V 
 
 
 
 LIBRARY 
 
 OF THE 
 
 University of California. 
 
 Class 
 
 
 
 
GEORGE SAND'S NOVELS 
 
 ^anUp librarp (KUition 
 
 THE SNOW MAN 
 
Copyright, 1870, 
 By Roberts Brothers. 
 
 Copyright, 1898, 
 By Little, Brown, and Company. 
 
 8. J. Pakkhill <Sc Co., Boston, U. S. A. 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 "VJIT'ILL the reader be kind enough to enter with us at 
 ^^ once into the subject of this story, as he does 
 when, in the theatre, the curtain rises upon a situation 
 which the actors proceed to explain. 
 
 In the same way, we beg him to go with us straightway 
 into the heart of the locality which is the scene of this 
 narrative ; — yet there is this difference, that in the 
 theatre the curtain seldom rises upon an empty stage ; 
 while in the present instance, the narrator and the reader 
 are to be for a few moments alone together. 
 
 The place into which we are thus conveyed, is suffi- 
 ciently strange and not particularly agreeable. It is a 
 four-sided room, at first sight apparently a regular square, 
 but one of its angles is really more acute than the others, 
 as we observe the moment we notice the dark-colored 
 wooden ceiling whose projecting beams cross each other 
 in a distinctly irregular manner in the north-east comer. 
 
 This irregularity is made still more obvious by a 
 wooden staircase with a balustrade somewhat elaborately 
 worked, and of a massive character, seemingly of the 
 end of the sixteenth century or the beginning of the 
 seventeenth. This staircase goes up six steps, pauses 
 at a small landing-place, turns a right angle, and after 
 six steps more ends abruptly in the wall. The ar- 
 rangements of the building have been changed ; and it 
 would have been natural to remove the staircase at the 
 same time, for it only encumbers the room. Why was 
 Vhis not done? This, dear reader, is the question we put 
 
 (I) 
 226397 
 
i THR SNOW MAN. 
 
 to each other. But, notwithstanding this proof of respect 
 or indifference, the apartment which we are examining 
 has retained all its ancient comforts. An immense cir- 
 cular stove, in which no fire has been lighted for a long 
 time, serves as a pedestal for a very handsome clock of 
 the style of Boule, whose glasses, tarnished and almost 
 iridescent with moisture, throw out metallic reflections 
 into the gloom. A handsome copper chandelier of the 
 Dutch fashion hangs from the ceiling, covered with a coat 
 of verdigris so thick, that it looks like a piece of mala- 
 chite work. Twelve wax candles, whole (with one ex- 
 ception), though yellow with age, are still standing in the 
 wide metallic sockets, whose size has the advantage of 
 not allowing a drop of wax to fall, and the disadvantage 
 of casting a deep shadow on the floor, while the light is 
 all reflected up to the ceiling. 
 
 The twelfth of the candles in this chandelier is three- 
 fourths burnt away. We happen to note this, friendly 
 reader, because we are examining everything with such 
 minute attention. Otherwise we might very easily have 
 overlooked it, in consequence of the strange ornament 
 which partly covers the chandelier and its candles, and 
 hangs along its branches in opaque folds. Probably you 
 take it to be a piece of gray cloth long ago thrown over 
 the fixture to protect the copper. Touch it, if you can 
 reach high enough. You see that it is an accumulation of 
 spiders* webs, almost as compact as parchment, and 
 loaded with dust. 
 
 These spiders' webs are everywhere else too. They 
 hang all over the smoked frames of the large family por- 
 traits that fill three sides of the room, and in the corners 
 they are festooned with a sort of regularity, as if some 
 austere and industrious fate had assumed the form of a 
 spider, and undertaken to furnish hangings for these de- 
 serted wainscots, complete enough to cover even the least 
 crevice. 
 
 But of the spiders themselves you will not find one. 
 The cold has made them torpid, or killed them ; and if you 
 should be obliged — as I hope you will not — to pass a 
 night in this melancholy room, you would not have even 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 3 
 
 these industrious little creatures to keep you company. 
 The clock, whose tick-tack is not unlike the regular tick- 
 ing of some insects, is mute as they. Its hands have 
 stood still upon the dial at four o'clock in the morning, 
 for God knows how many years. 
 
 I say four o'clock in the morning, for the reason that 
 in the country where we now are, the striking part of old 
 timepieces indicates whether the hours are those of the 
 night or of the day — for there the days are sometimes 
 only five hours long, and the nights nineteen. If you 
 were fatigued with your journey and should sleep late, 
 you might not know, when you awoke, whether it was 
 the next morning after your arrival, or the next morning 
 but one. If the clock were going it would tell you, but 
 it is not, and it is impossible to tell whether it could be 
 made to go. 
 
 Well; what country is it? We shall learn without 
 having to go outside the room. Along the whole length 
 of the irregular wall, by which the staircase is built, 
 and which, like the three other sides, is more than half 
 covered with oaken wainscot, large maps are hung ; very 
 likely because their shape rendered it a convenient place. 
 They are longer horizontally than their height, and ac- 
 cordingly just cover that part of the wall above the wood- 
 work. They seem to be banished here rather than 
 exhibited, and we shall have to go up the twelve steps of 
 the staircase ending in the wall, to convince ourselves that 
 these long bands of parchment, colored in the hardest 
 tints, are maps, charts, and plans of strong cities. 
 
 The staircase leads us precisely to the height of that 
 one of these maps representing the country, which was 
 undoubtedly placed just there for convenience of con- 
 sultation ; and also, perhaps, to hide the place where a 
 door has been built up. 
 
 This great green serpent in the middle of the picture is 
 the Baltic Sea. I presume that you recognize it from its 
 resemblance to a dolphin with a double tail, and from the 
 innumerable indentations of its fiords — narrow and wind- 
 ing gulfs that run far into the rocky coast. 
 
 Don't get lost on the side of Finland, which is there 
 
4 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 painted in yellow ochre ; look on the other shore for about 
 the middle of Sweden (painted red), and you will recognize, 
 from its lakes, from its rivers and mountains, the province 
 of Dalecarlia, a region which was still comparatively 
 uncivilized at the time to which this story refers. It is 
 in the last century, towards the close of the kindly but 
 troubled reign of Adolphus-Frederickof Holstein-Gottorp, 
 at one time the Protestant Bishop of Lubeck, but who 
 afterwards married Ulrica of Prussia, the friend of Vol- 
 taire, the sister of Frederick the Great ; in a word, as far 
 as we can judge, it is about the year 1770. 
 
 Rather later, we shall see the aspect of this country. 
 You must be satisfied at present, dear reader, to know 
 that you are in a small, old chateau, perched on a rock, iji 
 the very centre of a frozen lake, which will naturally lead 
 you to conclude that I have carried you there in mid- 
 winter. 
 
 And now a last glance at this room while it is still ours ; 
 for, gloomy and cold as it is, we shall soon have compet- 
 itors for the use of it. It is furnished with old chairs of 
 wood, quite artistically carved, but massive and incon- 
 venient. One arm-chair, comparatively modern — that is 
 of the time of Louis XVI. — is covered with silk that has 
 become yellowed and stained, but it is still soft, and of a 
 convenient shape for sleeping ; it looks out of place in the 
 solemn company of the other worm-eaten chairs, with 
 their high backs, which, for more than twenty years, have 
 not been moved from the wall. To conclude, an old bed, 
 with four twisted columns and curtains of tattered silk, 
 stands in the corner opposite the staircase, and adds, by 
 its dilapidated appearance, to the gloomy and sinister as- 
 pect of the place. 
 
 But we must retire, reader. The door opens, and you 
 must depend upon me hereafter if you wish to know about 
 the past and future events whose theatre I have thus 
 shown you. 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 CpOR a full quarter of an hour some, one had been 
 •^ knocking and ringing at the outside door of the 
 gothic manor of StoUborg ; but the hourrasque was blow- 
 ing so very furiously, and old Stenson was so extremely 
 deaf ! The old man's nephew, Ulphilas, a colossal blond 
 who assisted him in his duties, heard somewhat better, 
 but he believed in ghosts, and was not at all anxious to 
 open the door to them. M. Stenson, former steward of 
 the Baron de Waldemora, was an invalid, and a man of 
 melancholy character ; he was at present the overseer 
 of Stollborg ; and he lived in one of the pavilions of this 
 old, battered, and abandoned chateau. It really seemed 
 to him that some one was knocking at the door of the 
 court, but Ulphilas judiciously called his attention to the 
 fact that the goblins and trolls of the lake were in the 
 habit of playing just such tricks. Stenson, with a sigh, 
 began to read his old Bible again, and in a very few mo- 
 ments went to bed. 
 
 At last, the persons outside became so impatient that 
 they forced the lock of the door, introduced themselves 
 into the court, and, following a narrow gallery on the 
 ground-floor, entered, with their ass, the very room that 
 we have just described, which was called the bear-room, 
 from the crowned animal carved on the armorial shield 
 above the outside window. 
 
 The door of this room was usually fastened, and its 
 being open to-day was due to an unusual circumstance, 
 about which, however, the strangers did not trouble 
 themselves at all. 
 
 Rather strange-looking individuals were these unex- 
 pected visitors of Stollborg ! One of them was wrapped 
 up in a sheepskin, and looked like one of those ugly 
 scarecrows that are used in gardens and hemp-fields to 
 frighten birds ; the other, who was tall and well made, 
 resembled a good-natured Italian brigand. 
 
 The ass was a fine ass : strong, and carrying a load 
 
6 THE SNOW MAN, 
 
 that would have been sufficient for an ox ; he was so aco-us* 
 tomed to travelling adventures, that he made no sort of 
 objection to going up several steps, and showed no sur- 
 prise when he found himself treading upon a pine floor 
 instead of the straw of a stable. The poor ass was ill, 
 however, and the taller of the two travellers who was 
 leading him, looked after his comfort before attending to 
 anything else. 
 
 " Puffb," he said, placing his lantern on a large table 
 in the middle of the room, "Jean has a cold; he is 
 coughing as if he would split his lungs." 
 
 '•'' Farhleu^ lam no better off myself!" replied Puffo 
 in Italian, the same language which his companion had 
 employed ; "do you suppose, master, that it makes a 
 fellow fresh and jolly to drag him about in this devil of a 
 country ? " 
 
 "I too am cold and tired," replied the master, as 
 Puffo called him ; " but there is no use in complaining. 
 Here we are, and we must not allow ourselves to die of 
 cold. Look and see whether this is really the bear- 
 room that we were told about." 
 
 " How shall I recognize it?" 
 
 " By those maps, and a staircase which leads nowhere. 
 Was not that what they told us at the farm?" 
 
 " I don't know anything about it," replied Puffo. " I 
 can't understand their beastly patois." 
 
 As he spoke, he took the lantern, and holding it higher 
 than his head, said : 
 
 " What do I know about geography? " 
 
 His master looked up and exclaimed : 
 
 " This is the very room. There are the maps ; and 
 here," he added, running lightly up the wooden stair- 
 case, and lifting the map that hung over the wall at the 
 top of it, " is the place walled up. It's all right, Puffo, 
 we need not distress ourselves any longer. The room is 
 perfectly tight, and we can sleep here like princes." 
 
 " However, I don't see — Oh yes ! there is a bed, but 
 there are neither mattresses nor coverlids, and they told 
 us there were two good beds." 
 
 " You are quite a Sybarite ! Do you require a bed 
 
THE SNOW MAN. *j 
 
 wherever you go, my good fellow? Look and see if 
 there is any wood in the stove, and light the fire." 
 
 " There's no wood at all ; nothing but coal." 
 . " That is still better. Light the fire, my lad, light it. 
 As for me, I am going to attend to this poor Jean." 
 
 Taking a piece of carpet that lay before the stove, the 
 young man began to rub the ass so vigorously, that in a 
 few moments he himself was all in a glow. 
 
 " I was fairly warned," he said to Puffb, who was 
 lighting the fire, " that the ass would suffer from the 
 cold beyond the fifty-secondv degree of north latitude ; 
 but I did not believe it. The ass is not so delicate as 
 the horse, which lives in Lapland ; and besides, this one 
 of ours is so healthy and good-natured ! We can only 
 hope that he will be as lucky as ourselves, and will 
 keep alive for several days. He has not refused to work 
 yet, and the poor beast carries with perfect docility a 
 larger load than two horses would probably take, at least 
 without being very much urged." 
 
 '' No matter for that ! " replied Puffb, kneeling before 
 the stove, which was beginning to roar and sputter as if 
 it were going to burn well ; '' you ought to have sold 
 him in Stockholm, where so many people wanted him." 
 
 "Sell Jean! Sell him to be stuffed for a museum? 
 Never, so help me heaven ! He has worked well for 
 me for a whole year ; and, for my part, I love this faith- 
 ful servant. Who knows, Puffb, whether I shall be able 
 to say as much for you a year hence ? " 
 
 " Pshaw, Master Cristiano ! I don't care. Sentiment 
 is not in my line ; and I should trouble myself very little 
 about the ass, if I could only find something to eat and 
 drink." 
 
 "There is something in that, I confess. Sentiment 
 does not take away the appetite, and I am as hungry as 
 all the devils. Come, Puffb, let us be sensible, and go 
 over what we have heard. They said at the new cha- 
 teau — ' We have no room for you here. Even if you 
 should come in the name of the king, we could not find 
 you a corner as large as your hand. Go and lodge at 
 the farm.' At the farm they said about the same thing ; 
 
8 THE SNO W MAN 
 
 but they gave us a lantern, and showing us a road cut 
 out over the ice of the lake, advised us to go to the old 
 chateau. The road is not agreeable, I acknowledge, 
 amid these whirlwinds of snow, but the distance is short. 
 You can return in ten minutes, at the outside, and my 
 opinion is that you will have to make up your mind to do 
 this, if you want any supper." 
 
 " But what if they turn us away from the farm as they 
 did from the new chateau? They will say, perhaps, that 
 they have already too much company to provide for, and 
 that they have not a scrap of bread left for vagrants like us.'* 
 
 " The fact is, that our appearance is not prepossessing. 
 That is what makes me afraid that this worthy M. S ten- 
 son, the old overseer who lives somewhere about the 
 building, and who is very ill-tempered, they say, will drive 
 us off the premises. But listen, Puffo : either the good 
 man must be fast asleep, since we have succeeded in 
 breaking open the door of the court and reaching this 
 room without hindrance, or the noise of the wind drowns 
 every other sound. Now what we have to do is to steal 
 quietly into the kitchen, and the devil is to 'pay if we 
 cannot find anything there." 
 
 " Much obliged to you," said Puffo ; " I prefer recross- 
 ing the lake and going to the farm. There the people, 
 although busy, were very polite, while old Stenson, it 
 seems, is wicked, and a sort of monomaniac." 
 
 "Just as you choose, my good Puffo ; off with you ! 
 Bring something back, if it is a possible thing, to warm 
 us up a little. One word more, my sublime companion ; — 
 listen once for all." 
 
 "What is the matter now?" said Puffo, who was 
 already tying the strings of his sheepskin in preparation 
 for his departure. 
 
 "In the first place," replied Cristiano, "you must 
 give me time to light one of the candles of this chandelier 
 before carrying off the lantern." 
 
 " How can you reach them ? I dont see any great sup- 
 ply of ladders in this damned bear-room." 
 
 " Stand there, I am going to climb on your shonlderH. 
 Are you firm?" 
 
THE SNOW MAN, 9 
 
 *' Go on, you are not very heavy ! " 
 
 " Now comrade," said the young man, planting his feet 
 upon Puffo's broad shoulders, and seizing one of the 
 branches of the chandelier with one hand, while with the 
 other he tried to snatch a candle from its socket, without 
 bringing down the dusty spiders' webs into his eyes ; *' lis- 
 ten to me ! I have not precisely the honor of knowing you. 
 For three months we have been travelling companions, 
 and aside from the fact that you are rather too fond of 
 taverns, you seem to me to be not a bad fellow ; but you 
 may be a great rogue for all that, and I am not sorry to 
 have an opportunity of telling you — " 
 
 " Say what you are going to, and have done with it, 
 will you?" replied PufFo, shaking himself a little. "I 
 wish you would make haste up there, instead of lectur- 
 ing. You are not so light as I thought." 
 
 " I have done," replied Cristiano, leaping nimbly to the 
 earth, for he imagined that his companion was a little in- 
 clined to let him fall ; " I have got my candle, and will 
 continue my discourse. We are, for the moment, two 
 Bohemians, Puffo — two poor adventurers ; but I am in 
 the habit of behaving like a sensible man, while you some- 
 times take pleasure in conducting yourself like a beast. 
 Now, I want you to understand that the greatest folly, the 
 meanest and flattest thing that a man can be guilty of in 
 my eyes, is to follow the trade of a thief." 
 
 "Where did you ever see me stealing?" said Puffo, 
 gloomily. 
 
 " If I had seen you stealing in my company I should 
 have broken your back, my friend ; that is why it is only 
 fair that I should let you know what my views on the 
 subject are. I told you just now to try and obtain some 
 supper by persuasion or cunning. So far we have a right 
 to go. We were invited into this snow paradise to em- 
 ploy our talents for the entertainment of a large party of 
 distinguished persons. We were provided with money to 
 pay the expenses of the journey, and it is not our fault 
 that it was lost. We are promised a sufficient amount, 
 of which I intend to give you a handsome share, although 
 you are only the apprentice, while I am the master. We 
 
fO THE SNOW MAN, 
 
 have no reason to complain, therefore, but always on 
 condition that we are not left to die of cold and hunger. 
 Now we happen to arrive at our employer's chateau at 
 night, just as his illustrious guests have gone to supper, 
 when his highly respectable lackeys are in a great hurry 
 to get their supper, and when belated travellers have no 
 right to be hungry. Consequently it is a matter of neces- 
 sity for us to get our own supper to-night in some way or 
 other, so that we may be in condition to fulfil our engage- 
 ments to-morrow. We shall neither offend heaven nor 
 our host by laying hands upon a few good dishes and some 
 bottles of wine ; but, to slip silver into our pockets and 
 hide linen under the pack-saddle of our ass, would be 
 an asinine proceeding, since silver is not good to eat, 
 and since it ruins linen to be stowed away under a saddle. 
 Do you understand, Puffo?- We are perfectly authorized 
 in taking food, but no stealing, or a hundred lashes on 
 your back. That is what I intended to tell you." 
 
 " All right ! " replied Puffo, shrugging his shoulders ; 
 " you have been a long time coming to the point. You 
 are a dreadful chatterbox." 
 
 PufFo went off with the lantern in a state of consider- 
 able discontent with his patron, who had, in fact, good 
 reasons for suspecting his honesty, having several times 
 discovered among his professional apparatus sundry objects 
 whose sudden acquisition Puffo had been unable to ex- 
 plain in a satisfactory manner. 
 
 It was not without reason, upon the other hand, that 
 Puffo accused Cristiano of being a chatterbox. He was, 
 at all events, a great talker, as all men endowed with 
 strong intellectual and physical vitality are apt to be, 
 Puffo, with his mere rude glibness of speech and his vul- 
 gar instincts, felt the ascendency of a mind and character 
 infinitely superior to his own. He, however, was the 
 stronger of the two, and when the tall and slender Cris- 
 tiano threatened this thick-set and muscular Livornese, it 
 was his moral influence or his agility that he relied upon, 
 rather than physical strength, to enforce his authority. 
 
 When Cristiano was left alone, he abandoned himself to 
 his innocent affection for his ass. He had relieved him 
 
THE SNOW MAN, il 
 
 from his baggage as soon as they entered the bear-room. 
 This baggage, consisting of two large boxes, a bundle of 
 light poles of white wood with their cross-pieces taken 
 apart, and finally a package of curtains and tapestries 
 which were still quite fresh, carefully rolled in a leather 
 case, he arranged in a corner. All this was his artistic 
 apparatus, — the tools of his trade, his livelihood. As for 
 his wardrobe, it gave him no sort of trouble. It con- 
 sisted merely of a little bundle of linen tied up in a hand- 
 kerchief, and a cloak of coarse cloth, which made a good 
 covering for Jean when it left the back of its owner. The 
 rest of his effects he wore — to wit, a Venetian cape a 
 good deal defaced, small-clothes of some stout material, 
 and three pair of woollen stockings, one over the other. 
 
 His cape, his woollen cap, and his broad-brimmed hat, 
 Cristiano had taken off, so as to be more at his ease in 
 setting things to rights. He was a tall, slender fellow, 
 with a remarkably handsome face, shaded by a profusion 
 of black hair in great disorder. 
 
 The warmth of the stove began to make itself felt, and 
 besides, the young man was too vigorous to be sensitive 
 to the cold. He went about the room, therefore, in his 
 shirt-sleeves, and made arrangements to pass the night as 
 comfortably as possible. It was not the absence of the 
 beds they had been told about that troubled him, but the 
 fear that he would not be able to find Jean anything to 
 eat and drink. 
 
 '' I was very foolish," he said to himself, " not to think 
 about that as I passed the new chateau and the farm ; but 
 how can one think of anything with the wind blowing 
 ice-needles into his eyes ? They told us at the farm (and 
 I remember now that they said so in a very sarcastic 
 way) that we would find an abundance of everything at 
 the old chateau, if old Stenson would be good enough to 
 let us in ; now as we were obliged to break the door open, 
 it seems that he was not good enough. Well, whether or 
 no, I must find out how the Cerberus of this old ruin will 
 take our being here. After all, I have my contract in my 
 pocket, and, if they try to turn me out here too, I will show 
 my teeth." 
 
la THE SNOW MAN, 
 
 Thereupon Cristiano placed Jean, together with his 
 baggage, in the recess under the staircase, and as he was 
 seeking, candle in hand, for a nail or peg to which to tie 
 the ass, he saw that there was a door in the wainscot just 
 at the farthest part of this recess, and in the defective 
 angle of the room. 
 
 As he had not noticed the irregularity in the plan of 
 the room, he could not tell whether the passage-way into 
 which the door opened was in a thick wall, or between 
 two walls joined above. He pushed the secret door — 
 for it was one — without expecting that it would open, 
 and, seeing that it was not fastened in any way, he cau- 
 tiously went forward to see what he could find. He had 
 not gone three steps when the candle went out. Luckily 
 the fire was burning, and he was able to light it again, 
 while listening with a certain pleasure to the sharp and 
 melancholy whistling of the wind in the secret passage. 
 
 Cristiano had a romantic disposition, and was in the 
 habit of indulging in poetic fancies. It seemed to him 
 that the spirits so long imprisoned in this abandoned hall 
 were complaining at being disturbed in their mysteries ; 
 and as he was afraid, moreover, that the cold would in- 
 crease poor Jean's cough, he took pains, when he went 
 out again, to shut the door after him ; he had noticed, be- 
 forehand, that there were strong bolts on the outside, but 
 that its own weight was sufficient to keep it in its place. 
 
 We will leave him for the present to proceed on his expe- 
 dition, and introduce another traveller into the bear-room. 
 
 This also is an unexpected visitor, but he is accompa- 
 nied by Ulphilas, who lights him with respect, while they 
 are followed by a shivering little serving-lad, dressed in 
 a full suit of red. These three persons are talking Dale- 
 carlian, and they are still in the court, Ulphilas with a 
 terrified expression, and the two others looking very im- 
 patient. 
 
 '' Come, Ulph, come, my lad," said the stranger, " don't 
 be so formal ; light us to this famous room, and attend to 
 my horse at once. He is all in a sweat with dragging 
 the sleigh up your little rock. Good horse ! I would 
 not lose him for ten thousand rix dollars." 
 
THE SNOW MAN, 
 
 n 
 
 The person who addressed Ulphilas thus was the sen 
 ior advocate of the city of Gevala, Doctor of Laws of the 
 Faculty of Lund. 
 
 ^'What, Monsieur Goefle,* do you want to stay here 
 all night ? Do you really mean so ? " 
 
 " Hush, hush ! I know it will annoy honest Sten ; but, 
 when I am once installed, he will have to make up his 
 mind to it. Take the horse, I tell you — I know the 
 way." 
 
 '' What, Monsieur Advocate, you come here all alone 
 in the night with your grandson ? " 
 
 *' You rascal ! you know very well that I have no chil- 
 dren. Here, little Nils, come and help me unharness 
 poor Loki. You see that it is the fashion here to talk, 
 and do nothing else. Come, rouse yourself; are you fro- 
 zen with a trip of three or four hours at nightfall? " 
 
 " Leave him alone. Monsieur Goefle, he is too little," 
 said Ulphilas, feeling the lawyer's reproach. '^Take the 
 first door to the right, and get under shelter ; I will an- 
 swer for the horse." 
 
 "Nonsense, it has stopped snowing! This little 
 flurry has only made the weather milder," resumed M. 
 Goefle, who, both by profession and taste, was no less of 
 a talker than Cristiano. " I have not been cold at all, 
 and shall do capitally if I eat a good plate of poiTidge, 
 and smoke a good pipe, before going to bed. Come, Nils, 
 carry one of these bundles into the room yonder ; it will 
 be something for you to do, and will warm you. Are 
 you asleep already? It is not more than seven o'clock." 
 
 " Oh, Monsieur Goefle," said the little lad, with his 
 teeth chattering, " it has been night for a long time, and 
 I am always so afraid in the night." 
 
 " Afraid? Of what, pray? Well, console yourself; at 
 this season the days are getting a minute and a half 
 longer daily." 
 
 ♦Gevala, Gefle, Gesle, and Goefle, are different ways of writ- 
 ing the name of the same town. The name of the advocate in 
 question happened to be the same as that of the town in which 
 he practised. 
 
14 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 Talking away after this fashion, M. Goefle, who was a 
 man of about sixty, dry, active and cheerful, himself put 
 the horse into the stable, while Ulphilas drew the sleigh 
 into the coach-house, and hung up the harness and 
 bells. In the meanwhile, little Nils still sat shivering on 
 the luggage which was under the wooden gallery around 
 the court. 
 
 When M. Goefle was satisfied that his beloved Loki, 
 the handsome and generous little horse whom he had 
 named for the Prometheus of the Scandinavian mythol- 
 ogy, would want for nothing, he turned, and with his 
 firm step proceeded towards the bear-room. 
 
 " Wait, wait. Monsieur Advocate," said Ulphilas, 
 *' that is not the way. The double-bedded room that we 
 call the guard-room — " 
 
 " Parhleu ! I know all about it," replied M. Goefle. 
 " I have slept in it before now." 
 
 '' Perhaps so, but that was a long time ago. It is so 
 out of repair now — " 
 
 " Well, if it is out of repair you can make me up a 
 bed in the bear-room." 
 
 "Inthe— " 
 
 Ulph dared not finish, so monstrous did M. Goefle's sug- 
 gestions seem. Taking courage after a pause, he re- 
 sumed : — 
 
 " No, M. Goefle, no ! That is impossible ; you are 
 joking ! I will go and look for the key of the other 
 room, which perhaps is in a better state than I 
 thought (my uncle sometimes goes there), and since 
 there is a second door to the gallery, you won't have the 
 annoyance of going through, you know." 
 
 " What ! Has not that poor bear-room lost its bad repu- 
 tation since the staircase door was walled up? Non- 
 sense, Ulph, my lad, you are old enough to know better. 
 I insist upon your opening the door immediately. It is 
 too cold to wait here while you go in search of other 
 keys, and since you have it about you — " 
 
 " I haven't got it ! " cried Ulphilas. '' I swear to you, 
 M. Goefle, that I haven't got the key of the hear any 
 more than that of the guard" 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 15 
 
 While discussing thus, M. G-oefle, accompanied by 
 Ulphilas, who lighted him very unwillingly, and Nils, who 
 followed close at his heels, reached the second door of the 
 donjon, upon the ground-floor of which the bear-room 
 was situated. As this door was only fastened by an out- 
 side bolt, the advocate entered the inner court without 
 difficulty, and going up three steps, pushed the door of 
 Ihe bear-room, which, yielding to his impatient hand, 
 opened wide with such a plaintive squeak, that Nils started 
 back in terrror. 
 
 " Open ! It was open I " cried Ulphilas, turning as 
 pale as his red and shining face was capable of becom- 
 ing. 
 
 " Well, suppose it was? " said M. Goefle. " Stenson, 
 no doubt, has been through this way." 
 
 " He never comes here. Monsieur Goefle. Oh, there's 
 no danger of that ! " 
 
 '• So much the better, then. I can get settled without 
 troubling him, and without his knowing anything about 
 it. But what have you been telling me? Some one 
 must have been here, for there is a fire in the stove ! I see 
 how it is. Monsieur Ulphilas Stenson ! You have let or 
 promised this room to some one whom you arc waiting 
 for. The deuce ! so much the worse for them. There 
 is no room at the new chateau, and you must make room 
 for me here. But never mind, my poor fellow, I will 
 pay you as well as any one. Light these candles ; that is 
 to say, go and get something to trim them with, and 
 then bring bed-clothes, warming-pans, whatever we may 
 need; and, above all things, don't forget the supper. 
 Nils will help you ; he is very quick, very skilful, and 
 very obliging. Come, Nils, exert yourself: find our 
 bed-room, the guard-room, as Ulphilas calls it, all alone j 
 I know where it is, but I won't tell you. Look for it ; 
 show us bow bright you are. Master Nils." 
 
 Good Monsieur Goefle might as well have been 
 talking in a desert. Ulphilas was standing petrified in 
 the middle of the room. Nils was warming his hands at 
 the stove, and the doctor was left to get settled as he 
 best could 
 
l6 THE SNOW MAN 
 
 At last Ulph heaved a sigh that might have turned a 
 mill-wheel, and said in an emphatic voice, — 
 
 "Upon my honor, Monsieur Goefle, upon my eter- 
 nal salvation, I have neither let nor promised this room 
 to any one. How can you think such a thing when you 
 know what has happened here, and w^hat goes on even 
 now. Oh ! nothing would induce my uncle Stenson to 
 let you stop here. I will inform him of your arrival, 
 and since they were not able to accommodate you at the 
 new chateau, he will give you up his own room." 
 
 " T will not allow anything of the kind," replied M. 
 Goefle ; " you must not even tell him that I have come. 
 He will learn to-morrow that I am here, and am very 
 comfortable. The guard-room is rather small, but it will 
 do very well for sleeping, and this shall be my drawing 
 room and office. It is not particularly cheerful ; but foi 
 two or three days I shall be quiet, at least." 
 
 " Quiet ! " cried Ulphilas. " Quiet in a room haunted 
 by the devil?" 
 
 " What makes you think that, friend Ulph?" said the 
 doctor of laws, smiling, while little Nils began to shiver 
 again, from fear quite as much as the wintry cold. 
 
 "I think so for three reasons," replied Ulph, with 
 gloomy solemnity. " In the first place, you found the 
 door of the court open, although I had locked it after 
 sunset ; in the second place, the door of this room was 
 also open, a thing that has not happened since I came 
 here five years ago to take care of my uncle and wait 
 upon him. The third and most incredible thing of all is, 
 that there is a fire lighted, and that the ttove is wai^m, 
 although no fire has been made here for twenty years, 
 and perhaps more. Lastly — hold. Monsieur Doctor, 
 look ! — there is some wax freshly spilled on the floor, 
 and yet — " 
 
 " You spilled it yourself, you idiot ; you are holding 
 your lantern upside-down." 
 
 " Oh, no. Monsieur Goefle ! mine is a tallow candle, 
 and that under the chandelier — wait ! " 
 
 Ulph looked up and uttered a cry of horror on seeing 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 ^7 
 
 that there were only ten candles and a half in the chan- 
 delier, instead of eleven and a half. 
 
 The lawyer was naturally kind and good-natured. 
 Instead of allowing the preoccupation of Ulphilas, and 
 the terror of Nils, to make him angry, he only thought 
 of amusing himself at their expense. 
 
 " Well, God be praised ! " he said, very seriously, 
 " that proves that there are kobolds here ; and if 
 they will only be so good as to appear to me (I have 
 wanted to become acquainted with them all my life, 
 without ever seeing a single one), I shall congratulate 
 myself all the more upon coming to this room, where I 
 can sleep under their kind protection." 
 
 " No, no, Monsieur Doctor," replied Ulphilas, " there 
 are no kobolds here ! This is a melancholy and accursed 
 place, as you know ; a place where the trolls of the lake 
 come to disturb and spoil everything, like wicked spirits 
 as they are, while the little kobolds are friendly to man, 
 and only think of doing him good. The kobolds save, 
 and do not waste. They never carry anything away — " 
 
 " On the contrary, they bring ! I know all about that. 
 Master Ulph ; but how do you know that I have not a 
 kobold of my own who came on here before me ? Very 
 likely he took the candle to light the fire, so that I might 
 find a warm place on my arrival ; and, knowing that you 
 were a great coward, who would keep me waiting a long 
 time, opened the doors beforehand. Now, he is all 
 ready, no doubt, to help you about my supper, if you 
 will only be as good as to attend to it, for you know 
 kobolds don't like lazy folks, and only wait upon those 
 who show a disposition to help others." 
 
 This explanation soothed, in a measure, the fears of his 
 two auditors. Nils ventured to turn his great blue eyes 
 upon the gloomy walls of the apartment, and Ulph, 
 after giving the lawyer a key to the closet of the guard- 
 room, went to prepare their supper. 
 
 " Well, Nils," said the lawyer to his little servant, " we 
 can scarcely see at all with this abominable lantern. You 
 can make up the beds later ; in the meanwhile, go and 
 unpack my trunk. Put it on the table." 
 
iS THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 "But, Monsieur Doctor," said the child, "I canbot 
 so much as lift it ; it is heavy." 
 
 " True," replied the lawyer ; " it is full of papers, 
 and is very heavy." 
 
 He himself took the trunk, and with a slight effort 
 placed it upon a chair, adding, — 
 
 " At any rate, take the valise with my clothes. I have 
 only brought what was necessary, and it is very light." 
 
 Nils obeyed, but he could not open the padlock. 
 
 " I thought you were more skilful than that," said the 
 lawyer, becoming a little impatient ; " your aunt told 
 me — I am afraid my good Gertrude praised you rather 
 too highly." 
 
 ''Oh," replied the child, "I can open trunks very 
 well when they are not locked. But tell me. Monsieur 
 Goefle, is it true that you have a kobold to wait upon you r" 
 
 "What, a kobold? Oh yes! I was thinking of 
 something else. Do you believe in kobolds, my boy?" 
 
 "Yes, if there are any. Aren't they wicked some* 
 times?" 
 
 " Never ; especially as they do not exist." 
 
 " Oh, but you said just now — " 
 
 " I only said that to laugh at that blockhead. As for 
 you. Nils, I don't want you to believe in any such non- 
 sense. You know that I intend to make you something 
 more than a mere servant ; to educate you a little, and 
 make you sensible, if I can." 
 
 " But, Monsieur Goefle, my aunt Gertrude believes in 
 them. She believes in good and bad spirits." 
 
 " My housekeeper ? 8he takes good care not to .ac- 
 knowledge it before me. She pretends to be strong- 
 minded, when I have time to talk to her. No, no, you 
 are mistaken ; she doesn't believe anything of the kind. 
 She only says so to amuse you." 
 
 "But it doesn't amuse me at all ; it makes me afraid, 
 and keeps me awake all night." 
 
 " In that case she is wrong. But what are you about? 
 Is that the way that you unpack a trunk, throwing 
 everything on the floor? Was it so that the pastor of 
 Falun taught you to wait on him?" 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 19 
 
 ''I did not wait upon the pastor, Monsieur Goefle. 
 He only took me to play with his little boy, who was ill, 
 and we had such a good time ! We used to make little 
 paper boats, and little bread sleighs, all day long." 
 
 " Oh, ho ! that is worth knowing ! " said the doctor 
 of laws, angrily ; " and Gertrude told me that you were 
 so useful in that house." 
 
 '" I was very useful, Monsieur Goefle ! " 
 
 " Yes, making paper boats and bread sleighs ! That 
 assuredly is a very useful employment ! But let me tell 
 you that if you can't do anything else, at your age — " 
 
 " I know as much as other children ten years old. 
 Monsieur Goefle." 
 
 "The devil! ten years old? Are you only ten years 
 old ? Your aunt said that you were thirteen or four- 
 teen. Well, brat, what is the matter? What are you 
 crying about ? " 
 
 " Why, Monsieur Doctor, you are scolding me ; it is 
 not my fault if I am only ten years old." 
 
 " Correct ! That is the first sensible remark you have 
 made since I was so fortunate as to take you. into my 
 service this morning. Come, dry your eyes and wipe 
 your nose. I am not angry; You are large and strong 
 for your age, at all events ; and what you don't know, 
 you will learn. What do you say ? " 
 
 " Oh yes, Monsieur Goefle ! that is just what I should 
 like." 
 
 '* But will you learn quickly? I am very impatient, I 
 can tell you ! " 
 
 " Yes indeed, monsieur, I will learn everything right 
 off." 
 
 ''Do you know how to make a bed? " 
 
 " I think so. At the pastor's I always used to make 
 miue all by myself." 
 
 " Or you did not make it at all ! Never mind, we shall 
 soon see." 
 
 "But, Monsieur Goefle, when my aunt came to Falun 
 this morning to see me off on my journey, she told me 
 that I wouldn't have to work. She said: 'You won't 
 have anything to do at the chateau where you are going 
 
20 THE SNOW MAN, 
 
 with your master. In the chateau of the Baron de — 
 de— '" 
 
 "DeWaldemora?" 
 
 " Yes, that's it ! — ' there are beautiful rooms always in 
 order, and plenty of servants to do everything. What 
 Monsieur Goefle wants is, that you should always be on 
 handto give orders in his place. He don't wish to take 
 Francois, because Francois would never stay in his room. 
 He was always drinking, and amusing himself with the 
 other servants, and monsieur would have to run and hunt 
 him up to get what he wanted. That put him out, and 
 he did not like it at all. Now you must be very good, 
 and never leave him ; do you hear ? You must see that he 
 is well waited upon, and then you will be waited upon 
 too.' " 
 
 " So," said the doctor, " that is what you expect ! " 
 - "I am sure I am very good. Monsieur Goefle. I don't 
 leave you ; I am not running about with the tall servants 
 at the chateau." 
 
 " Would to heaven you were ! I defy you to do any- 
 thing of the kind, however, in our present quarters." 
 
 " Why? Is the road over the lake the only way to the 
 new chateau ? " 
 
 '^ The only way ; otherwise, I see plainly that you 
 would already be with the tall valets in livery." 
 
 "Oh no. Monsieur Goefle, since you wouldn't like it! 
 But how beautiful it was over there ! " 
 
 "Where, at Waldemora? " 
 
 " Yes, that's the name of the new chateau. Oh, Mon- 
 sieur Goefle, it was a great deal prettier than it is here ! 
 And there were so many people I didn't feel at all afraid." 
 
 " Very good, Master Nils ! That magnificent palace, 
 with its splendid company, its turmoil, torches, feasting 
 and revelry, has turned your head for you, I'm afraid. 
 For my part, it doesn't suit my taste to spend the night at 
 a ball, and wait until day for the chance of sharing a 
 room with four or five young fools, intoxicated, and per- 
 haps quarrelsome. I like to eat little, but often and 
 quietly, to sleep only a few hours, but without being dis- 
 turbed. Besides, I did not come here to amuse myseli'< 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 21 
 
 I have important business to transact for the baron, and 
 I must have my room, my table, my writing-desk, and a 
 little silence. The baron is to blame, I must say, for al- 
 lowing himself to forget, amid his festivities and enter- 
 tainments, that I ^m no longer a young student, eager for 
 music and dancing. He ought to have had this room 
 prepared for me, or some other, in a quiet place, out of the 
 reach of importunate visitors. When I saw the afnaze- 
 ment of the servants at my arrival, and their inability to 
 provide me with suitable quarters, it would have taken 
 very little to make me return to Falun. But I was afraid 
 of the snow-storm, and then Loki was too warm ; I re- 
 membered, happily, that there was a haunted room at old 
 Stollborg that every one was afraid of, and which, conse- 
 quently, was never used. Here we are, and we are 
 very well oflf*. To-morrow, Nils, you must give a 
 thorough dusting. I like neatness, for my part." 
 
 " Yes, Monsieur Goefle, I will tell Ulph. I am not 
 tall enough to reach so high." 
 
 " So I see. Well, we wiU tell Ulph." 
 
 "Why do they call this the bear-room, Monsieur 
 Goefle?" 
 
 "It is a name like any other, " replied the lawyer, 
 who was arranging his papers in the drawer of the table, 
 and who did not think it worth while to explain the shield 
 to master Nils. 
 
 Soon, however, he noticed that the child's terror had 
 redoubled. 
 
 " What is the matter ? " he said impatiently. " You do 
 nothing but follow me about, and don't give me the least 
 assistance." 
 
 " I am afraid of the bear, " replied the courageous 
 Nils. " At Falun you were speaking with the pastor about 
 the great bear. I could understand." 
 
 " I was speaking about the great bear ! What do you 
 mean ? Oh yes, you are right ! The pastor is something 
 of an astronomer, aud we were saying — take courage, 
 my brave youth — we were talking about the great bear 
 up in the sky." 
 
 " Oh ! the great bear is up in the sky ! " cried Nils, re- 
 
22 THE SNOW MAN, 
 
 covering his spirits. " Then it is not here? It will not 
 come into this room ? " 
 
 *' No," said the lawyer, laughing ; "it is too far away, 
 too high up ! If it should try to come down it would 
 break its paws. Now, then, you are no longer afraid ? " 
 
 " Oh no I I am not afraid now ! But what if it 
 should tumble down ? * ' 
 
 " Bah ! It is fastened firmly by seven large diamond 
 nails ! " 
 
 " Was it the good God who nailed it up there because 
 it was so wicked ? " 
 
 "Probably! Are you quite sure now that you are 
 not afraid ? " 
 
 " Oh yes ! " said Nils, with a gesture of profound in- 
 credulity. 
 
 " Go and look for Ulph, then, and tell him — " 
 
 "But, M. Goefle, you spoke also about the Snow 
 Man ! " 
 
 " So we did ! You listen to everything that is said, it 
 seems. That is very agreeable." 
 
 " Oh yes, monsieur ! '* replied Nils, ingenuously ; " I 
 listen to everything." 
 
 " And what is the Snow Man, in your opinion ? " 
 
 " I don't know. The pastor whispered to you, laugh- 
 ing : ' So you are going to see the Snow Man ? * " 
 
 " He was talking, I suppose, about some mountain that 
 has that name." 
 
 " Oh, no indeed ! For you said : ' Does he walk as 
 straight as ever ? * and the pastor said : ' He is always 
 hunting on his lake.* Oh, I understand Swedish just 
 as well as Dalecarlian ! " . 
 
 " And what do you think from that?" • 
 
 " Oh, that there is a great tall snow man who walks 
 on the lake we have just come over." 
 
 "Exactly! And who is always followed by a great 
 bear ! You have some imagination, child ! Is the bear 
 white, or black?" 
 
 " I don't know, Monsieur Goefle." 
 
 " We ought to know about that, though, before do 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 23 
 
 ciding to take supper in this room. What if they shDuld 
 come and sit down at the table with us?" 
 
 Nils saw plainly that M. Goefle was joking, and he 
 began to laugh. The lawyer was congratulating him- 
 self upon his method of curing children of fear, when 
 the little fellow, who had suddenly become serious again, 
 said: 
 
 " Monsieur Goefle, let us go away from here. This 
 is a very ugly place." 
 
 " This is too much ! " cried the lawyer, pettishly. 
 " What plagues children are ! I am good enough to ex- 
 plain to my young gentleman that the bear is a constel- 
 lation, and he is more frightened then ever." 
 
 Nils, seeing that his master was angry, began to cry. 
 He was a spoiled child, yet timid. M. Goefle, who was 
 thoroughly good-hearted, imagined, and took pleasure in 
 saying, that he did not like children, and that if any- 
 thing could console him for not having married at a 
 proper age, it was the intellectual freedom that is enjoyed 
 by those who have no children to take care of and be re- 
 sponsible for. The keen sensibility with which he was 
 endowed, however, which his stirring and active profes- 
 sional life had developed without his knowledge, made it 
 impossible for him to endure the tears and complaints of 
 the weak. Accordingly he tried to console and encour- 
 age his little valet, at the very same time that he was grumb- 
 ling at his folly, and while persisting in his passion for 
 intellectual and subtle discussions, a style of argument 
 that gains cases when you are trying to persuade men, 
 but which is almost sure to lose them when you are deal- 
 ing with children. He even went so far as to promise 
 that he would run the great bear through the body with 
 his sword, if it should come to the door of the room, 
 rather than allow it to enter. 
 
