wide world.
So then she told the crow the whole story of her life and adventures,
And asked him if he had seen little Kai.
The crow nodded his head very gravely and said,
Perhaps I have,
It may be.
Do you think you have?
Cried little Gerda,
And she kissed the crow and hugged him almost to death with joy.
Gently,
Gently,
Said the crow.
I believe I know,
I think it may be little Kai,
But he has certainly forgotten you by this time for the princess.
Does he live with a princess?
Asked Gerda.
Yes,
And he told her what he had heard.
In this kingdom where we are now,
Said he,
There lives a princess who is so wonderfully clever that she has read all the newspapers in the world.
A short time ago,
As she was sitting on her throne,
She determined to marry if she could find a husband who knew what to say when he was spoken to,
And not one who could only look grand,
For that was so tiresome.
You may believe that every word I tell you is true,
Said the crow,
For I have a tame sweetheart who goes freely about the palace,
And she told me all of this.
Newspapers were published immediately with a border of hearts and the initials of the princess among them.
They gave notice that every young man who was handsome was free to visit the castle and speak with the princess,
And those who could reply loud enough to be heard when spoken to were to make themselves quite at home at the palace,
But the one who spoke best would be chosen as a husband for the princess.
Yes,
Yes,
You may believe me,
It is all as true as I sit here,
Said the crow.
The people came in crowds.
There was a great deal of crushing and running about.
There was quite a long line of them reaching from the town gate to the palace.
They were hungry and thirsty,
For at the palace they did not even get a glass of water.
Some of the wisest had taken a few slices of bread and butter with them,
But they did not share it with their neighbors.
They thought if they went into the princess looking hungry,
There would be a better chance for themselves.
It was on the third day there came marching cheerfully along to the palace a little person,
His eyes sparkling like yours.
He had beautiful long hair,
But his clothes were very poor.
That was Kai,
Said Gerda joyfully.
Oh,
Then I have found him,
And she clapped her hands.
The rooms were blazing with light.
Counselors and ambassadors walked about with bare feet,
Carrying golden vessels.
It was enough to make anyone feel serious.
His boots creaked loudly as he walked,
And yet he was not at all uneasy.
It must be Kai,
Said Gerda.
I know he had new boots on.
I have heard them creak in grandmother's room.
They really did creak,
Said the crow.
Yet he went boldly up to the princess herself,
Who was sitting on a pearl as large as a spinning wheel,
And all the ladies of the court were present with their maids,
And all the cavaliers and their servants.
They all stood in circles round the princess.
Did Kai win the princess?
He was quite free and agreeable,
And said he had not come to woo the princess,
But to hear her wisdom,
And he was as pleased with her as she was with him.
Oh,
Certainly that was Kai,
Said Gerda.
He was so clever,
He could work mental arithmetic and fractions.
Will you take me to the palace?
It is very easy to ask that,
Replied the crow,
But how are we to manage it?
However,
I will speak about it to my tame sweetheart,
And ask her her advice,
For I must tell you,
It will be very difficult to gain permission for a little girl like you to enter the palace.
Oh,
Yes,
But I shall gain permission easily,
Said Gerda,
For when Kai hears that I am here,
He will come out and fetch me immediately.
Wait for me here by the palings,
Said the crow,
Wagging his head as he flew away.
It was late in the evening before the crow returned.
It is not possible for you to enter the palace by the front entrance.
The guards in silver uniform and the servants would not allow it,
But do not cry.
We will manage to get you in.
My sweetheart knows a little back staircase that leads to the sleeping apartments,
And she knows where to find the key.
They went into the garden through the great avenue,
Where the leaves were falling one after another,
And they could see the light in the palace being put out in the same manner,
And the crow led little Gerda to the back door which stood ajar.
How little Gerda's heart beat with anxiety and longing.
It was just as if she were going to do something wrong,
And yet she only wanted to know where little Kai was.
It must be he,
She thought,
With those clear eyes and that long hair.
He would certainly be glad to see her and to hear what a long distance she had come for his sake.
Oh,
What joy and yet fear she felt.
They were now on the stairs,
And in a small closet at the top,
In the middle of the floor stood the tame crow,
Turning her head from side to side and gazing at Gerda,
Who curtsied as her grandmother had taught her to do.