 M. Goefle excused himself the more readily for his 
 absurd condescension, as he called it, because he found 
 that a witty account of his evening at StoUborg, with 
 which he proposed to entertain his friends at Gevala, was 
 involuntarily taking form in his mind. 
 
 In the meanwhile Ulph did not return. That he would 
 
24 
 
 THE SNOW MAN, 
 
 require some time to get up a supper in M. Steiison*a 
 modest establishment, the lawyer was prepared to antici- 
 pate ; but he did not bring back the light, and this was an 
 unpardonable piece of forgetfulness. 
 
 The end of the candle was going out in the lantern, 
 and the lawyer, who prided himself upon his white hands 
 and irreproachable ruffles, dared not touch this villanous 
 utensil to light himself about the room. He was obliged 
 to submit to this disagreeable necessity, however, in order 
 to go into the adjoiniiig apartment ; he wanted to search 
 the closet, whose key Ulph had given him, and which he 
 hoped might contain some provisions or pieces of candle. 
 Nils followed, holding him softly by the lOiap of the coat. 
 
 These two rooms which M. Goefle proposed to occupy, 
 were separated from each other by an unusually thick 
 wall, and two solid doors. The lawyer was well acquainted 
 with the locality, but it was so long since his business 
 had required him to visit the interior of the building, that 
 he had some difficulty in finding the first of the two 
 doors. He looked for it opposite the outer entrance, and 
 he was right ; but instead of being on a straight line with 
 it, it was a little to the left. Like the secret door that 
 Cristiano had accidentally discovered under the staircase, 
 and whose existence had never been suspected either by 
 the doctor or Ulphilas, it was entirely concealed in the 
 wainscot. There was no affectation of mystery, how- 
 ever, in this style of door, closing perfectly without any 
 visible lock ; this peculiarity was merely the result of 
 very careful joinery work, which becomes almost an art 
 in cold countries. 
 
 M. Goefle did not find it necessary to look into the closet, 
 sfter he had once taken possession of the double-bedded 
 room. Glancing at the mantle-piece, he saw a pair of 
 heavy candlesticks with three branches, each of them 
 holding three wax candles. It was time ; the end of the 
 candle was expiring in the lantern. 
 
 " Since there is no danger of our being left in the 
 dark," said M. Goefle to the child, •' we may as well 
 make our arrangements here at once. Light the fire, and 
 I will take the bed-clothes from the closet/' 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 25 
 
 The bed-clothes were laid upon the beds before Nils 
 had succeeded in doing anything more than fill the room 
 with smoke. When it was time to make the beds, which 
 were enormous, he could think of nothing better than 
 climbing up on top of them, so as to reach the middle of 
 the bolster. M. Goefle was very much inclined to get 
 angry, but since this would only have been a signal for 
 tears, he resigned himself to his fate, and made not only 
 his own bed, but that also of his little valet. 
 
 Although he had never done any work of the kind, he 
 was succeeding very creditably, when a fearful noise in 
 the bear-room (the doors between the two rooms had 
 been left open) interrupted him. It was a sort of wild, 
 unearthly, and yet absurd yell. Nils tumbled down on 
 his hands and knees, and considered it prudent to hide 
 under the bed, while M. Goefle, with staring eyes and 
 open mouth, asked himself, without any alarm, but with 
 great surprise, what could be the meaning of such a sere- 
 nade. 
 
 " If, as I firmly believe, " he thought, " it is some prac- 
 tical joker who wants to frighten me, he imitates the 
 growling of the bear in a singular manner. The voice 
 of the ass he really does reproduce, and with remarkable 
 skill ; but does he take me for a Laplander, and imagine 
 that I have never heard an ass bray ? Come, come. Nils," 
 he continued, looking for his little valet, " there is no 
 magic here ; let us go and see what the matter is." 
 
 Nils would have perished rather than stir, or even an- 
 swer ; and M. Goefle, not knowing what had become of 
 him, went in alone to reconnoitre. 
 
 He was not a little surprised to find himself, in the 
 middle of the bear-room, face to face with a veritable 
 ass, and a fine one too (he had never seen its equal in 
 Sweden), with such an honest countenance, that it was 
 impossible to give him an unkind reception, or to take his 
 visit in bad part. 
 
 " Well, my poor friend," said Monsieur Goefle, laugh- 
 ing, "where do you come from? What are you doing 
 in this country, and wbat request did you just make of 
 me?" 
 
z6 THE S'VOW MAN. 
 
 If Jean had had the gift of human speech, he would have 
 replied that he had taken a good nap, while confidently 
 awaiting his master's return, in his hiding-place under 
 the staircase, where no one had thought of looking ; but 
 that, finding that his master did not return, and beginning 
 to feel very hungry, he had lost patience, and, undoing 
 the rope, which was not well tied, had come to ask M 
 Goefle for some supper. 
 
 The latter easily guessed what he wanted, but h-^* 
 could not understand why Ulph, whom he supposed in 
 trusted with the care of this ass, should have given him 
 the haunted chamber of StoUborg for a stable. He 
 thought of a world of things. As this animal is a 
 great rarity in cold countries, the baron, who had a team 
 of reindeer as well (another rarity in this region, too 
 cold for the ass and not cold enough for the reindeer) , 
 probably valued him very highly, and had ordered the 
 overseer of the old chateau to take care of him, and keep 
 him in a warm place- 
 
 " That accounts for the fire in the stove," said M. 
 Goefle to himself; "but I can't understand why Ulph, 
 instead of telling the simple truth, should have pretended 
 to believe the room haunted. Perhaps he was ordered 
 to fit up one of the stables for the occasion, and not 
 having done so, wished to conceal his negligence ; he hoped, 
 no doubt, that I would be disgusted with the room, or would 
 not notice the presence of this strange companion. Any- 
 how," M. Goefle added, turning gayly to Jean, whose face 
 amused him, " I beg your pardon, my poor ass, but I don't 
 feel inclined to keep you so near me. You have a remark- 
 ably good voice, and I don't sleep soundly. I am going to 
 take you to Loki, who will be a warm, comfortable com- 
 panion ; and, for to-night, you will have to share his 
 supper and straw. Come, Nils, come, my child ; you 
 must light me to the stable." 
 
 Receiving no reply, M. Goefle was obliged to return to 
 the guard-room and find the child's hiding place ; pulling 
 him out by one leg, he carried him back and seated him, 
 whether he wouM c not, upon the back of the ass. 
 At first, Master luls, thinking that he was astride tho 
 
THE SNOW MAN, 27 
 
 imaginary bear, uttered piercing cries. He had never 
 seen an ass, and was as much alarmed by Jean's long 
 ears as he would have been by the horns of the devil ; 
 but gradually the tranquillity and gentleness of the poor 
 beast restored his courage. M. Goefle gave him the can- 
 dlestick with three branches ; he himself led the ass by 
 the halter, and, leaving the tower, they all three turned into 
 the wooden gallery, with its mossy shed, that surrounded 
 the snow-covered court, and proceeded towards the sta- 
 ble. 
 
 At this very moment, Ulph came out of the pavilion 
 in which his uncle lived, and proceeded towards the tower, 
 with a lantern in one hand, and in the other a large 
 basket-full of articles for setting the lawyer's table. Ulph 
 now was as eager to return to the bear-room as, a little 
 while before, he had been unwilling to enter it. This is 
 what had happened to him. 
 
 Like a true Swede, Ulph was all kindness and hospi- 
 tality ; but since he had been living in the gloomy chateau 
 of Stollborg, with his deaf and melancholy uncle, the 
 poor fellow had become so superstitious and cowardly that 
 be never failed to lock himself up in his room as soon as 
 the sun went down, with the firm resolution of not ad- 
 mitting any suspicious characters after that hour, but of 
 leaving them rather to perish in the ice and snow. If 
 the outer door of the chateau had not been broken open 
 by Puffo's vigorous fist, and if Ulph had not recognized 
 the lawyer's voice in the court, the respectable doctor of 
 laws would certainly have been obliged to return to the 
 new chateau, in spite of his dread of its noise and con- 
 fusion, 
 
 Aft3r introducing him into the tower, Ulph became a 
 little more tranquil. He even said to himself that it 
 was all for the best. If M. Goefle wanted to defy the 
 devil it was his own business, and it was far better to have 
 to admit him than to be obliged to reconduct him to the 
 new chateau ; an order that would have entailed upon 
 the unfortunate guide the terrible necessity of returning 
 alone over a lake peopled with frightful goblins. The old 
 overseer of Stollborg was delicate, chilly, and accustomed 
 
28 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 to retire early. Happily, he had already shut himself 
 up in his pavilion, which stood at the end of a small 
 inner court, and which had no view of the outer court, 
 as all its windows overlooked the lake. Whether asleep 
 or not, therefore, it was not at all likely that he would 
 suspect the presence of his guest before the next morn- 
 ing. After reflecting deeply, Ulph, resolved not to dis- 
 turb him, and to do his best to prep^are M. Goefle a good 
 supper. Sten himself was very frugal, but he was treated 
 with great consideration by his master, the Baron de 
 Waldemora (proprietor both of the new chateau and the 
 old tower), who, once for all, had given his new steward 
 the strictest orders to provide liberally for this old and 
 faithful servant of his house. 
 
 Ulph loved good living, and seeing that his uncle sent 
 back, out of prudence and economy, the superfluous pro- 
 visions brought from the new chateau, he made arrange- 
 ments, without telling him anything about it, to receive 
 everything himself. He concealed his gastronomic wealth 
 in a certain mysterious corner of the kitchen, and kept 
 his bottles of old wine, which must have been exceedingly 
 valuable in a country where the vine is a hot-house 
 plant, piled up behind a row of empty hogsheads, in a 
 certain little cellar in the rock, very cool in summer and 
 very warm in winter. , 
 
 Ulph was not covetous ; he was an honest fellow, who 
 would not upon any account have made money out of the 
 baron's presents. He was good-hearted too, and, when- 
 ever he could keep a friend with him, he invited him in a 
 mysterious manner to share his precious bottles ; drink- 
 ing alone is sad, and he was only too happy to be able to 
 enjoy them in company. But it was so well established 
 that the chateau was haunted, not by a bear, as Nils 
 imagined, but by an unhappy ghost, that poor Ulph could 
 not persuade a single boon companion to stop with him a 
 moment after sunset. To keep up his courage, he 
 was obliged to finish his bottles himself ;"" and it was at 
 such times that he beheld the wicked trolh and stroemkarls^ 
 who try to lead their victims to waterfalls, and throw 
 them in. It was probably to avoid being tempted to fol- 
 
THE SNOW MAN, 
 
 29 
 
 low them, that the judicious Ulphilas drank until he had 
 entirely lost the use of his legs. There were a number 
 of free-thinkers and cosmopolites who did not believe in 
 anything, among the baron's numerous suite of servants, 
 but Stensou hated them all more or less, and his nephew 
 Ulphilas shared his antipathies. 
 
 Ulphilas Stenson, therefore, had plenty of materials for 
 the doctor's supper, and he was not a bad hand at frying 
 and roasting. After all, the lawyer's gayety had in- 
 spirited him a little, and he was looking forward to hav- 
 ing a pleasant chat while waiting on the table, when his 
 cheerful ideas were suddenly disturbed by strange sounds. 
 He imagined that he heard a stealthy rustling in the thick 
 walls, a creaking in the wainscots ! Twenty times the 
 frying-pan fell from his hand, and at one moment he was 
 so sure that his sighs of terror were repeated behind him 
 by a mocking echo, that he remained for three good min- 
 utes without daring to breathe, and far less to turn 
 around. 
 
 This was what made him so slow in preparing this 
 much-desired repast. At last, when he had finished his 
 work after a fashion, he went down into the cellar to get 
 some wine. There new agonies awaited him. Just as 
 he was about leaving this sanctuary with a sufficient 
 load, a tall black figure glided before him. His lantern 
 went out, and the same mysterious steps that had already 
 frightened him almost out of his wits, went rapidly up 
 the cellar stairs. Ulph came very near fainting ; but, 
 recovering his courage, he returned to the kitchen, and 
 leaving his saucepans simmering on the stove, resolved, 
 under the pretence of setting the table, to go and see 
 whether M. Goefle would not cure him of his terror. 
 
 It was at this very moment, as he was coming along 
 the wooden gallery with his useful load, that he met face 
 to face a whimsical apparition. There before him he be- 
 held the doctor of laws in his night-cap, leading by the 
 halter a strange, monstrous animal (like a true Dalecar- 
 lian peasant of those days, Ulph had never seen the ass, 
 and perhaps had never heard of it), while upon this 
 animal, whose long ears cast gigantic shadows along the 
 
30 THE SNO W MAN. 
 
 gallery, rode a little red devil bearing a triple flame ; the 
 very imp whom M. Goefle had wished to pass off as his 
 valet, but who could only be the kobold in person, the 
 familiar demon whom he had boasted of having in his 
 service. 
 
 This was too much for poor Ulph. He respected ko- 
 bolds, but he did not want to see them. His grasp failed ; 
 he set his basket on the ground, and, turning short round, 
 fled, and shut himself up in his room, swearing by his 
 eternal salvation that he would not come out again that 
 night, even although the lawyer should die of hunger 
 and the devil should eat up his supper. 
 
 It was all in vain that M. Goefle called. He received 
 no reply, and after conducting the ass to the stable, he 
 took up the abandoned basket and returned to set the 
 table, with Nils's help, in the bear-room. 
 
 "Well," he said, "travellers must be philosophical. 
 Here are glasses, dishes and napkins, so we will hope 
 that that lunatic will provide us with some food as well. 
 We shall have to wait his good pleasure, since there is no 
 means of doing otherwise ; and, in the meanwhile, we 
 can open these bottles, which look promising." 
 
 Nils set the table quite neatly, the fire blazed merrily 
 in the stove, and Monsieur Goefle had quite recovered 
 his natural good-humor, when the child began tumbling 
 about in a languid, helpless way, which showed that he 
 had suddenly become sleepy. 
 
 "Look out there!" cried the lawyer; "wake up! 
 You have to eat yet ; you must be hungry." 
 
 " Oh yes ! Monsieur Goefle," replied the child ; " but 
 I want to sleep so much ! I can never wait all the while 
 until your supper is brought and you have done eating. 
 Give me a little of this bread and blackberry jam ; then 
 I will be stronger, and will wait upon you." 
 
 M. Goefle himself opened the pot of sweetmeats, 
 and Nils seated himself unceremoniously in the place 
 intended for his master, while the latter warmed his feet, 
 which had been chilled by their expedition to the stable. 
 M. Goefle was as active in imagination as fluent in 
 speech. When there was no opportunity for talking, hia 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 31 
 
 mind kept busily at work, or he abandoned himself to 
 agreeable reveries. In a little while he began to feel the 
 pangs of hunger again, and turned to see whether Ulph 
 had returned, at last, with some more solid dish than 
 sweetmeats ; but he only saw little Nils fast asleep, with 
 his head on the table and his nose in the plate. 
 
 " Come, come ! " he said, shaking him ; " now that 
 you have had something to eat, you must keep awake. 
 I want you to wait upon me. Go and see whether 
 Ulph — " 
 
 It was useless for M. Goefle to finish. Nils was 
 overcome by the irresistible sleep of childhood. He got 
 up, but his eyes were vacant, and he staggered like a 
 drunken man. The lawyer really pitied him. 
 
 " Well, go to bed," he said, " since you are good 
 for nothing." 
 
 Nils turned to go to the guard-room, but stopped at 
 the door, and, leaning against it, fell fast asleep standing. 
 He had to be carried to bed. Then there was another 
 trouble. The little man really could not take off his 
 gaiters. M. Goefle had to take off his valet's gaiters, 
 and this was not an easy task, for the shoes were tight, 
 and the child's legs were swollen with fatigue. 
 
 When he was going to hoist him into his bed, he saw 
 that the little rogue had already crept in, all dressed. 
 
 " The devil take you ! " he said ; " do you suppose I 
 gave you those beautiful new clothes to sleep in ? Get 
 up and undress yourself ; it is the least you can do." 
 
 He pulled him out of bed, whether he wished it or not, 
 but the child made useless efforts to unbutton himself. 
 Aunt Gertrude, delighted to have full swing in dressing 
 him up like a little valet before introducing him to his 
 master, had had his elk-skin small clothes and his red 
 cloth vest made so tight, that they fitted him like wax. 
 M. Goefle himself could scarcely pull them off. While 
 thus engaged, he had to take him upon his knees before 
 the fire, for the child was shivering with cold. It was 
 useless for him to get angry, and curse Gertrude for giv- 
 ing him such a servant ; he could not be so inhuman a^ 
 to let him freeze. And then Nils disarmed him by hia 
 
32 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 pretty ways. At every word of reproach, he would repl^f 
 artlessly : 
 
 " You will see to-morrow, Monsieur Goefle : I will do 
 all that you tell me, and then I will love you so much ! " 
 
 " That will always be the way," replied the good 
 lawyer, shaking him a little. " I prefer to be rather 
 less loved and a little better waited on." 
 
 At last Nils was in bed, and M. Goefle turned to go 
 in quest of his problematical supper, when the child 
 called him back unceremoniously, and said in a reproach- 
 ful voice : 
 
 " Wait, monsieur ; you are not going to leave me all 
 alone ! " 
 
 "What more?" cried the doctor of laws. "Do you 
 want company to sleep ? " 
 
 "But, Monsieur Goefle, I never slept alone in my 
 room at the pastor's house ; and here, above all, where I 
 am so afraid. Oh ! stop — stop ; if you are going to 
 leave me, I had rather sleep on the floor in the room 
 where you are." 
 
 Wide awake now as a cat, Nils jumped out of bed, 
 and started to follow his master into the bear-room, in 
 his shirt. M. Goefle lost all patience. He scolded ; 
 Nils took to crying again. He was going to shut him 
 up. Nils began to howl. The doctor of laws formed 
 an heroic determination. 
 
 " Since I have been so foolish," he said, " as to sup- 
 pose that a child ten years old was fourteen, and to 
 imagine that Gertrude had a grain of common sense in 
 her brain, I must pay the penalty. Five minutes' pa- 
 tience and this young rogue will be fast asleep ; while, 
 if I excite him by my opposition, God only knows how 
 long I shall have to hear him groaning or braying." 
 
 He went into the bear-room to get one of his bundles 
 of papers, not without cursing the child, who followed 
 with naked feet, and would scarcely give him time to 
 find his spectacles ; and then sat down before the fire in 
 the guard-room, with the doors shut, as it was not very 
 warm. After asking Nils ironically whether he did not 
 want to be sung to sleep, he buried himself in his dusty 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 33 
 
 papers, and forgot all about the supper, which did not 
 arrive, and the child, who was snoring with all hia 
 might. 
 
 II. 
 
 "OUT what was Cristiano about while M. Goefle was 
 -*-^ meeting with all these adventures ? The reader has 
 probably guessed that the mocking goblin wandering 
 about poor Ulph in kitchen and cellar was our adven- 
 turer in person, in pursuit of his supper. Ulph's terrors 
 and agonies enabled him to carry off the most portable 
 dishes in the kitchen, almost under his nose. In the 
 cellar he was less fortunate. On blowing out the cow- 
 ard's light, he had found himself in such utter darkness 
 that he was afraid of being shut up fasting in this subter- 
 ranean vault. He had hastened, therefore, to retrace his 
 steps, while consoling himself with the thought that he 
 could seize the bottles which Ulph would be sure to bring 
 up, at a more favorable moment. 
 
 The adventurer had lost some little time in cautiously 
 exploring the secret passage of the bear-room, which we 
 shall describe rather later ; escaping from it with some 
 difficulty, he introduced himself secretly into M. Sten- 
 son*s pavilion, and so had not been in a position to 
 notice M. Goefle's arrival. He thought, therefore, that 
 the supper was being prepared for the old overseer. 
 Before returning to his self-selected lodging, he had still 
 to find some supper for his ass, and for several moments 
 after Ulph's final fit of terror, he was wandering about in 
 the small court adjoining the outer enclosure ; hence 
 he lost the diverting spectacle of M. Goefle in his night- 
 cap, leading the ass in triumph to the stable, with the 
 help of his kobold in red livery. As he explored the old 
 building in every direction, and opened all the doors that 
 were not firmly bolted, Cristiano came at last to the 
 stable, where he was delighted to see Master Jean eating 
 bis supper with a good appetite, and trampling upon a 
 
 3 
 
34 'iH^ SNOW MAN. 
 
 thick litter of dry moss, in company with a handsome 
 black horse, who seemed to make him very welcome. 
 
 " Really, beasts are sometimes more reasonable and 
 more hospitable than men," thought Cristiano, caressing 
 the noble animal. " Since we have been travelling in 
 this cold country, Jean has been regarded with amaze- 
 ment, fear, or repugnance, in the various villages and 
 peasants' huts where we have stopped, and I myself, in 
 spite of the affable manners of the people of this country, 
 have fallen into a strange den of gloomy or absents 
 minded beings, where I am obliged to go marauding, 
 like a soldier on a campaign. This good horse, on the 
 contrary, makes room for Jean in his stall, without 
 asking him the meaning of his long ears, and treats him 
 from the start as an equal. Well, Jean, good-night, my 
 friend ! If I should ask you who had brought you here 
 and supplied your wants to your heart's desire, you 
 would not perhaps have the goodness to reply ; and I 
 should suppose, if I did not see that some one had tied 
 you by your halter, that you had been sensible enough 
 to come of your own accord. Well, anyhow I will fol- 
 low your example, and go and take my supper without 
 thinking of the morrow." 
 
 Cristiano shut the stable-door and returned to the 
 bear-room, where he was agreeably surprised to find the 
 table set with handsome dishes, heavy silver, and a 
 whit^ table-cloth, soiled only by a few sweetmeat stains 
 around Nils's plate. 
 
 "Hallo!" cried the adventurer, gayly, "these good 
 people have finished, or rather they have begun with the 
 desert ! But who the devil has been here in my absence? 
 Puffo would not have been neat enough to set the table ; 
 that is not at all his style in travelling. Besides, he must 
 have gone to the new chateau to seek his fortune, or I 
 should have met him while exploring the old one. In 
 fact, I never expected to receive any assistance from that 
 fellow. If he has found a comfortable place for himself 
 in some kitchen, no matter where, he will be sure to 
 forget all about me, and I was quite right to take care 
 of myself. But no matter, if he should happen to return 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 35 
 
 here to sleep, the poor devil must not freeze at the doof 
 of the chateau." 
 
 CristiaQO went and opened the door of the court, which 
 Ulph, after M. Goefle's arrival, had taken pains to fasten, 
 and returned firmly resolved to have his supper, no mat- 
 ter with whom, by fair means or foul. 
 
 " I have a right to it, " he continued ; " the dishes are 
 empty, and the food I bring fills them handsomely. If I 
 have a companion here, and he proves good-natured, we 
 will join forces ; otherwise we will see which of the two 
 is to turn the other out of doors." 
 
 While talking in this way, Cristiano went to see whether 
 his baggage had been disturbed. He found it in the cor- 
 ner where he had left" it, and where it had not been no- 
 ticed. He then examined M. Goefle's trunk, valise and 
 efiects ; his clothes scattered about upon the chairs (the 
 linen carefully folded to be laid away in a closet, and the 
 coats stretched over the backs of the chairs to get smooth) ; 
 and, last of all, the empty valise, upon the cover of which 
 he read these words : — M. Thormund Goefle, Advocate, 
 Gevala; Doctor of Law, Faculty of Lund. 
 
 " An advocate ! " thought the adventurer. " Well, he 
 will talk, anyhow ! A lawyer must always have a little 
 wit and talent. He may prove an agreeable companion 
 if he is sensible enough not to judge a man by his coat. 
 But where can he be hidden ? He is some one, I suppose, 
 invited to the festivities at the Chateau de Waldemora, 
 who, like myself, found the house full, or who fancied 
 stopping in this romantic manor. Or he may be the bus- 
 iness man of the rich baron, for it is scarcely likely that 
 citizens are admitted into the society of the nobles in 
 this country of castes and prejudices. It is nothing to 
 me ! The lawyer has certainly gone out, in any event. 
 He may be chatting with the old overseer, or perhaps he 
 is in the double-bedded room that we were told about, 
 although I see no signs of a door. Shall I look for him? 
 Who knows that he has not gone to bed ? Yes, that is 
 most probable. The people here wished to wait upon him, 
 but he declined everything ; contenting himself with 
 sweetmeats, and longing only for his bed. May he sleep 
 
36 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 in peace, the worthy man ! For my part, I shall do very 
 well in this large arm-chair, and if I am cold — hallo I 
 here is a magnificent cloak lined with fur, and a sable trav- 
 elling cap, that will protect body and ears from the frost. 
 Let me see whether they will be comfortable ! Yes, very 
 indeed, " thought Cristiano, throwing the cloak over his 
 shoulders, and donning the cap ; " and that is lucky 
 for me ! What a strange puzzle life is ! When I 
 think that I have followed a respectable profession for 
 ten years, and yet have not a good cloak to cover my poor 
 body, now that I am lost in the polar regions, I can 
 scarcely believe my senses ! " 
 
 Cristiano had already placed his booty, consisting of an 
 appetizing Hamburg tongue, a bear's leg smoked to per- 
 fection, and a superb piece of smoked and salted salmon, 
 upon the table. 
 
 He was just going to throw off the doctor's travelling 
 suit so as to eat more at his leisure, when he thought he 
 heard the tinkling of bells passing under the only window 
 of the bear-room. This window, which was opposite the 
 stove, was large, and had a double sash, the universal 
 practice in all comfortable dwellings, whether ancient or 
 modern, in northern countries. However, the outside 
 sash showed how Stollborg had been neglected. Almost 
 all the glass panes were broken, and, as the wind had 
 ceased, you could hear distinctly the noises from the out- 
 side ; the masses of recently fallen snow breaking off 
 from the old solid beds and sinking with a dull, mysterious 
 boom down the perpendicular rocks, the distant shouts 
 proceeding from the farm on the shore of the lake, and 
 the melancholy howling of the dogs, saluting with unin- 
 telligible maledictions the red disk of the rising moon. 
 
 Cristiano, who felt curious to see the sleigh which was 
 cutting a path over the frozen lake so near his 
 refuge, opened the inner sash and thrust his head 
 through one of the broken panes. He saw distinctly a 
 fantastic vision gliding along at the foot of the rock. Two 
 magnificent white horses, driven by a bearded coachman 
 dressed like a Russian, were drawing lightly a sleigh that 
 flashed and glittered with a shimmering light, like a preo- 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 37 
 
 ious stone. The lantern on this elegant vehicle was un- 
 usually high, and looked like a star swept along by a 
 whirlwind, or a will-o'-the-wisp furjously chasing the 
 sleigh. Its light, thrown forward by a reflector of red 
 gold, cast warm gleams across the blue moonlight on the 
 snow, and painted with rainbow hues the vapor stream- 
 ing from the nostrils and sides of the horses. Nothing 
 could have been more graceful and poetic than this wheel- 
 less car, which might have been that of the fairy of the 
 lake, passing like a dream under Cristiano*s dazzled eyes. 
 It is true that he had seen sleighs of all kinds, from the 
 most luxurious to the most simple, in passing through 
 Stockholm and other cities of the country, but none of 
 them had seemed to him so picturesque and so singular as 
 the one now stopping at the foot of the rock. For, he 
 could no longer doubt it, a new visitor, and this time an 
 opulent one, was coming to take possession of StoUborg, 
 or to reconnoitre that silent retreat. 
 
 " The sleigh has afforded me a beautiful spectacle," 
 thought Cristiano ; '^ but the devil take those who are in 
 it ! Here, I wager, is another interruption to the peace- 
 ful supper I was promising myself." 
 
 The rash imprecation died upon his lips ! A sweet and 
 really melodious voice, a woman's voice, which, accord- 
 ing to Cristiano, could only belong to a charming woman, 
 proceeded from the sleigh. The voice, speaking in the 
 dialect of the province, which he did not understand, 
 made this remark : 
 
 " Do you think, Peterson, that your horses can ascend 
 to the door of the old chateau?" 
 
 "Yes, mademoiselle," replied the large coachman, 
 muffled up in furs, " this evening's snow will make it a 
 little troublesome, but others have been before us already. 
 I see the fresh tracks. Don't be afraid. We will get 
 there." 
 
 The approach to Stollborg, which M. Goefle had called 
 a little rock^ was an actual natural staircase, consisting of 
 layers of schistose rock of unequal thickness. In summer 
 it would have been enough to disable horses and carriages ; 
 but winter in the north renders every road practicable. 
 
38 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 and every traveller intrepid. A thick bed of frozen sno\\', 
 solid and smooth as marble, fills up all hollows, and levels 
 all inequalities. The horses, shod for the purpose, climb dan- 
 gerous heights, and descend boldly the most precipitous de- 
 clivities ; sleighs are not often upset, and accidents, when 
 they do occur, are seldom dangerous. In a few moments 
 this one stopped at the door of the little chateau. 
 
 '' You must ring cautiously," said the sweet voice to 
 the coachman ; " you know, Peterson, that I don't want to 
 be seen by the old steward, who, perhaps, tells everything 
 that happens to his master." 
 
 " Oh, he is so deaf! " replied the coachman, jumping to 
 the ground. " Ulph wont say a word, for he is my friend ; 
 provided always that he chooses to open the door. He is 
 a little timid at night, and no wonder, the chateau — " 
 
 Peterson was probably going to tell about the ghosts 
 of StoUborg, but he did not have time to continue. The 
 door opened as if of itself, and Cristiano, as well muf- 
 fled up as the coachman, thanks to the lawyer's cloak 
 and fur cap, appeared at the threshold. 
 
 " No matter, here he is," said the sweet voice. " Stand 
 aside, Peterson, and don't forget to take off the bells from 
 your horses ; I begged you so particularly to attend to it. 
 Don't be impatient, poor fellow, I won't keep you waiting 
 long." 
 
 " Take your time, mademoiselle," replied the devoted 
 servant, wiping the icicles from his beard, "it is very 
 mild this evening." 
 
 . Cristiano did not understand a word of this dialogue, 
 but he listened with none the less delight to the sweet 
 voice, and he offered his arm to a little lady so well 
 wrapped up in ermine, that she looked like a flake of snow 
 rather than a human being. She spoke to him at once, 
 but still in Dalecarlian, so that he could not guess what 
 she said, although it was evident from her intonation, 
 sweet as it was, that she was giving him some orders. 
 She mistook him for the keeper of old Stollborg ; and as 
 the voice of command, in all countries alike, requires no 
 other answer than submissive gestures, Cristiano did very 
 well, without understanding and replying, during his short 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 39 
 
 walk with the little lady, whom he conducted along the 
 wooden gallery leading from the door of the court to that 
 of the donjon. 
 
 In taking her to the bear-room, Cristiano obeyed in- 
 stinctively his natural hospitality, without knowing 
 whether she would thank him for his kindness. In the 
 same way he had been led instinctively to go and meet 
 her by curiosity, and perhaps also a sentiment of gallantry, 
 which was still all-powerful at this epoch, over men of all 
 ages and classes. 
 
 The young lady, who had followed her guide unsuspic- 
 iously, started with surprise when she found herself in 
 the famous room. 
 
 " Is this the bear-room ? " she said, rather anxiously ; 
 *' I have never been here." 
 
 Cristiano, who did not understand a word, made no 
 reply ; and looking at him by the light of the only candle 
 placed upon the table, she cried, in Swedish : 
 
 " Good heavens ! This is not Ulphilas ! To w^hom 
 have I the honor of speaking? Can it be M. Goefle in 
 person ? " 
 
 The young man understood and spoke Swedish re- 
 markably well. He remembered instantly the name upon 
 the lawyer's valise, and saw — thanks to the disguise of 
 his cloak — that he would be able to amuse himself, if 
 only for a moment, by playing his part. Singular cir- 
 cumstances, that we shall learn about in due time, had 
 given him perfect command of the Swedish language ; 
 but he was a stranger in the country. Utterly isolated, 
 and bound by no ties to any human being, he was not 
 obliged to be circumspect in his behavior, and considered it 
 only natural to divert himself whenever he had a chance 
 He replied boldly, therefore, at a venture : 
 
 " Yes, madame, I am Monsieur Goefle, Doctor of Laws 
 of the Faculty of Lund, practising law at Gevala." 
 
 As he spoke, he laid his hand upon a spectacle-case 
 containing a pair of green spectacles, which the lawyer 
 was in the habit of wearing when he travelled, to pro- 
 tect his eyes from the fatiguing glare of the snow. De- 
 lighted with this discovery, which the special providence 
 
40 
 
 THE SNOW MAN, 
 
 that watches over children and hair-brained mad-capa 
 seemed to have thrust under his very nose, he put them 
 on, and felt perfectly disguised. 
 
 " Ah. monsieur," said the unknovirn, '' I ask a thou- 
 sand pardons, but I did not see you. I have never had 
 the pleasure of meeting you, and I took you for the 
 keeper of StoUborg. You must have laughed to hear me 
 ordering him to inform you that I requested a moment's 
 interview, and promising him a fee for so doing." 
 
 Cristiano bowed respectfully. 
 
 " Will you allow me, then," resumed the unknown, 
 " to converse with you about an affair — a little embar- 
 rassing — a little delicate ? — " 
 
 These two words delighted the adventurer to such a 
 degree, that he forgot all about his intense momentary 
 vexation at having his supper delayed by this unexpected 
 visit, and only thought how much he should like to see 
 the face of his visitor, which was buried in her ermine 
 hood. 
 
 " I am ready to listen to you, " he said, in a grave 
 tone ; " a lawyer is a confessor. But are you not afraid, 
 if you keep on your cloak, that you will catch cold when 
 you go out ? " 
 
 "No, " said the unknown, accepting the arm-chair 
 which her host offered her, " I am a true mountaineer ; 
 I never catch cold." 
 
 She added artlessly : 
 
 " Besides, you will think, perhaps, that I am not suit^ 
 ably attired for the conference that I have just solicited 
 with a dignified and respectable person like you. Monsieur 
 Goefle ; I am in ball-dress. " 
 
 " Good gracious ! " cried Cristiano, thoughtlessly ; '^ I 
 am not a ferocious old Lutheran ! A ball-dress does not 
 shock me at all ; above all, when it is worn by a pretty 
 person." 
 
 *'You are very gallant. Monsieur Goefle ; but I don't 
 know that I am pretty and well-dressed ; I do know, 
 however, that I ought not to hide my face from you, 
 for any distrust upon my part would be an insult to your 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 41 
 
 loyalty, to which, in requesting your advice and protec* 
 tion, I have just made appeal." 
 
 The unknown threw back her hood, and Cristiano saw 
 the. most charming head imaginable. It was a pure 
 Swedish type, eyes of a true sapphire blue, quantities of 
 light golden hair of extreme fineness, one of those ex- 
 quisitely pure and fresh complexions which are never seen 
 in equal perfection among other races ; and, just visible 
 through the half open pelisse, a slender neck, shoulders 
 of snow, and a slight, flexible form. This sweet vision 
 was chaste as infancy, for the little visitor was only six- 
 teen years old, and had not done growing. 
 
 Cristiano did not pride himself upon his austerity ; he 
 was a man of his time, but he was superior to the haz- 
 ardous career into which he had been thrown by circum- 
 stances. He was a person of intelligence and natural 
 delicacy. He gazed with quiet friendliness upon this 
 Rose of the North ; and, if he had had any treacherous 
 idea in drawing her into this bear's den, it was quickly 
 replaced by the anticipation of an adventure which, how- 
 ever gay and romantic, could not fail to be as honest as 
 the amiable and frank countenance of his young guest. 
 
 " Monsieur Goefle," resumed the latter, encouraged 
 by the respectful attitude of the pretended lawyer, " now 
 that you have seen my face, which I hope is not that of 
 a wicked person, I must tell you my name. You will 
 know it perfectly well. But it distresses me to see you 
 standing, when I am seated upon the only arm-chair in 
 the room. I know the respect that is due to a man of 
 your worth — I was going to say of your age, for I have 
 always thought (I don't know why) that you were very 
 old ; while, on the contrary, you seem younger than the 
 baron." 
 
 " You flatter me," replied Cristiano, pulling his furred 
 cap, with its ear-pieces, down over his eyes and cheeks ; 
 " I am old, very old ! It is only the tip of my nose that 
 can appear young, and you must excuse me for not un- 
 covering in your presence. Your visit surprised me ; I 
 had taken off my wig, and must hide my bald crown 
 as I can," 
 
42 
 
 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 " Don*t speak of it, Monsieur Goefle, and please to sit 
 down." 
 
 " With your permission I will remain standing near 
 the stove, on account of my gout, which pains me,'' 
 replied Cristiano, who was standing with his head in the 
 shadow, while the feeble light of the only candle was 
 thrown entirely upon his visitor. " To whom have I the 
 honor — " 
 
 '*Yes, yes," she replied eagerly. "Oh! you know 
 me well, although you have never seen me. I am 
 Margaret." 
 
 "• Indeed ! " cried Cristiano, in a tone that signified, 
 " I know no more than I did before." 
 
 Happily, the young girl was impatient to explain 
 herself. 
 
 "Yes, yes," she replied, "Margaret Elveda, the 
 niece of your client." 
 
 "Ah, the niece of my client — " 
 " Countess Elveda, sister of my father, the colonel, 
 who was the friend of the unhappy baron ! " 
 "The unhappy baron — " 
 
 " Ah, mon Dieut Baron Adelstan, w^hose name I can- 
 not pronounce without emotion in this room, who was 
 assassinated by the miners of Falun — or by some one 
 else ! for, after all, monsieur, who knows ? Are you 
 very certain that it was done by the workmen of the 
 mine ? " 
 
 "As to that, mademoiselle, I cannot say; if any one 
 lias a right to swear upon his honor that he does not 
 know anything about it, it is your humble servant," re- 
 plied Cristiano, in an impressive tone, that seemed^ forc- 
 ibly to strike the young girl, who gave his words her own 
 interpretation. 
 
 " Oh, Monsieur Goefle," she said earnestly, " I was 
 perfectly sure that you shared my suspicions. No 
 nothing will ever persuade me that all these tragic 
 deaths that were talked about, and which are still talked 
 about, in whispers — but are we quite alone ? can no one 
 overhear us? This is such a serious matter, Monsieur 
 Goefle I " 
 
THE SNOW MAN, 43 
 
 " Ib fact it seems serious," thought Cristiano, assum- 
 ing the tottering gait of an old man, and going to see 
 whether the outside door was shut ; " the only trouble 
 is that I don't understand it all." 
 
 He glanced around the room, but failed, as before, to 
 notice the door of the guard-chamber, which was closed 
 between M. Goefle and our two friends. 
 
 " Well, monsieur," resumed the young lady, '' can 
 you believe that my aunt wants to make me marry a 
 man whom I cannot help regarding as the assassin of his 
 family.?" 
 
 As Cristiano knew nothing at all about the facts in 
 question, he tried to draw out an explanation by chiming 
 in with the views of his new client. 
 
 " Your aunt must be a mad-woman," he said, a little 
 cavalierly, '' or something worse." 
 
 " Excuse me. Monsieur Goefle, she is my aunt, and it 
 is my duty to respect her ! I only accuse her of being 
 blind or prejudiced." 
 
 "Blindness and prejudice be it then; it is really a 
 matter of no importance. What I see most clearly is, 
 that she is trying to force your inclination." 
 
 " Oh ! there is no doubt about that, for I have a hor- 
 ror of the baron ! Did she not tell you so ? " 
 
 " Quite the contrary ! I supposed — " 
 
 " Oh, Monsieur Goefle, how could you suppose that 1, 
 at my age, would feel the least liking for a man fifty-five 
 years old?" 
 
 " What ! Is the person they want you to marry fifty- 
 five years old into the bargain ? " 
 
 " You are only pretending to be in doubt. Monsieur 
 Goefle ! You cannot help knowing his age ; you are his 
 lawyer, and, it is said, also his devoted friend — but I 
 don't believe that at all." 
 
 " The deuce ! You are right. May I be hung if I care 
 a fi;? for him ! But what is the name of the gentleman ? " 
 
 " The baron .? You do not know whom I am talking of? " 
 
 "How should I? There are so many barons in th« 
 world." 
 
 " But my aunt has told you — *' 
 
44 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 " A truce to what she has told me ! How can I re* 
 member all that your auut says ? She doesn't know her 
 own mind, perhaps." 
 
 " Oh, pardon me ; she knows it only to well ! She 
 lias a will of iron. She must have told you about her 
 plans, for she declares that you approve them." 
 
 " I approve of sacrificing a charming child like you to 
 a dotard?" 
 
 " There now, you see that you know the baron's age 
 perfectly well." 
 
 " But once again, what baron do you mean?" 
 
 " What baron? Is it possible that it can be necessary 
 for me to mention the Snow Man ? " 
 
 "Indeed I The Snow Man? Very well, I must con- 
 fess that I am no wiser than I was before." 
 
 " How, Monsieur Goefle, you do not know the sur- 
 name of the most powerful, the richest, and at the same 
 time the most wicked and hateful of your clients, the 
 Baron Olaus de Waldemora ? " 
 
 "What, the proprietor of this chateau?" 
 
 " Certainly, and of the new chateau on the other shore 
 of the lake ; the owner, moreover, of innumerable iron 
 mines, lead mines, and alum mines, and of several val- 
 leys, forests and mountains, without referring to his 
 tields, cattle, farms and lakes ; the seigneur, in a word, 
 of a good tenth part of Dalecarlia. It is because of 
 his vast possessions that my aunt is at me, from morn- 
 ing until night, to make me forget that he is old, sickly, 
 and perhaps burdened with crimes." 
 
 " Good God ! " cried Cristiano, in amazement, " I 
 have accepted the hospitality of an agreeable person \ " 
 
 "You are laughing at me, Monsieur Goefle! You 
 don't believe in his guilt, and you were jesting when you 
 said just now — " 
 
 " AH that I said I am ready to repeat. But I should 
 like to know of what crimes you accuse my host? " 
 
 "I don't accuse him ; public rumor has accustomed 
 me to regard him as the assassin of his father, his 
 brother, and his sister-in law, the unhappy Hilda — " 
 
 " Nothing more than that? " 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 45 
 
 " You know what is said, Monsieur Goefle ; you were 
 commissioned, were you not? — Oh, no, it must have 
 been your father, who was Baron Olaus's lawyer at that 
 time. The baron brought forward deeds of some sort. 
 Nothing could ever be proved against him ; but the 
 truth was never known, and never will be known, — 
 at least until the dead come from the tomb to tell it." 
 
 " That sometimes happens," replied Cristiano, smiling. 
 
 " Really, do you believe? — " 
 
 " Oh, that is one of our professional phrases, when an 
 unexpected proof is discovered, you know — a lost letter, 
 f chance word, long forgotten." 
 
 " Yes, I know, but nothing was ever found, and for 
 tifteen or twenty years the whole thing has been buried 
 in silence and forgetfulness. Baron Olaus was suspected 
 and hated at first, but he has succeeded in making 
 himself feared, and that tells the whole story. At pres- 
 ent, he carries his presumption and confidence so far 
 that he wishes to marry again. Ah ! may God preserve 
 me from being the object of his pursuit ! It is said that 
 he loved his wife devotedly; but as for the Baroness 
 Hilda, it is generally believed — " 
 
 "What is believed?" 
 
 " I see that these peasant's stories have never reached 
 you. Monsieur Goefle, or else you laugh at them, since 
 you have quietly taken up your quarters in this room." 
 
 " In fact there is some story connected with it," re- 
 plied Cristiano, as a remark that he had recently heard 
 flashed into his mind. "The people at the farm said 
 to me this evening, — 'Go there, and let us know in 
 the morning how you passed the night.* The room is 
 haunted, then, by a goblin — a ghost — " 
 
 "There must be something strange here, whether a 
 phantom or a real being, for old M. S ten son himself be- 
 lieves so, and the baron also, perhaps. It is said that he 
 has never entered the room since his sister-in-law's death, 
 and he has had a certain door walled up — " 
 
 " Yonder," said Cristiano, pointing to the top of the 
 staircase. 
 
 "It is possible," replied Margaret, "I don't know. 
 
46 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 It is all very mysterious, and I thought you would be 
 well informed about matters that I am ignorant of. I 
 don't believe in ghosts. Still, I shouldn't like to see one, 
 and nothing in the world would induce me to sleep 
 here, as you are going to do. As for the baron, whether 
 the story of the diamond ring is true or false — " 
 
 '' What ! another story — " 
 
 " Yes, and the most improbable one of all, I confess ; 
 I cannot help laughing as I repeat it. They say, in the 
 cottages of the neighborhood, that the baron loved his 
 wife — who was as wicked himself — so well, that he gave 
 her body, when she died, to an alchemist, who reduced it 
 in an alembic, and turned it into a great black dia- 
 mond. It is certain, at any rate, that he Wears a strange 
 ring upon his finger, which I cannot look at without 
 terror aad disgust." 
 
 "That is a good proof!" said Cristiano, laughing; 
 " but only think if a similar fate should be reserved for 
 you. They would find .nothing, I know, in the alembic 
 where you were baked, but a pretty rose diamond of the 
 purest water, but that would not be any more cheerful 
 for you, and I advise you not to run the risk of being 
 crystallized." 
 
 Margaret burst out laughing, but it frightened her to 
 hear her fresh, childlike voice echoed mysteriously 
 through the old room. She became sad, and said in a 
 tone of discouragement : 
 
 " Well, enough of that ! I sec. Monsieur Goefle, that 
 you are an amiable and witty man, as every one says ; 
 but I was very much mistaken in supposing that you 
 would sympathize with me, and would be my guide and 
 protector. You agree with my aunt, you consider all I 
 have told you a mere dream, and you reject the cry of 
 my heart. May God have pity upon me ! I have no 
 longer any hope but in Him." 
 
 " Wait a little ! " replied Cristiano, moved to see great 
 tears rolling over rosy cheeks which had just been so 
 smiling. " Why don't you depend more, upon yourself? 
 What have you told me, after all? You announce that 
 you have a confession to make of a delicate nature. 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 47 
 
 and all it amounts to is that your friends wish you to 
 marry a man who does not please you, and towards 
 whom you feel an antipathy, I thought you were going 
 to confide some love affair to me. You need not blush 
 at that. A love may be pure and honorable, even 
 although ambitious parents disapprove of it. A father 
 and mother may be mistaken, and yet it is painful to 
 resist their influence. You are an orphan ! Yes, you 
 must be, since you are dependent upon an old aunt — I 
 call her old, and you shake your head ! Assume that 
 slie is young — she claims to be so, no doubt, and I, it 
 seems, am no longer a judge, for I considered her old. 
 If she is young, she ought all the more to be sent — I 
 will not say to mind her own business, but to reflect to 
 some purpose, while you ask the advice of some old 
 friend, M. Goefle, for instance — that is to say, myself 
 — some one, in a word, who can put you in a way to 
 marry the happy mortal whom you prefer." 
 
 " But I assure you, dear M. Goefle, that I do not love 
 any one," replied Margaret. " Oh God ! it would only 
 need that to complete my misfortunes ! It is quite 
 enough to be obliged to endure the importunities of a 
 person you hate." 
 
 '' You are not sincere, my dear child," replied Cris- 
 tiano, who was playing his part so well and naturally that 
 he really was beginning to feel as if he were M. Goefle 
 in person ; "you are afraid that I will repeat what you 
 confide to me to the countess, my client." 
 
 "Oh, no, no, dear Monsieur Goefle, it is not so, in 
 deed ! I know that you are both honorable and kind- 
 hearted. Every one considers you so, and even the 
 baron, who thinks ill of every one else, dares not say a 
 word against you. Such is my respect for you, my 
 confidence in you, that I have been watching for your 
 arrival at Waldemora ; and I must tell you how the idea 
 of seeking you in this way occurred to me : this will give 
 you my whole history in a few words, and I don't believe 
 my aunt has related it very accurately. 
 
 "I was brought up in Chateau Dalby, in Woermland, 
 twenty leagues distant, under the eyes of my guardian, 
 
48 THE SNO W MAN, 
 
 Countess Elfride d'Elveda, my father*s sister. When 
 I say under her eyes, you know what I mean ! My 
 aunt loves society and politics. She accompanies the 
 court to Stockholm, and is much more interested in the 
 affairs of the Diet than in taking care of me. So, all 
 my life, I have lived in a rather gloonay chateau with 
 my French governess, Mademoiselle Potin, who, fortu- 
 nately, is very kind, and who loves me dearly. My aunt 
 makes us a visit twice a year, to see whether 1 have 
 grown, whether I am speaking French and Russian well, 
 whether I am in want of anything, and whether the 
 pastor of our church, who is very strict, takes good care 
 that we do not receive any visits besides his own, and 
 those of his family." 
 
 "Well, really, that is not very amusing !" 
 " No ; but I have no cause to consider myself unhappy. 
 I study a good deal with my governess, I am quite rich, 
 and my aunt is quite generous, so that I have every- 
 thing I want ; and when the time seems a little long to 
 us, we read novels ; — oh, such good and beautiful novels, 
 that make us forget our solitude, and whose moral always 
 is that crime is punished and virtue rewarded ! " 
 
 "You may be sure of that ! At all events, there is no 
 harm in believing it, and behaving accordingly. But 
 there must have been some hero of all this solitude, and 
 of all these romances ; did no handsome young fellow, 
 in spite of pastor or aunt, contrive to glide into the 
 house, or at least into your heart?" 
 
 "Oh! no, never, I assure you. Monsieur Goefle!" 
 replied Margaret, frankly. "But when my aunt told me 
 suddenly eight days ago that she had selected a husband 
 for me, I will confess that I formed a certain ideal of 
 what he would be like ; and when she pointed out Baron 
 Olaus de Waldemora, and said, — 'There he is, be 
 amiable,' he was so different from Avhat I expected, that 
 I was not amiable at all." 
 
 "I can understand that. And then, your aunt?" 
 "Oh, she laughed at me ! 'You are a simpleton,' she 
 said. ' Girls of rank have no business t<i. think anything 
 about love. They are not expected to marry for love, 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 49 
 
 but to secure a brilliant position. I intend you to be 
 Baroness de Waldemora ; otherwise, I declare that you 
 shall remain a prisoner all your life in this chateau, 
 without seeing a living soul. I will do more : I will 
 dismiss Mademoiselle Potin, who looks as if she gave 
 you bad advice. Choose; — I give you a month to de- 
 cide. The baron has invited us to spend the Christmas 
 festivities* at his splendid residence in Dalecarlia. It 
 will be very gay there ; hunts, balls, entertainments of 
 all sorts will be going on from morning until night. You 
 will be able to form an idea of his wealth, his influence, his 
 power, and you will acknowledge that you can never hope 
 to make a more brilliant or a more honorable marriage.'" 
 
 "And so you said yes?" 
 
 "I said yes, that I would come to Dalecarlia, since 
 she gave me a mont^i for reflection. I was glad enough 
 to see a new country, to go to entertainments ; in a 
 word, to see a few human beings. But we have been 
 here now for eight days, and I give you my word, Mon- 
 sieur Goefle, that I consider the baron still more dis- 
 agreeable than the first day I saw him." 
 
 "But you will meet at his house — if you have not 
 done so already — some one less disagreeable, to whom 
 you will open your heart, as you are now doing, and who 
 will inspire you with a hope of happiness, a courage to 
 resist tyranny, that will help you a great deal more than 
 the advice of an old lawyer." 
 
 '' No, Monsieur Goefle, I shall open my heart to no 
 one but you, and I certainly shall not confide in the per- 
 sons I may happen to meet at the Chateau de Walde- 
 mora. I can see plainly that the baron's guests are 
 people whom he has helped, or who need his help ; ser- 
 vile or ambitious, they fear or fiatter him, and all of 
 them (except a few excellent young people whom I am 
 very friendly with) bow down before me as if I were al- 
 ready the wife of their patron ! I hate and despise these 
 provincial courtiers, but I have faith in you, M. Goefle I 
 
 * The Christinas festivities in Sweden and Norway last from 
 the twenty-fourth of December to the sixth of January. 
 
so 
 
 THE SNOW MAN, 
 
 You are the baron's business-man, but you are not liia 
 vassal. Your pride and independence are well known. 
 You see that my aunt did not succeed in deceiving me. 
 She told me that you would agree with her in everything, 
 that you would treat my romantic dreams with scorn and 
 contempt, and would even persecute me on account of 
 them ; but we heard a very different story from the brother 
 of Mademoiselle Potin, who is tutor in a family in your 
 province, and who knows you intimately. You know 
 who I mean — M. Jacques Potin, whom you have done 
 ^o much for." 
 
 "Yes, yes, a charming fellow !" 
 " Charming ! no ! He is humpbacked ! " 
 " Charming in character ! Plis hump has nothing to 
 do with that." 
 
 "That is true ; he is a distinguished man, and he has 
 told us so much good of you, that I resolved to see you 
 without letting my aunt know it. Mademoiselle Potin 
 — who is a capital hand at finding out what is going on — 
 learned the day and hour when you were expected at the 
 new chateau ; and, as she was watching for your arrival, 
 she heard at once that you had gone to stop at Stollborg, 
 because the new chateau was too full. With a look she 
 told me all, just as I was completing my toilet, with my 
 aunt's assistance. My aunt had still her own toilet to 
 make, and as this always takes her two hours, at least, 
 she went to her own room. Mademoiselle Potin remained 
 in mine, to make some excuse in case the countess should 
 send for me, while I slipped down a private staircase to 
 the shore of the lake, where Potin had told my faithful 
 Peterson to wait for me with the sleigh, and here I am ! 
 But there are the fanfares at the new chateau, announcing 
 the opening of the ball. I must run away as quickly as 
 possible. And then that poor coachman must be frozen 
 with waiting so long. Adieu, Monsieur Goefle ! will you 
 allow me to return to-morrow, while my aunt is taking a 
 nap? She always dances a great de^l, and gets very 
 tired at a ball, and I can come perfectly well, while I am 
 walking with my governess." 
 
 "Besides, if your aunt is angry," said Cristiano, ia 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 51 
 
 rather too young a tone, "you can tell her that I am lec- 
 turing you, just as she would like to have me." 
 
 *'No," said Margaret, with an instinctive feeling of 
 distrust, "I do not want to turn her into ridicule ; and it 
 will, perhaps, be as well for me not to return. If you 
 will promise me to make her abandon this horrible mar- 
 riage, I shall not need to trouble you with my anxiety.*' 
 
 *' I promise to interest myself in you," replied Cristiano, 
 more guardedly, "as if you were my own daughter ; but 
 you must keep me informed as to the success of my efforts.** 
 
 "Then I will return. How good you are, Monsieur 
 Goefle, and how grateful I ought to be to you. Oh, I 
 was quite right in saying that you would be my good 
 angel ! " 
 
 Margaret spoke warmly ; and rising, held out her little 
 hands to the pretended old man, who kissed them most 
 respectfully, while gazing for a moment upon the ravish- 
 ing little countess in her pale rose-colored satin, trimmed 
 with down. He helped her, in the most fatherly way, to 
 clasp her ermine pelisse, and put on her hood without 
 crushing the ribbons and flowers of her coiffure, and then 
 escorted her back to the sleigh, amid whose eider-down 
 cushions she disappeared lik,e a swan in its nest. 
 
 The sleigh flew off, leaving a luminous track along the 
 ice, and was lost to sight behind the rocks along the shore 
 before Cristiano, who remained standing on the steep 
 cliffs of StoUborg, had thought either of the piercing cold 
 or of his devouring hunger. 
 
 The fact is that the young adventurer, besides being a 
 good deal agitated (of this he took no note) , was spell- 
 bound by a wonderful spectacle. The bourrasque, com- 
 pletely lulled, had been succeeded by a strong west wind 
 (this wind brings clear weather in the north, although it 
 has an opposite effect in other climates), which had swept 
 the clouds from the sky in a few seconds. The stars were 
 shining with far more brilliancy than in southern coun- 
 tries. Cristiano felt as if he had never seen them before. 
 They looked literally like suns ; and the crescent moon 
 also, in proportion as it arose in the purified atmosphere, 
 poured forth a powerful radiance, which, in any other re- 
 
52 
 
 THE SNOW MAN, 
 
 gion, would have been super-planetary. The night, al- 
 ready so clear, was made still brighter by the light re« 
 fleeted from the snow and ice, and the grand features 
 of the landscape were as sharply defined in the trans- 
 parent atmosphere as in a silver dawn. 
 
 These features were sublime. Granite mountains, with 
 their angular peaks covered with eternal snows, shut in a 
 narrow horizon, open only along the valley towards the 
 south-west. The level surfaces and details were a little 
 obscured, but the general outline of the picture was 
 brought out with perfect distinctness by the immense side 
 vault of the blue sky left uncovered by the break in the 
 granite chain. Cristiano, who may be said to have groped 
 his way to StoUborg through whirlwinds of snow, knew 
 the points of the compass well enough to understand that 
 he had come by this gently undulating valley, and ho 
 formed a very correct idea of the direction of the gorges 
 of Falun. This was the station where he had break- 
 fasted in the morning, while M. Goefle, whose horse was 
 strong and swift, had stopped there at a later hour and 
 for a longer time. 
 
 The valley, or rather the chain of narrow valleys lead- 
 ing fron Falun to the Chateau de Waldemora, came to an 
 end abruptly in this place, in an apparent cul-de-sac, 
 an irregular amphitheatre of lofty summits formed by 
 one of the spurs of the Sevenberg chain (otherwise the 
 mountains of Seves, or Sevons), which separates central 
 Sweden from the southern part of Norway. Two fierce 
 torrents descend from the heights of Sevenberg, from the 
 north-west to the south-east, follow the chain to the right 
 and to the left, and rush, in proportion as it lowers, the 
 one towards the Baltic and the other towards Lake Wener 
 and the Kattegat. These two torrents, which gradually 
 become rivers, are the Dala and the Klara ; or, as we 
 say, the Dal and the Klar. 
 
 Stollborg stood upon a small rocky island, in the 
 centre of one of the little lakes formed by the Klar, or 
 by one of its rapid branches. The reader will not care 
 for minute geographical details, but we can describe the 
 principal characteristics of the landscape with sufiicien/ 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 53 
 
 accuracy. It was a scene of wild and savage desolation ; 
 the mountains shone in the limpid night like a group of 
 crystal fortresses built at unequal heights, in the boldest 
 and most capricious manner ; snowy granite peaks shut in 
 three-quarters of the horizon ; a lower range of snowy 
 mica-schist peaks assumed forms less grand and more 
 fantastic ; while everywhere a thousand frozen waterfalls 
 hung motionless in diamond needles along the rocks. 
 These silent cascades all converged towards the main 
 stream, which was also imprisoned by the ice, and welded, 
 as it were, to the lake, whose shores could only be traced 
 by the debris and sharp peaks of naked stone whose black 
 flanks the winter had not been able to cover with its white 
 uniform hue. 
 
 ^'I have often been told," thought Cristiano, "that 
 these severe northern nights reveal unheard-of splendors, 
 both to the eye and imagination. If I should return to 
 Naples and should tell them that their nights appeal only 
 to the senses, and that he who has not seen winter upon 
 his throne of frost cannot form the least idea of the won- 
 ders of the divine work, I should probably be insulted 
 or stoned. What then? There is beauty everywhere 
 under heaven, and he who feels that beauty keenly, will 
 always perhaps find the last impression the most satisfac- 
 tory and inspiring. Yes, this must really be sublime, 
 for here I am forgetting the cold, which I thought I 
 should never be able to endure, and finding a sort of 
 pleasure even in breathing this air that goes through you 
 like a knife. I must certainly go to Lapland, although 
 Puffo forsakes me, and poor Jean perishes in the snow. 
 I want to see a night twenty-four hours long, and the 
 pale glimmer of noon in the month of January. I should 
 have no success in that country, but my moderate earn- 
 ings here will enable me travel like a great lord, that is 
 to say, alone and on foot, with nothing to do but to see 
 and enjoy the fine flower of life, novelty^ the quality 
 that distinguishes desire from lassitude, dream from 
 memory." 
 
 Eager and imaginative, the young man gazed far 
 away into the circle of high mountains, in search of the 
 
54 
 
 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 invisible route that he would have to take in going to tlia 
 north, or entering Norway. In fancy he already saw 
 himself reclining upon the edge of fearful abysses, while, 
 to the amazement of the old Scandinavian echoes, he 
 sang some foolish tarantelle^ when the music of a distant 
 orchestra struck upon his ear, and he recognized the dis- 
 tant refrain of an old-fashioned French song, probably 
 very new among the Dalecarlians. The music was at 
 the new chateau, where Baron Olaus was giving a ball 
 to his country neighbors in honor of the charming Mar- 
 garet Elveda. 
 
 Cristiauo recalled his wandering thoughts. A moment 
 before he had been ready to fly to the North Cape ; 
 now his curiosity, thoughts, aspirations, were all di- 
 rected to the brilliant chateau, glittering on the shore of 
 the lake, and seeming to exhale whiffs of artificial heat 
 into the atmosphere. 
 
 "One thing is certain," he said, "I would not for five 
 hundred crowns (and God only knows how much I need 
 five hundred crowns) quit this strange country to-night, 
 even to be transported by the walkyries to the sapphire 
 palace of the great Odin. To-morrow I shall see this 
 blond fairy again, this descendant of Harold the Fair- 
 haired ! To-morrow ? — no, indeed, nothing of the kind ! 
 I shall not see her again to-morrow ; I shall never see 
 her again ! To-morrow, the fortunate mortal who has 
 a legitimate right to the sweet name of Goefle will go to 
 the new chateau to confer with his client, and labor with 
 her perhaps, like a genuine heartless business man, to 
 bring about the marriage of the ferocious Olaus and 
 sweet Margaret. To-morrow sweet Margaret will know 
 she has been deceived, and by whom ? With what anger, 
 what scorn will she reward my good behavior and wise 
 advice ! But all that does not prevent me from feeling 
 hungry, and from being obliged to acknowledge that this 
 December night, between sixty-one and sixty-two degrees 
 of latitude, is rather cool. It makes me think of the time 
 when I used to complain about the winter in Rome ! " 
 
 Cristiano was returning to the bear-room, when he 
 thought he would give a charitable look at his ass. As 
 
THE SNOW MAN, 
 
 55 
 
 he entered the stable, he noticed, for the first time, M. 
 Goefle's sleigh, which was standing in the coa'^h-house. 
 Why, at the sight of this sleigh, the mind of the adven- 
 turer should have leaped suddenly to a mad resolution, 
 we cannot explain ; but, on regaining his comfortable 
 lodging, instead of sitting down quietly to supper with 
 his back to the stove, it is certain that he began to con- 
 template the full black suit which the doctor of laws had 
 hung over the back of a chair. 
 
 Cristiano would have sworn that the grave individual 
 whom he had ventured to imitate was old-fashioned, and 
 perhaps rather shabby in his dress. Not at all. M. 
 Goefle, who had been quite handsome in his youth, 
 dressed remarkably well, was careful of his person, and 
 made it a point of honor to appear in a simple but taste- 
 ful costume, doing full justice to his good leg, and still 
 erect and well-formed figure. Cristiano put on the coat, 
 which fitted him like a glove. He found the powder-box 
 and puff, and threw a light cloud over his thick, black 
 hair. The silk stockings were rather tight in the calf, 
 and the shoes with buckles rather large ; but what of 
 that ! were the Dalecarlians so very critical ? In short, 
 in ten minutes the young man was attired like a respect- 
 able member of society ; a professor of some science, a 
 student in some learned faculty, or member of a dignified 
 profession ! No matter what his standing, his figure, at 
 all events, was charming, and his costume irreproach- 
 able. 
 
 The reader can guess that the adventurer led M. 
 Goefle's horse from the stable, after begging Jean not to 
 feel lonely ; that he harnessed the docile Loki to the 
 sleigh, lighted the lantern, and darted like an arrow down 
 the steep road of Stollborg. 
 
 In about ten minutes, he entered the brilliantly lighted 
 court of the new chateau, threw the reins carelessly to 
 the servants in livery, who hastened forward at the sound 
 of the sleigh-bells, and ran up the great front steps of f h« 
 elegant mansion four steps at a time. 
 
56 THE SNOW MAN., 
 
 III. 
 
 /"^RISTIANO was acting as we do in certain dreams, 
 ^-^ when we feel drawn on to accomplish some im- 
 probable thing without being able to tell how. Were not 
 all his surroundings utterly improbable ? This fantastic 
 chateau, called the new chateau, in opposition to the ruin 
 of StoUborg, but dating back, in reality, to the time of 
 Queen Catherine, and which, with its splendor and 
 gayety, seemed to have fallen from the clouds into the 
 bosom of a savage desert ; these avenues of naked rock 
 and furious waters, over which, thanks to the winter, ele- 
 gant equipages made their way without difficulty, although 
 it seemed as if they must be utterly impassable ; the rows 
 of lights outlining against the darkness the principal walls 
 with fiieir thick towers, crowned with coppered roofs sur- 
 mounted by huge spires ; the main building long, irregu- 
 larly flanked with square pavilions, and finished oiF with 
 gigantic gables notched with statues and emblems ; the 
 great clock in the central pavilion, which was striking ten 
 o'clock at night, — an hour when the very bears are afraid 
 to stir the snow where they lie cowering, but when 
 man, the most delicate animal of creation, dances in silk 
 stockings with bare-shouldered women ; everything in 
 the savage grandeur of the situation and the courtly scene 
 filling it with animation, even to the playful and quaint 
 harmony of the old-fashioned French music blending un- 
 ceremoniously with the sharp whistling of the wind in the 
 long corridors ; — all this seemed made to astonish a 
 traveller, and confuse the ideas of an Italian. 
 
 As he gazed upon the immense saloons, and long gal- 
 lery painted with mythological divinities, and full of com- 
 pany and noise, Cristiano asked himself whether these 
 people were not phantoms conjured up in mockery by the 
 sorcerers of this solitary place. Whence had they come, 
 with their antiquated dresses, these men in spangled coats, 
 these women with powdered hair, smiling through cloudrf 
 of feathers and laces ? Would not tb'is magical chateaa 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 57 
 
 disappear at the stroke of a wand? these gay dancers 
 of the minuet and chaconne^ would they not fly away in 
 the shape of white eagles or wild swans ? 
 
 Cristiano had already noticed, however, the national 
 peculiarities of the Swedes ; the adventurous isolation of 
 their dwellings, the enormous distances separating them 
 from the little settlements honored by the name of vil- 
 lage ; the straggling appearance of the villages them- 
 selves, which sometimes extend over two or three leagues 
 with only one common centre — the parish church, with 
 its green dome ; the contempt of the nobility for cities, 
 which they abandon entirely to the trading portion of the 
 community ; in a word, their passion for a lonely country 
 life, united, singularly enough, to a passion for wild, ex- 
 travagant expeditions, undertaken for the sake of enjoy- 
 ing sudden and apparently impossible social gatherings. 
 Cristiano had been invited to a country merry-making, but 
 he had not foreseen that these characteristic instincts of 
 the Swedes would be made more active by the severity 
 of the climate, the length of the nights, and the apparent 
 difficulty of holding communication with each other. 
 This, however, was a natural consequence of the neces- 
 sity that man always feels to conquer nature, and turn 
 the compensations that she offers him to account. For 
 two months the baron had given notice for fifty leagues 
 around, that he would entertain the nobility of the country 
 during the Christmas festivities. The baron was neither 
 esteemed nor loved by any one ; and yet, for a number of 
 days, his chateau had been full of eager guests, who, com- 
 ing from all the four points of the compass, had crossed 
 lakes, rivers, and mountains, to attend his summons. 
 
 Hospitality is proverbial in Dalecarlia, and, like the 
 love of the people for a country life united to their love 
 of pleasure, it increases in proportion as they live in re- 
 mote and inaccessible regions. Cristiano, who had no- 
 ticed with what wonderful kindness strangers are received 
 in Sweden — above all, when they speak the language — 
 had scarcely thought how difficult it might prove to gain 
 admission to a soiree where he knew no one, especially 
 since he had not been invited. He was unpleasantly r©» 
 
5S THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 minded of his oversiglit by seeing a sort of major-domo, 
 wearing a sword, who came up to him in the hall, and 
 held out his hand with the utmost politeness, after bowing 
 respectfully. 
 
 At first Cristiano was going to shake hands with him 
 kindly, under the supposition that it was a custom of the 
 country to welcome people in this way, but he reflected 
 that he might be asking him to produce his invitation. 
 The major-domo was old, ugly, and pock-marked ; his 
 eyes were downcast, and their hypocritical expression 
 was poorly disguised by an affectation of gentle apathy. 
 Cristiano put his hand into his vest pocket, although cer- 
 tain of not finding what he wanted. It is true that he 
 had been invited to visit Waldemora at the expense of his 
 host, but not upon the same footing with the gentlemen 
 of the country. He was preparing, therefore, to play the 
 part of a man who has forgotten his card of admission, 
 and who is disposed to return in search of it, with the 
 privilege of not making his appearance again, when he 
 found in his pocket — that is in M. Goefle's pocket — a 
 letter signed by the baron, which proved to be a regular 
 invitation for the honorable M. Goefle and family, this 
 being the usual formula. As soon as Cristiano saw what 
 it was, he handed it boldly to the major-domo, who read 
 it at a glance. 
 
 "Monsieur is the relative of M. Goefle?" he said, put- 
 ting the letter into a basket with a great many others. 
 
 " Of course ! " replied Cristiano, with assurance. 
 
 M. Johan (this was the name of the major-domo) bowed 
 again, and opened a door upon the main staircase, where 
 the guests stopping at the chateau were coming and going, 
 as well as the neighbors, who, as they were perfectly well 
 known to the servants of th6 house, were allowed to enter 
 freely. Cristiano*s introduction was confined to this sim- 
 ple formality, which he would have been very glad to dis- 
 pense with, for he did not propose to take any direct part 
 in the entertainment, but wanted merely to have a gen- 
 eral view of it, and enjoy the satisfaction of seeing the 
 charming Margaret. 
 
 He entered, first, the long frescoed gallery that trav- 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 59 
 
 ersed the whole of the main building, and which was 
 decorated with passable success, in imitation of the 
 Italian taste, introduced into Sweden by Queen Christina. 
 The pictures were not good, but they were effective. They 
 represented hunting scenes ; and though an artist could 
 not have failed to criticise the drawing and action of the 
 dogs, horses, and wild animals, he could at least have 
 enjoyed the general effect of the brilliant and lively 
 coloring. 
 
 Cristiano walked along this gallery until he came to a 
 handsome saloon, where they were beginning to dance. 
 His only thought in looking at the ladies taking part 
 was of Margaret, but his desire to see her was blended 
 with a secret anxiety. How should he renew the conver- 
 sation begun at Stollborg? how substitute his own char- 
 acter? or, at all events, some new character, no matter 
 what, for the one he had assumed? This no longer 
 appeared to him so easy as he had imagined it would 
 prove on engaging in this wild adventure. He was 
 almost glad to find that Margaret was not in the ball- 
 room ; and he took advantage of this respite — for so he 
 felt it to be — to try and form an idea of the company 
 moving before him. 
 
 Contrary to his expectation, he found nothing to 
 wonder at. At a first glance, this gathering had none of 
 the peculiarities that he had anticipated. The age, at 
 this period, belonged to Voltaire, and consequently to 
 France. Like most of the European sovereigns, the 
 upper classes in almost every part of Europe had 
 adopted the language, and apparently the philosophical 
 and literary ideas of France. But, as taste, logic, and 
 fliscernment are always confined to the select few, this 
 infatuation for our ideas gave rise to a great many 
 inconsistencies. For example, the customs and manners 
 of foreign nations reproduced much more frequently the 
 corruption and effeminacy of Versailles than the stu- 
 dious leisure of Ferney. France was the fashion as 
 well as philosophy. Arts, customs, monuments, good 
 breeding, deportment, conduct, were all copied, with 
 more or less success, from the prevailing French fashion. 
 
6o THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 France, with all her contradictory qualities, good and 
 bad, magnificent and petty, noble and contemptible, was 
 accepted indiscriminately. It was one of those charac- 
 teristic epochs, when progress and decay shake hands 
 before joining in deadly conflict. 
 
 The ball given by Baron Olaus was a mere imitation, 
 a little behind the times, of a French reunion of the 
 eighteenth century ; and yet the baron hated France, and 
 was intriguing in the interest of Russia. But in Rus- 
 sia also they imitated France, and spoke the French lan- 
 guage ; at court they were extremely barbarous, and 
 even ferocious in their manners, and yet they were 
 trying to adopt the gallant manners and intellectual re- 
 finement of French civilization. Baron Olaus, there- 
 fore, was borne along by the irresistible current of the 
 age. We shall learn his history later. Let us return 
 now to Cristiano. 
 
 After looking for a while at the dresses of the ladies, 
 which seemed to him only a few years behind French 
 fashions, and at their faces, which were generally sweet 
 and intelligent, although they were not all young and 
 beautiful, he turned his attention to the gentlemen, and 
 tried to recognize, that is to say to guess among them, 
 the face and figure of the master of the house. Not far 
 from the spot where he was observing all that went on 
 without making himself conspicuous, two men were 
 talking in a low voice, with their backs towards him. 
 Involuntarily Cristiano followed their conversation, 
 although he felt no personal interest in it. 
 
 These two men were talking French, one with a Rus- 
 sian, and the other with a Swedish accent. The language 
 of courts and diplomacy seemed to be necessary to en- 
 able them to exchange their ideas. 
 
 "Pshaw!" said the Swede, ''I am not a ca-p any 
 more than a Jiat^ although I am thought to be at the 
 head of a certain faction of the thickest cotton caps in 
 the Diet. I laugh at them all alike, as a matter of fact ; 
 you understand very little about Sweden, if you think 
 more of one than of the others." 
 
THE SNOW MAN, 6l 
 
 " I know it," replied the Russian ; " they sell their votes 
 to tlie highest bidder." 
 
 "Bid, then ! You have no other policy. It is simple, 
 and. for you easy, since yours is a rich government. I 
 am with you heart and soul, without any question of 
 recompense. With me it is a matter of conviction." 
 
 "I know you are not one of those patriots of the 
 golden age, who are dreaming about the Scandinavian 
 union, and that one can always come to an under- 
 standing with you. The empress relies upon you, but 
 you need not hope to avoid her liberality ; she accepts 
 no service without rewarding it magnificently." 
 
 "I am aware of it," replied the Swede, with a bru- 
 tality that struck Cristiano ; "I have learned it from 
 experience. Long live the great Catherine ! If she 
 wants to put us in her pocket, let her do it ; I shall be 
 the last one to offer any opposition. If she will only rid 
 us of all these foolish doctrines about the rights and 
 liberty of the peasants — which are our curse — she will 
 be doing a good work. The citizens and noblemen who 
 are their leaders, ought to be arrested, and have respect- 
 ively a good taste of the knout, and a good dose of 
 Siberia administered to them,, As for our worthy king, 
 if his bishopric is restored to him, and, above all, if he 
 gets rid of his wife, he will have nothing to complain of." 
 
 '-^ Don't speak so loud," replied the Russian, "some 
 one may be listening without seeming to." 
 
 " There is no danger. Every one here pretends to 
 speak French, but there are not ten persons out of a 
 hundred who can understand it. Besides, what I have 
 just said, I am in the habit of saying freely. I dis- 
 covered long ago that it is the best policy to make your 
 opinions feared. For my part, I shout upon the house- 
 tops that Sweden is done for. Let those who object 
 prove the contrary." 
 
 Although Cristiano did not belong to any nation, 
 although he knew nothing either of his country or 
 family, he felt indignant to hear a Swede so impudently 
 selling his nationality, and he tried to see the features 
 of the man who could talk so ; but his attention was 
 
62 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 suddenly diverted by the bustling, awkward approach 
 of an eccentric individual, who was running about from 
 group to group with the activity of a man who is taking 
 pains to do the honors of the entertainment. This indi- 
 vidual was dressed in a gaudy red coat, very richly em- 
 broidered, and decorated with the Swedish order of the 
 polar star. His wig was frizzed magnificently, in the 
 very worst style, and was much too high for the fashion ; 
 while his enormous cuffs of superb lace were more sug- 
 gestive of luxury than neatness. In other respects he 
 was old, ugly, petulant, and whimsical ; slightly hump- 
 backed, very lame, and completely cross-eyed. This last 
 defect gave him, at a first glance, a wicked expression, 
 and Cristiano concluded that this disagreeable original 
 must be one and the same person with Margaret's absurd 
 and hateful suitor. 
 
 To avoid being obliged to introduce himself, and keep 
 up his pretended relationship with M. Goefle, whose 
 name he had assumed unscrupulously and without danger 
 in his interview with the major-domo, Cristiano pru- 
 dently withdrew. He resolved now to go from room to 
 room until he had seen the young countess, even if he 
 should be obliged to retire immediately, without speak- 
 ing to her. He imagined tJ'iat the hump-backed chatelain 
 had looked at him with a good deal of curiosity, but he 
 made his way skilfully through a group of persons who 
 were talking near a door, and flattered himself that he 
 had escaped in time. 
 
 He walked along for several minutes, not exactly in a 
 crowd (the place was so large that the guests did not 
 look very numerous), but amid lively groups, which he 
 did not have leisure to observe attentively. Fearing to 
 be questioned before he could find Margaret, he passed 
 with a preoccupied manner and proud expression — 
 which he assumed all the more because he felt his audac- 
 ity ready to fail him. And yet, whether from curiosity 
 about a guest that no one knew, or because of their ad- 
 miration for his fine presence and remarkable face, people 
 everywhere seemed inclined to speak to him, or at least 
 to receive his advances favorably. But Cristiano waa 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 63 
 
 feeling a sort of vertigo that made him misunderstand the 
 affable glances and good-humored smiles that were be- 
 stowed upon him. He hurried along, therefore, without 
 pretending to disguise that he was seeking some one ; to 
 the persons who made way before him, he bowed with an 
 easy grace that was natural to him, but without daring 
 to look at them closely. 
 
 At last, on returning to the hunting-gallery, as it 
 was called, he saw two ladies, in whom he immedi- 
 ately recognized the blond fairy whom he had seen at 
 StoUborg an hour before, and her governess. Made- 
 moiselle Potin's simple dress, timid and refined manner, 
 and a something about her unmistakably French, left 
 no doubt as to her identity. This completed the first part 
 of the little romance that Cristiano had planned. He was 
 at the chateau, he had found no sort of difficulty in 
 getting admitted, he had avoided the observation and 
 questions of the master of the house ; and, lastly, he had 
 found Margaret under the kind protection of her confi- 
 dante. But this was not all. He had still to approach 
 the young countess, or attract her attention, and find 
 some means of renewing their acquaintance on a new 
 footing. 
 
 The second part of the ronr nee opened in rather an 
 alarming way. Just as Cristiano, who hoped that a 
 look of Margaret's would inspire him, was trying to 
 catch her eye, he heard an unequal step clamping along 
 behind him, and a shrill, squeaking voice stopped him 
 short with these words : 
 
 "Monsieur! Stranger! stranger! Where are you 
 going so fast?" 
 
 The adventurer turned, and found himself face to face 
 with the deformed, cross-eyed old man, whom he 
 thought he had so successfully avoided. It was literally 
 face to face, for the lame man, who was rushing in pur- 
 suit of him, could not change his gait quickly enough, and 
 almost fell into his arms. Cristiano might have fled, 
 but that would have been to lose everything ; he faced 
 it out boldly, and replied : 
 
64 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 "I beg a thousand pardons, baron; you are the verj 
 person I was looking for." 
 
 "Ah, indeed!" said the lame man, holding out his 
 hand with sudden cordiality; "I thought as much. I 
 remarked your face among all the others. ' That is an 
 educated man,* I said to myself ; ' some learned trav- 
 eller, a serious person, a mind, in a word, and certainly I 
 am the pole which always attracts such magnets.* Well, 
 here I am, at your service. It gives me pleasure to 
 devote myself to you. I love young people when they 
 are studious, and you can ask me all the questions that 
 you want to have solved." 
 
 There was so much simplicity and good-humor in the 
 old man's laughing face and vain talk, that Cristiano in his 
 heart accused Margaret of doing him injustice. He was 
 an absurd and impossible lover, to be sure, but he was 
 the best old fellow in the world, and as harmless as a 
 child. Although one of his eyes did wander about the 
 room in a vague and aimless sort of a way, the other 
 one looked at his companion with such a frank and 
 fatherly expression, that it was utterly out of the ques- 
 tion to accuse him of ferocity. 
 
 "I am overwhelmed by your goodness, baron," re- 
 plied Cristiano, sufficiently reassured to be somewhat 
 ironical. "I knew that you were versed in the sciences, 
 and therefore having myself some feeble notion — " 
 
 "You wanted to ask my advice, to have the benefit of 
 my instruction, perhaps. Ah ! my dear friend, method, 
 method in all things. But I won't keep you standing 
 among these frivolous people, who are coming and 
 going ; sit down, sit down. No one will disturb lis ; and, 
 if you feel inclined, we will talk all night. When 
 science is the theme, I forget all about fatigue, hunger, 
 and sleep. You are the same, no doubt. The fact is 
 you must be so, or not meddle with becoming learned ! " 
 
 "Alas!" thought Cristiano, "I have fallen into the 
 bottom of a well of science, and am condemned to the 
 mines, I wager, neither more nor less than an exile of 
 Siberia." 
 
 This discovery was the more cruel, because Margaret 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 6"; 
 
 had passed on, and was already at the end of the gallery, 
 chatting with one and another of the persons who came 
 forward to greet her, and evidently going to the ball- 
 room, where the baron did not seem at all inclined to 
 join her. He was seated in one of the semicircular 
 embrasures of the gallery, near a stove, concealed by 
 some branches of yew and ivy, which, with various 
 hunting weapons and stuffed heads of wild animals, 
 formed a trophy. 
 
 "I see," said Cristiano, who would have given a great 
 deal to avoid the proposed scientific conversation, " that 
 you are a universal genius. Your skill in hunting is 
 everywhere talked of, and I am surprised that you have 
 time — " 
 
 "Why do you take me for a hunter?" replied the old 
 man, with a look of surprise. " Oh ! you suppose that I 
 am guilty of the murder of those beasts, whose mutilated 
 heads are hanging there, looking at us so sadly with their 
 poor enamel eyes ! You are mistaken ; I never hunted 
 in my life. I have a horror of amusements which 
 increase the ferocity only too natural to man. It is to 
 the study of the insensible but fruitful entrails of th» 
 globe that I have devoted myself." 
 
 " Excuse me, baron, I thought — " 
 
 " There, again, why do you call me baron ? I am 
 nothing of the kind ; although it is true that the king 
 ennobled me and conferred on me the knighthood of the 
 polar star, as a reward for my labors in the miues of 
 Falun. I was professor of the school of mineralogy in 
 that city, as of course you know, but I have no right to 
 a title. It is quite enough for me to have some few 
 privileges which give me a position with the haughty 
 caste, for which, after all, I don't care the least in the 
 world." 
 
 "I have made some mistake," thought Cristiano. 
 " Oh, then ! I shall have to escape from this scientific 
 gentleman as quickly as possible, although I seek him 
 out again later." 
 
 But he changed his mind suddenly when he saw Mar- 
 garet turning back, and proceeding slowly, in spite of 
 
66 THE SNO W MAN. 
 
 numerous interruptions, towards the very spot where he 
 was seated. His only thought now was to put himself 
 on the best terms with the geologist, so that he might 
 introduce him, if he could possibly bring it about, as a 
 distinguished man. He dashed into conversation, there- 
 fore ; and he knew more than enough to ask intelligent 
 questions. At Falun, in the morning, he had visited 
 the principal mine, and had taken pleasure in collecting 
 a number of interesting specimens, to the great disgust 
 of PufFo, who often thought him crazy. He knew, 
 moreover, that if you listen respectfully to a learned 
 and vain man, and give him an opportunity to display his 
 knowledge, he will be pretty sure, as a usual thing, to 
 think you very intelligent. This is exactly what hap- 
 pened. Without dreaming of asking his name, his 
 country, or his profession, the professor gave Cristiano a 
 minute description of the subterranean world. In fact, 
 upon the surface of the globe, he cared for nothing 
 but himself, his reputation, and his writings ; in a word, 
 for the success of his observations and discoveries. 
 
 At any other time Cristiano would have listened with 
 pleasure, for he saw plainly that he was talking to a man 
 who was thoroughly master of his subject, and, for his 
 own part, he felt a deep interest in all departments of 
 natural science ; but Margaret was approaching, and his 
 thoughts began to wander. The professor noticed his 
 sudden preoccupation, and looking around with his good 
 eye, cried : 
 
 "Ah ! there is my fiancee ! I am no longer surprised ! 
 Parhleu! my dear friend, I must introduce you to the 
 most amiable person in the kingdom." 
 
 "It is really he, then!" thought Cristiano, in pro- 
 found amazement. " I am talking to Baron Olaus ! He 
 seems to be half crazy, but this is actually the old man 
 to whom this Rose of the North is to be sacrificed ! " 
 
 He ceased to doubt, although his surprise was re- 
 doubled when he saw Margaret quicken her step, and 
 heard her say to Mademoiselle Potin : 
 
 " Here is my lover at last 1 " 
 
THE SNOW MAN, 6^ 
 
 She held out her hand to the old man, and added, with 
 a sweet and almost tender smile : 
 
 "What are you thinking of, monsieur, to hide yourself 
 in this little corner, when your fiancee has been looking for 
 you for the last hour ? " 
 
 "You see," said the professor to Cristiano, with art- 
 less satisfaction, "she looks for me, she is unhappy 
 when I am not with her ! What would you have, my 
 beauty ? It is not my fault that so many people wish to 
 consult me, and here is a charming young man, a trav- 
 eller — French, are you not? or Italian, for you have a 
 very slight foreign accent? Allow me. Countess Marga- 
 ret, to introduce my young friend, M. de . Excuse 
 
 me, monsieur, what is your name?" 
 
 "Christian Goefle," said Cristiano, without hesitation. 
 
 At this assumed name, and, above all, at the young 
 man's voice and pronunciation, Margaret trembled. 
 
 "Are you Monsieur Goefle'sson?" she said, eagerly. 
 " Oh, it is singular how much you resemble him ! " 
 
 "There would be nothing singular in such near rela- 
 tives looking alike," replied the professor, "but this 
 gentleman can only be Goefle's nephew. Goefle never 
 married, and consequently he has no children, any more 
 than myself." 
 
 "That would be no reason," Cristiano whispered in 
 the professor's ear. 
 
 "To be sure ; you are right !" replied the latter in the 
 same tone, and with the most incredible simplicity; "I 
 did not think of that ! That devil of a Goefle ! You 
 are his son, then, by a left-handed marriage?" 
 
 "Brought up in a foreign country, and just arrived in 
 Sweden," replied Cristiano, astonished at the success of 
 his impromptu suggestions. 
 
 "Well, well!" replied the professor, who cared very 
 little about other people's affairs. " I understand ; it is 
 quite plain — you are his nephew," 
 
 He turned to Margaret. 
 
 "I know this gentleman perfectly well," he said; "he 
 is the nephew of my excellent friend Monsieur Goefle, 
 and I have the honor to present him to you. You don't 
 
68 THE SNOW MAN, 
 
 know M. Goefle, but you said this morning that you 
 would like to become acquainted with him." 
 
 "And so I should," cried Margaret. 
 
 She blushed as she spoke, for at that very moment sho 
 met Cristiano*s eyes, and their vivacity reminded her of 
 those of the false Goefle. From time to time the young 
 man, with an involuntary movement, had raised the doc- 
 tor's green spectacles, so as to see better, and Margaret 
 had noticed how brilliantly his eyes flashed between the 
 ear-pieces of his fur cap. 
 
 " But how is it," resumed the professor, addressing 
 the young girl without observing her confusion, "that 
 you are not dancing ? I thought you would be the queen 
 of the evening, and that no one would have a chance to 
 speak to you." 
 