My betrothed has spoken so very highly of you,
My little lady,
Said the tame crow.
Your life history is very touching.
If you will take the lamp,
I will walk before you.
They now came into the first hall,
The walls of which were hung with rose-coloured satin embroidered with artificial flowers.
Each hall appeared more splendid than the last.
At length they reached a bedroom.
The ceiling was like a great palm tree with glass leaves of the most costly crystal,
And over the centre of the floor two beds,
Each resembling a lily,
One in which the princess lay was white,
The other was red,
And in this Gerda had to seek for little Kai.
She pushed one of the red leaves aside and saw a little brown neck.
That must be Kai.
She called his name out quite loud and held the lamp over him.
He woke and turned his head round.
It was not little Kai.
The prince was only like him in the neck.
Then the princess peeped out of her white lily bed and asked what was the matter.
Little Gerda wept and told her story and all that the crows had done to help her.
You poor child,
Said the prince and princess.
And then the prince got out of his bed and gave it up to Gerda.
Then she closed her eyes and fell into a sweet sleep.
The following day she was dressed from head to foot in silk and velvet and they invited her to stay at the palace for a few days,
But she only begged for a pair of boots and a little carriage and a horse to draw it so that she might go into the wide world to seek for Kai.
And she obtained not only boots but also a muff and she was neatly dressed.
And when she was ready to go,
There at the door she found a coach made of pure gold with the coat of arms of the prince and princess shining upon it like a star.
And the coachmen,
Footmen,
And outriders all wearing golden crowns on their heads.
The prince and princess themselves helped her into the coach and wished her success.
The forest crow,
Who was now married,
Accompanied her for the first three miles.
The coach was well stored with sweet cakes and under the seat were fruit and gingerbread nuts.
Farewell,
Farewell,
Cried the prince and princess and little Gerda wept.
And then,
After a few miles,
The crow also said farewell.
And this was the saddest parting.
Fifth Story Little Robber Girl The coach drove on through a thick forest where it lighted up the way like a torch and dazzled the eyes of some robbers who could not bear to let it pass them.
It is gold,
It is gold,
Cried they,
Rushing forward and seizing the horses.
Then they struck their little jockeys,
The coachmen and the footmen dead and pulled little Gerda out of the carriage.
She is fat and pretty,
Said the old robber woman who had a long beard and eyebrows that hung over her eyes.
She is as good as a little lamb.
How nice she will taste.
And as she said this,
She drew forth a shining knife.
Ouch,
Screamed the old woman the same moment,
For her own daughter who held her back had bitten her in the ear.
She was a wild and naughty girl.
She shall play with me,
Said the little robber girl.
She shall give me her muff and her pretty dress.
And then she bit her mother again and made her spring in the air and jump about.
I will have a ride in the coach,
Said the little robber girl.
She and Gerda seated themselves in the coach and drove away over stumps and stones into the depths of the forest.
The little robber girl was about the same size as Gerda,
But stronger.
She had broader shoulders and a darker skin.
Her eyes were quite black and she had a mournful look.
I suppose you are a princess.
No,
Said Gerda,
And then she told her her whole story and how fond she was of little Kai.
The robber girl looked earnestly at her,
And then she wiped Gerda's eyes and stuck her own hands in the beautiful muff which was so soft and warm.
The coach stopped in the courtyard of a robber's castle,
The walls of which were cracked from top to bottom.
Ravens and crows flew in and out of the holes and crevices while great bulldogs were jumping about.
In the large and smoky hall,
A bright fire was burning on the stone floor.
Soup was boiling in a large cauldron and hares and rabbits were roasting on the spit.
You shall sleep with me and all my little animals tonight,
Said the robber girl after they had had something to eat and drink.
So she took Gerda to a corner of the hall where some straw and carpets were laid down.
Above them were more than a hundred pigeons who all seemed to be asleep.
These all belonged to me,
Said the robber girl.
And here is my old sweetheart,
Ba,
And she dragged out a reindeer by the horn.
He wore a bright copper ring round his neck and was tied up.
We are obliged to hold him tight too,
Or else he would run away from us also.
But now tell me again all about little Kai and why you went into the world.
Gerda repeated her story over again.
The little robber girl was soon fast asleep,
But Gerda could not close her eyes at all.
She knew not whether she was to live or die.