 " Well, my dear lover, you are mistaken. I am not 
 going to dance. I sprained my foot coming down stairs. 
 Don't you see how lame I am ? " 
 
 "No, I can't say that I do. You want to resemble 
 me, do you? Tell M. Goefle how it was that I became 
 lame ; it was a terrible affair, and would have been the 
 death of any one else. Yes, monsieur, you see before 
 you a victim of science." 
 
 Without giving Margaret time to speak, he began to 
 relate, with great animation, how the rope had broken 
 as he had been descending into a mine, and how he 
 had fallen with the basket into the bottom of the abyss, 
 a distance of fifty feet, seven inches, and five lines. For 
 six hours, fifty-three minutes, and how many seconds we 
 are not prepared to state, he lay in a swoon, and for two 
 months, four days, and three hours and a half, had not 
 been able to move. With the same exasperating accu- 
 racy he specified the exact size of the plasters that had 
 been applied to his various wounds, and the quantity, by 
 drachms, grains, and scruples, of the different drugs that 
 he had absorbed, whether in doses taken internally, or by 
 means of external applications rubbed into his skin. 
 
 It was a long story, although the old man spoke rap- 
 idly, and did not repeat himself. His memory was a real 
 scourge ; it would not allow him to omit the least circum* 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 C9 
 
 stance ; and when he was talking of himself, it never 
 occurred to him that any one could be tired of listening. 
 
 Margaret, who knew the story by heart, could not be 
 very attentive, and talked aside with Mademoiselle Potin 
 for a few moments. The result of this short conference, 
 which Cristiano did not fail to notice, was soon evident ; 
 good Mademoiselle Potin seized the moment when the 
 professor had finished his story, and before he could em- 
 bark in another, which he was all ready to do, begged 
 him, with hypocritical frankness, to explain a paragraph 
 in his last work, which she pretended she had not been 
 able to understand. 
 
 Cristiano could not help admiring woman's natural 
 tact, when he saw how eagerly the professor entered into 
 a discussion with the governess, while Margaret's eyes 
 said clearly to the young man : 
 
 " I am dying to speak to you." 
 
 He did not wait to be told twice, but followed her to 
 the other extremity of the little semicircle, where she 
 seated herself upon a sofa, while he stood before her in a 
 respectful attitude, outside the embrasure, in such a way 
 as to shield her from observation. 
 
 "Monsieur Christian Goefle," she said, looking at 
 him again with the greatest attention, "you are surpris- 
 ingly like your uncle ! " 
 
 " I have often been told so, mademoiselle ; it seems that 
 it is a striking likeness." 
 
 " I have never seen him well ; indeed, I may say that 
 I have never seen his face at all ; but his accent, his 
 pronunciation — yours are absolutely the same." 
 
 "I should have supposed that my voice would be 
 rather younger than his," replied Cristiano, who had 
 taken pains at StoUborg to speak, every now and then, 
 like an old man. 
 
 "Yes, no doubt," said the young girl; "there is the 
 difference of age, although your uncle still has a very 
 fine organ. After all, he cannot be so very old ! He 
 seemed to me much younger than people say. He has 
 magnificent eyes, and is almost of your height." 
 
 "Just about the same," said Cristiano, giving an 
 
^o 
 
 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 involuntary glance at the doctor of law's suit of clothes, 
 and asking himself whether Margaret was speaking iron- 
 ically, or questioning him in good faith. 
 
 He resolved to bring about an explanation. 
 
 "There is another point of resemblance between my 
 uncle and myself," he said, " and that is the deep interest 
 that we feel in a person of your acquaintance, and the 
 desire with which we both are animated to be of service 
 to her." 
 
 "Ah! ah!" said the young girl, blushing with an 
 air of frankness that dissipated Cristiano's anxiety; "I 
 see that your uncle has been gossiping, and that he has 
 told you about my visit this evening." 
 
 "I don't know whether you confided any secret to 
 him ; in what he repeated to me there was no mystery 
 at which you need blush." 
 
 "Repeated? — repeated? I believe you were there, in 
 some room or closet close by ; • you heard everything." 
 
 "It was so, I confess," replied Cristiano, who saw 
 that she would confide in him more quickly if he took 
 advantage of her innocent suggestion. " I was in my 
 uncle's bedroom, arranging his papers. Without his 
 knowledge, and in spite of myself, I heard everything." 
 
 "That is very pleasant, upon my word!" said Mar- 
 garet, somewhat confused, and yet pleased without know- 
 ing why ; "instead of one confidante it seems that I had 
 two." 
 
 "Your confession seemed to be that of an angel; 
 but I am beginning to be afraid that it was in reality 
 that of a demon." 
 
 "Thanks for your good opinion. Will you tell me 
 what has caused it?" 
 
 "A strange insincerity that I cannot explain. You 
 described Baron Olaus as a monster, physically and 
 morally — " 
 
 "Excuse me, monsieur; you did not understand me. 
 I called him disagreeable, terrible ; I never said that he 
 was ugly." 
 
 "And yet you might have said so truthfully; for to 
 speak plainly, he is abominably ugly." 
 
THE SNOW MAN, 71 
 
 "It is true that his hard and cold expression makes 
 him seem so ; but every one agrees that he has very 
 fine features." 
 
 ''The people of this country have a singular stand- 
 ard ; but there is no disputing about tastes ! I do not 
 agree with them. He seems to me ugly and deformed ^ 
 but comical and good-humored." 
 
 "You are certainly joking, M. Christian Goefle, or we 
 do not understand each other. God forgive me, you 
 are looking at the person opposite. Is it possible that 
 you have mistaken him for the Baron de Waldemora ? " 
 
 "How can I help supposing that the person who calls 
 you his fiancee, and whom you gayly call your lover, is 
 the baron?" 
 
 Margaret burst out laughing. 
 
 " Oh ! dear me," she cried, " if you have really imag- 
 ined that I could treat Baron Olaus with such friendly 
 familiarity, you must have thought me very deceitful or 
 very inconsistent ; but, thank God, I am neither the one 
 nor the other. The individual whom I call jestingly my 
 lover, is a person of no less consequence than the 
 doctor of sciences. Monsieur Stangstadius, of whom you 
 must have heard your uncle speak." 
 
 "Doctor Stangstadius," replied Cristiano, feeling 
 very much relieved; "I must confess that I do not 
 know him, even by name. I have just arrived from a 
 distant country, where I l^ave always lived." 
 
 " I can understand, then," replied Margaret, " how it 
 is that you have not heard of our learned mineralogist. 
 Your opinion of him is very correct. He is an excellent 
 man, sometimes a little violent, but never malicious. 
 And then he is simple as a child! There are certain 
 days when he imagines that ray passion for him, as he 
 calls it, is serious, and when he tries to break the chain, 
 assuring me that a great man like himself belongs to the 
 universe, and cannot devote himself to a woman. I 
 have known him for a long time ; ever since he came to 
 the chateau where I was brought up, for the purpose of 
 making investigations on our estates. He passed several 
 weeks with us, and, since then, my aunt has allowed him 
 
72 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 to visit me whenever his business brings him to our prov- 
 ince. He was my only acquaintance here when I 
 arrived, for you must know that Baron Olaus has made 
 him superintendent of important mining operations on 
 his domain. But there is my aunt looking for me ! 
 Now I shall have a good scolding, you will see I " 
 
 "Do you want to avoid her? Pass between the wall 
 and this hunting trophy." 
 
 "Potin would have to go tod, and we could never 
 persuade M. Stangstadius to keep our secret. Oh dear ! 
 now my aunt will torment me to death to dance with the 
 baron, but I shall persist in being lame, though the 
 pain is so slight that I scarcely feel it." 
 
 "It is nothing at all, I hope." 
 
 "Yes, indeed. I was so fortunate as to fall down on the 
 staircase a little while ago, in my aunt's presence. My 
 ankle really did hurt me a little, and I looked dreadfully 
 woe-begone, to prove that I could not possibly open the 
 court dance with the master of the house. My aunt had 
 to take my place, and that is why I am here ; but the 
 dance is over, and here she comes ! " 
 
 In fact, Countess Elfride d'Elveda approached, and 
 Cristiano, who had taken a seat by Margaret's side, 
 drew back a little. 
 
 The countess was a small woman, fair, fat, lively and 
 resolute. She was scarcely thirty-five years old, and 
 was very coquettish, although less from gallantry than a 
 love of intrigue. 
 
 She was one of the most ardent cafs in Sweden ; that 
 is, she took sides with Russia against France, • whose 
 partisans were called liaU; and with the nobility and 
 Lutheran clergy against the king, who naturally sought 
 his support in the other orders of the state, the citizens 
 and peasants. 
 
 She had been pretty, and, what * with her wit and 
 rank, was still sufficiently so to make conquests ; but 
 there was something in her manner, by turns haughty 
 and familiar, that displeased Cristiano. Her evident 
 duplicity and obstinacy, which he read at a glance, did 
 not seem to him to promise well for Margaret's future,, 
 
THE SNOW MAN, 73 
 
 "Well," she said to the latter, sharply and briefly, 
 '* what are you doing here crouched up against this stove, 
 as if you were frozen? Come, I want to speak to you ! " 
 
 "Yes, aunt," replied Margaret, pretending, with inno- 
 cent hypocrisy, to rise with difficulty; "but the fact is 
 that I am suffering very much with my foot. Being 
 unable to dance, I Mt cold in the large saloon." 
 
 "Whom were you talking to?" inquired the countess, 
 looking at Cristiano, who had gone up to M. Stang- 
 stadius. 
 
 "The nephew of your friend M. Goefle, whom Mon- 
 sieur Stangstadius just presented to me. Shall I intro- 
 duce him to you, aunt?" 
 
 Cristiano, who was not listening to the professor, 
 heard perfectly well what Margaret said. Resolved to 
 risk everything to continue his acquaintance with the 
 niece, he came forward of his own accord, and bowed 
 to the aunt in such a respectful and graceful manner, 
 that she was struck by his fine appearance. She must 
 have been very much in need of M. Goefle, for, in spite 
 of Cristiano's plebeian name, she received him as courte- 
 ously as if he had belonged to one of the best families in 
 the country ; and when Monsieur Stangstadius declared 
 that he was a young man of great merit, became exces- 
 sively condescending. 
 
 "I am delighted to make your acquaintance," she 
 said, " and I am angry with M. Goefle for never speaking 
 to me about a nephew who does him honor. Are you a 
 devotee of science, like our distinguished friend Stang- 
 stadius ? I am glad to hear it. There is no finer career 
 that a young man can choose. No position is more agree- 
 able than that of the scientific man, for he is not obliged 
 to make sacrifices to obtain consideration." 
 
 "I see that it is so in Sweden," replied Cristiano, "and 
 it is an honor to this noble country. In Italy, where I 
 was brought up, and even in France, which was my 
 home for some time, it is very different ; there, learned 
 men are generally poor, and poorly encouraged, when 
 they are not persecuted by religious fanaticism." 
 
 This reply enraptured the geologist, who was very vaia 
 
74 
 
 THE SNOW MAN, 
 
 of his country, and was extremely pleasing to the countess, 
 who despised France. 
 
 '* You are right," she said, " and I do not understand 
 why your uncle should not have had you educated in your 
 own country, where the position of students is so for- 
 tunate and honorable." 
 
 "He wished me to speak the foreign languages with 
 facility," replied Cristiano, saying the first thing that oc- 
 curred to him, " but he need not have sent me so far upon 
 that account ; for you speak French here, I find, as well 
 as they do in France." 
 
 " We are much obliged to you for your politeness," 
 said the countess, " but you are flattering us. We do 
 not speak it as well as you do, probably, and our Italian 
 is still worse — although every one who is carefully edu- 
 cated studies it. You must talk Italian with my niece, 
 and, if she makes mistakes, laugh at her well. But why 
 is M. Goefle so anxious about the modern languages? 
 Does he intend you for a diplomat ? " 
 
 "Perhaps, madame ; I am not yet fully aware of his 
 intentions." 
 
 " Fie ! Fie ! Pooh ! " cried the geologist. 
 
 " Softly, dear professor," resumed the countess ; " there 
 is a great deal to be said on that side too. All careers 
 are desirable for those who know how to make them so." 
 
 " If you, madame, will condescend to advise me, I shall 
 esteem it a privilege to be indebted to you for a valuable 
 suggestion." 
 
 " It will give me pleasure to do so," she replied, with 
 an affectation of genial amiability ; " and I feel .all the 
 more interest in you, because you have all the qualities to 
 insure success. Come with us to the dancing-hall. I 
 want my niece to dance at least one minuet ; it is not 
 fatiguing, and she is very perverse to refuse. Do you 
 hear, Margaret ? You must do like every one else ! " 
 
 "But, aunt," said Margaret, "every one has not a' 
 sprained ankle." 
 
 " In society, my child (I am saying this. Monsieur 
 Goefle, for your benefit as well), you must never let any- 
 thing prevent you from being agreeable or useful. Re- 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 75 
 
 member one thing : no one fails to fulfil his destiny but 
 through his own fault. You must have a will of iron ; 
 you must be superior to cold and heat, hunger and thirst, 
 great sufferings as well as little pains. The world is not, 
 as young people imagine, a fairy palace, where you live 
 for enjoyment. It is, on the contrary, a place of trial, 
 where you will have to conquer all your wants, all your 
 desires, all your repugnances, with real stoicism ; — that 
 is, if you have an aim in life, and if you have not you are 
 a very weak person. Ask your lover ^ Margaret, whether 
 he thinks of his little comforts when he descends into an 
 abyss to seek that which is the aim of his life. Very 
 well ; under the domes of palaces, as well as in the caverns 
 of mines, there are horrors to be braved. That of dancing 
 with a slight pain in your ankle is a very little thing in 
 comparison with what is before you. Come along ; get 
 up and come ! " 
 
 Margaret could not help looking piteously at Cristiano, 
 as much as to say : 
 
 " You see, I shall never be as strong as she is." 
 
 "Shall I offer my arm to Countess Margaret?" said 
 Cristiano to the imperious aunt ; "she is really limping." 
 
 " No, no ; it is nothing but caprice ! You will see that 
 she will stop limping soon enough, for it is very awkward. 
 Come, Margaret, give your arm to M. Stangstadius, and 
 go before us ; we want to see which of you limps the 
 most." 
 
 "What's that? What's that?" cried the professor; 
 " I don't limp at all, when I'm careful. If I choose I can 
 walk ten times straighter and faster than the best pedes- 
 trians. I only wish you could see me up in the moun- 
 tains, proving to the lazy guides that one can do whatever 
 he wishes ! " 
 
 As he spoke, M. Stangstadius began to walk very rap- 
 idly, but with such a vigorous elevation of his misshapen 
 person at every alternate step, that poor Margaret was al- 
 most lifted bodily off the floor. 
 
 " Give me your arm," said Countess Elfride to Cris- 
 tiano ; " not that I care for an escort, or require any as- 
 (listance, but because I wish to speak to you." 
 
76 THE SNOW MAN, 
 
 Cristiano obeyed, and the countess, who both walked 
 and talked rapidly, added : 
 
 " Your uncle has told you, I suppose, that I wish to 
 marry my niece to the Baron de Waldemora? " 
 " Yes, madame, he told me so — this evening." 
 "This evening? Has he arrived? I did not know 
 that he was here ! " 
 
 " He could not find a room at the chateau, no doubt, 
 and he is stopping at StoUborg." 
 
 " What ! In that den of evil spirits? Well ! he will 
 be in good company ! But isn't he coming to the ball ? " 
 " I hope not ! " replied Cristiano, thoughtlessly. 
 " You hope not ! " 
 
 " I say so because of his gout, which requires perfect 
 repose." 
 
 " Indeed ! Has he the gout? What a trial to such a 
 brisk, active man ! He never had it before, and imagined 
 that he was always going to escape." 
 
 "It is quite recent — the attack came on only a few 
 days ago. He sent me here in his place to present his 
 compliments to you, and receive your commands, which 
 I will communicate to him as soon as he wakes in the 
 morning." 
 
 "Very well, then, you can tell him what I say. This 
 is a matter that I make no sort of mystery about. I 
 have noticed that, when you proclaim your plans boldly, 
 they are already half accomplished. It is my wish, there- 
 fore, to marry my niece to the baron. You will tell me, 
 perhaps, that he is not young ; for that very reason he 
 has no time to lose in frustrating the schemes . of a 
 dozen heirs whom he detests, and who are trying in 
 vain to worm their way into his favor. Stay, there are 
 two of them passing now ; the one this way is the 
 Count de Nora, an inoffensive, good-natured man ; the 
 other, the Baron de Lindenwald, is intelligent, designing, 
 ambitious, and (like all of our nobility at present) poor. 
 Baron Olaus is a happy exception, because he has no 
 brothers. Now, what I want you to understand — you 
 and your uncle as well — is, that the baron looks with a 
 favorable eye upon my niece, and that she dislikes him. 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 77 
 
 This does not discourage me at all. My niece is a 
 child, and will submit. Since my resolution is known, 
 no one will venture to pay court to him, and I will take 
 care . of her. Your uncle must undertake to bring the 
 baron to a determination, and he can do it easily." 
 
 " If the countess will condescend to give me her in- 
 structions — " 
 
 '^ You shall have them in two words : my niece loves 
 the baron ! '* 
 
 "Really?" 
 
 "What! You do not understand? An aspirant in 
 diplomacy ! " 
 
 •'Ah! of course ; — excuse me, madame — Countess 
 Margaret is reputed to love the baron, although she de- 
 tests him, and — " 
 
 " The baron must believe that he is loved ? " 
 
 " And it is Monsieur Goefle who must make him think 
 so?" 
 
 " He alone. The baron is very suspicious ; I have 
 known him of old ; I could not persuade him. He would 
 suppose that I was interested." 
 
 " Which is not the case," said Cristiano, smiling. 
 
 " Which is the case ! — for my niece. Ought I not to 
 be so?" 
 
 " Assuredly ; but will M. Goefle lend himself to this 
 slight exaggeration ? " 
 
 "A lawyer hesitate to embellish the truth a little? 
 Nonsense ! When your dear uncle has a suit to gain he 
 is not so scrupulous !" 
 
 " No doubt ; but will the baron believe him?" 
 
 " He will believe whatever M. Goefle tells him. Ac- 
 cording to him, he is the only sincere man alive." 
 
 " The baron, then, wishes to be loved fcr himself? " 
 
 " Yes, he has that fancy." 
 
 " If he loves Countess Margaret he will find it easy to 
 deceive himself." 
 
 " Loves her? Do you suppose any one falls in love 
 when they have reached his age ? That has nothing to 
 do with it. The baron is a man of serious character, who 
 wislies to marry for the sake of leaving an heir, having 
 
ijS THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 lost his son five years ago. K his wife is pretty, and of 
 good family, he will be satisfied, and his only request of 
 her will be not to make him ridiculous. Now he runs no 
 risks with my niece ; she is a girl of good principles, and, 
 whether contented or not, she will never forget her dig- 
 nity. You can tell your uncle so, to set his doubts at 
 rest. Tell him, also, that he can rely upon my gratitude, 
 which, as he knows, is not to be despised. In my posi- 
 tion I can reward slight services with important ones ; 
 and, to begin with, what would he like for you? What 
 would you like for yourself? Do you want to be attache 
 at once, and on a good footing with the Russian embassy ? 
 I have only to say the word. The ambassador is here." 
 
 " God forbid !" said Cristiano, who detested Russia. 
 
 He recovered himself quickly, and not wishing to 
 have a misunderstanding with the countess too soon, 
 finished his sentence thus : 
 
 "God forbid that I should ever forget your goodness ' 
 I will do all in my power to deserve it." 
 
 "Very well, begin at once." 
 
 " Shall I go over to StoUborg and wake up my 
 uncle?" 
 
 " No ; keep near my niece, and talk to her from time 
 to time in the course of the evening. Take advantage 
 of the opportunity to eulogize the baron." 
 
 "But I do not know him." 
 
 "You have seen him, that is enough. You can speak 
 as if you had been struck by his fine manner and noble 
 figure." 
 
 "I should be quite at your service if I had; seen 
 him ; but — " 
 
 "Ah! you have not yet paid your respects to him. 
 Come, then, and I will introduce you. But no, there is 
 another way. Go and ask Margaret to point him out 
 to you, and exclaim immediately about the beauty of his 
 features and person. That will be simple, spontaneous, 
 and worth a great deal more than a studied eulogy." 
 
 "But why should my opinion, even supposing it to 
 be sincere, have the slightest influence with your niece?" 
 
 "In Sweden, any one who has travelled has more 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 79 
 
 influence than two or three ordinary moi-tals. And 
 then, don't you know that young girls don't understand 
 their own natures ; that it is vanity that impels them to 
 choose their lovers, and not sympathy ; and that the 
 man, consequently, whom they admire the most, is 
 always the one who is most admired by others ? Stay 1 
 there is my niece seated with some other young ladies, 
 who certainly would be very glad of a chance to win 
 the baron. That will do nicely. I will leave her there, 
 and you can join the circle. To give you an oppor- 
 tunity to fulfil your promise, I will take the baron's arm 
 and walk up and down in full view of this solemn assem- 
 bly. Seize the right moment." 
 
 "But what will the baron think if he happens to 
 notice me ? He will set me down as an awkward boor, 
 too ignorant either to ask any one to introduce me to 
 him, or to introduce myself." 
 
 "Don't trouble yourself; I will make it all right. 
 Besides, the baron will not see you ; he is very short- 
 sighted, and only recognizes people by their voices. 
 When he hunts he wears glasses, and sees perfectly 
 well ; but he is still too much of an exquisite to use 
 them in society. It is all settled. Away with you ! " 
 
 In another moment Cristiano was passing among the 
 groups of beautiful young ladies who were reposing 
 between the dances. He introduced himself to one of 
 these little coteries by saying something polite to Made- 
 moiselle Potin, who was next the wall, and who, poor 
 girl, was very much gratified at his courtesy. Margaret 
 was delighted to see him among the young men who 
 surrounded her companions, and the latter soon learned 
 from her that he was " a young man of great prom- 
 ise, nephew of the celebrated Goefle, the intimate 
 friend of her aunt." Some of them turned up their 
 noses, and thought it not at all the thing that a plebe- 
 ian should venture to come and entertain them, among 
 the young officers of the indelta* who generally belonged 
 
 * A standing army, with an organization peculiar to Sweden, 
 iettled for life in each province. 
 
8o THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 to good families ; but most of them welcomed him kindly, 
 and thought him charming. 
 
 The fact is, that Cristiano, like a great many adven- 
 turers in this adventurous age, was charming. His style 
 of beauty, also — a singular coincidence that he had 
 not thought of explaining — was precisely that best cal- 
 culated to please in this country. He was tall and well 
 formed, fair, with a clear red and white complexion, 
 with dark blue eyes and strongly marked eyebrows, as 
 black as ebony, as were his long curved lashes and mag- 
 nificent hair. Moreover, there was a something peculiar 
 about him that attracted attention : a sort of foreign 
 style, a suavity in his language and manners telling of 
 the more civilized, or, at least, the more artistic circles 
 to which he had belonged ; a lingering perfume, as it 
 were, of Italy and France. As soon as it was known 
 that he had been brought up in Italy, he was over- 
 whelmed with questions, to which he replied with so 
 much good sense, frankness, and gayety, that after chat- 
 ting for a little while, all these young madcaps were 
 crazy about him. Cristiano, although by no means a 
 fop, was not at all surprised. He had been used to 
 pleasing in other days, and when he resolved to indulge 
 once more, at all costs, in an evening's gayety, he knew, 
 that unless his success should be seriously interfered 
 with by some unexpected revelation, he would appear to 
 better advantage than most of the young nobles and 
 officers who were present. 
 
 In the meanwhile, the little Countess Elfride, who was 
 leaning, or rather hanging upon the arm of the imposing 
 Baron Olaus, had passed twice without catching Cristi- 
 ano's eye. The third time she coughed violently, and 
 led the baron up to Margaret, while Cristiano, who un- 
 derstood, broke away from the bewildering group and 
 fell back, to observe his host without attracting his 
 attention. 
 
 Baron Olaus was a tall, stout man, and, in spite of his 
 age, was still very handsome, but the deadly pallor and 
 sinister impassibility of his countenance made it really 
 appalling. His fixed look struck you like a blast of 
 
THE SNOW MAN, 8l 
 
 icy wind that takes the breath away, and the expression 
 of his face when he smiled was extraordinarily sad and 
 disdainful. As soon as he spoke to Margaret, Cristiano 
 recognized him from his voice, which was disagreeably 
 harsh and monotonous, as the very person who had been 
 selling Sweden so cheap an hour before in his confer- 
 ences with the Russian diplomatist. He recognized him 
 also from his lofty stature and rich dark dress, which he 
 had noticed while listening to him doing the honors of his 
 coimtry to the enemy. 
 
 <' Have you fully determined not to dance, mademoi- 
 selle?" said the disagreeable baron to Margaret. "Are 
 you suffering much ? " 
 
 The countess did not give Margaret time to answer. 
 
 ••'Oh, it is nothing!" she said; "Margaret will dance 
 soon." 
 
 She led the baron away, after looking again in a 
 domineering manner at Cristiano. Now this is how he 
 obeyed her : 
 
 "So that is Baron Olaus de Waldemora?" he said, 
 approaching Margaret and Mademoiselle Potin, who had 
 hastened to join the young girl at the approach of her 
 chaperone. 
 
 "That is he !" replied Margaret, with a bitter smile. 
 " What do you think of him?" 
 
 " He must have been quite handsome thirty years ago." 
 
 "That, at least," rejoined Margaret, with a sigh. 
 "Did you like his face?" 
 
 "Yes; I have a great admiration for cheerful faces. 
 There is a certain gayety about his — " 
 
 "Is it not frightful?" 
 
 "What was that you said to my uncle?" said Cris- 
 tiano, sitting down beside her chair, and lowering liis 
 voice ; "did he kill his sister-in-law?" 
 
 "It is thought so." 
 
 "For my part, I am sure of it." 
 
 "Indeed! Why?" 
 
 "Because he must have looked at her ! " 
 
 " Oh ! Is it not true that he has the evil eye ? " 
 
 "You exaggerate a little," said Mademoiselle Potin, 
 6 
 
82 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 who no doubt had been terrified by some silent threat of 
 Countess Elfride. " He has the fixed look of people 
 who do not see well." 
 
 "Just so," said Cristiano ; " death is blind. But who 
 gave the baron the surname of the Snovj Man f It 
 suits him : he is the living embodiment of a Spitzbergen 
 winter. He has given me a chill." 
 
 "And did you notice his curious habit?" said Mar- 
 garet. 
 
 " He put his hand to his forehead as if to wipe off 
 the perspiration ; do you mean that ? " 
 
 " Exactly." 
 
 "The Snow Man wants, perhaps, to make us believe 
 that he is perspiring ; but the simple truth is that he is 
 thawing." 
 
 "You see that I had good cause to be afraid of him. 
 And his black diamond — did you notice that?" 
 
 "Yes, I noticed the hideous black diamond, as he 
 wiped his forehead with his fleshless hand ; which forms 
 such a singular contrast to his corpulent figure and 
 bloated face." 
 
 "Whom are you talking about so?" said a young Rus- 
 sian lady, who had risen to spread out her gown over 
 her hoop petticoat ; " the Baron de Waldemora? " 
 
 "I was just about to say," said Cristiano, without 
 being disconcerted, " that that worthy man has not 
 three months to live." 
 
 "Oh, then," cried the Russian, laughing, "you must 
 make haste to marry him, Margaret ! " 
 
 "Keep your advice for yourself, Olga," replied the 
 young countess. 
 
 "Alas I I have not, like you, an aunt who carries 
 everything before her ! But what makes you think, M. 
 Goefle, that the baron is so ill ? " 
 
 " From the unhealthy disproportion of his figure, from 
 the yellow white of his glassy eyes, from the pinched-in 
 look at the base of his hooked nose, and, above all, 
 from an indefinable feeling that came over me as soon 
 as I saw him." 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 83 
 
 *' Indeed ! Are you gifted with the second sight, like 
 the people in the north of this country?" 
 
 ''I don't know anything about that. I don't consider 
 myself a sorcerer ; but I am quite satisfied that some 
 organizations are more or less sensitive to certain myste- 
 rious influences, and I answer for it that the baron has 
 not long to live." 
 
 "I think," said Margaret, "that he has been dead 
 already for a long time ; and that it is only by means of 
 some diabolical secret that he succeeds in passing him- 
 self off for a living man." 
 
 "It is true that he looks like a spectre," said Olga; 
 "l)ut no matter, he is handsome in spite of his age, and 
 he has a strange power of fascination. I dreamed 
 about him all last night. I was frightened, and yet it 
 was a pleasant fear. Can you explain that?" 
 
 "It is perfectly simple," replied Margaret, "the 
 baron is a famous alchemist ; he knows how to make 
 diamonds. Now you told us this morning that you 
 would sign a compact with the devil for diamonds." 
 
 " You are wicked, Margaret I Suppose I should tell 
 others how you talk about the baron, and it should come 
 to his ears ; you would be vexed enough, I wager." 
 
 "Do you think so. Monsieur Goefle?" said Margaret 
 to Cristiano. 
 
 "No," he replied. "Why should angels care for 
 diamonds ? have they not the stars ? " 
 
 Margaret blushed, and turned to the young Russian : 
 
 "My dear Olga," she said, "I implore you tell the 
 baron yourself that I cannot endure him. You will be 
 doing me a great service. Stay ! I will prove my grat- 
 itude. There is the bracelet that you wanted so much ! 
 Make a quarrel between me and the baron, and I will 
 agree to give it to you." 
 
 " Oh, dear me ! but what will your aunt say?" 
 
 "I will tell her that I have lost it, and you must not 
 wear it while you are here — no questions will be asked. 
 See, the baron is returning ! They are going to dance 
 another minuet, and he is coming to invite me ; but I 
 bhall refuse. My aunt is talking politics with the Rus- 
 
84 THE SNOW MAN, 
 
 sian ambassador, and will not see me. Stay by me, and 
 he will have to ask you." 
 
 In fact, the baron came forward, and renewed his 
 invitation with a sepulchral grace. Margaret trembled 
 in every limb when he held out his hand to take hers. 
 
 "Countess Elveda informs me," he said, "that you 
 would like to dance now, and I am going to have another 
 minuet for you." 
 
 Margaret arose, took a step forward, and fell back in 
 her chair. 
 
 "I should be glad to obey my aunt," she said firmly, 
 "but you see, baron, that I cannot, and I do not suppose 
 that you want to torture me." 
 
 The baron started. He was a man of intelligence, 
 perfectly well-bred, and excessively suspicious. The 
 countess had not deceived him so effectually that he was 
 not capable of understanding the slightest hint, and Mar- 
 garet's aversion was too evident to be mistaken. He 
 smiled bitterly, and replied with sarcastic courtesy : 
 
 " You are a thousand times too good, mademoiselle, 
 and I trust you will believe that I feel your kindness 
 deeply." 
 
 He turned immediately to Olga, invited her, and led 
 her away ; while Margaret snatched the elegant bracelet 
 from her arm, and slipped it into the ambitious young 
 creature's hand. 
 
 " Monsieur Goefle," she said - to Cristiano, eagerly, 
 although with a trembling voice, " you have brought me 
 happiness. I am saved ! "' 
 
 " And yet you are pale," said Cristiano ; " you are 
 trembling." 
 
 " I cannot help it ! I was so frightened. And I am 
 frightened still, for I cannot help thinking how angry my 
 aunt will be. But no matter, I have got rid of the baron. 
 He will revenge himself; he will kill me, perhaps. But 
 I shall not be his wife ; I shall not bear his name. I 
 shall never touch his blood-stained hand." 
 
 " Be quiet, for heaven's sake be quiet ! " said Mad- 
 emoiselle Potin, who was as pale and frightened as herself ; 
 "some one may hear you. You have been very brave, 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 85 
 
 and I congratulate you. But you are really timid, and 
 all this excitement will make you ill. Mon Dieu! 
 don't faint, my dear child. Take your smelling-bottle." 
 
 " Don't be afraid, my good friend," replied Margaret, 
 " I have recovered. Did any one around see what hap- 
 pened ? I am afraid to look." 
 
 " No, God be praised ! The noise of the orchestra, 
 which had just begun playing, drowned every other sound, 
 and your young friends were hurrying away to the dance. 
 We are almost alone in this corner. Don't stay here 
 and attract attention. Above all things, avoid having a 
 scene with your aunt while you are so excited. Come 
 with me to your room ; give me your arm." 
 
 '"And shall I not see you again?" said Cristiano, 
 with an emotion that he could not control. 
 
 " Yes, surely," replied Margaret, "I want to speak to 
 you ai?ain. In an hour you will find us — " 
 
 "Where shall I find you.?" 
 
 " I don't know. Oh yes ! in the supper-room." 
 
 As Margaret withdrew, Cristiano left the hall by an- 
 other door, and began to look for the place of rendezvous, 
 so that he might be there promptly at the appointed hour. 
 Besides, he had been suffering from hunger ever since he 
 came to the ball, in spite of his interesting adventures, 
 and the word supper-room aroused his appetite to full 
 activity. 
 
 " If no one is there," he said to himself, " I shall make 
 terrible inroad into the provisions of my lord baron." 
 
 While he is proceeding towards this sanctuary, let us 
 see what was taking place in the drawing-room. 
 
 IV. 
 
 'T^HE baron was certainly not fond of dancing, and his 
 ■'- corpulence was by no means calculated to help him 
 cut pigeon-wings ; but in the " court-dances " which 
 were usual at that period it was customary, and con- 
 sidered the proper thing to do, for even the gravest 
 
86 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 persons to take a part. The baron, who had been a 
 widower for a long time, had given scarcely any enter- 
 tainments during the life of his lawful heir ; but when it 
 became apparent that his name was in danger of perish- 
 ing with him, and that his titles and estates would pass 
 to a branch of his family which he hated, he had promptly 
 resolved to marry again as early as possible ; and, in 
 choosing a wife, he had made up his mind to select, not 
 a suitable and agreeable companion, for he felt no need of 
 such a person, but some healthy young girl from whom 
 he might expect children. He had accordingly furnished 
 his mansion in a luxurious style, and had assembled to- 
 gether the ladies of the province, with the sole design of 
 placing his baronial coronet upon the head of the prettiest 
 among them who should be so kind as to offer to wear it. 
 The Countess Elfride had thought herself sure of the 
 prize, but her plans had failed. The elderly suitor 
 opened his eyes to the fact that he had been made 
 to look ridiculous, and swore to be revenged both 
 upon aunt and niece. Moreover, to this oath, which 
 he registered in his mind with much promptitude, he 
 appended a firm resolve not to be deceived twice ; but, 
 without admitting the interference of any third party, to 
 offer himself to the first young lady of good family who 
 should receive him with a sufficient degree of cordiality. 
 This person turned out to be Olga, as he felt convinced 
 when that young lady proceeded to tell him, in a confi- 
 dential whisper, how Margaret had made over to her all 
 right, title, and interest in his affections. She confided 
 this pretty story to him with an assumed air of innocence 
 and candor, as if it were the prattle of a child ; and, 
 really, she was a child in many respects, though none the 
 less a woman, at once possessed and made cunning by 
 ambition. The baron, who was by no means wanting in 
 penetration, kept up the joke as if he saw nothing more 
 in it ; but, at the end of the dance, instead of taking Olga 
 to her seat, he offered her his arm, and led her into the 
 gallery, whose great extent rendered it quite suitable for 
 confidential interviews. There, taking her burning hands 
 between his icy cold ones, he said coldly : 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 8? 
 
 ** Olga, you are young and beautiful, but you are poor, 
 and of too high rank to marry a handsome young fellow 
 of low birth. It rests with you to turn your jest into 
 earnest. I offer you my title and a brilliant position. 
 Answer me seriously and without delay, or otherwise dis- 
 miss this subject forever from your mind." 
 
 Olga was really young, beautiful, poor, vain, and am- 
 bitious. She took time by the forelock, and accepted at 
 once. 
 
 " Very good," observed Olaus, kissing her hand, "I 
 thank you. Excuse me if I say not a word further. I 
 should make myself ridiculous if I should undertake to 
 talk to you about love, for you would imagine that I 
 think myself a person who can be loved. We will be 
 married — that is settled ; and we both of us have deci- 
 sive reasons for this resolution — that is certain. In the 
 meanwhile, in case you really desire this marriage, I must 
 request you to keep it an absolute secret for some days, 
 above all from the Countess Margaret and her aunt. 
 Can you promise me this ? Remember, any indiscretion 
 would break off our engagement." 
 
 Olga had too much at stake not to give the required 
 promise in good faith ; and the baron handed her back to 
 the great drawing-room. 
 
 Their absence had been so brief, that, even if observed, 
 no particular conclusion could have been drawn from it. 
 Yet the Countess d'Elveda felt uneasy at it, and went to 
 find out what had become of her niece, 
 
 "Do not annoy yourself," remarked Olga, "she was 
 here this very moment." 
 
 " She is hiding herself^ — she is still obstinate about 
 dancing." 
 
 "By no means," said the baron, "she had consented 
 to dance. It was I who declined to take advantage of 
 her kindness." 
 
 And offering his arm to the countess, he walked away 
 with her, explaining, as they went, that he did not wish 
 any one to be constrained to love him ; that he was old 
 enough to pay his addresses for himself, and that he 
 begged her not to interpose further in the matter, lest she 
 
88 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 should be the means of his losing all hope, and even of 
 his giving up his design of marrying. 
 
 The countess consoled herself for this reprimand, by the 
 recollection that it was the first time the baron had shown 
 any decided purpose of seeking her niece's hand. In- 
 triguing and perfidious as she was, she was this time the 
 dupe of the baron, whose only object was to deceive her 
 as she had deceived him. 
 
 ''It is astonishing," said Cristiano to himself, as he set 
 out to find the supper-room, " to watch these intriguers in 
 high life, to see how foolish they are in their malignity, 
 and how easily they are deceived ! But that must neces- 
 sarily be the case in matters of that kind, when one lays 
 down the principle, to begin with, of absolute contempt for 
 the human species. We cannot despise others without 
 despising ourselves. He who does not think well of the 
 work he is doing is made impotent by that very fact. It 
 was a superb piece of comedy for that aunt to tell me so 
 calmly, ' I have a niece to immolate ; help me about it ; 
 be quick, and I will pay you by giving you a position as 
 head valet in a good family ! ' " 
 
 Cristiano, however, put aside his philosophic reflec- 
 tions as he entered the room he was looking after, which 
 he discovered by a really delicious odor of venison. It 
 was a very handsome circular room, laid with small 
 movable tables, with a view of temporarily assuaging im- 
 patient appetites while waiting for the grand supper. As 
 everybody had done great honor to the baron's table al- 
 ready at nine o'clock, the room was empty, except for 
 one servant, who was fast asleep, and whom Cristiano 
 took pains not to waken, lest he should be considered 
 greedy and ill-mannered. Without stopping to select, he 
 seized a plate of stuiFed veal a la Fran^aise ; but just as 
 he made a cut into it with the vermilion-handled knife, 
 the servant, startled out of his sleep, sprang up as if he 
 had been moved by springs, and M. Stangstadius bustled 
 in, rattling the glasses and crockery with the jar which his 
 uneven, jerking step communicated to the floor. 
 
 *' Parbleu! It's you, is it?" he called out, on seeing 
 Cristiano, " Glad to find you h^re ! I don't like to eat 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 89 
 
 alone, and we can talk over serious matters while we sat^ 
 isfy the blind appetites of these poor human machines of 
 ours. Pooh ! you don*t mean to eat standing? Oh no ! 
 It's extremely unfavorable to the digestion, and you don't 
 taste what you eat at all. Here, Karl, draw out that 
 table — the largest. Very good. Now then, give us 
 some of the best there is. How? Side-dishes? No, 
 not yet. Something more solid ; some good slices of that 
 sirloin. After that you can bring the best cut out of that 
 bear's ham. It's a Norway ham, I hope ; they are the 
 best smoked. Come, Karl, some wine ! Give us some 
 Madeira and Bordeaux, and you may bring a few bottles 
 of champagne, too, for this young man ; he's likely to be 
 fond of it. Very well, Karl. That'll do, my boy ; but 
 don't go, we shall want some dessert very shortly." 
 
 While giving these orders, M. Stangstadius installed 
 himself with his back to the stove, and applied himself to 
 eating and drinking after so marvellous a fashion, that 
 Cristiano cast away all shame, and began devouring with 
 the whole force of his thirty-two teeth. As for the man of 
 science, who had not more than a dozen, he manoeuvred 
 them so ably that he was not a whit behindhand, while all 
 the while he continued talking and gesticulating with won- 
 derful energy. Cristiano, astonished, inwardly compared 
 him to some fantastic monster, half crocodile and half ape ; 
 and asked himself where could be the seat of this terri- 
 ble vitality in a body so misshapen, apparently so feeble, 
 and with diverging eyes incessantly moving, but with no 
 expression whatever. 
 
 The conversation of the geologist soon did something to 
 help solve the problem. The worthy gentleman had never 
 loved a human being, nor even so much as a dog. Every- 
 thing was perfectly indifferent to him beyond the circle 
 of ideas in which he lived, so to speak, on himself ; taking 
 his own pleasure, admiring himself, flattering himself, 
 and, in default of better material, finding nourishment 
 in the perfumes of his own self-praise. 
 
 Cristiano felicitated him upon his magnificent health. 
 
 " Do you see, my dear fellow," he replied, "when God 
 made me he came to a full stop. I swear to you he could 
 
90 
 
 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 not have produced such another ! I know nothing of the 
 sufferings that others feel. To begin with, I have never 
 known the vulgar and despicable infirmity of love. I 
 never wasted one minute in my life in forgetting myself 
 for one of those pretty dolls that you make idols of. A 
 woman may be eighty or eighteen — it's exactly the same 
 to me. When I am hungry, if I am in a hovel, I eat 
 whatever I can find, and if I find nothing, I occupy my- 
 self in thinking over my works ; and I wait, without any 
 uneasiness. If I am at a good table, I eat everything 
 there is on it, and without feeling any inconvenience. I 
 feel neither cold nor heat. My head is always burning, 
 it is true ; but it is with a sublime fire that does not con- 
 sume the mechanism, but, on the contrary, nourishes and 
 repairs it. I know neither hate nor envy. I am per- 
 fectly aware that no one knows more than I ; and as to 
 those who are jealous of me — there are a vast many of 
 them — I crush them like the worms of the dust. They 
 never recover after a criticism from me. In short, I am 
 made of steel, gold, and diamond ; I defy the entrails of 
 the whole earth to supply a material more impassible or 
 more precious than that of which I am made." 
 
 At this comprehensive and frank declaration Cristiano 
 could not help an immoderate explosion of laughter, 
 which, however, did not at all disconcert or offend the 
 Chevalier of the Polar Star. On the contrary, he took 
 this hilarity to be a joyous homage to his own universal 
 superiority ; so that Cristiano perceived that his com- 
 panion was, in some sense, a monomaniac of a curious 
 species, whose infirmity might be defined as lunacy from 
 excess of self-conceit. Cristiano questioned him in vain 
 about such persons as interested him. As to the Baron 
 de Waldemora, M. Stangstadius would only condescend 
 to say that he had some aspirations towards science, but 
 that, on the whole, he was simply an idiot. Margaret he 
 set down as stupid for not accepting the first rich match 
 that came along. He did, it is true, spare her a little, 
 admitting that she must be more amiable than the rest of 
 them, since she was in love with him. This he thought 
 a proof of good sense, but be found it impossible to profit 
 
THE SNOW MAK, 
 
 91 
 
 by this disposition of hers, since science was his wife and 
 mistress at the same time. 
 
 " Really, Mr. Professor," said Cristiano, " you seem to 
 be admirably consistent in this wonderful logical system 
 of yours." 
 
 " Ah ! I'll answer for that," replied M. Stangstadius ; 
 " I'm a different sort of man from your Baron Olaus, 
 whom fools admire for his strength of will and coolness ! " 
 
 '^ My baron? I assure you that I want nothing to do 
 with him." 
 
 " For my part I speak neither well nor ill of him," re- 
 turned the professor ; " all men are poor creatures, more 
 or less ; but does he not pretend to be a free-thinker, and 
 to have never loved ? " 
 
 "Could he have ever really loved any one? If he 
 could, his face is extremely deceptive." 
 
 " I don't know but he may have loved his wife, while 
 she lived. She was a malignant she-devil." 
 
 " Perhaps, then, he admired her." 
 
 '' I'm sure I don't know. She managed him, however, 
 as she chose ; and after she was dead, he could not en- 
 dure to be without her, and so he came to engage me to 
 calcine and crystallize her ladyship, the baroness." 
 
 " Ah ! then the famous black diamond is your work ? " 
 
 "You have seen it, then ! Is it not a capital result of 
 experiment ! The lapidary who cut it was in perfect de- 
 spair at not being able to discover whether it was the work 
 of nature or of art. But I must tell you the method I 
 pursued, and how I secured its transparency. I took my 
 body and wrapped it in asbestos cloth, after the manner 
 of the ancients, and placed it over an extremely hot fire 
 of wood, coal, and bitumen, the whole well sprinkled with 
 naphtha. When my body was thoroughly reduced — " 
 
 Cristiano, finding himself condemned to undergo the 
 history of the reduction and vitrification of the baroness, 
 set about eating as fast as he could, and tried not to 
 hear ; but he had perfectly stuffed himself before the pro- 
 fessor had ended his demonstration. This meeting was 
 a sad disappointment to Cristiano, who had hoped for an 
 interview with only Margaret and her governess. And 
 
92 
 
 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 he became more dissatisfied still, as a group of young 
 officers of the indelta invaded the hall. 
 
 These uorthem stomachs were far from being satisfied 
 with the refreshments and cooling beverages provided in 
 the ball-room, and so they came hither to warm their 
 blood a little with good Spanish and French wine ; and 
 Cristiano observed with interest something peculiar in the 
 way in which these men of the north drank their wine, 
 and which he had never been able to notice to so good 
 advantage. He began, moreover, to see something a 
 little rude in their manners, and a rather rougher style of 
 gayety than he found himself quite able to join in. But 
 to make amends, the free-heartedness and cordiality of 
 the young men were such as he entirely sympathized 
 with. They all greeted him with eager kindness, and 
 insisted on his drinking with them, until he found his 
 head beginning to feel the liquor. He therefore stopped, 
 fearing to go too far, but admiring the ease with which 
 these robust sons of the mountains went straight on 
 drinking the heady wine, without apparently feeling it at 
 all. 
 
 As soon as he could disengage himself from their 
 friendly challenges, he took up a position near the door, 
 in order to go out whenever he should perceive Margaret 
 in the gallery outside. He supposed that when she saw 
 the room full of young men drinking she would not go in. 
 She however did go in, notwithstanding, and in a few 
 moments was followed by other young ladies and their 
 cavaliers, who took seats at different tables, those already 
 sitting there hastening to give them places, and to wait 
 upon them. And now the mirth began- to be louder and 
 more enthusiastic. They forgot to imitate Versailles ; 
 they talked Swedish, and even Dalecarlian : the voices 
 grew loud ; the young ladies drank champagne without 
 making any faces over it, and even took Cyprus wine and 
 port, without any fear of the consequences. There were 
 present brothers and sisters, betrothed lovers, and cousins. 
 It was like one numerous family ; and the sexes mingled 
 with a freedom which was innocent, warm-hearted, per- 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 93 
 
 haps a little Inelegant, but, on the whole, touching, from 
 its chastity and simplicity. 
 
 "What good souls they are!" thought Cristiano. 
 " What the devil is the reason that as soon as they begin 
 to think about themselves they attitudinize as Russians or 
 French, when they appear to so much better advantage in 
 their own natural character?" 
 
 The peculiar charm of the little Countess Margaret 
 Avas exactly that she was herself in whatever circumstan- 
 ces. Mademoiselle Potin had certainly formed her most 
 judiciously, in thus preserving her natural and sponta- 
 neous. And what Cristiano found especially agreeable 
 in her was, that she declined wine. Cristiano had some 
 prejudices. 
 
 While the rest were all chattering and laughing around 
 Stangstadius, — whose table, always in the same place, and 
 always copiously served, became the centre and target of 
 witticisms, by which he was not at all disconcerted, — Mar- 
 garet found an opportunity of telling 'Cristiano in a con- 
 fidential manner, which, as may be imagined, did not 
 displease him, that her aunt had quite changed her de- 
 meanor to her, and, instead of finding fault, had become 
 very good-natured. 
 
 " It must be," she said, " that the baron has not men- 
 tioned my discourtesy ; or else she knows of it, but means 
 to try a different way to bring me into her plans. At 
 any rate, I have a breathing-time. The baron is not at- 
 tentive to me any more ; and even if I am to be scolded 
 again by my aunt to-morrow, or sent back for penance to 
 my solitude at Dalby, I mean to enjoy myself to-night, 
 and forget all my vexations. Yes, I intend to dance as 
 gayly as I can ; for, if you will believe it. Monsieur 
 Goefle, this is the first ball I ever attended in my life ; the 
 first time I ever danced anywhere, except in my own 
 room, with my good Potin. I am positively dying to try 
 my little accomplishments in public ; and I am frightened 
 to death, at the same time, for fear of being awkward, 
 and getting out in the figures of the French quadrille, 
 I must find some obliging partner who will help me 
 
94 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 through, and look after me a little, so as to tell me all 
 my mistakes in a charitable way." 
 
 '* I believe it will not be difficult to find him," replied 
 Cristiano ; " and if you will venture to trust yourself to 
 me, I guarantee that you shall dance as if you were at 
 your hundredth ball." 
 
 " Well, then, agreed. I accept, with thanks. Let us 
 wait till twelve o'clock. We will make up a little separ- 
 ate ball all by ourselves, with these ladies and gentlemen 
 here, at one end of the gallery. Then, perhaps, my aunt, 
 who is dancing in the grand saloon with all the great peo- 
 ple, will not see how suddenly my sprain has got well." 
 
 Cristiano. now began a brisk conversation with the 
 young lady ; and, being a little stimulated by the cham- 
 pagne, his gayety was gradually taking on a sentimental 
 complexion, when a name, pronounced aloud close to 
 him, made him start and turn around suddenly. 
 
 " Christian Waldo ! " said a young officer, with an open 
 and good-natured face; "who has seen him? where is 
 he?" 
 
 " To be sure ! " cried Cristiano, jumping up. " Where 
 is Christian Waldo ? Who has seen him ? " 
 
 " Nobody," answered some one from another table. 
 *' Who has ever seen Christian Waldo's face, and who will 
 ever see it ? " 
 
 " You have never seen it, have you, Monsieur Goefle ? " 
 asked Margaret of Cristiano. " You do not know him ? " 
 
 " No. But who is Christian Waldo, and how is it that 
 it is impossible to see his face?" 
 
 " You must have heard him spoken of though, for his 
 name seemed to strike you." 
 
 "Yes, because I remember having heard it at Stock- 
 holm ; but I did not pay much attention to it, and I do 
 not even remember — " 
 
 " Come, major," said a young lieutenant, " since you 
 know this Waldo, tell us who he is, and what he does. 
 I do not know anything about him." 
 
 " Major Larrson knows a great deal if he can do that," 
 said Margaret. " For my part, I have heard so many 
 different things said about Christian Waldo, that I prom- 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 95 
 
 ise beforehand not to believe a word of an/thing that is 
 going to be told." 
 
 " But," replied the major, " I am ready to make oath, 
 upon my honor, that I say nothing about him except 
 what I absolutely know. Christian Waldo is an Italian 
 comedian, who travels about from one town to another, 
 amusing people by his good-natured wit and inexhaustible 
 gayer^ . His exhibition consists — " 
 
 " We know that," interrupted Margaret, " and we 
 know that he gives his representations sometimes in 
 drawing-rooms and sometimes in taverns ; to-day in a 
 castle, and to-morrow in a hovel ; and that he makes the 
 rich pay high prices, while he often exhibits to the poor 
 for nothing." 
 
 '' An absurd original enough," said Cristiano ; " a kind 
 of mountebank." 
 
 " Mountebank or not, he is an extraordinary man," 
 replied the major, " and a man of genuine nobility of 
 character, too, which is more ! Last month, at Stock- 
 holm, I myself saw him fight three furious drunken 
 sailors, one of w^hom had been cruelly abusing a poor 
 cabin-boy, when Christian Waldo, indignant at the cow- 
 ardly outrage, rescued his victim. On another occa- 
 sion, this Christian threw himself into the midst of 
 a fire to save an old woman ; and every day he gave 
 away almost all he received to persons who excited his 
 pity. Indeed, it was said that the people of the suburbs 
 were so enthusiastic about him, that he had to leave 
 secretly in ordei to avoid being carried in a triumphal 
 procession." 
 
 "And also," observed Margaret, "to avoid being 
 obliged to remove his mask ; for the authorities began to 
 feel uneasy about an incognito so very popular, and they 
 fancied he might be some Russian agent who was pre- 
 paring the ground in this way, so that when the time 
 came he could excite a sedition." 
 
 "Do you believe," said Cristiano, "that this funny 
 fellow — for it appears that he is a funny fellow — is a 
 Russian spy?" 
 
 "I? No, I don't believe it," replied Margaret. "I 
 
96 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 am not one of those people who prefer to think that good- 
 ness and charity cover wicked designs." 
 
 "But his mask," said one of the young ladies, who 
 Ijad been eagerly listening to the officers ; "why does he 
 always wear a black mask when he enters his theatre 
 and leaves it? Is it to represent the Italian harlequin?" 
 
 " No, for he does not appear himself in the represen- 
 tation which he exhibits to the public. There is some 
 reason, which no person knows." 
 
 "Perhaps," observed Cristiano, gravely, " it is to hide 
 a leprosy, or something of the kind." 
 
 " Some say his nose is cut off," remarked one of the 
 young people. 
 
 "And others, again," added a third, "say that he is 
 the handsomest young fellow in the world ; and that he 
 has permitted himself to be seen in the faubourg, and 
 by some persons with whom he has formed a friendship." 
 
 "It would appear," resumed the major, "that he 
 does not wear his mask at all within his own establish- 
 ment ; but reports are very conflicting about his face. 
 A young boatwoman, who was almost ill with curiosity, 
 managed to induce him to remove the mask, and fell 
 quite ill with fright at seeing a death's head." 
 
 " Certainly this Waldo must be the devil himself," 
 said Margaret, "if he can appear as a handsome young 
 man or a frightful spectre. Young ladies, don't you all 
 want to see him ? " 
 
 "Do you, Margaret?" 
 
 "Let's all confess that we are wild to see him, and 
 that at the same time we are terribly afraid ! " 
 
 " They say he is coming here, do they not ? " asked one 
 of the young girls. 
 
 "He is here now, according to the latest accounts," 
 answered the major. 
 
 "What, really?" cried Margaret; "has he come 
 already? ShaU we see him? Is he in the ball-room 
 now ? " 
 
 "Oh," said Cristiano, "that would be rather a diffi- 
 cult matter." 
 
 "Difficult? Why?" 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 97 
 
 "Because a mountebank would not venture to present 
 himself in the character of an invited guest, among 
 such a company as this." 
 
 " Bah ! " said the major ; " it seems the fellow is not 
 afraid to do anything. His mask, his exhibition, and 
 his name, belong together ; but it is asserted, and it 
 seems quite probable, that, under another name, and 
 without any mask, he comes and goes as he likes, and 
 goes all over Stockholm ; and that, in the public prom- 
 enades and most frequented taverns, those who talk about 
 him can never be certain that he is not just at their 
 elbow, or perhaps the very person they are speaking to." 
 
 "But then," said Cristiano, "how do we know that 
 he is not even in this very room ? " 
 
 "Oh no!" answered Margaret, though not until she 
 had glanced all round the room, "all of us who are 
 here know each other." 
 
 "But I? No one knows me.? Perhaps I am Chris- 
 tian Waldo ! " 
 
 "Then where is your death's head.?" said one of the 
 young girls, laughing. "Without either mask or death's 
 head, you are only an apocryphal Waldo. And by the 
 way, gentlemen, can any one tell us how it is known that 
 he has arrived?" 
 
 "I can tell you," replied the major, "how I found it 
 out myself. It seems that an unknown person applied 
 for accommodations here, and, the house being full, was 
 directed to the farm-house. He gave his name, and 
 showed the letter in which Johan, the major-domo, by 
 order of his master, the baron, invited him hither for 
 the amusement of the guests here assembled. I don't 
 know whether they have accommodated him in some 
 corner of the chateau or elsewhere ; but it is certain that 
 he has come." 
 
 "Who told you so?" 
 
 "The major-domo himself." 
 
 "And he wore his mask.?" 
 
 "He wore his mask." 
 
 "And is he tall or fat? well formed or bandy?" 
 
 " I did not ask any of those questions ; for as I saw 
 
 7 
 
98 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 him with my own eyes at Stockholm — masked, it is true 
 — I know him to be tall, well made, and as lithe as a 
 deer." 
 
 "Probably he may be some ex-rope-dancer," sug- 
 gested Cristiano, who appeared to take no more interest 
 in the conversation than politeness required. 
 
 " Oh no ! " said Margaret ; " he has received a capital 
 education. Everybody is struck by the style and wit of 
 his comedies." 
 
 "But how do you know that they are his own?" 
 
 "People familiar with all the ancient and modern 
 literatures, assert that nothing in them is stolen ; and 
 these little comedies of his — sometimes sentimental, it is 
 said, also — have been a real literary event at Stock- 
 holm." 
 
 "Will he exhibit to-morrow, do you think?" was asked 
 on every side. 
 
 " It is to be presumed," replied the major , " but if 
 these young ladies are desirous to know, I shall be very 
 happy to undertake to find him out and inquire." 
 
 "At midnight?" said Cristiano, looking at the clock. 
 "The poor devil is asleep. I believe the Countess Mar- 
 garet had a more important plan to suggest to the com- 
 pany." 
 
 "Yes, indeed," cried Margaret. "I want to propose 
 a little ball, all to ourselves. I am a new comer here — a 
 perfect savage, I confess ; you have only met me within 
 these two or three days ; but every one has been so kind 
 and good to me, that I am not afraid to confess — what 
 M. Goefle will be so good as to tell you — " 
 
 "This is it," said Cristiano. "The Countess Mar- 
 garet, as she herself just told you, is a perfect savage. 
 She knows nothing in the world, not even how to dance ; 
 she is as awkward as possible, and limps at least as 
 much as our illustrious master Stangstadius. Besides, 
 she is clumsy, absent-minded, short-sighted. In 'fact, it 
 would require a most Christian dose of charity to recon- 
 cile one's self to the idea of dancing with her ; for — " 
 
 " Enough ! enough ! " cried Margaret, laughing. " You 
 have done me the honor to des iribe me with a great deal 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 99 
 
 of humility. Please to accept my thanks, however ; 
 for they will all expect something so frightful now, that 
 if I succeed only tolerably well everybody will be en- 
 chanted with me. The end of the matter is that I wish 
 to make my first appearance before this small party ; and 
 that — if you all say so — we will go and dance in the 
 gallery. The music in the grand saloon will be abun- 
 dantly loud enough for us to dance by." 
 
 Several of the young men hastened towards Margaret, 
 to ask for her hand. She thanked them, but said that 
 M. Christian Goefle had already devoted himself tc be 
 the victim. 
 
 " It is quite true, gentlemen," said Cristiano, gayly, as 
 his gloved hand received the little hand of Margaret; 
 " all please to pity me, and so lead on to the torture." 
 
 Places were taken in an instant, and the quadrille 
 was formed. Margaret begged not to be one of the first 
 four. 
 
 " You are curiously agitated," said Cristiano to her. 
 
 " I am," she replied ; " my heart beats as if I were a 
 bird launched out of the nest for the first time, and not 
 quite sure that it has wings at all." 
 
 "The first quadrille," remarked the adventurer, "is, I 
 see, an important event in the life of a young lady. In 
 a year from now, when you have attended a hundred 
 balls or so, do you suppose you will remember at all 
 the name and face of the humble individual who en- 
 joys the happiness and glory of directing your first 
 dance ? " 
 
 "Yes, certainly, Monsieur Goefle ; the recollection will 
 always be joined to that of the greatest emotions of my 
 life : my fear of the baron, and my joy at being delivered 
 from him, by an effort of courage that I should not have 
 believed myself capable of, and with which I was cer- 
 tainly inspired by your uncle and yourself." 
 
 "But do you know," said Cristiano, "I am not at all 
 certain of your aversion for the baron ? " 
 
 "Why not?" 
 
 "You are assuredly much more frightened about danc* 
 ing in public than you were abput dancing with him/' 
 
lOO 1'^^ SNOW MAN. 
 
 "Yet I did not dance with him, and I am going to 
 dance with you !" 
 
 Cristiano involuntarily pressed Margaret's small fingers ; 
 but she thought this merely an intimation that it was time 
 for her to take her place, and, all rosy with pleasure and 
 bashfulness, she stepped forward with him into the joyous 
 circle, where she very quickly found herself entirely at her 
 ease, as her grace and lightness entitled her to be. 
 
 "Well, I believe I am not afraid any more," she said, 
 as they returned to their place, while the other four began 
 the first figure. 
 
 " You are a great deal too courageous," replied Cris- 
 tiano ; "I hoped I should have been of some service, but 
 you have learned so fast how to use your wings, that now 
 you will be flying off with the first comer." 
 
 " It will never be with the baron, though ! But tell me 
 why it was that you thought I exaggerated my dislike for 
 him?" 
 
 '•''MonDieu! I see that you are passionately fond of 
 balls — that is, of entertainments and luxury ; and every 
 passion is followed by certain consequences. Now, if 
 pleasure is the object, wealth is the means of securing it." 
 "What? Am I so silly and so homely that I shall 
 never make a rich marriage unless with an old man ? " 
 
 " Then you admit that you will not marry any one but 
 a rich man?" 
 
 " If I should say yes, what would you think of me?" 
 " I should not think ill of you." 
 
 " I know ; I should be doing just as so many others 
 do ; and you would not think well of me either." ^ 
 
 This rather delicate discussion was resumed at the third 
 pause of the quartette to which our two young friends be- 
 longed. Margaret seemed to want to test Cristiano's sin- 
 cerity. 
 
 " Confess, now," she said, "that you despise girls who 
 marry for riches ; like Olga, for instance, to whom the 
 baron looks so handsome through the facets of the great 
 diamonds that she dreams about." 
 
 "I despise nothing," replied the adventurer ; "lam 
 naturally tolerant, or else the facets of what virtue I have 
 
THE SNOW MAH:, ; ; lOa, 
 
 are dulled by friction with the world. I am enthusiastic 
 for what is superior to the average ; and I feel a philo- 
 sophical indifference to whatever is adapted to the vulgar 
 generality of people." 
 
 " Enthusiastic, do you say? Is not enthusiasm a high 
 price to pay for a thing so natural as disinterestedness ? 
 I shall not demand so much of you, Monsieur Goefle ; I 
 shall only ask your esteem. I hope you will believe that 
 if I were free to choose, I would consult my heart 
 alone, and not my interest. Even if I could never have 
 any more lace to my sleeves, or satin bows to my dress — 
 even if I could never dance any more in the light of a 
 thousand candles, to the sound of thirty violins, hautboys, 
 and double-basses — I feel that I am capable of making 
 even so immense a sacrifice as that, for the sake of pre- 
 serving my freedom of opinion and the approbation of 
 my conscience." 
 
 Margaret spoke with enthusiasm. Excited by the 
 dancing, she said just what was in her heart : all the gen- 
 erosity and romance of her nature shone in her brilliant 
 eyes ; there was a sort of electrical life and inspiration in 
 her radiant smile ; in her attitude, like that of a bird eager 
 to dart upwards again to the clouds ; in her lovely fair hair, 
 whose long curls wreathed over her lily-white shoulders as 
 if they were alive ; in the heart-felt tone of her voice — in 
 short, in the whole of her charming little person. Cris- 
 tiano was altogether dazzled, and, without being entirely 
 conscious of what he was saying, he asked Margaret, as 
 if he were dreaming, this strange question : 
 
 " You will never permit yourself to love any one not 
 of your own rank, I know. But suppose that, in spite of 
 yourself, you should find your affections drawn towards 
 some poor devil, a person without a name, without a 
 penny — Christian Waldo, for instance — would you not 
 be extremely mortified, and consider it your duty to stifle 
 your inclinations?" 
 
 " Christian Waldo ! " said Margaret. *' Why Christian 
 Waldo? You choose a very strange person as an ex- 
 ample ! " 
 
-Q3 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 "Extremely so, and I do it on purpose. "When one 
 proceeds by an antithesis — But come ; this is what I 
 mean. Suppose that this Christian Waldo — whom I do 
 not know at all — really possesses the courage, the intel- 
 ligence, the generosity that have just been attributed to 
 him here ; and in addition to his other endowments, the 
 poverty which must be the faithful attendant of his wan- 
 derings ; and a name which, I presume, he does not claim 
 in virtue of any old parchments." 
 
 "And with his death's head — " 
 
 "No, without his death's head. Well, suppose that 
 you had no choice of marriage, except between him and 
 the Baron de Waldemora — " 
 
 "My choice would be very easily made. I would not 
 marry at all ! " 
 
 " Unless, of course, it should turn out that Christian's 
 mask concealed a young and handsome prince, who was 
 obliged to conceal himself for reasons of state ? " 
 
 "A fine idea that is!" said Margaret; "another 
 Czarewitch Ivan escaped out of his prison, or another 
 Philip III. escaped from his assassins ! " 
 
 " In that case, apocryphal or not, he would find grace 
 in your eyes." 
 
 "What do you want me to say? An Italian buffoon 
 is really not a good standard of comparison, if you are in 
 earnest." 
 
 " Too true," replied Cristiano, "and here is the finale ; 
 let us tread it lightly, for it is the handful of earth cast 
 upon the romance entitled ' The First Quadrille ' ! " 
 
 But it was not ordained that this quadrille should 
 end according to choregraphic laws. M. Stangstadius, 
 having at last finished the copious repast, which he called 
 a mere snack between the supper and the after-supper, 
 just at this moment came out from the refreshment-room. 
 Absorbed in some lofty conception awakened in his mind 
 by the agreeable effort of prosperous digestion, and 
 coming upon the young dancers in his progress, he 
 marched unceremoniously straight through them, run- 
 ning against the cavaliers who were just exhibiting their 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 103 
 
 giaces in the "forward two," and treading on the little 
 feet of the ladies as if they had been so many pebbles. 
 His extravagant limping rendered his gait so ridiculous 
 that every one burst out laughing. The dance was quite 
 broken up ; and the young couples, taking hold of each 
 other's hands, executed a rapid and noisy rondo about 
 the chevalier of the polar star, who, not wishing to 
 be behind the others in grace, undertook to execute a 
 hopping movement in the opposite direction, to the im- 
 mense amusement of the company. But, sad to, tell, the 
 laughing and singing became so noisy as to attract atten- 
 tion in the grand saloon. 
 
 The orchestra had come to a pause in the music, but 
 the young people did not notice it, and kept on singing 
 and dancing around Stangstadius, who compared himself 
 to Saturn in the middle of his ring. 
 
 Countess Elfride hastened to the spot, and, beholding 
 the sudden cure of her niece, fell into a rage, which this 
 time she could not restrain. 
 
 ",My dear Margaret,'* she said, shortly, in a sharp 
 tone, " you are exceedingly imprudent. You forget your 
 sprain ; it is extremely dangerous to go on in such a 
 way. I have just seen the baron's physician, and he 
 prescribes entire quiet to-night. Have the goodness to 
 retire at once with your governess. She will assist you 
 to go to bed, and put on some compresses. Believe me, 
 you had best do so." 
 
 She added in a low tone — 
 
 "Obey me!" 
 
 Margaret, who had been rosy with delight, turned 
 quite pale, and, whether from anger or mortification, 
 could not restrain two great tears which glittered a mo- 
 ment on her long eye-lashes, and rolled down her cheeks. 
 The Countess Elfride snatched her hand and carried her 
 oflf, saying, in an under-tone : 
 
 " I think you have taken an oath to do nothing to-night 
 but make a fool of yourself. Now you must pay for it. 
 I excused you for not dancing with our entertainer, for 
 he really believes you were in pain; but after thai, to 
 dance with another person is to offer the baron an un- 
 
I04 
 
 THE SNOW MAN, 
 
 heard-of, deliberate insult, and I will not allow you to 
 keep up such conduct until he has perceived it." 
 
 Cristiano followed along behind Margaret, trying to 
 think of some means of disarming or diverting the wrath 
 of her aunt, if he should perceive any favorable moment 
 for addressing her, when he saw the baron approaching, 
 and paused, leaning against the pedestal of a statue, to 
 see what would take place among the three. 
 
 "What!" said the baron, "you are taking away 
 your niece? It is too early. I thought she was just 
 beginning to enjoy herself in my house. Permit me to 
 beseech your indulgence for her ; and since she has been 
 dancing — as I am told — may I now beg her to dance 
 with me ? She certainly cannot refuse me now, and I am 
 sure she will consent with pleasure." 
 
 " If you insist upon it, baron, I consent," said the 
 countess. 
 
 " Come, Margaret, thank the baron, and go with him. 
 Do you not see that he is offering you his arm for the 
 polonaise ? " 
 
 Margaret seemed to hesitate ; her eyes met those of 
 Cristiano, who did not know which feeling predominated 
 — his desire to have her remain, or his fear that she would 
 yield. Perhaps the last sentiment was naost distinctly 
 expressed in his looks, for Margaret answered steadily 
 that she was engaged. 
 
 "To whom, pray?" cried the countess. 
 
 "Yes; to whom?" repeated the baron, with a sin- 
 gular inflection in his voice, and with a calmness that, 
 Margaret thought, had something ominous in it. ^ 
 
 She looked down, and was sileut ; for she did not 
 understand what was passing in the mind of her perse- 
 cutor, from whom she had thought herself quite safe. 
 
 The baron's only object was to torment her and com- 
 promise her. He saw perfectly well her aversion for 
 him, and cordially reciprocated it. Coldly hard-hearted 
 and revengeful, he affected to jest ; but said, speaking 
 loud enough to be heard by many inquisitive ears ; 
 
 "Where is the happy mortal with whom I must dis- 
 pute you ? for I certainly will do it. I have the right." 
 
THE SNOW MAN, 
 
 105 
 
 "You have the right?" exclaimed Margaret, amazed 
 and indignant ; "you, baron? " 
 
 " Yes, I," he answered, with cold, cruel irony ; " you 
 know very well I have. Come, where is this rival 
 who is going to carry you off to dance from under my 
 very beard ? " 
 
 "Here!" exclaimed Cristiano, losing his self-control, 
 and advancing upon the baron in a threatening manner, 
 while all the spectators, stupefied into silence, looked on 
 with curiosity and amazement. 
 
 It was very well known that the baron, in spite of his 
 sluggish and blase manner, was extremely irascible, 
 and indomitably proud. Every one expected a violent 
 scene ; and, in fact, a greenish pallor overspread instanta- 
 neously the baron's face, and he opened and shut his 
 large and short-sighted eyes, as if to emit a flash of 
 lightning for the annihilation of the audacious unknown 
 who defied him so openly. But instantly the blood rushed 
 back to his forehead, on which one large, engorged veir 
 rose like a ridge, while his lips became more livid than 
 the rest of his face. An indistinct cry escaped him, 
 his arms extended convulsively, and he fell forward, 
 exclaiming : 
 
 "There it is! There it is!" 
 
 He would have fallen upon the floor, had not twenty 
 arms interposed. He had fainted ; and they carried him 
 to a window, and unceremoniously broke the panes to 
 give him fresh air. Olga made her way through the 
 crowd to bear him assistance. Margaret disappeared 
 as if her aunt had whisked her off by conjuration ; and 
 Cristiano was rapidly led away by Major Osmund Larr- 
 son, who had taken a great liking to him. 
 
 " Come along with me," said the good-natured young 
 fellow ; "I must speak with you." 
 
 In a few moments Cristiano and Osmund were alone 
 in an antique room on the ground-floor, warmed by an 
 immense fire-place. 
 
 "We can smoke here," said the major. "Here's a 
 rack, well filled ; suit yourself with a pipe, and here's 
 the tobacco. That beer on the table is the best in the 
 
Io6 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 country, and here's some capital old Dantzic brandy. 
 My comrades will be down in a moment to tell us the 
 latest news of the affair." 
 
 "My dear major," said Cristiano, "I see you think 
 me extremely angry, but you are mistaken. Let the 
 baron get over his attack ; I will smoke here with you 
 until he is ready for an explanation." 
 
 "But for what purpose? to fight a duel?" said the 
 major. "Bah! The baron never fights; he never has 
 fought. You do not know him at all, then ? " 
 
 " Not at all," said Cristiano, calmly, as he smoked his 
 pipe, and poured out a large goblet of beer. " Have I 
 really, like a true Don Quixote, attacked a windmill? I 
 did not know that I was making such a fool of myself." 
 
 "You have done nothing of the kind, my dear friend. 
 Quite the contrary, many persons will think that you 
 have been exceedingly audacious to oppose the Snow 
 Man ; and certainly that is my opinion." 
 
 " I should have thought that a man of snow would 
 easily thaw." 
 
 "That is not the case in this country. Men of that 
 kind remain standing a long time." 
 
 " I have been heroic, then, without knowing it." 
 
 " You must try and not find it out at your own ex- 
 pense. The baron does not fight, it is true ; but he takes 
 his revenge for all that, and he never forgets an injury. 
 It doesn't matter where you may be, he will pursue you 
 with his hate ; and it doesn't matter what career you may 
 want to follow, he will put obstacles in your way. If 
 you get into some difficulty, as may happen to any. high- 
 spirited young fellow, he will contrive to make it dan- 
 gerous for you ; and if he once has you thrown into 
 prison, there you will remain. My advice to you, there- 
 fore, is to depart at once, and to remain constantly on 
 your guard as long as you live ; at least, unless the devil 
 chooses to wring the neck of his crony this very night, 
 under the pretence of a fit of apoplexy." 
 
 " Do you think the baron so ill ? " inquired Cris- 
 tiano. 
 
 " We shall soon know all about it. Here is my lieu- 
 
THE SNOW MAN, 107 
 
 tenant, Erwin Osburn, who is my best friend, and who 
 likes you as well as I do. How now, lieutenant, what is 
 the latest news of the Snow Man ? Are there any signs 
 that the thaw is approaching ? " 
 
 "No, it turns out to be nothing at all," replied the lieu- 
 tenant ; "or, anyhow, so he pretends. He went to his 
 room for a moment, and returned with such a good color, 
 that I suspect him of daubing his pale cheeks with rouge. 
 His eyes are dull, however, and he hesitates in speaking. I 
 was curious enough to go up to him ; and taking this as a 
 mark of respect, he condescended to inform me that it 
 was his wish that the dancing should go on, and that peo- 
 ple should pay no further attention to him. He is seated 
 in the grand drawing-room, and what convinces me that 
 he is more uncomfortable than he confesses is, that he 
 seems entirely to have forgotten the outbreak of rage that 
 threw him into this fine state, and that nobody ventures 
 to remind him of it." 
 
 " Then the ball will go on," said the major, " and you 
 will see that it will be gayer than ever. It seems as if 
 the people here wanted to shake oiF the thought of some 
 approaching catastrophe, or as if the baron's heirs could 
 not contain their joy at finding that he is really ill, and 
 has been so for some time. But you must tell us one 
 thing. Christian Goefle. Under what form did you ap- 
 pear to the baron ? or what spell did you cast over him ? 
 Are you a ghost or a sorcerer? Are you the man of the 
 lake, who fascinates people with a look of his icy eyes ? 
 What is there in common between the baron and yourself, 
 and why is it that he should have uttered, in swooning, 
 his famous exclamation, which I heard to-day for the first 
 time : ' There it is ! there it is ! ' " 
 
 " I wish you would explain it to me," replied Cristiano ; 
 " for I have been trying in vain to recall where I could 
 have seen him ; if we ever did meet, the circumstances 
 must have been very insignificant, since my memory of 
 them is so confused. Let me see, has he been travelling 
 in France or Italy since — " 
 
 " Oh, it is a long, long time since he left the north ! " 
 
 " I am mistaken, then ; I have never seen the baron 
 
io8 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 before to-daj'. And yet one would have said that he rec- 
 ognized me. May he not have been delirious when he 
 cried : ' There it is ! there it is ! ' " 
 
 '' Oh, that is a sure thing," said the major. " I have 
 a gardener in my hostoelle* who was at one time one of 
 his servants, and who has told me a good many curious 
 things about him. The baron is subject to violent at- 
 tacks, which his physician calls nervous attacks, and which 
 come from a chronic liver complaint. While these spells 
 last, he sometimes shows signs of the strangest fear. He, 
 the sceptic, the jeering infidel, is as cowardly as a child. 
 He sees ghosts, especially that of a woman, and it is at 
 such moments that he cries : ' There it is I there it is I ' 
 meaning, I suppose, ' There, my fit is seizing me ! ' or, 
 perhaps, '- There is the ghost .that haunts me ! * " 
 
 " He seems to be tormented by remorse." 
 
 " Some say it is the recollection of his sister-in-law." 
 
 " Whom he assassinated? " 
 
 " They don't say that he killed her, but merely that he 
 caused her to disappear." 
 
 " Yes, that is a more elegant expression." 
 
 "It is quite possible that there is no foundation for 
 either story," resumed the major. " The fact is that we 
 don't know anything at all about it, and that the baron is 
 perhaps perfectly innocent of a great many crimes of 
 which he is accused. You know that we are living here 
 on the classical soil of the marvellous. The Dalecarlians 
 have the greatest horror of anything practical, and of nat- 
 ural explanations. You cannot strike against a stone in 
 this country, without supposing tha^j a goblin pushed it 
 against you on purpose ; if your no^e itches, you must 
 run to a sibyl to be cured of a dwarfs poisonous bite ; 
 
   The bostoelle of the officers of the indelta is a house and 
 lands, which they have the use of, and whose rent is proportioned 
 to their rank. This rent is their salary. The minister's house 
 is also called his bostoelle, and the minister has the use of it be- 
 sides his other perquisites. The soldier of the indelta has his 
 to7-p, his little house with a garden and a few acres of land. The 
 indelta is a rural army, whose excellent organization was formed 
 by Charles XII., and to which there is nothing analogous else- 
 wrhere. 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 109 
 
 nor is there a driver who will mend the broken trace of a 
 carriage or sleigh without saying, 'Come, come, little 
 goblin, leave us alone ; we are not doing you any harm/ 
 
 " You can readily imagine that the Baron de Walde- 
 mora could not become very rich, in the midst of such a 
 superstitious people, without being considered an alche- 
 mist. Instead of supposing him to be paid by the empress 
 for sustaining her political interests, it was thought more 
 natural to accuse him of magic ; and from this accusa- 
 tion to that of the blackest crimes there is only a single step. 
 Every sorcerer drowns his victims in waterfalls, buries 
 them in abysses, rides avalanches, attends the witches* Sab- 
 bath, and at the very least eats human flesh, being thought 
 quite moderate in his ferocious appetites if he only sucks the 
 blood of infants. For my part, I have heard so many 
 stories that I discredit them all, and confine myself to 
 believing what I know ; and what I know is, that the 
 baron is a wicked man, too cowardly to strike another 
 man ; too well-fed and fastidious to drink blood ; too cold- 
 blooded to lie in wait for travellers under frozen lakes ; but 
 quite capable of sending his best friend to the gallows, if 
 he had any personal interest in doing so, and had only to 
 utter some wicked calumny to accomplish his purpose." 
 
 " He is a great villain ! " said Cristiano. '•• But allow 
 me to express my surprise at seeing so many respectable 
 persons at his house — " 
 
 " You are right," replied Osmund, without giving him 
 time to continue. " We are unquestionably to blame for 
 coming to amuse ourselves at the entertainments of a man 
 whom we all hate. You have for an excuse that you 
 don't know him, but as for the rest of us — " 
 
 "I did not make any personal allusions," rejoined 
 Cristiano. 
 
 " I know it, my dear fellow ; but you should not be 
 surprised to find that a tyrant has a court. You are, of 
 course, familiar with the history of your country ; but as 
 you have been absent a number of years, you may have 
 thought that the progress of philosophy has established 
 a littlft equality between the different orders of the 
 %tate. It is not so at all, Christian Goefle, not at all ; aa 
 
no THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 you will soon see with your own eyes. The nobility is 
 all-powerful; then comes the clergy, enlightened and 
 austere, but also tyrannical and intolerant. The bour- 
 geoise, so useful in the state, and so patriarchal in their 
 manners, count for little, the peasantry for nothing at all, 
 and the king for less than nothing. When a nobleman is 
 rich, which luckily is very rare, he controls the interests 
 and destinies of his whole province, and he either makes 
 men do as he chooses or ruins them. You may rest as- 
 sured that this would be the case with us young officers, 
 if we should offer any discourtesy to the illustrious Seig- 
 neur de Waldemora. It is true that he could not deprive 
 us of our rank, which can only be forfeited in case of 
 actual crime ; but, in spite of the inviolable laws of the 
 indelta, we should be forced, by unheard-of persecutions, 
 to abandon our cantonments, houses, estates and friends, 
 as if we were a simple garrison." 
 
 At this moment two other young men came in to 
 smoke, and Cristiano ventured to ask them whether 
 Countess Elfride had returned to the ball-room. 
 
 " You are a sly fellow ! " replied one of them ; " you 
 will not persuade us that you take such an interest in the 
 wicked Countess Elfride. As for her lovely niece, she 
 disappeared at the same time with yourself, and her aunt 
 pretends that she is very lame." 
 
 " Disappeared, did you say?" cried Cristiano, unreas- 
 onably alarmed at the word. 
 
 "Come!" said the major, good-humoredly, "do you 
 feel uneasy about your beauty, my dear Goefle ? " 
 
 " Excuse me, I have no right to speak so of Coiintesa 
 Margaret. She is certainly beautiful ; but, unfortunately 
 for me, she is not mine in any sense of the word." 
 
 "I meant no harm," replied Osmund, "I merely saw, 
 like everybody else, that she selected you for the partner 
 of her first dance, and that you seemed to be chatting to- 
 gether in a very friendly way. If -you are not in love 
 with her you make a mistake, upon my honor, and if she 
 don't feel some little weakness for you, perhaps she also 
 makes a mistake, for we all think you a capital fellow." 
 
THE SNO W MAN. 1 1 1 
 
 *'It would be altogether a mistake in me," replied 
 Cristiano, " to aspire to a star too far abcve me." 
 
 "Bah! because you have no title? But your family 
 has been ennobled, and your uncle, the lawyer, is a dis- 
 tinguished man in talent and character. He is quite as 
 rich, moreover, as the beautiful Margaret. Love removes 
 all obstacles, and if you have disagreeable relations, you 
 can swear fidelity in secret. In our country, such be- 
 trothals are as sacred as any, and so, if you want to carry 
 your point, we are all ready to help you." 
 
 "To help me in what?" said Cristiano, laughing. 
 
 "To an immediate interview with the countess, un- 
 known to her aunt. Well, comrades, what say you? 
 here are four of us all ready. For my part, I know 
 where their rooms are, and we can go there without a 
 moment's delay. If Mademoiselle Potin is frightened — 
 pay her compliments, which she really deserves, as to 
 that, for she is a charming person ; and if a chamber- 
 maid screams, kiss her, and promise her ribbons for her 
 hair. Then we demand a serious conversation with the 
 Countess Margaret for Christian Goefle, in the name of 
 M. Goefle, his uncle, from whom he brings an important 
 communication ! Ha ! — that's it. They will introduce 
 us — but of course without our pipes — into a little draw- 
 ing-room, where we will sit down quietly apart, while 
 Christian Goefle addresses la diva contessina in a low 
 voice, and offers her his heart ; or, if he is too timid to 
 do that, lets her divine what his sentiments really are, 
 while he inquires about the dangers with which the peer- 
 less little lady is beset, and arranges with her to avert 
 them. I am not laughing, gentlemen. It is quite evident 
 that Madame d'Elveda wants to force the inclination of 
 her ward, and that the cunning Olaus is trying to com- 
 promise her, so as to drive off all other suitors. Very 
 well ; the situation is magnificent for the man, who, in a 
 crowded ball-room, took up the gauntlet for the victim 
 of this odious and ridiculous plot. Come, Christian I 
 come, gentlemen, are you ready ? Parhleu I You shall 
 have your turn ! Another time. Christian, you shall be 
 the one to assist us in love affairs as virtuous as your 
 
113 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 own ; we ought to be able to rely upon each other to that 
 extent, we young folks. In Heaven's name, what would 
 have become of us before now, if we were not all devoted 
 friends and confidants ? Forward ! To the assault of the 
 citadel. Follow me, if you love me ! " 
 
 All started up, even Cristiano himself, for he could not 
 help being carried away by the proposition, but he paused 
 at the door of the room, and stopped the others. 
 
 "Thanks, gentlemen,*' he said, "and depend upon it 
 that I will go through fire for you when necessary, but I 
 have no right to introduce this sweet romance into my 
 life. Nothing in the conduct of Countess Margaret au- 
 thorized me to undertake her defence, which I did in a 
 moment of thoughtless indignation, and I have no reason 
 now to hope that she thanks me for my interference. She 
 may be offended, on the contrary ; and it belongs to M. 
 Goefle the lawyer, and to him alone, to protect her from 
 her aunt, by acquainting her with her rights. The best 
 thing for me to do, since my beautiful partner has left off 
 dancing, and my terrible rival does not fight, is to go and 
 have a good sleep, of which I am really very much in 
 need, since I have been upon my feet for more than 
 twenty-four hours." 
 
 Cristiano's sentiments were apftroved of, and he was 
 loudly applauded for his gallantry. They tried to make 
 him stop and drink with them, supposing this to be an 
 irresistible temptation, but Cristiano was sober, as the in- 
 habitants of warm countries usually are. The night was 
 advancing, and he thought it more prudent to put an end 
 to the comedy performed hitherto with so much success. 
 He shook hands with his new friends, bade them adieu, 
 promised to return to breakfast while inwardly resolving 
 to do nothing of the kind, and without giving them time 
 to inquire what part of the new chateau he was stopping 
 in, returned lightly and mysteriously over the frozen lake. 
 
 It was on purpose that he left Loki, and the sleigh of 
 the doctor of laws, at the new chateau ; he was afraid that 
 they would be heard, and cause him to be observed. He 
 walked along the shore, until too far to be seen from the 
 windows of the chateau, and then crossed to the door of 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 113 
 
 Stollborg, which he had left open, and which no one, Ul 
 philas least of all, had thought of coming to fasten. 
 
 He took these precautions, because, to the pale light of 
 the moon, which was no longer visible, had succeeded the 
 fleeting but brilliant splendor of a magnificent aurora 
 borealis. It was magnificent, at all events, for this re- 
 gion, although it is quite probable that it would have been 
 a very ordinary display at a higher degree of north lati- 
 tude ; and yet the illumination towards the polar regions 
 must have been unusually vivid at this moment, for it 
 lighted up the whole country, and every object around the 
 frozen lake. The snow, under its varying reflections, was 
 showing a fantastic and magnificent succession of red and 
 blue colors, and Cristiano, before entering the bear-room, 
 remained for several moments at the door of the court, 
 unable, in spite of the cold and solitude, to tear himself 
 from this wonderful spectacle. 
 
 V. 
 
 FT was eight o'clock next morning when M. Goefle 
 •*- awoke. Probably he had not rested as well as usual 
 during the night, for he was habitually an early riser, and 
 was quite scandalized to find himself abed at such an hour. 
 It is true that he had reckoned upon little Nils to wake 
 him, but Nils was still sound asleep, and, after several 
 attempts to arouse him, M. Goefle concluded to let him 
 lie as long as he chose. This was not ill-temper on the 
 part of the doctor of laws, but simply complete despair of 
 obtaining any service from his valet-de-chambre. Resign- 
 ing himself to necessity, therefore, he lighted his own fire, 
 and then proceeded, like a methodical man as he was, by 
 the light of a candle, which somehow seemed to be asleep 
 standing, to shave, and to comb and curl his wig as care- 
 fully, and as well too, as if all his conveniences had been 
 at hand. Lastly, having completed his toilet, all except 
 his coat, which was ready to slip on in case of need, he 
 wound up his watch, looked out at the sky, saw that 
 there was not yet the least trace of sunrise, put on his 
 8 
 
114 ^^^ SNOW MAN. 
 
 dressing-gown, and, opening the two intern.ediate doors, 
 prepared to put things in order in his saloon, the bear- 
 room, intending to go to work there, quietly and comfort- 
 ably, until breakfast-time. 
 