The robbers sat round the fire,
Singing and drinking,
And the old woman stumbled about.
Then the wood pigeon said,
Coo,
Coo,
We have seen little Kai.
A white fowl carried his sledge,
And he sat in the carriage of the snow queen which drove through the wood while we were lying in our nest.
She blew upon us,
And all the young ones died.
Coo,
Coo.
What are you saying up there?
Cried Gerda.
Where was the snow queen going?
Do you know anything about it?
She was most likely travelling to Lapland,
Where there is always snow and ice.
Ask the reindeer that is fastened up with the rope.
Yes,
There is always snow and ice,
Said the reindeer,
And it is a glorious place.
You can leap and run about freely on the sparkling ice plains.
The snow queen has her summer tent there,
But her strong castle is at the north pole on an island called Spitsbergen.
Oh,
Kai,
Little Kai,
Sighed Gerda.
In the morning,
Gerda told her all that the wood pigeons had said,
And the little robber girl looked quite serious and nodded her head and said,
Do you know where Lapland is?
She asked the reindeer.
Who should know better than I do,
Said the animal,
While his eyes sparkled.
I was born and brought up there,
And used to run about the snow-covered plains.
Now listen,
Said the robber girl,
Only mother is here,
But at noon she always drinks out of a great bottle and afterwards sleeps for a little while,
And then I'll do something for you.
When the mother had drunk out of the bottle and was gone to sleep,
The little robber maiden went to the reindeer and said,
I will untie your cord and set you free so that you may run away to Lapland,
But you must make good use of your legs and carry this little maiden to the castle of the snow queen.
The reindeer jumped for joy,
And the little robber girl lifted Gerda on his back.
Here are your fur boots for you,
Said she,
For it will be very cold.
Gerda wept for joy.
I don't like to see you fret,
Said the little robber girl.
You ought to look quite happy now,
And here are two loaves and a ham so that you need not starve.
They were fastened on the reindeer,
And then the little robber maiden opened the door,
Coaxed in all the great dogs,
Cut the string with which the reindeer was fastened with her sharp knife,
And said,
Now run,
But mind you,
Take good care of the little girl,
And then Gerda stretched out her hand with the great mitten on it and said,
Farewell,
And away flew the reindeer over stumps and stones through the grey forest,
Over marshes and plains as quickly as he could.
The wolves howled,
And the ravens screamed,
While up in the sky quivered red lights like flames of fire.
There are my northern lights,
Said the reindeer,
See how they flash,
And he ran on day and night,
Still faster and faster,
But the loaves and ham were all eaten by the time they reached Lapland.
6th Story The Lapland Woman and the Finland Woman They stopped at a little hut.
It was very mean looking.
The roof sloped nearly down to the ground,
And the door was so low that the family had to creep in on their hands and knees when they went in and out.
There was no one at home but an old Lapland woman who was cooking fish by the light of a train oil lamp.
The reindeer told her all about Gerda's story.
Gerda was so pinched with the cold that she could not speak.
Oh,
You poor things,
Said the Lapland woman,
You have a long way to go yet.
You must travel more than a hundred miles farther to Finland.
The Snow Queen lives there now,
And she burns bangle lights every evening.
I will write a few words on a dried stockfish,
For I have no paper,
And you can take it from me to the Finland woman who lives there.
She can give you better information than I can.
When Gerda was warmed and had taken something to eat and drink,
The woman wrote a few words on the dried fish.
Then she tied her again on the reindeer,
And he set off at full speed.
Flash flash went the beautiful blue northern lights in the air the whole night long,
And at length they reached Finland and knocked at the chimney of the Finland woman's hut,
For it had no door above the ground.
They crept in,
But it was so terribly hot inside that the woman wore scarcely any clothes.
She was small and very dirty looking.
She loosened little Gerda's dress and took off her fur boots and the mittens,
Or Gerda would have been unable to bear the heat.
And then she placed a piece of ice on the reindeer's head and read what was written on the dried fish.
The reindeer told his own story first,
And then little Gerda's,
And the woman twinkled with her clever eyes,
But she said nothing.
You are so clever,
Said the reindeer.
Cannot you give this little maiden something to overcome the Snow Queen?
She went to a shelf and took down and unrolled a large skin on which was inscribed wonderful characters,
And she read till perspiration ran down her forehead.