 But as he approached the stove, holding up his hand 
 between his eyes and the flickering light of his candle, he 
 started to see a human figure lying down between the stove 
 and himself, the body sunk into the large arm-chair, the 
 head lying over backwards upon the stuffed back, and the 
 legs, thrust at a level with the body, into the large open- 
 ing for hot air just above the grate of the stove. 
 
 "Hallo! What a sleeping beauty!" exclaimed the 
 advocate ; "he has really a superb face !" and he stopped 
 to look at Cristiano, who was sleeping peacefully and pro- 
 foundly. "It is some young gentleman or other who has 
 run away to this old place from the noise and confusion 
 of the new chateau, as I did. Well, I hoped I should be 
 alone in this cursed hole, at any rate ; but, if I can't, I 
 must make up my mind to have company, I suppose. 
 Fortunately this young man looks agreeable. The poor 
 fellow must have been very careful, for he made not the 
 least noise, and did not hunt at all for any better bed than 
 that arm-chair, which must be breaking him in two across 
 the loins ! " 
 
 Then M. Goefle touched lightly the cheek of Cristiano, 
 who motioned as if driving off a fly, but did not wake up. 
 
 "He is warm enough, at any rate," said the lawyer 
 again. "That's a capital furred cloak — just like my 
 travelling-cloak ; why, it's exactly like it ! Where is 
 mine, by the way? Oh, I see ; he found it on the chair, 
 and just put it on. Faith, he was quite right. I should 
 have made him perfectly welcome to it ; indeed, I would 
 have given him the other bed in my room, and Master 
 Nils should have been obliging enough to sleep on the 
 Bofa. I am sorry the young man thought it necessary 
 to be so particular ! Really altogether too particular, I 
 must say ! A well-bred fellow, too, that's evident ; and 
 careful of his toilet, for he took his coat off when he went 
 to sleep ; that's a mark of a good, steady character. 
 Let's see what can be our young friend's profession : a 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 "5 
 
 black coat — quite like my own best dress-coat — so 
 very like it that it is mine, for there's my own hand- 
 kerchief perfumed with musk, and — ah ! he has been 
 using my invitation to the ball. And my white gloves ! 
 where are my white gloves ? On the floor ! — just where 
 they ought to be, too, for they are entirely spoiled. Ah, 
 ah, my fine fellow, you are not so ceremonious as I 
 thought ! indeed, I can venture to assert that you make 
 yourself very much at home. You lose your baggage, or 
 you don't take the trouble to unpack, and you help your- 
 self to whatever you think proper out of mine. Young 
 people play such tricks on one another, I know. I re- 
 member a certain ball at Christiania, where I danced all 
 night in poor Stangstadius's clothes, and he had to lie 
 abed until I came back — and all next day too, for I let 
 them carry me off. But nonsense ! we were young then. 
 At my age it will not do to allow that sort of fun — to 
 other people. Hallo, hallo, monsieur ! Wake up ! Give 
 me my breeches and silk stockings ! God pardon me, 
 what a quantity of stitches the young animal has started 
 in dancing ! And he won't even condescend to open his 
 eyes ! " 
 
 As he made these observations in rapid succession, M. 
 Goefle at last espied the clothes that Cristiano had laid off 
 the evening before, and which, overcome by sleep at his 
 return, he had left upon another chair. The threadbare 
 trousers, the equally worn Venetian cloak, and the famous 
 corded Tyrolian hat, launched M. Goefle upon a new sea 
 of conjectures. Could this handsome young man, with 
 his distinguished face and well-shaped hands, be some 
 mere Bohemian, a bear-leader perhaps, a travelling ped- 
 ler, a wandering singer? An Italian singer, possibly? 
 No ; his face was unmistakably a Dalecarlian one. A 
 conjurer — perhaps a good deal too skilful in the line of 
 his profession ? No ; for M. Goefle found his purse all 
 safe in his trunk, and the sleeper's face was an extremely 
 honest one. He slept the sleep of innocence, too, most 
 assuredly. 
 
 Whai was to be supposed, and what was to be done ? 
 The lawyer scratched his head. Possibly this wretched 
 
Il6 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 costume was a disguise which the young man had as- 
 sumed to conceal himself while running about to play the 
 Don Juan under the balcony of some pretty visitor at the 
 new chateau. But finding none of his guesses satisfac- 
 tory, M. Goefle finally set to work in earnest to awaken 
 his visitor, shaking him repeatedly, and bawling into his 
 ear, "Here, here, hallo ! I say ! Come, neighbor, wake 
 up ! " and such other exclamations as impatient people 
 use for the benefit of obstinate sleepers. 
 
 Cristiano at last opened his eyes, looked fixedly at M. 
 Groefle without seeing him, and with a truly Olympian 
 calmness shut them again. 
 
 "Ah, there you go again," said the lawyer, "off to 
 dream-land ! " 
 
 "What is it? What's the matter? Does the aurora 
 borealis last yet?*' asked Cristiano, whose half sleep was 
 evidently cradled in pleasant dreams. 
 
 "Where can you get an aurora borealis at this time of 
 day?" asked M. Goefle ; "it's just before sunrise." 
 
 "The sun? What is the use of talking about the sun 
 m the middle of a ball?" asked Cristiano, in the coaxing 
 voice of a sleeper who is begging to be let alone. 
 
 " Yes, that's it ; the ball, my coat, the sun, my small- 
 clothes, the aurora borealis," replied M. Goefle, "all very 
 logical and well connected in your dreams, no doubt, my 
 good friend, but I want you to give a better account of 
 yourself, and I shall keep on shaking you until you can 
 make out a more satisfactory case than that." 
 
 Good-natured Cristiano submitted to tl;ie shaking with 
 incomparable meekness. , The habit he had acquired of 
 sleeping on the first board he came to, whether at sea in 
 all SDrts of weather or on the road in all sorts of vehi- 
 cles, rendered even the vigorous rocking which the lawyer 
 was bestowing upon him rather agreeable than other- 
 wise ; it was just sufiicient to make him pleasantly con- 
 scious that he was in a. state of repose. Gradually, 
 however, the idea made its way into his mind, of ascer- 
 taining what place he was in. He opened his eyes, looked 
 at the stove, turned about and gazed, as if to question the 
 sombre walls of the room. 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 117 
 
 "Deuce take me ! " he exclaimed, " if I kuow where 
 I am. But, after all, what difference does it make? 
 Here to-day, somewhere else to-morrow ! Such is life ! " 
 
 "Please to take the trouble, at least," said the lawyer, 
 " to observe in whose company you are." 
 
 Well satisfied with this dignified command, M. Goefle 
 waited for the surprise, or terror, or confusion, which 
 were to appear in the face of the delinquent, but in vain. 
 Cristiano rubbed his eyes, looked upon him with a smile, 
 and observed in the most affable manner : 
 
 "A very good face, yours, sir! What do you want 
 of me?" 
 
 "What do I want of you?" exclaimed M. Goefle, 
 with some indignation ; "I want my fur cloak, my cap, 
 my waistcoat, my shirt, my slippers ; — I want every- 
 thing of mine that you have clothed and ornamented 
 your lovely person with." 
 
 "Bah! bah! What makes you think so? You are 
 dreaming, my good man ! " said the adventurer, raising 
 himself to a sitting posture, and looking with astonish- 
 ment upon his borrowed wardrobe. Then, laughing, 
 as he began confusedly to remember the night's transac- 
 tions, he continued : 
 
 "Upon my word. Monsieur Goefle — it is that very 
 respectable and eminent gentleman to whom I have the 
 honor of speaking, is it not ? " 
 
 "I have every reason to believe so, monsieur. Well, 
 then? — " 
 
 "Well, then," replied Cristiano, rising promptly and 
 removing the doctor's cap from his own head, with per- 
 fect courtesy, "I have to beg a thousand pardons — 
 though at the same time I do not merit a single one. 
 Please to consider, sir — I am a young man, and just at 
 this moment quite destitute. A romantic notion led me to 
 the ball last night, and I found no decent clothes within 
 my reach except these, which Providence seemed to have 
 sent on purpose. I am perfectly cleanly, and in per- 
 fect health ; and moreover, if you should object to wear 
 the clothes after me, I shall be able to-morrow to pay 
 
Ii8 THE SNOW MAN, 
 
 you for them, whatever price you choose to value 
 them at." 
 
 "A good joke that would be ! Do you take me for a 
 tailor ? " 
 
 ••'By no means; but I should be extremely pained to 
 be thought a thief. That is not my character at all." 
 
 "Faith, I see that you are an honest young fellow — 
 but you are very thoughtless Still, even if I were 
 inclined to be angry, the thing is done, and can't be 
 helped. I see very well that your health is good, for, by 
 Jove, you have a magnificent color ! And what hair ! 
 Ah, my fine fellow, I recognize the perfume of my hair- 
 powder ! But how the devil did you get into the ball- 
 room without an 'invitation ? for your style of travelling- 
 dress does not indicate — " 
 
 "That I belong in good society, you were going to 
 say ? Oh, say so ! I am not all susceptible on that 
 point." 
 
 " But, after all, I don't know anything about it. The 
 clothes don't make the man. You have a very aris- 
 tocratic hand. Come — out with it ! Who are you ? If 
 there's a romance, I'm fond of romantic stories ; and if 
 there's a secret — well, your face pleases me, and I 
 promise to be as discreet — as discreet as a lawyer — 
 more could not be said." 
 
 "I do not doubt your discretion. Monsieur Goefle," 
 said Cristiano, " and besides, I have no secrets that 
 I need hesitate to reveal to a man of sense and cliar- 
 acter ; but I give you notice that my story is rather 
 long, and the stove is almost entirely cold. And to. tell 
 you the truth, although I had a very good supper last 
 night, my appetite always wakes up as soon as I do ; 
 and I already feel some twinges." 
 
 "How do you suppose I feel, then?" said the lawyer ; 
 "for I am always in the habit of taking my tea in bed, as 
 soon as I wake. That blockhead of an Ulphilas has 
 abandoned me altogether. There are the very same 
 dishes on the table that were there last night." 
 
 "Thanks to me, then, Monsieur Goefle; for I recog* 
 
THE SNOW MAN, 119 
 
 nize the same ham and fish that I purloined out v^f the 
 kitchen of your friend M. Ulph — what is his name?" 
 
 "Ulph; for Ulphilas. Yes, that is quite correct. 
 Hereabouts, they abridge all names. They make mono- 
 syllables of them all, apparently for fear that otherwise, 
 when they called anybody, half of his name should 
 freeze in the air. If I am indebted to you for my 
 supper, then, I must conclude that this said Ulph would 
 have let me perish of hunger — he! he! — in this very 
 room, about which there is already one story of the kind. 
 Perhaps the rascal meant to leave me to the same fate, 
 so as to make sure that the room should deserve its rep- 
 utation." 
 
 "Is it the Baroness Hilda who starved to death here, 
 Monsieur Goefle ? " 
 
 "Ah, you have heard of it, then? It is only a story, 
 thank God ! Let us think about our breakfast. I will 
 call some one." 
 
 " No, Monsieur Goefle. Ulph will certainly come im- 
 mediately. Besides, if you want anything more, let me 
 go and get it. There's nothing like choosing your own 
 bill of fare ; but this bear's ham, or boar's ham, this 
 smoked tongue and roast game, which you hardly be- 
 gan on last night — don't they appeal to you any longer 
 this morning ? " 
 
 "Of course they do — of course; and there's more 
 here now than we two can eat. Well, as the table is 
 set, shall we take breakfast, hey ? " 
 
 ".That will suit me exactly ; but allow me to step into 
 a corner and make my toilette — or rather to unmake it, 
 for I am still— " 
 
 "In my clothes? I see that well enough. Well, as 
 you are in them, stay there. Only, take the pelisse off 
 and put the coat on, or you will be smothered while you 
 are eating." 
 
 Cristiano first refurnished the stove with fuel, and 
 lighted it. Then, having washed his hands and face 
 with much care and neatness in a corner of the room, 
 he took his place, and began to carve the cold meats in a 
 style that showed him to be a master of the art. 
 
I20 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 "It's curious," remarked M. Goefle ; "you have what 
 they would call in France the manner of a perfect gen- 
 tleman, and yet that old coat of yours there — " 
 
 "Indicates misfortune, and not poverty," answered the 
 adventurer, quietly. "Eight days ago I was very de- 
 cently equipped, and could have appeared at the ball 
 without any embarrassment." 
 
 "Very possibly," said M. Goefle, seating himself, and 
 beginning to make good use of his handsome teeth ; 
 "just as it is quite possible that you are getting ready for 
 one more of those romances that travelling adventurers 
 excel in. It is all the same to me, if it is amusing." 
 
 "Come," said Cristiano, laughing, "in what lan- 
 guage shall I recite my tale ? " 
 
 " Faith, in Swedish, as that is your own language. 
 You are a Swede, and a Dalecarlian too ; I see that 
 plainly enough, by your face." 
 
 "But I am not Swedish, though ; Icelandic, rather." 
 
 "Rather? are you not sure? " 
 
 "Not the least in the world. Therefore, as Latin is 
 the universal language, if you please — " 
 
 And Cristiano continued in elegant and correct Latin, 
 speaking it with the greatest facility. 
 
 "Very well done, indeed!" said the advocate, who 
 had listened kindly and attentively ; " but your Ital- 
 ian pronunciation hinders me a little in following your 
 Latin." 
 
 " Probably there would be the same difficulty in Greek 
 and German," suggested Cristiano, changing first to the 
 dead, and then to the living, language, with equal 'ease 
 and correctness, and interspersing with his discourse 
 quotations enough to prove that he was versed in both 
 ancient and modern literature. 
 
 " Bravo ! " cried the doctor ; " you are a highly edu- 
 cated young fellow, I see. And French — do you know 
 that also ? " 
 
 "French and English, at your service," said Cristiano. 
 " I was taught them all ; and my own preference led me 
 to the study of languages." 
 
 " Well, then, speak French," said M. Goefle, who was 
 
THR SNOW MAN, 1 31 
 
 hardly less of a polyglot than Cristiano. " I love Italy, 
 but I adore France. She is our ally, useful or not ; and, 
 above all, she is the antagonist of Russia, which I hold 
 in execration." 
 
 " Great heavens ! so do I. I am anti-Russian ever 
 since I came into Sweden ; and especially since last even- 
 ing. But now, doctor, permit me to beg you not to take 
 me for a pedant. The reason that I ventured to display 
 my poor acquirements before a Professor of the Faculty 
 of Lund is, that when you saw me carving that ham rather 
 skilfully, you asked, in your own mind, whether I was not 
 an ex-steward or butler from a good family, discharged 
 in disgrace, and on the lookout for victims." 
 
 " There now ! Did you really guess that that idea 
 was passing through my mind ? Well, I confess it ; and 
 I see now that if you have been employed in good families, 
 it has by no means been in a lackey's place." 
 
 "Oh, Mon Dieu^ monsieur!" answered Cristiano; 
 " lackey or professor, it is very much the same thing 
 with some people, except the difference of a grade more 
 or less." 
 
 "Oh no! not in Sweden, my friend; the devil! no 
 indeed ; not here." 
 
 " I know it, monsieur. Your people are fond of pro- 
 found studies, and the promotion of knowledge is nowhere 
 more nobly encouraged ; but in other countries it often 
 happens — " 
 
 Here Cristiano was interrupted by the entrance of 
 Ulphilas with breakfast. Seeing the table already set, he 
 halted in stupid astonishment. 
 
 " You see, blockhead," cried M. Goefle, gayly, guessing 
 the reason of his surprise, " my kobold has waited on 
 me in your place ; and it's well for me he did, for you 
 have left me entirely alone this twelve hours." 
 
 Ulph, or Ulf — for there is sufficient authority for 
 either form of the word — tried to excuse himself; 
 but the consolation which he had sought in the bottle the 
 evening before had entirely obscured his faculties, and he 
 found it very hard to give any reasons for his neglect. 
 As a general thing, Ulph became comfortable enough in 
 
122 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 his mind by daybreak, and for the five hours or there- 
 abouts following the late sunrise of winter, he was no 
 more cowardly or awkward than other people. His ex- 
 cessive libations had, no doubt, an effect upon his dull 
 brains at all times ; but as he could nevertheless perform 
 his domestic duties with the proper mechanical regular- 
 ity, this was neither troublesome to others nor disquieting 
 to himself. On the present occasion, he stammered, in 
 the Dalecarlian dialect, some words of stupid surprise at 
 seeing the dishes displayed upon the table, and an un- 
 known individual seated with the doctor. 
 
 " Come," said the doctor, ^' wait upon this gentleman 
 as you do upon myself. He is a friend of mine whom 
 I have accommodated in my lodging." 
 
 " Yes, sir," said Ulph, " I have nothing to say against 
 that ; but the thing is that the horse — " 
 
 " Horse yourself! " exclaimed Cristiano, who had al- 
 ready picked up somewhere a few words of Dalecarlian, 
 and who saw himself threatened by a terrible revelation. 
 
 " Yes, sir, horse myself," replied Ulph, with resigna- 
 tion. " But the sleigh — " 
 
 "What about the sleigh?" said the doctor; "have 
 you cleaned it ? Have you rubbed down my horse ? " 
 
 The word liorse again striking Cristiano's ear, he 
 turned towards Ulph, and looked at him, aside, with such 
 a terrific expression, that the poor stupefied fellow, quite 
 losing his self-command, stammered in reply : 
 
 " Yes, yes, sir ; horse, sleigh. It's all right." 
 
 " Very well, then, go on with the breakfast," said the 
 doctor, reassured. " Give us the tobacco, Ulph, and let 
 the tea-kettle alone. We will make the tea for our- 
 selves." 
 
 As Ulph accordingly turned to the stove to set down the 
 tea-kettle, Cristiano stepped after him, as if to superin- 
 tend the operation, and turning towards him, said in his 
 ear, in Dalecarlian, and with another terrifying glance : 
 
 " Horse, sleigh, new chateau — quick ! " 
 
 Upon this Ulph took it into his head that in his drunk- 
 enness he must have received some orders which he had 
 not executed ; so he hurried off, put on bis skates, and 
 
T?IE SNOW MAN. 
 
 123 
 
 went over to the new chateau to look for Loki through 
 the noisy stables, overcrowded with grooms and horses. 
 
 Our doctor of laws did not eat so gluttonously as the 
 doctor of sciences, Stangstadius. He took his time, and 
 savored and passed judgment upon every dish, accord- 
 ing to the great principles which govern the application 
 of the culinary art to the lofty needs of the choicer class 
 of stomachs. At the end of a further half hour of con- 
 versation, with experiments, on the subject, he and Cris- 
 tiano, as they looked at each other, perceived each a rosy 
 reflection upon the other's face. 
 
 '^ There it is at last ! " said the doctor ; " the sun is just 
 coming above the horizon." 
 
 He looked at his watch. 
 
 "A quarter before ten," he observed. "Come, this 
 Mora watch does very well. See, this is of home man- 
 ufacture. Our Dalecarlians make everything. They 
 make all their own tools, from the simplest to the most 
 complicated. But don't put out the candle, it will be 
 convenient while we are smoking; and besides, in the 
 winter, I like to watch the doubtful, fantastic mingling 
 of the sunlight and the artificial light struggling together 
 in the room. Why, the clock's striking ! You wound 
 it up last evening, then ? " 
 
 " Certainly. Did you not observe it?" 
 
 " I did not observe anything. I was sleeping while 
 standing up, or else I was dreaming. Perhaps it is only 
 a dream that I came in here and took supper. No 
 matter. Can you make tea ? " 
 
 " No ; but coffee to perfection." 
 
 " Very well, make some. I will take charge of the 
 tea." 
 
 " Are you fond of such an insipid, melancholy drink?'* 
 
 "Yes, — diluted with a full third of brandy or old 
 rum." 
 
 " Ah, that makes a difference ! Doctor, I am sur- 
 prised at finding here a table as well spread as if at Paris 
 or London." 
 
 " Well, why not? Are we at the end of the world? 
 
124 
 
 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 It is only six hours' sail to Prussia, where they live just 
 as they do in Paris." 
 
 " Yes ; but off at the furthest end of this province, sixty 
 or seventy leagues away inland , and in so poor a country — " 
 
 " So poor ! Do you think a country must be poor 
 because it is not well adapted to tillage ? You forget that, 
 amongst us, wealth lies under the ground, not above it ; 
 and that the mines of Dalecarlia are the very treasury of 
 Sweden. You have noticed that this region, bordering 
 on Norway, is thinly peopled, and you have concluded 
 that it would not support a larger population. Let me tell 
 you that if the government only knew how to develop its 
 resources, and had the power to do so, our mineral wealth 
 would afford the means of increasing a hundredfold our 
 prosperity, and the number of our inhabitants. One day, 
 things will go better with us, if we can only escape, on 
 the one hand, from the claws of England, whose intrigues 
 oppress us, and, on the other, from the pincers of Russia, 
 who paralyzes us with her threats. In the meanwhile, 
 my son, understand that if there are poor people amongst 
 us, it is not the fault of this good land of God's, so much 
 calumniated by the ignorance, indifference, or false no- 
 tions of the men who inhabit it. People here complain 
 of the severity of the winter and the hardness of the 
 rocks. But there is a warm heart down underneath in 
 the earth ! Dig down anywhere, yes, I guarantee you, 
 anywhere, and you will come upon some of the innu- 
 merable veins of valuable metals that ramify through- 
 out beneath our feet. With those metals we can buy 
 all the rarities, all the luxuries, all the productions of 
 Europe, if we only have arms enough to lift the wealth 
 to the surface of the ground. "We complain of the earth, 
 when it is men who are wanting. It is she who ought to 
 complain of us, rather ! " 
 
 " God forbid that I should speak ill of Sweden, my 
 dear Monsieur Goefle ! I only say that there are great 
 areas of land lying uncultivated and waste, and that what 
 few inhabitants there are, are so frugal that the traveller 
 can find nothing at all to eat except gruel and milk ; — 
 healthful food, no doubt, but not much calculated to stim- 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 '25 
 
 nlate the imagination or to give energy to the char* 
 acter." 
 
 " There you completely deceive yourself again, my dear 
 fellow ! This region may be called the very head and 
 heart of Sweden ; an enthusiastic head, full of strange 
 poetry, and sublime or graceful imaginations ; an ardent 
 and generous heart, where the main artery of patriotism 
 is throbbing. Are you familiar with its history ? " 
 
 " Yes indeed ! Gustavus Vasa, Gustavus Adolphus, 
 Charles XII., all the Swedish heroes, have always found 
 men in the heart of these mountains, though all the rest 
 of the nation might be enslaved or corrupted. It is this 
 glorious nook of the earth, this Switzerland of the north, 
 that in every great crisis has supplied loyalty, energy, and 
 salvation to the country." 
 
 " Very well said ! Well then, admit that the national 
 gruel and barren and icy rocks may bring forth and train up 
 poets and heroes ! " 
 
 As he said this, the doctor of laws drew his soft wadded 
 dressing-gown around him, and poured into his boiling 
 hot and well-sweetened cup of tea, a half-glass of the best 
 quality of rum. Cristiano was enjoying the flavor of 
 an exquisite cup of Mocha, and they both burst out laugh- 
 ing at their enthusiasm for the cold of the mountains and 
 the gruel of hovels. 
 
 " Ah ! " said M. Goefle, becoming serious again, " the 
 fact is, we are degenerate men. We must have our 
 stimulants and tonics nowadays. That proves that the 
 most accomplished or the most famous of us all is inferior 
 to the lowest peasant of these savage mountains. But 
 will no: that animal of an Ulphilas bring us any tobacco? 
 That fellow is a perfect brute ! " 
 
 Cristiano laughed again, and M. Goefle, perceiving the 
 inconsistency of eulogizing sobriety and equality just at 
 that moment, allowed himself to be appeased, especially 
 when he espied the tobacco-jar at his elbow. Ulpli had 
 brought it, with his usual mechanical precision, and had 
 omitted to say so, from his utter lack of spontaneity. 
 
 " Well, come," said M. Goefle — extending himself in 
 the arm-chair for more commodious digestion, and smoking 
 
126 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 a magnificent Turkish pipe, whose bowl he rested upon 
 a projection of the stove, while Cristiano, sometimes 
 standing, sometimes sitting, sometimes astride his chair, 
 smoked his short travelling-pipe with more speed and less 
 tranquillity — " come, my problematic comrade, tell me 
 this true history of yours, if you can." 
 
 "Here it is, then," said Cristiano. " My name is — 
 or at least I go by the name of Cristiano del Lago ! " 
 
 " Chretien du Lac ? Christian of the Lake ? Why so 
 romantic a name ? " 
 
 " Ah, there you have me ! Glii lo sa f Who knows? 
 as they say in my country. It is altogether a romance, 
 no doubt, without a word of truth in it. I will tell it to 
 you as it was told to me. 
 
 "In some country — I don't know what — by the side 
 of a lake whose name I have never known, a lady — ugly 
 or handsome, rich or poor, noble or plebeian — either in 
 consequence of a legitimate connection or of an unfortu- 
 nate mischance — gave birth to an infant whose existence, 
 it seems, it was very necessary to conceal. By means 
 of a cord and a basket — these details were told me with 
 much precision — this lady, or her confidential companion, 
 lowered the poor little new-born child into a boat, waiting 
 below either by chance, or in pursuance of some arrange- 
 ment made secretly. As to the lady, I have never met 
 any one who could inform me what became of her ; and 
 where should I have made inquiries ? As to the child, it 
 was carried away secretly, I do not know whither, and 
 maintained, I do not know how, until old enough to be 
 weaned, when it was carried away again, I don't know 
 by whom, into another country — " 
 
 " I don't know what ! " said M. Goefle, laughing. 
 " Your statements are a little vague. I should be a good 
 deal troubled with such evidence, to gain your cause." 
 
 " My cause ? " 
 
 " Yes ; I am supposing that you are going to law 
 to recover your name, your rights, your inheritance." 
 
 " Oh, make yourself easy about that, Monsieur Goefle," 
 replied Cristiano ; " you will never have a cause to plead 
 for me. I have none of the ordinary foolishness of adveu* 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 127 
 
 turers of mysterious birth, who assume, at the very 
 least, to be the sons of kings, and who spend their 
 whole lives in hunting all over the world for their illustrious 
 relatives, without remembering that they, most probably, 
 would find it more inconvenient than agreeable to be rec- 
 ognized. For my part, if I happen to be of a noble family 
 I don't know it, and I don't trouble myself about it. My 
 adopted parents entertained this same indifference, or 
 rather they inspired me with it." 
 
 "And who were your adopted parents?" 
 
 " I have never known, and I have no recollection who 
 the persons were who received me from the window into 
 the boat, who kept me at nurse, and who carried me into 
 Italy. They may all have been of the same family — 
 perhaps it was one and the same person — I can't tell any- 
 thing at all about it. My only real adopted parents were 
 Signor Goffredi, an antiquary and professor of ancient 
 history at Perugia, and his excellent wife, Sophia Goffredi, 
 whom I loved like a mother." 
 
 "But where and from whom did these good people 
 receive you ? They must have told you — " 
 
 "They never knew. They. had a small fortune, and 
 liaving no children, they had several times shown a de- 
 sire to adopt some poor orphan. One evening, in carni- 
 val time, a man in a mask presented himself to them, 
 and took from under his cloak the individual who now 
 has the honor to address you, but who has not the least 
 recollection in the world of the occurrence, and could 
 give no explanation of it at the time ; inasmuch as he 
 then spoke a language that nobody could understand." 
 
 "But," interrupted the advocate, who was listening to 
 this story with the same attention that he would have 
 bestowed upon the progress of a cause in court, " what 
 was the tenor of the words used by the masked person 
 who presented you to Professor Goffredi and his wife?" 
 
 " Here they are, as they were repeated to me : ' I 
 come from a distance — a great distance. I am poor, 
 and have been obliged to spend part of the money given 
 me with this child, in travelling. I thought myself 
 bound to do this, for I had been ordered to carry him 
 
128 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 far away, very far, from his and my own country. 
 Here is the rest of the money. I have heard that you 
 were looking for a child to adopt, and I know you will 
 bring him up happy and well-educated. Will you re- 
 ceive this poor orphan?* " 
 
 "The professor did receive it?" 
 
 "He accepted the child and refused the money. 'If 
 I want a child to bring up,' he said, ' it is my duty 
 to provide for him ; not his for me ! ' " 
 
 " And had he not curiosity enough to inform himself — ?" 
 
 "He could obtain no information except on one point 
 — whether or no the child was likely to be re- 
 claimed. He wanted to feel that it was wholly his ; 
 for he did not wish to become attached to the little 
 creature, and then some day or other have it taken 
 away. The unknown swore to him that no one would 
 ever reclaim me; 'and,' he added, 'the proof is that 
 I have brought him more than five hundred leagues, 
 for the express purpose of causing every trace of him 
 to be lost. The child,' he continued, 'would be in 
 the utmost danger, even here, if his whereabouts should 
 be discovered. Ask me no questions, therefore, I shall 
 not answer them ! ' And he insisted upon leaving with 
 them the small sum in question, which amounted to two 
 or three hundred sequins." 
 
 " Italian money?" 
 
 "Foreign gold coins of various countries, as if the 
 unknown had crossed the whole of Europe, and had 
 taken pains to convert his money into all sorts of pieces, 
 so as to disappoint search or supposition. 
 
 " The Goffredis reminded him that he was poor ; he had 
 said so, and his whole appearance showed it. It was 
 only just, they thought, that he should be rewarded for 
 taking such a long journey, and fulfilling so faithfully his 
 orders about my removal. These offers he refused 
 with obstinacy, and austerely. He departed very ab- 
 ruptly, saying, to prevent further questions, that he 
 would return next day. He did not returu, however ; 
 nothing further was ever heard of him; and so I re- 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 129 
 
 mained intrusted, or, more properly, abandoned, thank 
 God, to the care of M. and Madame Goffredi." 
 
 ''But the history of the lake, the window and the 
 boat" — where the deuce did you get that?" 
 
 '' Wait a moment. When I was five or six years old — 
 I was apparently three or four when I made my entry 
 into Perugia under the cloak of the man in the mask — 
 I had a fall, and was for a time thought to be dead. It 
 was not very serious, after all. But among the friends 
 of my adopted family who came to inquire after me, 
 there slipped in a little Jew, whether baptized or not I 
 do not know, who lived in Perugia, and traded with vis- 
 itors, in objects of art and antiquity. My parents dis- 
 liked him because he was a Jew ; for in Italy, as here, 
 a strong prejudice prevails against that people. This 
 Jew inquired about me anxiously, and even insisted on 
 seeing me, so as to be satisfied as to my condition. 
 
 " A year afterwards, we spent the summer in the country, 
 and on our return to the city, he came again to obtain fur- 
 ther information about me, and to see with his own eyes 
 whether I had grown, and was well. My parents were ex- 
 tremely surprised at this, and insisted on knowing why he 
 took so much interest in me. They threatened to exclude 
 him from the house unless he gave a satisfactory account of 
 the matter ; for they were already fond of me, and were 
 afraid that this Jew might mean to carry me off. Upon 
 this he confessed, or pretended, that he had chanced to 
 receive at his house the man in the mask, on the day of 
 his arrival in the city, and had extracted certain confi- 
 dential disclosures from him about me. These disclo- 
 sures, vague, improbable, and utterly useless, were' the 
 statements with which I began ray story. Probably 
 they are not entitled to any credit whatever. My adop- 
 tive mother paid very little attention to them, but 
 thinking the adventure somewhat romantic, she gave 
 me the surname of del Lago, which I have for a long 
 time used as my real name." 
 
 •'But the baptismal name. Christian, Christin, Chris- 
 tiern, Chretien, Cristiano, who gave you that?" 
 
 " The man in the mask, without adding any other," 
 9 
 
130 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 '*Did this man speak Italian?" 
 
 "Very imperfectly. His difficulty in explaining him« 
 self added not a little to the mystery about me." 
 
 "But what sort of accent had he?" 
 
 "Professor Goffredi had occupied himself with the 
 dead languages only. His wife, like himself a highly 
 educated person, knew a good deal about living lan- 
 guages, but she found it impossible to decide to what 
 nationality this man's accent belonged." 
 
 "And the little Jew, what did he think?" 
 
 "If he had any opinion about it, he never thought 
 proper to tell it." 
 
 "Were your parents quite sure he was not himself the 
 man in the mask ? " 
 
 "Quite certain. The man in the mask was of middle 
 size, while the Jew was not five feet high. Nor had 
 their voices or accents anything of similarity. I see. 
 Monsieur Goefle, that, like my poor friends the Goffre- 
 dis, you are asking yourself all sorts of questions 
 about me ; but what difference would it make, let me 
 ask you, even if you could answer them ? " 
 
 "Very true; what difference would it make?" an- 
 swered M. Goefle. "Perhaps you may not be worth the 
 pains I have been taking this hour past to put you in the 
 way of discovering your family. It is from a profes- 
 sional habit of mind : let us say no more about it ; par- 
 ticularly as in all that you have told me there is not a 
 single definite fact to serve as the basis for framing inge- 
 nious and learned deductions. Wait, however ; — what 
 was done with the money of the man in the mask^? " 
 
 " My good parents, imagining that it may have been 
 the hire of a kidnapper, or the reward of some other 
 crime, and believing, therefore, that it could not bring me 
 good fortune, hastened to deposit it in the box for the 
 poor in the cathedral of Perugia." 
 
 "But you mentioned that you yourself spoke some 
 language when you were brought there." 
 
 " Certainly ; but I quickly forgot it, as there was no 
 one for me to talk to in it. I only know that a German 
 philologist, who was visiting us next year, tried to un- 
 
THE SNOW MAN, 
 
 131 
 
 ravel the mystery, at which time I had a good deal of 
 trouble to remember a few words of this old language of 
 mine. The linguist said it was a northern dialect, and 
 somewhat like Icelandic ; but my black hair seemed in 
 a measure to invalidate that conclusion. The attempt 
 to discover the facts was given up. My adoptive mother 
 wished to make me forget all about any other country 
 or family. You may easily suppose she had little diffi- 
 culty in accomplishing her object." 
 
 " One question more," said M. Goefle. " I cannot feel 
 thoroughly interested in a story until I am well possessed 
 of the beginning of it. These recollections, that faded of 
 themselves so naturally, and which your friends tried, 
 moreover, to help you lose — does there remain abso- 
 lutely nothing of them?" 
 
 "There is somethinj^ but so vatnie that I cannot tell 
 whether it is not merely a dream. It is a recollection of 
 a strange, wild country, even grander in its features than 
 this around me." 
 
 " A cold country ? " 
 
 •' That I do not know. Children seldom feel the cold, 
 and I was never very sensitive to it." 
 
 *' "What else was there in your dream ? Sunshine ? snow ? " 
 
 "I don't know. Tall trees, herds of cows, I think." 
 
 " Tall trees — that is not Iceland. And what do you 
 remember of the journey to Italy? " 
 
 " Absolutely nothing. I believe my companion, or 
 companions, were strangers to me when we set out." 
 
 " Well, go on with your story." 
 
 " That is, I will begin it. Monsieur Goefle ; for, so far, 
 I have only been telling you the mysterious circumstan- 
 ces with which, as the poets say, my cradle was sur- 
 rounded. I will begin with the first clearly-defined 
 recollection in my mind. This is — pray do not be scan- 
 dalized — an ass." 
 
 "An ass? A quadruped or a biped? " 
 
 '* A real ass with four legs ; a flesh-and-blood ass. He 
 was the favorite animal of Sophia GofFredi for riding, 
 and was called Nino^ the diminutive of Giovanni. I was 
 80 fond of him, that I have called the one I now use to 
 
132 
 
 THE SNOW MAN, 
 
 carry my baggage by the name of Jean, in remembrance 
 of him who was the joy of my early childhood." 
 
 "Ah, you have an ass? It must have been he who 
 visited me last evening." 
 
 "And it was you who had him put in the stable?" 
 
 "Exactly. You seem to love asses." 
 
 "Fraternally. Indeed, I have been thinking for a 
 quarter of an hour that mine has, perhaps, not had his 
 breakfast. Ulph will be afraid of him. Perhaps he has 
 driven him out of the chateau. The poor fellow may be 
 wandering about in the ice and snow at this very moment, 
 awakening the insensible echoes with his plaintive voice. 
 I beg pardon. Monsieur Goefle, but I must leave you for 
 a moment and look after my ass." 
 
 " You are a queer fellow," said M. Goefle. " Well, 
 be quick, and give an eye to my horse at the same time. 
 He's worth more than your ass — no offence to you. But 
 are you going out to the stable in my dress-coat and silk 
 stockings ? " 
 
 "I shall be back in a moment." 
 
 " No, no, my boy, that won't do at all. Besides, you 
 will catch cold. Take my furred boots and pelisse, and 
 be quick ! " 
 
 Cristiano thankfully obeyed, and found Jean in very 
 good case, coughing less than on the day before, and eat- 
 ing contentedly in company with Loki, whom Ulph had 
 brought back from the new chateau. 
 
 Ulph was looking at the ass in stupid wonderment. He 
 was beginning to recover a little from his drunkenness, 
 and to suspect that it was not a horse that he had so 
 quietly groomed in the morning. Cristiano, who had 
 learned on the previous evening, while hunting after his 
 supper, what a superstitious poltroon he had to deal with, 
 addressed him at once in Italian, accompanying his re- 
 marks with fierce looks and absurd and terrifying gestures. 
 In this fantastic style, he ordered the poor fellow to res- 
 pect the ass like a mythological divinity, and threatened 
 him with the most fearful punishment in case of dis- 
 obedience. Ulph, in a great fright, retired in silence, after 
 saluting both the ass and his master, his brain full of 
 
THE SNOW MAN, 133 
 
 indistinct notions that he could not carry forward to any 
 intelligible conclusion, but wliich the spirituous indulgences 
 of the coming evening would be sure to develop into new 
 alarms and imaginations more and more strange. 
 
 " Very well," continued Cristiano, returning and re- 
 suming his pipe, his story, and his position astride of 
 a chair, in the bear-room ; " Madame GoiFredrs ass 
 was my first friend. I believe no donkey in the world, 
 not even my own, ever had such beautiful ears and 
 such an agreeable gait. Perhaps, Monsieur Goefle, 
 the reason I think so is, that the first time that quiet 
 pace and those two long ears attracted the attention of 
 my poor little undeveloped mind, I was at the same 
 moment instinctively impressed by one of the most beau- 
 tiful sights in the universe. It was on the shore of a 
 lake. Lakes, you see, play an important part in my life. 
 But what a lake this was ! The lake of Perugia — the 
 ancient lake Thrasyraene ! Were you never in Italy, 
 Monsieur Goefle? " 
 
 " No, very much to my regret. But as to lakes, we 
 have some here in Sweden that would make your Italian 
 ones look like wash-basins.*'. 
 
 " I have nothing to say against your lakes. I have al- 
 ready seen a number of them. Very likely they are beau- 
 tiful in summer, and even in winter, with their mjelgars — 
 is not that the name of those immense avalanches of 
 earth that slide down to the water's edge with their green 
 trees standing, their rocks and strange fractures? — I ad- 
 mit that they are very remarkable. The hoar-frost and 
 i'^e that cover so many strange forms, and make a wreath 
 of diamonds out of the smallest blade of grass ; these 
 inextricable net-works of brambles that might be taken 
 for immense and elaborate pieces of work in cut-glass ; 
 the glorious red sunlight over it all ; the jagged peaks 
 above, glittering like shafts of sapphire against the pur- 
 ple of the morning — yes, I confess the grandeur of all 
 this scenery. Even what I can see out of this window 
 is a picture which dazzles me. Dazzles : that is the 
 word ; and that is really the only criticism I have to offer 
 upon it. It excites me — carries me beyond myself. En-» 
 
^J^34 
 
 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 thusiasm is good, no doubt ; but is there nothing else in 
 life? Has not man an immense need for repose, for con- 
 templation, without any sense of effort ; for that sort of 
 soft, delicious reverj that we call far niente f Well, it is 
 down in the south, at such a place as lake Thrasymene, 
 that one feels a glorious consciousness of mere vegetating. 
 It was there that I grew up in perfect quiet, without any 
 violent changes ; a poor little weed, transplanted, from 
 some unknown region, to those shores, blessed by the sun- 
 shine, shaded by the ancient faint-hued olive-trees, and, 
 as it were, bathed always in warm fluid gold. 
 
 " We had — it is a sad we — a little country-house, or 
 villetta^ on a small stream called the Sanguineto, or Bloody 
 Brook ; in memory, it is said, of the blood that once ran 
 down its bed from the field of the famous battle of Thras- 
 ymene. Here we passed all the pleasant summer weather 
 in a delicious rural paradise. There were no more corpses 
 in the stream ; the waters of the Sanguineto were as clear 
 as crystal. However, my dear adoptive father used to be 
 absorbed by his quaint occupation of searching for bones, 
 medals, and remains of armor, of which great quantities 
 are still found among the grass and flowers along the 
 shore of the lake. His wife, who adored him — and with 
 good reason — always accompanied him ; and I, by this 
 time a great careless boy, whom also, in their loviag 
 kindness, they adored — I used to roll about on the warm 
 sand, or ride dreaming along on my dear mother's lap, 
 rocked by Nino's even pace. 
 
 " Gradually I came to perceive and understand the 
 splendor of the days and nights in that lovely country. 
 The lake is immense. Not that it covers so much space 
 as even the smallest of yours, but grandeur is not the 
 same as dimension. The curves of its outlines are so 
 grand, and its atmosphere is so soft, that its luminous dis- 
 tances give an impression of infinity. I cannot remem- 
 ber, without emotion, certain sunrises and sunsets that I 
 have seen there, over that broad mirror, filled w^ith reflec- 
 tions of headlands crowded with tall, thick trees, and of 
 distant islets, showing as white as alabaster among the 
 rosy waves. And at night, what myriads of stars himg 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 135 
 
 quivering in the tranquil water ! How lovely were the 
 mists that climbed the silvery slopes, and how mysterious 
 the harmonies that seemed to creep unobtrusively along 
 the shores, with the slight ebb and flow of that great mass 
 of waters that seemed afraid of disturbing the sleep of the 
 flowers ! With you, you must confess, Monsieur Goefle, 
 that nature is violent, even in its winter's repose. In 
 your mountains everything carries the marks of the per- 
 petual floods of your spring and autumn. But there, all 
 the terrestrial outlines are certain of preservation for a 
 long time, and every plant of maturing in the place where 
 it was born. In breathing such an air, we breathe in 
 with it some similar kindliness of instinct ; the eternal 
 happiness of nature diffuses itself in the soul without over- 
 powering or confounding it." 
 
 "You have a poetical vein in you, evidently," said M. 
 Goefle ; " but are not the people of that beautiful country 
 dirty, idle, and voluntarily wretched?" 
 
 " Poverty is always half the fault of the government 
 and half of the governed ; the blame is never all on one 
 side. I suppose that may be what prevents improvement. 
 But in such a pleasant climate, the poverty produced by 
 indolence finds an excuse in the sensuous pleasure of con- 
 templative existence. In my youth I felt keenly this in- 
 toxicating charm of the south, and I appreciated it all 
 the more because I felt also, from time to time, an excess 
 of feverish energy, as if I had really been born five 
 hundred leagues away, in those cold regions where mind 
 exerts more authority over matter." 
 
 " Then you were not altogether indolent yourself? " 
 
 " I believe I was not indolent at all, for my parents de- 
 sired me to become a learned man, and, out of affection 
 for them, I made great efforts to acquire knowledge. But 
 I felt much more inclined towards the natural sciences, 
 arts, and philosophy, than to the difficult and minute 
 researches of the learned M. Goff'redi. I thought his line of 
 study rather useless, and was quite unable to experience 
 such a delirium of joy as he felt when we had succeeded 
 in determining the purpose of some ancient landmark or 
 deciphering some Etruscan inscription. In other matters 
 
J 36 THE SNOW MAN, 
 
 he left me perfectly free to follow my own preferences, 
 and I lived with him in the pleasantest relations that it is 
 possible to imagine. Indulge me in a few details about 
 this period of my life, from infancy to youth — the time 
 when the faculties of my soul were awakening within me. 
 
 *' Perugia is a university city, a poetical place — one 
 of the old Italian centres of beauty and learning. It is 
 rich in antiquities and monuments of all periods ; it has 
 some fine libraries, an academy of fine arts, collections, 
 and so forth. The city itself is beautiful and picturesque ; 
 it includes more than a hundred churches and fifty monas- 
 teries, all rich in pictures, manuscripts, etc. The Piazza 
 del Duomo is a remarkable place, having on one side a 
 rich Gothic cathedral, a fountain by Giovanni de Pisa, 
 a chef-d'oeuvre, and other monuments of different ages, 
 and on the other a great palace in the Venetian style. 
 This is a proud and strange relic of the thirteenth or four- 
 teenth century, of a sombre red, finished with black orna- 
 ments in iron, and with its doors and windows pierced with 
 that fantastic irregularity of design which has gone so en- 
 tirely out of vogue since the introduction of the correct 
 lines and pure taste introduced by the renaissance. 
 
 "I felt a passionate admiration for what I may call 
 the dramatic physiognomy of this old palace, though M. 
 Goffredi despised it as belonging to a period of barbarism. 
 He admired only the antique, and such modern periods as 
 are inspired by the antique. For my part, I plainly confess 
 that all these masterpieces of exactly the same school, an- 
 cient and modern, sometimes tried very severely my power 
 of admiring. This predetermined preference of the Ital- 
 ians for always going over that same old ground again, and 
 their obstinate neglect of exactly the period when the na- 
 tional character was most freely expressing itself, between 
 the absolutism of the emperors and that of the popes, had 
 become so consecrated by public opinion, that you will 
 pass there for a Vandal if you allow yourself to use any 
 other than the recognized standards of excellence.* 
 
 * This is still true, in a great measure. During the last, and in 
 the beginning of this century, the works of the middle ages were 
 regarded with general contempt. 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 137 
 
 "I was natural and spontaneous in my character, and 
 accordingly I was often reproved in consequence of my 
 love for what was indiscriminately called ' The Gothic' — 
 that is, everything not pertaining to the ages of Pericles, 
 Augustus, or Raphael. It was with some effort, indeed, 
 that my adoptive father could bring himself to admire the 
 last of these three. His only enthusiasm was for the 
 ruins of Rome ; and when he took me thither he was sur- 
 prised and scandalized to hear me say that I saw nothing 
 there to make me forget the royal imaginativeness and 
 effective grouping of our own Piazza del Duomo, with its 
 great red and black palace, its assemblage of varied splen- 
 dors, and its narrow, crooked streets, that suddenly plunge 
 under gloomy arcades, with a sort of air of tragic 
 mystery. 
 
 '' I was by this time fifteen or sixteen years old, and 
 began to be able to explain my tastes and ideas. I man- 
 aged to make my father understand that it was a matter 
 of necessity for me to be absolutely independent in all 
 that related to taste and feeling. I could not help ad- 
 miring and enjoying all efforts of genius and of invention. 
 I found it impossible to imprison my views within 
 a system, an epoch, or a school. In a word, I must have 
 liberty to adore the universe, God, and that divine spark 
 which He has given to man, wherever visible in the works 
 of nature or of art. 
 
 "'Thus,' I said to him, 'I love the beautiful sunshine 
 and the gloomy night ; our own austere Perugino and the 
 impetuous Michael Angelo ; the mighty substructures of 
 the Romans, and the delicate pierced work of the Sar- 
 acens. I love our own quiet lake Thrasymene, and the 
 furious cataract of Terni. I love your beloved Etrus- 
 cans and all your sublime ancients, but I also love the 
 Greco-arabic cathedrals ; I love equally the monumental 
 fountain of Trevi, and the little brook that runs between 
 two rocks in the depths of some rural solitude. Every- 
 thing that is new seems to me worthy of interest and of 
 attention ; everything is dear to me that at any time seizes 
 hold of my heart or of my thoughts. Feeling these im- 
 pulses to admire whatever is beautiful or sublime, and 
 
138 THE SNOW MAN, 
 
 even whatever is merely charming or agreeable, I have a 
 great repugnance for a devotion confined to certain forms 
 of the beautiful exclusively. 
 
 " ' But/ I continued, ' if you are convinced that in 
 this I am in a wrong road, that the impulse which I feel — 
 the desire for development in all directions — is dangerous, 
 a symptom of an ill-regulated mental action, I will do 
 my best to repress it, and throw myself entirely into what- 
 ever course of study you may mark out for me. I de- 
 sire, above all things, to be what you wish me to be ; but, 
 my dear father, before you cut my wings, please to make 
 yourself certain that there is nothing worth preserving in 
 all this vain plumage.* 
 
 " M. Goifredi, though exclusively devoted to a very nar- 
 row range of studies, was the most generous character I 
 ever met. He reflected much about the matter, and 
 often consulted his wife, a woman of the divinest sus- 
 ceptibilities. Sophia Goffredi was what the Italians call 
 a letterata; not a femme de lettres^ as that term is gen- 
 erally understood in France, but a woman at once 
 cultivated, charming, inspired, erudite, simple. She 
 loved me so tenderly that she believed me a prodigy ; 
 and these two excellent friends decided with one accord 
 that my wishes must be regarded, and that at any rate 
 they would not extinguish my fire until they were cer- 
 tain whether it was a flame from heaven, or a mere blaze 
 of straw. 
 
 " What gave them confidence in me was, that this dis- 
 position of mine to permit my mind to pursue its own 
 impulses in every direction, did not originate in incon- 
 stancy of character. I was warm-hearted, and felt 
 kindly disposed towards all my fellow-creatures, and yet 
 I was not disposed to waste my life with all manner of 
 company. My attachments were exclusively for the two 
 persons who had adopted me, and whom I preferred to 
 all others. Their society was my greatest, I may say 
 my only pleasure, apart from the various studies that had 
 captivated me. 
 
 ^ It was decided, then, that my mind should be at my 
 own disposal, particularly as, all things considered, it 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 139 
 
 was a pretty good mind ; and I was not obliged to con- 
 fine myself rigorously to the university course. I was 
 allowed to take my own way, and to give free career to 
 the enormous facility with which I was gifted. Was this 
 an error? I cannot think so. It is true that I might 
 have been restricted to one specialty, which would 
 have cased me up forever in some one corner of art or 
 science, where I should never have known privation ; 
 but how many intellectual enjoyments should I have 
 lost ! And who can tell whether what are called prac- 
 tical ideas, and my own personal interests, if forced upon 
 my attention in this way, might not have withered all 
 the religion of my heart and my conscience ? You will 
 see shortly that Sophia Goffredi had no reason to regret 
 having allowed me to be myself. 
 
 " My first conviction was that I was born for litera- 
 ture. Sophia trained me to write both in prose and 
 verse, and while still a child, I composed several romances 
 and comedies in rhyme, which our circle of friends were 
 so kind, or so simple, as to admire. I might have be- 
 come very conceited, for I was excessively spoiled by all 
 ,our visitors ; but Sophia us.ed often to tell me that the 
 day when one is satisfied with one's self is the last day 
 of improvement ; and this simple warning saved me from 
 the foolishness of self-admiration. And besides, I very 
 soon saw that in order to produce anything worth while 
 in literature, I must know a great mafty things, or else I 
 should merely float in a sea of empty phrases. I read 
 enormously ; but my studies in history and natural 
 science caused me to entirely lose sight of myself; and 
 instead of gathering booty like a bee, to make honey and 
 wax, I simply coursed to and fro through the vast field 
 of human knowledge, merely for the pleasure of know- 
 ing and understanding. 
 
 " It was while thus engaged that I felt such a power- 
 ful impulse towards the natural sciences, and that my 
 desire to devote my life to this pursuit became a vocation 
 more definitely resolved upon in my mind than the 
 former one. With this ardor for understanding, was 
 joined a similar ardor for observing ; and I might say 
 
140 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 that tliere awoke in me two distinct persons : one seeking 
 to discover the secrets of creation for the love of science, 
 that is, for the sake of humanity ; and the other seeking 
 to enjoy the varied beauties of creation as a poet — that 
 is, to some extent, for his own pleasure. 
 
 " From that moment, I was possessed by the idea of 
 making long voyages. While absorbed in studying the 
 collections and museums of Perugia, I was dreaming of 
 the antipodes ; and the sight of a little stone or dried 
 flower would carry me in imagination to the summits 
 of lofty mountains, or across vast oceans. I thirsted to 
 see the great cities, the centres of enlightenment, the 
 scientific men of my time, and great and precious scien- 
 tific collections. Sophia Goffredi had taught me French, 
 German, and a little Spanish. I felt, likewise, the neces- 
 sity of learning the northern languages, so as not to be 
 a stranger in any part of Europe. I learned English, 
 Dutch, and particularly Swedish, with extreme rapidity. 
 My pronunciation, however, was defective ; or rather, I 
 had none. I did not try to master the characteristic 
 music — so to speak — of languages which I could not 
 hear spoken ; but relied upon the correctness of my ear, 
 and my facility in catching accents, for quickly mastering 
 the spoken use of any language when necessary. The 
 event has shown that these expectations were quite jus- 
 tified ; I only need fifteen days to speak, without any 
 foreign accent, a language which I have studied only in 
 books. 
 
 " While I was thus learning languages, I was also 
 studying drawing and a little painting ; in order to be^able 
 to fix permanently my travelling recollections, by sketches 
 of sites, remarkable plants, costumes, monuments, — 
 in short, all that would have to be retained in the mem- 
 ory alone, if the hand had not the power to delineate the 
 mental conception. Besides, I studied good writers, 
 for the sake of enabling myself to narrate clearly and 
 rapidly ; for I had often been displeased at the obscure 
 and confused style of books of travels. And so well did 
 1 use my time. Monsieur Goefle, that at eighteen, I was 
 well prepared, in virtue of my knowledge, activity, 
 
THE SNOW MAN, 141 
 
 power of labor, and faculty of observation, to become at 
 least a useful, if not an actually scientific man. That 
 was the happiest time of my life, the purest and sweet- 
 est. Ah, if it could have lasted a few years longer, I 
 should have been a different man ! 
 
 " M. Goffredi was buried in his antiquarian re- 
 searches, and did not directly superintend my educa- 
 tion. He, however, from time to time, reviewed my 
 studies with me, and observed me with care, and when 
 he was satisfied that I was not losing my time and labor, 
 he became quite confident in my judgment. He had at 
 first been tempted to dissuade me from trying too many 
 things at once ; but when he was satisfied that all my 
 various acquisitions found their places in good order in 
 my mind, he began to dream with me and for me every- 
 thing that I dreamed myself. He had himself travelled 
 before his marriage, and he was even now projecting 
 another archaeological tour, to reach certain points not 
 yet explored. He was thinking the more seriously of 
 this plan, since receiving a small inheritance that had 
 recently fallen to him, and which enabled him to resign 
 his professorship at the university. He had been for ten 
 years employed on a work which he could not complete 
 without visiting the coast of Africa and some of the 
 Greek Islands. I should mention that his way of work- 
 ing was painful and slow, for his style lacked clearness, 
 and there was also perhaps some want of clearness of 
 thought iu his way of presenting his reasonings, how- 
 ever ingenious in themselves. He was a genius without 
 talent. 
 
 " He was pleased with the manner in which I wrote 
 up some pages of his work for him, and resolved to 
 take me with him, and have me write it all out after we 
 came home. I was almost wild with delight when he 
 communicated this design to me ; but my joy was 
 quickly changed to sadness at the idea of leaving alone 
 at home my adoptive mother, that excellent woman 
 whose whole life was devoted to us, and I asked to 
 remain with her. 
 
 "She was grateful to me for this, but suggested, by 
 
142 
 
 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 way of satisfying all three of us, the plan of going herself 
 — a proposition which was received with enthusiasm. Our 
 preparations for departure were now made as joyfully as 
 if for a feast. Ah, everything smiled upon us ! La 
 Sofia — you know that with us the le or la is a super- 
 lative of admiration, and not a term of contempt — was 
 accustomed to long walks. In the country she used to 
 go everywhere with us. She was active, courageous, 
 and enthusiastic, and was never the least hindrance to 
 us. If we were ever weary or discouraged, she raised 
 our spirits, and put us into good humor, by her gayety 
 and energy. She was still young and strong, and the 
 angelic tenderness and goodness of her smile made you 
 forget all about the plainness of her features. Her hus- 
 band loved her devotedly ; and as for her, nobody 
 could have convinced her that Silvio GofFredi was not a 
 demigod, despite his lameness, his prematurely rounded 
 shoulders, and his fabulous absence of mind. But how 
 pure and generous was the soul hidden by that frail body, 
 and those timid and irresolute manners ! His disinter- 
 estedness as to money was admirable, and a proof of it 
 was this very work, for which he was sacrificing his 
 employment and his habits. He was aware that such 
 books cost more than they bring, especially in Italy ; 
 and he calculated upon no gain from this one ; yet it 
 was the glory, the purpose, the dream of his Avhole life. 
 
 " My poor mother was the most impatient to start of 
 any of us, and she felt an absolute confidence in our good 
 fortune. It was decided that we should begin by visiting 
 some of the islands of the Archipelago. 
 
 ^' I must ask leave to pass rapidly over what follows ; 
 the recollection is most painful. In crossing part of the 
 Apennines on foot, my poor father received a slight 
 wound in the leg, from striking it against a rock. Not^ 
 withstanding our urgency, he neglected the wound, and 
 insisted on walking during the following days. The weather 
 was terribly hot. When we reached the coast of the 
 Adriatic, where we were to embark, he found himself 
 obliged to rest for some days, and we succeeded in in- 
 ducing him to allow a surgeon to visit him. But what 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 143 
 
 was our terror to find that mortification had commenced ! 
 We were at a mere village, far away from all competent 
 aid. Our country surgeon, who was little more than a 
 mere barber, spoke unconcernedly of amputating the leg. 
 Would it have saved him, or hastened his death ? In so 
 horrible a dilemma, my mother and I knew not what to 
 resolve. My father, with heroic courage, decided to have 
 the leg taken off, and spoke of travelling about the world 
 with a wooden leg. We dared not subject him to the 
 knife of a butcher. I determined to hasten to Venice — 
 it was only fifty leagues distant. I obtained a horse, set 
 out, broke him down by night, abandoned him, bought 
 another, and continued my journey. I reached the city 
 exhausted, but alive. I applied to one of the first sur- 
 geons of Venice, and induced him to return with me by 
 agreeing to pay him a sum equal to the whole of Sophia's 
 property. We took a boat and returned by sea, with a 
 speed that filled me with hope and joy. Ah, monsieur ! 
 it' I should live a thousand years, the memory of that 
 terrible day would, I believe, be as bitter as it is now. I 
 found Silvio Goffredi dead, and Sophia Goffredi insane." 
 
 '^ Poor fellow ! '* said M. Goefle, as the great tears fell 
 from Cristiano's eyes. 
 
 "Well, well," said the latter, hastily wiping them 
 away, " it will not do to be surprised by emotions of 
 that kind. It shows that one has too forcibly driven 
 them out of his mind, and they revenge themselves for it 
 once for all, when they can seize their rights. 
 
 "The skilful physician whom 1 had brought with me 
 could neither cure my mother, nor give me any hope that 
 she would ever be cured. He was only able, by studying 
 the character of her insanity, to instruct me how to deal 
 with its more violent attacks. It would be requisite to 
 comply with all her desires, no matter how unreasonable, 
 and, in other matters, to assume over her the sort of in- 
 fluence, and even authority, which a father exerts over 
 his child. 
 
 " I carried her back to Perugia, along with the body of 
 our poor friend, which we had embalmed, in order to de- 
 posit it in the mausoleum which his wife was imagiuiQg 
 
[44 
 
 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 for him on the shore of lake Thrasymene. What I suf- 
 fered at thus bringing back my father dead, and my mother 
 insane, to the place from which we had so joyously departed 
 not three weeks before, it is impossible for me to express. 
 When we went, Sophia was laughing and singing all the 
 way. On our return, also, she laughed and sang ; but 
 how mournful was the music, and how heart-breaking the 
 laughter ! I had to lead her along, to reason with her, 
 to amuse and persuade her as one does a child — this 
 woman, who had been so intelligent and strong ; who but 
 yesterday I relied upon as my guide and support ; for. 
 Monsieur Goefle, I was hardly nineteen years old. 
 
 "•When the remains of Silvio GofFredi had been in- 
 terred, his widow became more calm. Indeed, this calm- 
 ness came upon her so suddenly, and was so extreme, that 
 it seemed an appropriate last act of the sad drama of her 
 destiny. I soon perceived that she had become, so to 
 speak, a total stranger to herself; she became wholly 
 absorbed in one idea : that of the monument to be 
 erected to her beloved Silvio. From that day she would 
 neither think nor talk about anything else. It was im- 
 possible for me to pursue any employments of my own, 
 for she hardly slept at all, and allowed me only a few 
 hours' sleep, I will not say every day, but every week. 
 It was out of the question to put her into the hands of 
 any one but myself ; under the care of any one else she 
 became irritated, and fell into frightful paroxysms ; while, 
 with me, she never had a single attack of fury or despair. 
 She talked to me endlessly, not about her husband, for she 
 seemed no longer to retain any clear individual recollection 
 of him ; he had, as it were, become a wholly imaginary 
 being, whom she had never seen ; but she discussed the 
 epitaphs, the emblematic designs, the carvings, etc., with 
 which she proposed to embellish her husband's monument. 
 
 " I think I must have drawn two or three thousand 
 different designs for her. Each new one always pleased 
 her for an hour or two, but at the end of that time she 
 always found it unworthy of the memory of the 'Ma- 
 gus,' as she now always called the dear deceased. No 
 emblematic design could embody the abstract and cou- 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 145 
 
 fused ideas that floated through her mind. She was con- 
 stantly falling into profound meditations, when, taking 
 out of my hands the pencil she herself had placed in 
 thent with a pretence of making some slight alteration, 
 she would make me design some entirely new subject of 
 a quite opposite character. As you will easily imagine, 
 most of these designs were quite impracticable, and even 
 meaningless. If I varied from her suggestions, she be- 
 came so uneasy and agitated that I found it best to com- 
 ply strictly with them. Thus I accumulated portfolio 
 after portfolio full of designs, fantastic enough to have 
 crazed any one who should have undertaken to interpret 
 them. 
 
 '^ When some hours had been spent in this way, she 
 used to take me out to see the pieces in marble that she 
 had ordered of all the statuaries in the country. She 
 had the court and garden full of them, and as soon as 
 they were done she was dissatisfied with them. 
 
 " Another fancy of hers, which I felt bound to gratify 
 at whatever cost, was in respect of the material to be 
 employed for this imaginary monument. She obtained 
 specimens of all the varieties of marbles and of all known 
 metals ; and more models, both in sculpture and in cast- 
 ing, were executed than the house could contain. They 
 were even piled upon the beds ; and travellers used to 
 take our house for a museum, and to come to it and ask 
 the meaning of all the strange subjects represented there. 
 Poor Sophia found pleasure in receiving these visitors, 
 and in explaining her ideas to them ; and so they de- 
 parted, some pained and saddened, others laughing and 
 shrugging their shoulders, — the brutes! Their sneers 
 affected me like so many crimes. 
 
 " Meanwhile our property began to be exhausted. M. 
 Goffredi had left to his wife the whole of his little for- 
 tune, which I was to have inherited after her. A family 
 council of the kinsmen assembled under these circum- 
 stances, as was alleged, both in order to protect my in- 
 terests, and to provide for carrying out my father's 
 intentions in this respect. One member, a lawyer, was 
 of opinion that the control of the property should be 
 10 
 
146 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 taken away from poor Sophia ; that all artists, founders, 
 mechanics and tradesmen should be formally notified not 
 to fill orders from her, and that she herself should bo 
 confined in a lunatic asylum, since the proposed measure, 
 being contrary to her wishes, would certainly throw her 
 into a paroxysm of fury, in which she would be danger- 
 ous to others/' 
 
 "Tlie lawyer was right," said M. Goefle. "It was a 
 painful step, but a necessary one." 
 
 " I really bog pardon, Monsieur Goefle, but I judged 
 otherwise. As I was the sole heir of Goffredi, I had a 
 perfect right to permit my guardian to expend my prop- 
 erty." 
 
 " No, you had not that right. You were a minor, and 
 the law protects those who cannot protect themselves." 
 
 " That is just what I was told ; but I was so suffi- 
 ciently able to protect myself, that I threatened to throw 
 the lawyer out of the window if he did not withdraw his 
 infamous proposition. To put my mother into a lunatic 
 asylum ! I should have had to be shut up with her, for 
 she could not bear to be without m.e a moment ; she 
 would quickly have died under the distress of being at- 
 tended by hirelings. To deprive her of this sole occupa- 
 tion that could quiet her ; that exerted an influence upon 
 her little less than magical ! To prevent her from ex- 
 pressing and soothing her sorrows by these works — sense- 
 less and ruinous in themselves, I readily admit, but which 
 neither harmed nor wronged any one ! And what mat- 
 tered our house full of tomb-stones to that fat and pros- 
 perous lawyer? No one obliged him to volunteer his 
 regret for money thrown away, or to mock at the aberra- 
 tions of the poor widow's mind, unsettled by her grief. 
 I persisted, the family blamed me, and the lawyer de- 
 clared I was out of my wits myself; but my mcther was 
 kept comfortable." 
 
 "Ah, ah, my boy!" said M. Goefle, smiling, " that's 
 the way you treat lawyers, is it? Come, give me your 
 hand ! " he added, looking upon Cristiano with eyes wel 
 witli tenderness and sympathy. 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 147 
 
 Oristiano pressed the hands of the worthy Goefle, and 
 raised them to his lips, in the Italian manner. 
 
 "I accept your kind feelings to me," he said, " but I 
 cannot accept your praises for my conduct. It was per- 
 fectly natural ; to have been influenced by selfish motives 
 in such a situation would have been infamous. Have I 
 not told you how much I had been loved, petted, indulged, 
 by these two parents — ;for such I felt them, even by- 
 blood as well as by heart. Ah ! I had been happy with 
 them, very happy. Monsieur Goefle — so much so, that m^ 
 matter what disasters shall come upon me, I shall never 
 have the right to complain of Providence. I had cer- 
 tainly not deserved so much happiness before I was born. 
 I surely was bound to try and deserve it after I had lived 
 a little while ! " 
 
 " And what became of poor Sophia? " asked M. Goefle, 
 after a few moments' meditation. 
 
 "Alas ! I promised to tell you my story as gayly ds 
 possible, and 1 have only shown you its melancholy side ! 
 I ask your pardon ; I have saddened you. All I need say 
 is, that the poor lady is no longer living." 
 
 *' Of course, since you are here. It is easy to see that 
 you would never have left her. But did she fall into ac- 
 tual want before her death? I am anxious to know the 
 whole story." 
 
 " No, thank God ; she was spared that misfortune. 1 
 do not know what might have happened if all her means 
 had been expended, and I had been obliged to leave her 
 for the sake of earning our living. But that considera- 
 tion was not the one that troubled me. Notwithstanding 
 her calmness, I could see that she was rapidly failing. 
 At the end of about two years, one evening when we were 
 sitting by the shore of the lake, she took my hand and 
 said, with a strange inflection in her voice : 
 
 " ' Cristiano, I think I have fever. Feel my pulse, and 
 tell me what you think.* 
 
 " This was the first time, since her misfortunes, that 
 she had referred to her health. I perceived that she was 
 really in a violent fever. I took her into the house and 
 sent for a physician. 
 
148 THE SNOW MAN, 
 
 " * She is very ill, it is true,' he said to me, ' but pos- 
 sibly it may be a favorable crisis ! ' 
 
 " In fact, she had never had any fever at any time 
 since her disorder had seized her. 
 
 "But I felt no hope. She fell into a state of profound 
 lethargy, upon which no treatment produced the least 
 effect, and the progress of her decline was so rapid as to 
 be plainly visible. A few moments before she died she 
 seemed to recover strength, and to awaken as if from a 
 long dream. She asked me to lift her in my arms, and 
 feebly whispered in my ear : 
 
 " ' I bless you, Cristiano ; you have saved me. I think 
 I have been insane, and that I have been a trouble to you. 
 Silvio has this moment been blaming me for it. I just 
 saw him, there ; he told me to rise up and follow him. 
 Help me to escape out of the tomb where I have shut my- 
 self up so foolishly I Come ! The ship is setting sail ! 
 Let us go ! ' 
 
 " And with one supreme effort to arise, she fell back 
 dead into my arms. 
 
 " I know nothing of what happened for some days. 1 
 felt as if I had no further concern with life, since I had 
 no longer any one but myself to care for. 
 
 " I had the remains of my dear parents deposi'ed in 
 one tomb, and placed over it the simplest and whitest of 
 the monuments that had been accumulated in our home, 
 cutting upon it, with my own hands, the beloved names, 
 with no other epitaph. You may well suppose that I felt 
 a horror of formulas and emblems. When I returned to 
 our home, I was notified that it belonged not to me, but 
 the creditors. This I knew very well, and, indeed, I was 
 so entirely ready to depart from it, that I had mechan- 
 ically packed up my own property, while the women were 
 wrapping the body in the winding-sheet. I left the busi- 
 ness of settlement in the hands of the family, for I had 
 been orderly enough, in the midst of my carelessness, to 
 know that though nothing should be left for me, no debts 
 would be left unpaid. 
 
 " I was about leaving my home, when the little Jew 
 of whom I spoke came in. I supposed he came to get a 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 149 
 
 cheap bargain of some of M. Goffredrs precious an- 
 tiques, which were to be sold at auction ; but if he had 
 any such purpose, he had delicacy enough not to mention 
 it to me, and, as I sought to avoid him, he followed me 
 into the garden where I was gathering a few flowers — the 
 only material souvenirs which I proposed to carry away 
 with me. He put into my hands a well-filled purse, and 
 would have retreated without any explanation. 
 
 " I had so little thought of any relations other than 
 those whom I had just lost, that I concluded this was an 
 alms which the Jew had been employed to bring me ; I 
 fiung the purse away upon the ground, in order to make 
 him return and pick it up. He did so, and said : 
 
 " ' This is yours — it really is. It is money which I 
 owed GofFredi, and I wish to repay it to you.' 
 
 " I refused, for this might be just the amount necessary 
 to enable the estate to meet all the claims against it. 
 Then the Jew said : 
 
 " ' The money comes from your real parents. They 
 deposited it with me, and I engaged to deliver it to you 
 whenever you should need it.* 
 
 " ' I need none of it,' I replied, ' I have enough to carry 
 me to Rome, where M. Goffredi's friends will find me 
 some emplojmaent. Make my parents easy about me. I 
 presume they are not rich, since they have been unable to 
 bring me up under their own eyes. Thank them for 
 having remembered me, and say to them that, at my age, 
 and with the education I have received, it is my duty to be 
 of assistance to them, if they should need it. Whether 
 they reveal themselves to me or not, I will do this with 
 pleasure. They intrusted me to such good hands, and I 
 have been so happy in consequence, that I owe them the 
 liveliest gratitude.' 
 
 " Those were my real sentiments. Monsieur Goefle. I 
 was not dissembling at all, for they are my sentiments 
 still. I have never felt any inclination to accuse or ques- 
 tion the motives of those who gave me life, and I do not 
 understand the feelings of illegitimate children who com- 
 plain of not having been born into such or such a condition 
 of society as they would have chosen — as if every living 
 
150 
 
 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 being had not been from all eternity destined to live, and 
 as if it were not God who calls us, or sends us, into this 
 world, under such conditions as it pleases Him to establish. 
 
 '* ' Your parents are no longer living ! * replied the little 
 Jew ; ' pray for them, and accept this gift from a friend ! ' 
 
 " This being a third account, different from the two 
 preceding, I felt a secret distrust. 
 
 " ' Perhaps it is you yourself,* I said, ' who are so good 
 as to offer me this friendly assistance ? * 
 
 " ' No,* he replied, ' I am simply the agent, nothing 
 more.* 
 
 "'Very well: say to those who employed you that I 
 thank them, but decline to accept anything, either from 
 friends who disclose themselves or who hide themselves. 
 Are you authorized by my family to give me any infor- 
 mation ? * 
 
 " ' No, none,* he said, ' but I may probably do so here- 
 after. Where do you intend to stop at Rome ? ' 
 
 " ' I have no idea.* 
 
 '"Very good; I shall learn, however, for I am under 
 obligations not to lose sight of you. Farewell, and re- 
 member that if you fall into trouble this money is yours, 
 and that you have only to give me notice, and I will ac- 
 count to you for it ! * 
 
 " He seemed to say this with sincerity, but it was pos- 
 sible that he was one of those bold speculators who furnish 
 means to the necessitous with the intention of amply re- 
 imbursing themselves afterwards. So I thanked him 
 rather coldly, and departed with my pockets almost empty. 
 
 " I felt but very little anxiety about the future. It would 
 be impossible for me now to think of travelling, and in- 
 stead, I should have to find employment and work for my 
 support. Although, for a considerable time, I had been 
 unable to pursue my studies, my memory was so good that 
 I had not forgotten what I already knew. My attainments 
 were sufficiently varied, and their elements still clear 
 enough in my mind, to render me quite competent to be- 
 come the private tutor of some young lad, and I was 
 especially desirous of finding such a position, so that I 
 
THE SNOW MAN, 151 
 
 might continue my own pursuits, by encroaching on my 
 
 " My father's position in the province where we lived 
 had "been exceedingly honorable ; but, strangely enough, 
 my conduct in regard to Madame Goflfredi was considered 
 romantic, and quite unworthy a person of trustworthy 
 character. I had allowed myself to be ruined, — so 
 much the worse for me. As I was generally reputed to 
 be a witless spendthrift, and a sort of lunatic, it would 
 have been useless for me to seek employment. So I could 
 not think of settling in Perugia. At Rome, one of my 
 father's friends found me a position as tutor in the family 
 of a Neapolitan prince, who had two idle and stupid sons, 
 besides a daughter, hump-backed, and of a coquettish 
 and amorous disposition. At the end of two months I 
 had to ask my dismission, so as to escape from the de- 
 monstrations of this heroine, of whom 1 did not choose 
 to become the hero. 
 
 "At Naples, I met another of my father's friends, a 
 learned abbe, who obtained a place for me in a family 
 less rich, but a great deal more disagreeable than that of 
 the prince, and where my pupils were even less iutelli- 
 gent. Their mother, who was neither young nor hand- 
 some, quickly became unfriendly to me, because I was 
 unwilling to deceive myself as to her charms. I made 
 no pretensions to a savage degree of virtue, and did not 
 think of claiming that I could fall in love only with a 
 goddess, — I could have been quite contented with an or- 
 dinary mortal. But, even although this lady had been 
 passably attractive, nothing would have induced me to 
 be the lover of a woman who had authority over me, and 
 who paid me my salary. So I went back to my learned 
 abbe, and told him my troubles. He laughed, and said : 
 
 " ' It's your own fault. You are a handsome fellow, 
 and that makes you difficult.' 
 
 " I entreated him to get me a position with a widower 
 or orphans, and, after some efforts, he informed me that 
 he had found just what I wanted. The young Duke of 
 Villareggia, who had lost his father and mother, and who 
 had neither sisters nor aunts, was being educated by hia 
 
152 
 
 THE SNOW MAN, 
 
 uncle the cardinal. He already had a tutor, but wanted 
 a professor of languages and literature. I was received 
 into this post, and found it not only agreeable, but lucra- 
 tive. The cardinal was a man of cultivation and intel- 
 lect ; and the nephew, now thirteen years of age, had a 
 good mind and an amiable disposition. I became much 
 attached to him, and brought him on rapidly, while at 
 the same time pursuing my own studies with much 
 ardor ; for I had a lodging to myself, and all my eve- 
 nings at my own disposal. The cardinal was so well sat 
 isfied with me, that he paid me quite liberally, so that 1 
 might dispense with seeking other pupils, and devote my 
 self exclusively to the duke. 
 
 '' For about a year, my conduct was studious and reg- 
 ular. I had suffered so much sorrow, and felt so deeply 
 my social isolation, that my views of life were, perhaps, 
 rather too serious. I might have become a mere pedant, 
 had not the cardinal taken it into his head to urge me, 
 in the most elegant and graceful manner, to mingle in the 
 follies and corruptions of the day. He succeeded in 
 making me a man of society, for which I am not sure 
 that I am bound to be grateful. Gradually I came to 
 waste a great deal of time on my toilet, and on my pleas- 
 ures and intrigues. The cardinal's palace was the ren- 
 dezvous of all the wits of the day, and of the principal 
 celebrities of the city. I was not expected to cultivate 
 the moral character of my pupil, but merely to supply 
 him with superficial accomplishments and pleasing social 
 qualities. As for myself, all that was required of me 
 was to make myself agreeable to everybody. This was 
 not difficult, among people so amiable and frivolous. I 
 was considered charming ; indeed more so than was best 
 for an orphan without position, fortune, or prospects. 
 
 " In the course of time I became quite dissipated, and 
 was decidedly on the road to ruin. Indeed, I was encour- 
 aged, and, as it were, pushed downward in this career by all 
 sorts of influences, and had nothing to restrain me but the 
 memory of my parents, and the fear of becoming un- 
 worthy of the name which they had bequeathed me. I 
 ought to have told you that my adoptive father had 
 
THE SNOW MAN, 
 
 153 
 
 directed me, in bis will, to assume the name of Cristiano 
 Goffredi ; and that I was thus known at Naples. With 
 serious and learned people, this honorable name was an 
 excellent recommendation, but it was thoroughly plebeian, 
 and I too easily forgot that I needed, therefore, to exer- 
 cise great prudence and reserve in my intercourse with 
 the young nobles with whom I was in the habit of asso- 
 ciating at the cardinal's house. I suffered myself to be 
 carried away by their engaging manners, and was much 
 liked, because I had neither the awkward manners nor 
 the austere principles of a professional pedagogue. I 
 was invited everywhere, and was a favorite member of 
 all the gay assemblies of the most fashionable youth of 
 the city. 
 
 " The cardinal congratulated me upon my ability to 
 reconcile suppers, balls, and late hours with the accuracy 
 and lucidity which I unfailingly brought to the instruc- 
 tion of his nephew. Yet I myself perceived very 
 plainly, and suffered from the consciousness, that I was 
 no longer cultivating my own intellect with sufficient 
 assiduity. I felt tliat I had stopped short in my progress, 
 that I was insensibly becoming a mere showy and shal- 
 low talker, that I was turning into a parlor comedian 
 and poet ; and furthermore, was laying up nothing 
 from my salary with a view to securing my future inde- 
 pendence and respectability. My linen was too fine and 
 my brains were too empty ; in short, I had abandoned 
 myself to dissipation and vacuity of mind, and from 
 between these prison-walls there was great danger that 
 I would never escape. 
 
 "As a usual thing, I banished these reflections from 
 my mind, but they sometimes made me very anxious. 
 And then, the pleasures that were intoxicating me so did 
 not give me any real enjoyment, after all. At the home 
 of my parents, and in their society, I had experienced 
 nobler enjoyments, more genuine amusements. I re- 
 traced, in memory, the delightful walks we had taken 
 together, always with a serious purpose, which afforded 
 us a pure satisfaction, while, in the feverish activity of 
 my present existence, I was conscious of being in lealitj^ 
 
■54 
 
 THE SNO W MAN. 
 
 as languid and exhausted as if 1 had been living in 
 utter idleness. I began to dream again of the noble en- 
 joyments of the adventurous traveller ; and when I 
 looked at my purse, which was always empty, I asked 
 myself whether I could not have made a better use of 
 the money that I earned by hard work ; whether it would 
 not have been more to my advantage to devote it to sat- 
 isfying my genuine physical tastes and intellectual neces- 
 sities, instead of throwing it away in diversions that 
 wearied my body and exhausted my mind. And then 
 suddenly I felt like a stranger, even in my home. I 
 thought how foreign to my nature all my surroundings 
 were in this country, where I was not rooted by any 
 vital family ties ; its frivolous society, its servile polit 
 ical condition, its enervating climate and indolent popu- 
 lation. I felt, at the same time, more energetic and more 
 thoughtful than this people. In spite of my twenty-three 
 years and my poverty, I begun to consider whether I 
 would not marry, so that I might have a home of my 
 own, a motive of reform, a serious object in life. But 
 when I confided these perplexities and moral anxieties to 
 the cardinal, he laughed at me for a foolish fellow. 
 
 '"You drank too much, or worked too much, last 
 night,' he said, ' and your head is full of vapors. Go 
 and drive them away with Cintia or Fiammetta, but 
 don't marry them, of all things.' 
 
 "I loved the cardinal, for he was a good-hearted and 
 agreeable man ; yet, though he was paternal, and unaf- 
 fectedly kind to me, I saw plainly that he was rather 
 amiable than loving. What he wanted was to have 
 agreeable people about him, and he valued me because 
 of my social qualities ; but he was not the man to retain 
 me in his service very long if I should become melan- 
 choly, and hence tiresome. 
 
 *' I accordingly tried to drive away my thoughts, and 
 to rest contented, like all around me, with the enjoyments 
 of each day, without caring for the morrow. But I could 
 not do it. My dissatisfaction increased, and I could not 
 hide it. I became disgusted with easy successes in love ; 
 sensual infatuatious, to which women of all ranks seemed 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 155 
 
 to abandon themselves without resistance. Poor, and a 
 plebeian, these intrigues had at first flattered my vanity ; 
 but when I saw that my barber, who was a good-looking 
 fellow, was as successful as myself, I contracted a great 
 horror of the marchioness. I became eager to quit Na- 
 ples, and begged the cardinal to make me a librarian or 
 steward, no matter what, at some one of his villas in 
 Calabria or Sicily ; I thirsted for repose and for solitude. 
 But he still laughed at my plans for retirement. In fact 
 he had no faith in them ; he thought me no more fit for 
 a steward than for a monk. In this he was right, no 
 doubt ; yet it was a misfortune that he retained me, as 
 you will see. 
 
 "A second nephew of the cardinal returned from his 
 travels, and became an inmate of the house. This was 
 Marco Melfi, a young man as unintelligent, foolish, indo- 
 lent, and vain, as his young cousin, Tito Villareggia, 
 was sympathetic and kind-hearted. He made himself 
 disagreeable to everybody ; and very soon had several 
 duels on his hands. He was an excellent swordsman, and 
 wounded or killed all his adversaries without receiving a 
 single scratch ; and his insolence became, in consequence, 
 perfectly insupportable. I avoided collisions with him 
 as long as possible, but being one day urged beyond 
 endurance by his brutal provocations, I gave him the lie 
 in form, and offered him satisfaction with the sword. 
 This he refused, saying that I was not a gentleman, and 
 darting at me, he attempted to strike me. I, however, 
 flung him down, and left him unhurt, except that he was 
 almost choked with fury. The quarrel made a good 
 deal of noise ; and the cardinal, while he acknowledged 
 to me between ourselves that I was in the right, yet 
 begged me to hasten and conceal myself on one of his 
 estates, until Melfi should depart on his travels again. 
 
 " The idea of hiding was revolting to me. 
 
 "'But, my poor fellow,* said the cardinal, 'do you 
 not know, that as things are, my nephew is obliged to 
 have you assassinated?* 
 
 " This expression seemed to me rather amusing, and I 
 replied that I would oblige Marco to fight me. 
 
156 
 
 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 '"But you can't kill my nephew,' said he, patting me 
 gayly on the head. 'Even supposing you were skilful 
 enough, you would not make such a return as that for 
 the fatherly kindness that I have shown you ? ' 
 
 "This observation silenced me. I returned to my 
 lodging and made ready to depart. I ought to have been 
 more cautious about it, but I could not bring myself to 
 seem to be running away secretly. All at once, as T 
 stepped out of my room to look for a small box that was 
 in the vestibule of the house, where I lived by myself, 
 two villains fell upon me and undertook to overpower 
 and tie me. In the struggle that ensued, I pushed them 
 down stairs ; but, just as I was about to escape, the door 
 was shut in my face, and I heard a harsh voice proceed- 
 ing from the vestibule exclaim : 
 
 " ' Courage ! tie him ! I want to beat him to death on 
 the spot ! * 
 
 " My rage, at hearing this, gave me superhuman 
 strength, and I fought my two assailants with so much 
 fury, that they were both overpowered in a few sec- 
 onds. Then, without further notice of them, I sprang at 
 Marco, who, seeing that his attempt had failed, tried to 
 flee. I, however, forced him against the door, and 
 snatched away his sword, which he would have drawn to 
 defend himself. 
 
 " ' Scoundrel ! ' I said, ' I will not kill you, but you 
 shall fight me, and at once.' 
 
 "Marcus was slender, and inferior to me in strength. 
 I made him go up stairs before me, and pushed him into 
 my room, when I double-locked the door, took my sword, 
 and giving him his, said : 
 
 "'There, defend yourself; you see that you ma]j^ 
 sometimes be obliged to fight with a plebeian ! * 
 
 "'Goffredi,' he replied, lowering the point of his 
 weapon. 'I do not wish to fight you, and I will not; I 
 am too certain of killing you ; and I should be very 
 sorry to do that, for you are a good fellow. You might 
 have assassinated me, and you did not do it. Let us be 
 friends.' 
 
 "Not mistrusting him, and not being of a revengeful 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 157 
 
 disposition, I held out my hand to take that which he 
 had offered me, when he aimed a swift and skilful left- 
 handed stab at my throat with a stiletto. I evaded the 
 thrust, which only wounded my shoulder. Upon this I 
 no longer restrained my anger, but instantly and furi- 
 ously attacked the villain, who was forced to stand on 
 his defence. Our weapons were equal, and he certainly 
 had greatly the advantage over me in skill and practice. 
 But, however it may have been, I laid him dead at ray 
 feet. He fell, sword in hand, without speaking a word, 
 and with an infernal smile on his face. At this very 
 moment there was a violent knocking and pounding at 
 my door, and he may have thought that he should 
 quickly be avenged. For my part, I did not know 
 whether the two assassins, recovered from their stupor, 
 had returned to the attack, or whether they had warned 
 the police to come and arrest me ; but, exhausted as I 
 was with emotion and fatigue, I felt that I should be lost 
 in either case. So I mustered up what strength I had 
 left, and jumped out of the window. It was not more 
 than about twenty feet high ; I alighted upon the court- 
 yard pavement without much injury, and holding my 
 coat tight around me, to prevent the blood from my 
 shoulder from indicating my track, I fled as far as my 
 legs could carry me. 
 
 "It was well for me that I succeeded in gaining the 
 country, for as this affair had passed without witnesses, 
 it would necessarily have been a very bad one for me. It 
 made no difference that I was in the right, that my behavior 
 had been loyal and generous, and that my adversary was 
 a cowardly scoundrel. He belonged to one of the first 
 families in the kingdom, and the holy inquisition would 
 have made but a single mouthful of a poor wretch like 
 me. 
 
 " I found refuge for the night in a fisherman's cabin, 
 but I had not a single farthing about me with which to pay 
 for the dangerous hospitality. Moreover, ray torn and 
 bloody clothes would not allow me to show myself by 
 day ; and my wound — whether it was severe or not I 
 did not know — pained me extremely. I felt my strength 
 
158 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 failing, and I well knew that the whole police of the king- 
 dom was already on foot, and hunting after me. Lying 
 on a miserable mat, under a little shed, I wept bitter 
 tears, not over my unfortunate destiny — I should have 
 been incapable of such weakness — but because of the 
 sudden and irreparable rupture of my relations with the 
 good cardinal and with my amiable pupil. I felt that I 
 loved them deeply, and I cursed the fate which had caused 
 me to defile with blood the mansion where I had been re- 
 ceived with so much confidence and kindness. 
 