But the reindeer begged so hard for little Gerda,
And Gerda looked at the Finland woman with such beseeching,
Tearful eyes.
So she drew the reindeer into a corner and whispered to him.
Little Kai is really with the Snow Queen,
But he finds everything there so much to his taste and his liking that he believes it is the finest place in the world.
But this is because he has a piece of broken glass in his heart and a little piece of glass in his eye.
These must be taken out or he will never be a human being again and the Snow Queen will retain her power over him.
But can you not give little Gerda something to help her conquer this power?
I can give her no greater power than she already has,
Said the woman.
Don't you see how strong that is?
How men and animals are obliged to serve her and how well she has got through the world,
Barefooted as she is?
She cannot receive any power from me greater than she now has,
Which consists in her own purity and innocence of heart.
If she cannot herself obtain access to the Snow Queen and remove the glass fragments from little Kai,
We can do nothing to help her.
Two miles from here,
The Snow Queen's garden begins.
You can carry the little girl so far and set her down by the large bush which stands in the snow,
Covered with red berries.
Do not stay gossiping,
But come back here as quickly as you can.
Then the Finland woman lifted little Gerda upon the reindeer and he ran away with her as quickly as he could.
Oh,
I have forgotten my boots and my mittens,
Cried little Gerda,
As soon as she felt the cutting cold.
But the reindeer dared not stop,
So he ran on till he reached the bush with the red berries.
Here he set Gerda down and he kissed her and the great bright tears trickled over the animal's cheeks.
Then he left her and ran back as fast as he could.
There stood poor Gerda,
Without shoes,
Without gloves,
In the midst of cold,
Dreary,
Ice-bound Finland.
She ran forwards as quickly as she could when a whole regiment of snowflakes came round her.
They did not,
However,
Fall from the sky,
Which was quite clear and glittering with the northern lights.
The snowflakes ran along the ground and the nearer they came to her,
The larger they appeared.
Gerda remembered how large and beautiful they looked through the burning glass,
But these were really larger and much more terrible,
For they were alive and were the guards of the Snow Queen and had the strangest shapes.
Some were like great porcupines,
Others like twisted serpents with heads stretching out.
Little Gerda repeated the Lord's Prayer,
And the cold was so great that she could see her own breath come out of her mouth like steam as she uttered the words.
The steam appeared to increase as she continued her prayer,
Till it took the shape of little angels.
They all wore helmets on their heads and carried spears and shields.
Their number continued to increase more and more,
And by the time Gerda had finished her prayers,
A whole legion stood round her.
They thrust their spears into the terrible snowflakes so that they shivered into a hundred pieces and little Gerda could go forward with courage and safety.
The angels stroked her hands and feet so that she felt the cold less,
And she hastened on to the Snow Queen's castle.
But now we must see what Kai is doing.
In truth,
He thought not of little Gerda and never supposed she could be standing in the front of the palace.
Seventh Story The Palace of the Snow Queen and What Happened There at Last The walls of the palace were formed of drifted snow,
And the windows and doors of the cutting winds.
There were more than a hundred rooms in it,
All as if they had been formed with snow blown together.
The largest of them extended for several miles.
They were all lighted by the vivid northern lights,
And they were so large and empty.
Vast and cold were the halls of the Snow Queen.
The flickering flame of the northern lights could be plainly seen from every part of the castle.
In the midst of its empty,
Endless hall of snow was a frozen lake,
Broken on its surface into a thousand forms.
Each piece resembled another,
From being in itself perfect as a work of art,
And in the center of this lake sat the Snow Queen.
Little Kai was quite blue with cold,
Indeed almost black,
But he did not feel it,
For the Snow Queen had kissed away the icy shiverings,
And his heart was already a lump of ice.
He dragged some sharp,
Flat pieces of ice to and fro and placed them together in all kinds of positions,
Just as we try to form various figures with little tablets of wood which we call a Chinese puzzle.
Kai's fingers were very artistic.
It was the icy game of reason at which he played,
And in his eyes the figures were very remarkable and of the highest importance.
This opinion was owing to the piece of glass still sticking in his eye.
He composed many complete figures,
Forming different words,
But there was one word he never could manage to form.
It was the word eternity.
The Snow Queen had said to him,
When you can find out this,
You shall be your own master,
And I will give you the whole world and a new pair of skates.
But he could not accomplish it.
Now I must hasten away to warmer countries,
Said the Snow Queen.
I will go and look into the black craters of the tops of the Burning Mountains,
Etna and Vesuvius as they are called.
I shall make them look white,
Which will be good for them,
And for the lemons and the grapes.
And away flew the Snow Queen,
Leaving little Kai quite alone in the Great Hall.
So he sat and looked at his pieces of ice,
And was thinking so deeply and sat so still that anyone might have supposed he was frozen.
Just at this moment,
It happened that little Gerda came through the great door of the castle.
Cutting winds were raging around her,
But she offered up a prayer and the winds sank down as if they were going to sleep,
And she went on till she came to the large empty hall and caught sight of Kai.
She flew to him and threw her arms round his neck and held him fast while she exclaimed,
Kai,
Dear little Kai,
I have found you at last.
But he sat quite still,
Stiff and cold.
Little Gerda wept hot tears which fell on his breast and penetrated into his heart and thawed the lump of ice and washed away the little piece of glass which had stuck there.
Then he looked at her and she sang,
Roses bloom and cease to be,
But we shall the Christ child see.
Kai burst into tears and he wept so that the splinter of glass swam out of his eye.
Then he recognized Gerda and said joyfully,
Gerda,
Dear little Gerda,
Where have you been all this time and where have I been?
And he looked all around him and said,
How cold it is and how large and empty it all looks.
And he clung to Gerda and she laughed and wept for joy.
It was so pleasing to see them that the pieces of ice even danced about.
Then Gerda kissed his cheeks and they became blooming and she kissed his eyes and they shone like her own.
She kissed his hands and his feet and then he became quite healthy and cheerful.
Then they took each other by the hand and went forth from the great palace of ice.
They spoke of the grandmother and of the roses on the roof and as they went on the winds were at rest and the sun burst forth.
When they arrived at the bush with red berries,
There stood the reindeer waiting for them and he had brought another young reindeer with him.
Then they carried Kai and Gerda first to the Finland woman where they warmed themselves in the hot room.
Next they went to the Lapland woman who had made some new clothes for them and put their sleighs in order.
Both the reindeer ran by their side and followed them as far as the boundaries of the country where the first green leaves were budding and here they took leave of the two reindeer and all said farewell.
The birds began to twitter and the forest too was full of green young leaves and out of it came a beautiful horse which Gerda remembered for it was one which had drawn the golden coach.
A young girl was riding upon it with a shining red cap on her head and pistols in her belt.
It was the little robber maiden who had got tired of staying at home.
She was going first to the north and if that did not suit her she meant to try some other part of the world.
She knew Gerda directly and Gerda remembered her.
It was a joyful meeting.
You are a fine fellow to go gadding about in this way said she to little Kai.
I should like to know whether you deserve that anyone should go to the end of the world to find you.
But Gerda patted her cheeks and asked after the prince and princess.
They are gone to foreign countries said the robber girl.
And the crow asked Gerda.
Oh the crow is dead she replied.
His tame sweetheart is now a widow.
But now tell me how you managed to get him back.
And Gerda and Kai told her all about it.
Snip snap snare it's all right at last said the robber girl.
Then she took both their hands and promised that if she ever should pass through the town she would call and pay them a visit.
And then she rode away into the wide world.
But Gerda and Kai went hand in hand towards home.
And as they advanced spring appeared more lovely with its green and its beautiful flowers.
Very soon they recognized the large town where they lived and found their way to their grandmother's door.
They went upstairs into the little room where all looked just as it used to do.
The old clock was going tick tick and the hands pointed to the time of day.
But as they passed through the door into the room they perceived that they were both grown up and become a man and a woman.
The roses out on the roof were in full bloom and peeped in at the window.
And there stood the little chairs on which they had sat when children.
And Kai and Gerda seated themselves each on their own chair and held each other by the hand while the cold empty grandeur of the Snow Queen's palace vanished from their memories like a painful dream.
The grandmother sat in God's bright sunshine and she read aloud from the Bible.
Except ye become as little children ye shall in no wise enter into the kingdom of God.
Kai and Gerda looked into each other's eyes and all at once understood the words and they both sat there grown up yet children at heart.
And it was summer.
Warm,
Beautiful summer.