 "However, it was escape, and not lamentation, that I 
 needed to concern myself about. It occurred to me, of 
 course, to find the little Jew who had asserted that he 
 knew the mysterious friends or relations who were watch- 
 ing over me, or who had employed him to do so. I forgot 
 to say that this Jew had established himself in Naples, 
 where I had met him more than once. But it seemed to 
 me too dangerous to return into the city, and I could not 
 have written to him without ruunin^^ the risk of bein^ dis- 
 covered. Hence I gave up the idea. 
 
 " It is needless for me to relate in full my adventures 
 in effecting my escape from the kingdom of Naples. I 
 had managed to exchange my tattered clothes for some 
 other rags not quite so suspicious in appearance, but I 
 found it very hard to obtain food. The whole community 
 knew that pursuit was being made after the ' vile assassin ' 
 of a nobleman, and poor vagrants were looked upon with 
 distrust. If it had not been for the women, who are al- 
 ways more courageous and more humane than we men, I 
 should have died of hunger and fever. My wound often 
 forced me to halt in the most solitary and deserted spot I 
 could find, and in some such hiding-place, lacking every 
 kind of assistance, it seemed more than likely, on several 
 occasions, that I should leave my bones, from sheer lack 
 of strength to rise up and go forward. And yet, M. 
 Goefle, can you believe that, even in this desperate situa- 
 tion, I experienced, at moments, a sense of delirious joy, 
 as if, in spite of everything, I were enjoying a foretaste 
 of my reconquered liberty. The open air, the motion, 
 the freedom from conventional restraints, the sight of the 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 159 
 
 open plains, whose distant horizons I might now expect to 
 reach and pass — all, even to the hardness of my bed of 
 rock, recalled to my mind the projects and aspirations of 
 the time when I had really lived. 
 
 • "At last I gained the frontiers of the Papal States In 
 safety ; and as I had not followed the road to Rome, 
 but had made a detour through the mountains, I had 
 every reason to hope that the spies on the lookout for me 
 had been baffled. I stopped in a village, therefore, to 
 dispose of my merchandise ; for such was my horror of 
 begging, and so angry did It make me to be refused, that, 
 to avoid the temptation of beating the people who sent 
 me off with rude brutality, I had taken it into my head— as 
 I should have told you before — to become a merchant !" 
 
 "A merchant?" interrupted M. Goefle, "a merchant 
 of what ? You had not a penny to start with ! " 
 
 " Very true, but I had a pen-knife in my pocket when | 
 I fled, and this took the place of capital. Although I had I 
 never worked in sculpture, I was familiar enough with \ 
 the principles of design, and one day, chancing to notice 
 on the road a remarkably white and unusually soft layer 
 of rock, it occurred to me to provide myself with a dozen 
 or so fragments from It. Th6se I broke off on the spot ; 
 and afterwards, while I was resting, carved into little 
 figures of madonnas and cherubs, about as large as a 
 finger. This stone, or rather chalk, which was scattered 
 all about the country in this direction, was very light ; I 
 could carry as many as fifty of my little statuettes without 
 inconvenience, and I used to sell them to the farmers 
 and peasants for five or six baiocchi each. This was cer- 
 tainly all they were worth, and it was enough to furnish 
 me with bread. 
 
 " For several days I had succeeded remarkably well in 
 my new avocation, and I hoped, on seeing that it was 
 market-day in this village, that I would be able to dispose 
 in safety of my whole supply of merchandise. I found, 
 however, but little custom, in consequence of the competi- 
 tion of a Piedmontese with a great tray of plaster figures ; 
 and so it occurred to me to sit down and execute my carv- 
 ing in sight of the crowd, who quickly gathered round me« 
 
l6o THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 This plan was extremely successful. The quickness of 
 my work, and very likely the simplicity of its style, made 
 it very popular, and the admiration and delight of these 
 good folks, especially of the women and children, made 
 my Piedmontese competitor extremely jealous and angry 
 He addressed me several times in a violent manner, with- 
 out making me lose patience. I saw plainly that he 
 meant to force a quarrel on me in order to drive me 
 away, but I only made fun of him, telling him to go to 
 work as I did, and make some of his statuettes, so as to 
 show his talents to the company, a suggestion which was 
 received with great applause ; for in Italy even the lowest 
 classes are fond of everything connected with art. So my 
 rival found himself laughed at as a mere mechanic, while 
 I was loudly declared to be a real artist. 
 
 " The malignant rascal, upon this, contrived a very mean 
 trick to revenge himself. He dropped two or three of the 
 cheapest of his images on purpose, and then made a ter- 
 rible outcry, so as to attract the attention of some of the 
 police, who were moving about here and there in the 
 crowd. When he had succeeded in bringing them to the 
 spot, he charged that I had been stirring up the people 
 against him, that they had been shoving him about, and 
 had caused great damage to his frail wares. He was a 
 respectable person, he said, who paid for his license, and 
 was well-known in the neighborhood, while I was a mere 
 vagrant, and very likely something still worse, who could 
 say ? perhaps that vile assassin of the cardinal ? This was 
 the shape that the story had already assumed, and it was 
 in this character that I was held up to public animadver- 
 sion, and to the scrutiny of the police. The people, how- 
 ever, took my part ; and many witnesses testified to my 
 innocence as well as their own, proving that no one had 
 pushed, or even touched the tray of the figure-merchant. 
 Those who were immediately about me stepped quietly 
 in the way of the officers, and made room for me to pass. 
 
 " But although I found good friends among them, there 
 were also plenty of blackguards or cowards, who pointed 
 me out without saying a word, as I rushed precipitately 
 into a crowded by-street. The officers pursued me ; 7 
 
THE SNOW MAN. i6l 
 
 had a good start, but I knew nothing of the locality; 
 and instead of gaining the open country, very soon found 
 myself in another square, where a number of people had 
 gathered attentively about a theatre of marionettes. 
 Scarcely had I had time to join this group, when the 
 officers came up and began looking around with penetrat- 
 ing eyes. I made myself as small as possible, and was 
 pretending to feel a great interest in Punchinello, so as 
 not to excite the curiosity of my neighbors, who were 
 jostling me on every side, when suddenly a luminous 
 idea, suggested by my imminent danger, flashed into my 
 excited brain. While the officers were trying to force an 
 entrance into the compact and motionless crowd, I crept 
 gradually forward until I could touch the canvas of the 
 booth. Then stooping slowly down, I suddenly glided in 
 under it as a fox runs into a hole, and found myself 
 squatting almost between the legs of the operator — that 
 is, of the person who was moving the marionettes and 
 speaking for them. 
 
 " Do you know what a theatre of marionettes is, M. 
 Goefle?" 
 
 "Certainly! I saw Christian Waldo's only a little 
 while ago, at Stockholnr.**"""^ 
 
 " Saw it ? — From the outside, you mean ? " 
 
 " That's all ; but I have a very good idea of the inside, 
 though that one seemed to me to be rather complicated." 
 
 " It is a theatre for two operators, or, in other words, 
 for four hands, which means, of course, four actors on the 
 stage, and that is a sufficiently large company of hurat- 
 tini.'' 
 
 " What are hurattini f " 
 
 **They are the classical, primitive marionettes; the 
 best. The burattino is not the same as the stiff, wooden 
 fantoccio which, hung to the ceiling by strings, moves 
 about without touching the ground, or else with a noise 
 that is ridiculous and unnatural. The jointed marionette, 
 which is much more scientific and complete, contains 
 some really ingenious mechanism, that enables it to make 
 very natural gestures and to assume graceful attitudes. 
 With further improvements it could undoubtedly be con 
 
 XI 
 
1 62 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 structed to imitate nature perfectly ; but, on investigating 
 the subject, I have asked myself of what use this would 
 be, and what advantage art would derive from a theatre 
 of automata? The larger they were made, the more 
 like human beings, the more disagreeable, and even fright- 
 ful, the spectacle of such artificial actors would become. 
 Does it not appear to you so? " 
 
 *' Certainly, it does — but tiie digression interests me 
 less than the continnation of your narrative." 
 
 >' Pardon me, pardon me, Monsieur Goefle, the digres- 
 sion is unavoidable. I am just coming to a singular part 
 of my adventurous career, and I must positively prove 
 to you the superiority of the hurattino. I want to con- 
 vince you that the instrument of the comic artist, in this 
 elementary representation, is neither a machine, nor a 
 puppet, nor a doll ; it is a living being." 
 
 " Ah ! Indeed ? A living being ? " repeated M. Goefle, 
 looking with astonishment at his companion, and asking 
 himself whether he was not liable to occasional fits of 
 insanity. 
 
 " Yes, a living being ! I insist upon it," replied Cris- 
 tiano, with enthusiasm ; " and all the more because it 
 has no body. The hurattino has neither wheels, nor 
 strings, nor pulleys. It is a head, and nothing more ; a 
 head with expression and intelligence, in which — but 
 wait a moment ! " 
 
 Cristiano stepped under the staircase, and opening 
 a box, produced a little wooden figure, dressed in rags, 
 which he threw down, picked up, tossed in the air, and 
 caught aorain in his hand. 
 
 "There," he resumed, "look at that! A ra^ — a 
 mere chip, the figure scarcely indicated. Now see, I put 
 my hand inside of this little leather bag, my forefinger in 
 the head, which is hollow, my thumb and middle finger 
 into these sleeves, to manage the two little wooden hands. 
 These hands, you see, are short, formless, and not ex- 
 actly either open or shut. This is intentional ; it is to 
 conceal their immovability. NT)w let me stand at such a 
 distance from you as suits the size of the little thing. 
 There ; stay where you are, and look ! " 
 
THE SNOW MAN, 163 
 
 While he was speaking, Cristiano had mounted the 
 Btaircase at two bounds, crouched down so as to hide his 
 body behind the balustrade, raised his hand above it, and 
 moved the marionette with extreme address and grace. 
 
 " You see, now," he cried, as gayly as ever, and yet with 
 real earnestness, "you see how perfect the illusion is, 
 even without either theatre or scenery. The face, which 
 is sketched, as it were, in a broad style, and painted in 
 colors of a somewhat dull tone, begins, as it moves, to 
 look as if it were alive. If I were to show you one of 
 the best German marionettes, all varnished and shining, 
 covered with spangles, and moving by wheel-work, you 
 could not help remembering that it is only a doll — a mere 
 piece of machinery ; while my hurattino here, lithe and 
 obedient to every motion of my fingers, comes and goes, 
 salutes, turns its head, folds its arms, raises them towards 
 heaven, expresses all manner of emotions, strikes a blow, 
 beats upon the wall with joy or despair. And don't 
 you see that you fancy you perceive all these emotions 
 expressed in the face too ? What is it that causes such a 
 wonderful effect ? How is it that a head so roughly cut, 
 so ugly when closely examined, should suddenly assume, 
 in the play of the light, such a lifelike expression, that 
 you quite forget its real size. Yes, I insist upon it, that 
 when you see the hurattino in the hands of a real artist, 
 upon a theatre where the scenery, the stage, the surround- 
 ings are in proper proportion to the actors, you completely 
 forget that you yourself are not upon the same scale ; you 
 forget even that the voice that speaks for them is not 
 their own. The association apparently so impossible, of 
 a liead no larger than my fist, with a voice as strong as 
 mine, is admitted readily in the state of mysterious in- 
 toxication into which I manage gradually to bring you, 
 and the whole miracle is accomplished. Do you see 
 what causes it ? The fact that the hurattino is not an au- 
 tomaton, but a thing obedient to my caprice, my inspira- 
 tion, my impulses ; because all its motions are the results 
 of ideas which spring up in my mind, of words which I 
 furnish ; in short, because it is myself; therefore, a living 
 being and not a doll I '* 
 
164 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 Having thus argued his case with a great deal of ani- 
 mation, Cristiano came down stairs, laid the marionette 
 on the table, took off his coat, apologizing to M. Goefle 
 on the ground of being too warm, and placed himself 
 astride upon his chair again, so as to resume the thread 
 of his story. 
 
 During this odd interruption, M. Goefle's attitude had 
 been about as amusing as Cristiano's. 
 
 *' Wait a moment," he observed, taking up the hurat- 
 tino. " All that you have said is very true, and well 
 argued. And now I understand the extraordinary pleas- 
 ure which I took in the representations of Christian 
 Waldo. But what you do not explain, and what I nev- 
 ertheless perceive very plainly to be the fact, is, that this 
 good little gentleman that I have in my hand, I would 
 like very well to make him move and talk myself — Come, 
 my little friend," he proceeded, inserting his fingers into 
 the head and sleeves of the burattino. " come ; take a 
 look at me. That's right : yes ; you are very good-look- 
 ing, and I am happy to make so close an acquaintance 
 with you. And now, I declare I remember you ! You 
 are Stentarello, that very joyous, satirical and graceful 
 Stentarello who made me laugh so much a fortnight ago at 
 Stockholm ! And you, young man," continued M. Goefle, 
 turning to his guest — *' although I have never seen your 
 face before, yet I recognize you perfectly by your voice, 
 your sprightliness, your gayety, and your sensibility as 
 well — you are Christian Waldo, the famous operator of 
 the Neapolitan burattini 1 " 
 
 "Very much at your service," answered Christian 
 Waldo, bowing to the doctor of laws, with much grace ; 
 " and if you would like to know how Cristiano del Lago, 
 Cristiano Goffredi, and Christian Waldo came to be one 
 and the same person, attend to the rest of my adven- 
 tures." 
 
 "I am listening, and with a great deal of curiosity, 
 too. But I want to know when you received this new 
 name of Christian Waldo ? " 
 
 "Oh, that one is really new. It only dates back to 
 last autumn, and I should find it difficult to tell why 1 
 
THE SNOW MAN, 165 
 
 adopted it. The fact is, I believe it came to me in a 
 dream, and that it is a reminiscence of the name of some 
 locality which made an impression upon my mind during 
 \ my -infancy." 
 
 1 "That is singular! Well, no matter. You left off 
 \ inside the theatre of marioij^ttes, in the square of — " 
 \y "Of Celano," said Christian; "again on the borders 
 of a beautiful lake. I assure you, Monsieur Goefle, 
 that my destiny is linked in with lakes ; there certainly 
 is some mystery under the association, which perhaps 
 some day I shall penetrate. 
 
 " You have not forgotten that the police were at my 
 heels, and that had it not been for the booth of marion- 
 ettes, I should probably have been taken and hung. 
 This booth, however, was very small, and could hardly 
 contain more than one man. When I asked you if you 
 knew how these marionette theatres are constructed — 
 an excusable inquiry, since this characteristic Italian 
 amusement is not common in your country, and perhaps 
 has never been brought here except by myself — it was 
 with the intention of explaining my position between the 
 feet of the operator, who, busily occupied in making 
 Punchinello fight with an officer, with his hands and eyes 
 both raised as high as possible, and his mind intensely 
 concentrated upon the work of improvising his burlesque 
 drama, had no time to notice or to understand what was 
 taking place in the vicinity of his knees. There remained, 
 therefore, only a single minute before the denouement of 
 the piece and my own fate together. 
 
 "I felt that it would not do to trust my safety to mere 
 chance. Picking up from the ground two hurattini^ 
 which, by a curious coincidence with my own circum- 
 stances, represented a judge and a hangman, and rising 
 up as well as I could by the side of the operator, I \ 
 placed the marionettes upon the stage, and at the \ 
 risk of breaking through the cloth awning of the box, j 
 introduced an unexpected scene into the piece, quite im- J 
 promptu. This scene had an immense success ; and niy^'^ 
 associate, without being the least in the world discon- 
 certed, received it quite as a matter of course, and 
 
^(i(i THE SNOW MAN, 
 
 although extremely crowded for room, sustained his pari 
 of the dialogue with extraordinary gayety and presence 
 of mind." 
 
 *' Wonderful, fantastic Italy!" exclaimed M. Goefle ; 
 "nowhere else are men's faculties so keen and so 
 ready I " 
 
 " My companion," continued Christian, "was a good 
 deal more penetrating than you have imagined. He had 
 recognized me ; had comprehended my situation, and had 
 resolved to rescue me." 
 
 "And did he do so?" 
 
 "Most effectually: while I was delivering the closing 
 speech to the public in his stead, he, without saying a 
 word, put an old cap of his own on my head, flung a 
 tattered red cloak about my shoulders, and rubbed some 
 ochre on my face. Then, as soon as the curtain had 
 fallen, he said in my ear : 
 
 "'Goffredi, take the theatre on your back and fol- 
 low me.' 
 
 "And, in fact, we passed through the square in this 
 way, and left the village without being molested. We 
 travelled all night, and before daylight had reached the 
 Roman campagua." 
 
 " But who was this devoted friend?" 
 
 "It was a young man of good family, one Guido 
 Massarelli, who, like myself, had run away from the 
 kingdom of TJ-aples. His difficulty was a less serious 
 one than mine ; he had fled only from his creditors. But 
 he was not so good a fellow as I, Monsieur Goefle, 
 notwithstanding ; I give you my word for it ! Still, he 
 was an amiable young man, well educated, accomplished, 
 and with extremely attractive manners. I had been 
 quite intimate with him in Naples, where he had wasted 
 his property, and had made many friends. He was the 
 son of a wealthy merchant, was naturally well endowed, 
 and had received an excellent education ; but, like my- 
 self, he had been too early launched in a society much 
 too expensive for him ; so that he speedily found himself 
 without resources. I had myself supported him for som« 
 time ; but as he could not be contented to live simply, 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 167 
 
 and had not the force of character to work for a living, 
 he had ended by becoming a swindler." 
 
 " Did you know this ? " 
 
 "I did, but I could not find it in my heart to reproach 
 him at the moment when he had saved my life. Like 
 myself, he was in a state of complete destitution. He 
 had absconded with a few crowns, and with these 
 had purchased from a mountebank a theatre of marion- 
 ettes, which he used not so much to make his living as to 
 hide his face. 
 
 '"This business of mine,* he said, 'is a stroke of 
 genius upon my part. Here I have been for two 
 months rambling about the kingdom of Naples without 
 being recognized. Perhaps you will ask why I do not 
 go further away. The reason is, that I have creditors in 
 all parts of Italy ; I shall find them everywhere, unless I 
 go as far as France. Besides, I had left some little 
 love affairs at Naples that were still pulling at my heart, 
 and I could not make up my mind to leave the neighbor- 
 hood. This light cloth watch-tower keeps me invisible 
 in the midst of the crowd. While all eyes are fixed 
 upon my hurattini^ no one thinks of inquiring who the man 
 is that moves them. I go from one neighborhood to 
 another walking erect inside of my shell, and when I am 
 once out of it, nobody knows that I am the same person 
 who has been diverting the public* 
 
 "* It certainly is a good idea,* I said; 'but what do 
 you propose to do now?* 
 
 '"Whatever you choose,' he answered; 'I am so 
 glad to meet you again, and to be of service to you, that 
 I will go with you wherever you like. I am more 
 attached to you than I can express. You have always 
 treated me with indulgence. You are not rich, but you 
 have done much more for me in proportion than many 
 of my friends who are. You have defended me when I 
 have been accused ; and even while blaming me for my 
 follies, have always tried to persuade me that I was per- 
 fectly able to reform. I do not know that you are 
 right, but I am sure of this : that for the sake of 
 pleasing you, I will make one supreme effort, only pro* 
 
l68 THE SNOW MAN, 
 
 vided it be out of Italy ; for anywhere in Italy I am 
 lost and dishonored. K I am to attempt a better life, I 
 must do it in a foreign country, and under an assumed 
 name.' 
 
 " Guido spoke with deep earnestness, and even shed 
 tears. I knew him to be kind-hearted, and I believed 
 him sincere. Perhaps he was so at that moment. To 
 tell you the truth, I have always felt very indulgent 
 towards those who are generous as well as prodigal, and 
 this was the case with Guido, to my own knowledge. I 
 beg you, however, Monsieur Goefle, not to suppose that 
 I confound together liberality and selfish extravagance, 
 although I, too, have been an offender in this respect. 
 At any rate, I allowed myself to be moved and persuaded 
 by my old comrade and new friend ; so you will please to 
 imagine us within the territories of the pope, breakfasting 
 frugally together under the shade of a clump of pine-trees, 
 and arranging a joint plan of operations. 
 
 " We were equally destitute ; but my situation, though 
 in a legal point of view more serious than his, was still 
 by no means desperate. It would have been quite pos- 
 sible for me to have effected my escape without so much 
 risk, fatigue and suffering. I should only have had to 
 take refuge outside the city of Naples, with any one of a 
 number of honorable persons, who had assured me of 
 their friendship, and who would certainly have believed 
 my word when I described to them hoAv I had been in 
 some sort forced to kill my cowardly enemy. He was 
 hated, and I was beloved. I should have been well re- 
 ceived, concealed, properly cared for, and enabled to 
 leave the country in safety under influential protection. 
 The police, and even the inquisition, can sometimes be 
 induced to close their eyes when sufficient influence is ex- 
 erted. However, I could not bring myself to adopt this 
 plan ; I felt an insurmountable repugnance to it, on ac- 
 count of my poverty, and the necessity I should have 
 been under of accepting aid at the very outset. "While I 
 was with the cardinal, ray salary had been too liberal to 
 justify me in leaving him empty handed. He himself 
 would certainly never have suspected how destitute 1 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 169 
 
 <vas. I should have been ashamed to confess, not that 
 I was without money, for the young men in the circle I 
 frequented were constantly in a similar condition, but that 
 I had ho prospect of receiving any until I had earned it 
 in some new employment ; and still further, the fact that 
 it would be necessary for me to live much more sensibly 
 and prudently than I had done in the past. Upon this 
 latter point I was quite ready to enter into an engagement 
 with myself; but, under the circumstances, my pride 
 would not allow me to make promises to others. 
 
 " When I explained my situation to Guido Massarelli, 
 he was greatly astonished at my scruples, and seemed even 
 to feel a sort of contempt for them. But the more he urged 
 me to apply to my friends in Rome for assistance, the 
 more repugnant the idea became to me. Perhaps I was 
 unreasonable about it ; but at any rate, while I felt no 
 shame at all at being reduced to the necessity of eating 
 lupins with my companion in misfortune, it is certain that 
 I would have died of hunger rather than go with him 
 to beg a dinner of my old acquaintances. He had so long 
 abused the efficacy of applications for aid, promises, useless 
 repentances and artfully contrived narratives, that I should 
 have been very much afraid of being supposed engaged in 
 a similar course. 
 
 '"We have been foolish,' I said to him, 'and we 
 ought to be men enough to take the consequences. For 
 my part, I have decided to proceed into France by the 
 way of Genoa, or else into Germany by Venice. I shall 
 go on foot, and live as I can. As soon as I can reach 
 some large town outside of Italy, for here I am constantly 
 in danger of falling into the hands of the Neapolitan police 
 from the least imprudence, I will look out for some reg- 
 ular employment. I will write to the cardinal, and justify 
 mypelf ; from my friends I will request letters of recom- 
 mendation, and I am confident that, after more or less of 
 poverty and delay, I shall find some respectable position. 
 If you like to come with me, come, and I will help you 
 to the best of my ability in doing as I do — that is, in 
 earning a respectable living by honest work.' 
 
 " Guido seemed so perfectly willing, and so weU con- 
 
170 
 
 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 vinced, that I no longer hesitated to allow myself the en- 
 joyraent of an intimacy with him. In fact, I have often 
 observed that a thorough scoundrel is often one of the 
 most agreeable of men, and that the most companionable 
 people are frequently those most destitute of dignity of 
 character. But we have an absurd sort of conceit that 
 makes us believe that we can exert an influence over such 
 unfortunates ; and when they deceive us, the fault is as 
 much ours as theirs. 
 
 " I make these preliminary reflections so as to avoid 
 interrupting the account of what followed. 
 
 " Our first business was to escape from Italy : in other 
 words, to travel some hundreds of leagues without a farth- 
 ing in our pockets. I promised that I would find the 
 means, asking only for a few days' rest to enable my 
 wound to heal, for it was very painful and feverish. 
 
 " ' In the meanwhile,* I said, ' go and provide for your- 
 self. I will take a loaf of bread and establish myself 
 under a rock, near a spring. That ought to be sufficient 
 for a man in a fever. We will appoint some place of 
 meeting, and I will join you as soon as I can travel.* 
 
 " He refused to depart, and devoted himself to taking 
 care of me ; and so much zeal and ingenuity did he dis- 
 play in relieving my pain and supplying my wants, that I 
 could not help feeling sincerely grateful. In three days 
 I was upon my feet again, and by this time I had made 
 rmy reflections. 
 
 " In brief, this was their result. I had come to the 
 conclusion that we could not do better than to continue 
 our marionette exhibition, which only required to be 
 made more_grofitable and less vulgar. We needed to es- 
 cape from the everTaSttng-drama of Punchinello, to choose 
 plots equally simple, but less threadbare ; and, taking 
 these for the groundwork, to improvise together amusing 
 little co medies. Guido had enough, and to spare, of wit 
 for this sorrof^work, and instead of applying himself to 
 it with reluctance and dislike, he saw at once that, with 
 an agreeable companion, it could be made very amusing. 
 It is a general rule, by the way, that we cannot entertain 
 other people when we are bored ourselves. So he read- 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 17J 
 
 ily assisted me to build a portable theatre iu two sections, 
 one of which served each of us as a shelter, in which 
 we walked, safe from sun, rain, and police-officers ; and 
 which, when joined together by a few hooks, formed a 
 stage large enough for the manoeuvring of our two pairs 
 of hands. I transformed his wretched hurattini into in- 
 telligent and well-costumed figures, and added to them a 
 dozen characters invented by myself. Then, in the open 
 air, in a solitary wilderness, we made the first trial of our 
 new theatre. 
 
 " The sale of my little devotional images carved out 
 of stone, which Guido sold about the country to much 
 better advantage than I could have done, defrayed the 
 humble expenses of this establishment. In about a week 
 we had advanced so far as to give a dozen representations 
 in the suburbs of Rome, which had the greatest success, 
 and netted the fabulous profit of three Roman crowns!" 
 This was enough to enable us to set out on our journey 
 across the deserted regions that separate the Eternal City 
 from the other provinces of Italy. Guido, who was de- 
 lighted at our success, wanted to stay longer at Rome. It 
 is very true that we might have risked going into the more 
 fashionable quarters of the city, so as to have attracted the 
 attention of a better class of society to our little comedies. 
 But that was precisely what I was afraid of, and what we 
 both needed to be afraid of, considering our reasons for 
 remaining concealed. I therefore overruled my compan- 
 ion, and we took the road to Florence, exhibiting, as we 
 went, in the villages and small towns, to pay our current 
 expenses. 
 
 "We went by the way of Perugia, and it was not 
 without a reason that I preferred this to the Sienna route. 
 I wished to see again my own beautiful and beloved city, 
 my sweet lake of Thrasymene, and, most of all, the little 
 villa where I had been so happy. We reached Bassig- 
 nano at nightfall. Never had I seen the sun setting in such 
 luminous splendor in waters so calm and transparent ! I 
 left Guido to establish himself in a small inn, while I 
 went along the shore of the lake towards the little villa 
 which had formerly been occupied by the Goffredis. 
 
I*j2 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 " In order to avoid being recognized in the neighbor- 
 hood, I put on a mask and a harlequin hat, which I had 
 bought at Rome to use in case of danger. A few parti- 
 colored rags transformed me into a professional moun- 
 tebank — a very appropriate character for an exhibitor of 
 marionettes employed in distributing handbills. The vil- 
 lage children, fancying that I was going to play tricks for 
 their amusement, followed me with cries of joy, but I 
 drove them away with my wooden sword, and was soon 
 alone upon the shore. 
 
 " The night had come on, but the air was bright, and 
 in the limpid crystal of the lake, where the lines of the 
 horizon were indistinguishable in the twilight, I seemed 
 to trace and follow the immensity of the starry heavens, 
 and to float, like a disembodied spirit, upon some fantastic 
 similitude of infinity. Ah, Monsieur Goefle ! how strange 
 is life sometimes ! And what a strange appearance did 
 I myself present, in that grotesque costume, seeking about, 
 like a lost soul, under the shade of the willows, which had 
 grown in my absence, for the solitary tomb of my poor 
 parents ! For a moment I believed that it had been re- 
 moved, that they had robbed me of it — for it was mine — 
 my only possession ! With my very last means I had 
 purchased the little nook of consecrated earth where I 
 had laid their remains. 
 
 " At last, however, I discovered the humble tomb, and, 
 sitting down by it, and taking off my harlequin's mask, I 
 wept freely. I remained there for a good part of the 
 night plunged in reflection, for I desired, before leaving 
 this spot probably for the last time, to review my life, to 
 repent of my errors, and to make good resolutions for the 
 future. Divine grace is no illusion. Monsieur Goefle. I 
 do not know to what extent you are a Lutheran, and for 
 my part I do not pretend to be very much of a Catholic. 
 In these days, in fact, nobody believes in very much of 
 anything, unless it be in the necessity and duty of toler- 
 ation. But I believe, in a vague sort of way, in a soul 
 of the world— no matter by what name you call it — a 
 great soul all love and goodness, which receives our tears 
 and our aspirations. The philosophers are ^ust now as- 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 173 
 
 eerting that it is a platitude to imagine that the Being of 
 beings will condescend to concern himself with such worms 
 as the human race. But I say that there is nothing either 
 great or small, in the sight of Him who is All ; and that, 
 in an ocean of Love, there will always be room to receive 
 with kindness one poor little human tear. 
 
 ' Accordingly I instituted an examination of my con- 
 S3ieDce over that tomb ; and, in the rain of soft light 
 which fell upon me from the quiet stars, I fancied that the 
 two beings whom I had loved as a father and mother, 
 must surely be sending at least one ray to find me out and 
 bless me. I felt that between me and them there was 
 neither crime, shame, cowardice, nor impiety. I had 
 never forgotten them for a single day ; and, in the very 
 midst of my dissipations, whenever the demon of youth 
 and curiosity had urged me towards the deeper abysses 
 of this vicious and unbelieving world, I had always drawn 
 back and protected myself by invoking the memories of 
 Silvio and Sophia. 
 
 " To have avoided evil, however, was not enough : it 
 was my duty to do well. Well-doing is a task which 
 varies with the position and capabilities of each one of us. 
 My own duty was, to continue the labors of Silvio Gof- 
 fredi, and to accumulate the means of writing out and 
 publishing the results of his researches. For this it 
 would have been necessary, in the first place, to acquire 
 quite a fortune, in order to complete his travels. I had 
 at first thought of doing this, but my inexperience, the 
 pleasures of the senses, and bad examples, had led me on, 
 from day to day, in a life like that of a mere adventurer. 
 It was this reckless course which had resulted in my ruin. 
 If I had remained contented with the appropriate position 
 of a modest professor, I should not have been obliged to 
 kill Marco Melfi. He would never have thought of in- 
 sulting me ; indeed, he would not have met me in the car- 
 dinal's saloons. He would not have searched me out in 
 my study 'among my books — he would not even have 
 known that I existed. I had tried to play the gentleman, 
 and had been obliged to become a bully. 
 
 " ' How my poor mother would have wept ! ' I thougjht 
 
m 
 
 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 to myself, ' to have seen me transformed into a strolling 
 mountebank, bruising, on the stones of the pavement, the 
 feet that she used to warm in her own hands before put- 
 ting me in my cradle ! And would not my father have 
 disapproved of the false sense of honor which had made 
 me a murderer and an outcast?' 
 
 " I remembered the quick sensibilities and scrupulous 
 pride of the noble Silvio, and yet he could not manage a 
 bvvord, and had refused to allow me a fencing-master. ' A 
 man's honor,' he used to say, ' must be very frail, if he 
 could not make himself respected without having a sword 
 dangling at his side.' 
 
 " By the memory of these dear and holy friends I took 
 an oath to amend my faults ; and, after' gazing for a long 
 time at the heavens, where I imagined them reunited in 
 some happy star, I returned at once to the village, with- 
 out caring any longer to go in search of the villetta. 
 Why should I have gone there to indulge in barren re- 
 grets ? It was not to enable me to live in idleness that 
 Goffredi had bequeathed it to me. He must needs liave 
 blessed me, even from his tomb, for alienating the prop- 
 erty, aad expending his whole fortune in solacing the last 
 days of his widow. But when that was done, I ought to 
 have labored all the harder, instead of acting as if one 
 small act of devotion to my family had given me a right 
 to go and live in dissipation at the tables of idlers. 
 
 " On the shore of the lake I met Guido Massarelli ; my 
 long absence had made him uneasy, and he was coming 
 to look for me. 1 opened my heart to him, and he seemed 
 to be greatly touched by my emotion. We sat dowii in a 
 boat moored to the shore, and talked sentiment, ethics, 
 philosophy, metaphysics, astronomy, and poetry, until the 
 day began to dawn. Guido possessed a very noble intel- 
 lect. And, indeed, this strange anomaly occurs in the case 
 of many worthless characters, as if to make us doubt the 
 validity of God's own logic. ^ . 
 
 " Next day we were on the road again, and some daysj 
 later were attracting a crowd on the Piazza del Palazzo 
 Vecchio, at Florence. Our receipts were excellent. If 
 we had chosen, we could have travelled to Genoa bv 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 175 
 
 Wttgoa. We preferred to walk, however, although our 
 loads, continually augmented by additional figures and 
 scenery, had become very heavy. 
 
 " At Genoa, further success, and extraordinary receipts. 
 We "Became such favorites that we were unable to comply 
 even with the private engagements that were oiFered us. 
 At first we had simply amused the common people, who 
 gathered on the public square ; but passers-by of higher 
 rank had chanced to stop before our booth, and we could 
 not resist the temptation of elevating our dialogue on the 
 occasion to a correspondingly higher intellectual level. 
 
 ^'This was observed, and was spoken of in society. 
 One of these casual listeners was a Marquis Spinola, who 
 invited us to his house to amuse his children. We went 
 masked, as usual, for we made our incognito an express 
 condition of appearing. Our theatre was erected in the 
 garden, and we had for an audience the best and most bril- 
 liant society of the city. 
 
 " For days afterwards, we knew not which way to turn. 
 Our representations were in the greatest demand, and 
 Guido demanded extremely high prices, which were con- 
 ceded without hesitation. The mystery with which we 
 surrounded ourselves, the pains we took to remain 
 masked outside of our theatre, and the fantastic names we 
 had assumed, added, no doubt, to our popularity. Every 
 one iCadily guessed that we were two young men of good 
 family ; but while some guessed, also, that it was our own 
 follies that had forced us to become wandering showmen, 
 others tried to persuade themselves that we had adopted 
 til is employment merely for our amusement, and on a 
 wager. Some went so far as to insist upon it that we 
 were two young men of the city, who, as we learned 
 later, were very well pleased with the imputation. 
 / "At Nice, at Toulon, everywhere until we reached 
 {^Macaeilles, our progress was a series of triumphs. As 
 we travelled slowly, our fame preceded us, and at every, 
 inn where we stopped we heard that persons had already 
 jome to inquire after us, and to engage our evenings. 
 
 " From Marseilles our success diminished steadily, until 
 we reached Paris. My knowledge of the French Ian- 
 
176 THE SNOW MAN, 
 
 guage was thorough ; and, as I improved daily, I soon 
 freed myself from the Italian accent which had prevented 
 me at first from giving sufficient variety to the intona- 
 tions of my actors. But Guido's accent, which was 
 much more pronounced than mine, seemed to become 
 stronger rather than otherwise, and our dialogue suffered 
 in consequence. This, however, scarcely troubled me at 
 all. Our career as professional buffoons was approaching 
 an end, and I flattered myself that I should soon be able 
 to command a more dignified position." 
 
 VI. 
 
 A FTER resting a few moments, Cristiano — we will 
 -^*" hereafter call him Christian — continued his narra- 
 tive as follows : 
 
 " But I must not forget to tell you of a well-known indi- 
 vidual whom I happened to meet at this time ; an inter- 
 esting encounter that reconciled me for some days longer 
 to my wandering life. The person to whom I refer is a 
 very remarkable man, who still holds a most respectable 
 position in Paris, and whose name is no doubt known to 
 you : I mean Philip Ledru, commonly called Comus." 
 
 " Certainly," said M. Goefle ; "I have seen it stated 
 in my scientific journal that this skilful prestigiator was 
 a profound physicist, and that his researches upon the 
 magnet had enriched science with various new instru 
 meuts of rare perfection. Is it the same person ? " 
 
 "The same, M. Goefle. Comus has been appointed 
 professor to the young French princes ; he has pre- 
 pared a set of nautical charts upon a new system, 
 the result of an immense series of researches, un- 
 dertaken by the king's order, and has furnished M. 
 4e la Perouse with a set of manuscript copies of 
 these charts. Indeed, ever since the time when I first 
 encountered him travelling about the country, in the 
 character of a poor but learned man, furnishing the 
 public with instruction in the form of amusement, he has 
 
THE SNOW MAN, 
 
 177 
 
 steadily and rapidly risen in the public esteem, in the 
 favor of the ministry, and in the command of means for 
 making practical the results of his profound knowledge. 
 
 "I first met this really great man, not exactly in the 
 public streets of Lyons, but in a hall intended for the 
 representations of wandering performers, and which we 
 both wished to hire for our several purposes. As I was 
 used to a good deal of absurdity or else coarseness on the 
 j)art of such competitors, I was quite on my guard ; but 
 as soon as Comus addressed me, I was struck by his 
 charming and even distinguished manners. He was a man 
 of about thirty-five years of age, and had a magnificent 
 constitution. Equally vigorous in body and in mind, 
 equally quick in his movements and ready and agreeable 
 in conversation, he was, in a word, one of those admir- 
 ably endowed human beings who must from necessity 
 emerge from obscurity. He inquired about my em- 
 ployment, and seemed astonished to find that I was 
 sufficiently educated to be able to converse with him. 
 I told him about my circumstances, and he conceived a 
 friendship for me. 
 
 "After coming to one of our performances, with which 
 he was greatly diverted, he invited us, in his turn, to 
 attend his exhibition. This I witnessed, much to my 
 advantage, for Comus possessed various secrets known 
 only to himself; which, however, consisted merely in 
 some single application, out of a thousand, of his own 
 profound discoveries. lie was very willing to explain 
 them to me, and finding that I was not without intelli- 
 gence, he invited me to be his associate — to share with 
 him his projects and adventures. I declined this prop- 
 osition with regret, and to my own loss ; with regret, 
 because Comus was one of the best, the most disinter- 
 ested, and the most sympathetic men I have ever known ; 
 and to my own loss, because, although then a travelling 
 exhibitor in natural science, he was a person who could 
 not fail before long to find some serious and useful em- 
 ployment for his great talents. I had sworn to Massa- 
 relli not to desert him, and he had no taste for the 
 sciences. 
 
178 
 
 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 " This meeting, which I was not wise enough to turn to 
 account as far as regards my material interests, was so 
 beneficial to me in a moral point of view, that I shall 
 always thank God for it. Allow me to repeat to you, as 
 briefly as possible, the advice which this judicious and 
 excellent man was so kind as to give me — in the pleas- 
 antest and most friendly way, and without a tinge of 
 pedantry — during a quiet supper that we took together 
 at the inn, amongst the chests that contained our bag- 
 gage ; for we were ready to start on the next morning. 
 
 "'My dear Goffredi,' he said, 'I am sorry to part 
 with you so soon ; the grief that you feel I share with 
 my whole heart. We have been together only for a few 
 days, but in that time I have learned to know and to ap- 
 preciate you. But do not be uneasy or discouraged about 
 your future life. It will be prosperous, if it is useful. 
 You see that my advice is very different from what is 
 usually given ; but, if you follow it, you will find that it 
 is dictated by sound common sense. Others will tell you 
 to sacrifice everything to ambition ; I tell you to give all 
 your true interests precedence before ambition — as it is 
 commonly understood. I mean to say this : be perfectly 
 indifferent both to fortune and fame, and pursue only one 
 single object, that of enlightening your fellow-men, no 
 matter by what means, and no matter in what condition 
 they may be. All means are good and noble which 
 seek this end. You are only a buffoon, and I am only a 
 sorcerer ! Very good ; we will laugh at our pursuits, and 
 persevere in them, as long as the marionettes and the 
 juggling can be made subservient to good ends. What;^ 
 I tell you now is the secret of being happy in spite of 
 everything. For my part, I understand only two prin- 
 ciples, and these constitute but one and the same precept : 
 to love mankind, and to take no account of their preju- 
 dices. Contempt for error is esteem for man, is it not ? 
 Possessed of this secret, you will always be sufiiciently 
 rich and sufiiciently famous. As for the lost time that 
 you have been regretting, you are quite young enough to 
 make up for it. I, also, at one time, was a little friv- 
 olous ; a little vain of my youth, a little proud of m) 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 179 
 
 strength ! But, after wasting rather foolishly my patri- 
 otism and enthusiasm in the flower of my age, I re- 
 trieved my errors, and since then have advanced steadily. 
 My organization is vigorous, and so is yours. I work 
 twelve hours a day, and any one can do as much who is 
 not feeble or ill. Apply yourself to study, and leave 
 silly minds to seek after pleasure. They will not find it 
 where they look for it, and you will find it where it is ; 
 that is, in a quiet conscience and the exercise of your 
 nobler faculties ! ' 
 
 "Having thus spoken, Comus divided his receipts into 
 two different sums, the one large and the other small : 
 the latter he kept for himself ; but the former he sent as a 
 gift to the hospitals of the city. I was very much struck 
 with the simplicity and cheerfulness with which he made 
 this disposition of his money, as if performing an hab- 
 itual and indispensable duty, and one so natural that it 
 did not even occur to him to conceal it. I reproached 
 myself also for having forgotten for so long a time the 
 precepts and examples of my dear friends, the Gof- 
 fredis ; for all that M. Comus said and did reminded me 
 of them. Thus it was, M. Goefle, that a wandering 
 juggler preached to and converted a highway improv- 
 isatore. 
 
 "We reached Paris after a journey that had lasted 
 three months, and which I recall as one of the most 
 agreeable experiences of my life. I had not wasted my 
 time on the road, for I had studied carefully both nature 
 and society, as far as they were accessible to one who, 
 
 -without claiming remarkable perspicacity, is not more 
 
 obtuse than his neighbors. I had taken notes, and fan- 
 cied, since I had something to say and felt competent to 
 say it, that I would have no sort of difficulty in living by 
 my pen in the centre of letters and of arts. 
 
 "It was a sombre and melancholy autumn day when 
 we entered the great city. I found it hard to imagine 
 that any one could become accustomed to such a climate, 
 and Guido, from the very first, showed visible signs of 
 gloom and discouragement. We hired a miserable little 
 furnished room at a very high rate, and having taken 
 
l8o THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 possession, we adjusted our toilettes somewhat, dis- 
 mantled our theatre-, and locked the huraitini in a box. 
 It was our purpose to sell the establishment to some 
 mountebank ; and for a few days we devoted ourselves 
 to studying the language, and visiting the monuments, 
 exhibitions, and curiosities of the French metropolis. 
 
 "At the end of eight days our little capital was sadly 
 diminished, and the worst of it was that I could see no 
 means of renewing it. I found that my hopes had de- 
 ceived me, or rather that I had not formed a true concep- 
 tion of what a really great city is, and of the frightful 
 isolation into which a stranger, without means, friends, 
 or recommendations, almost necessarily falls. I inquired 
 about Comus, hoping that he would help me to find em- 
 ployment, but he had not yet returned from his tour, and, 
 moreover, he had at that time only a provincial reputa- 
 tion. I sent also for the papers of Silvio GofFredi, 
 proposing, by means of them, to publish under his name 
 the results of his historical researches. I did not expect 
 any pecuniary profit to accrue from this effort, but I 
 hoped both to fulfil a duty and to secure an honorable 
 position and a few friends. There were still several 
 persons in Italy who retained their former regard for 
 me. They sent the papers at my request, but the parcel 
 was lost ; it never reached me. My letters to the cardi- 
 nal and to my young pupil remained unanswered, and 
 others to whom I wrote confined themselves to empty 
 professions of regard, but without venturing to commit 
 themselves so far as to recommend me to such per- 
 sons of good standing of my own nation as happened 
 to be in Paris. Indeed, they advised me not to draw 
 upon myself the observation of our ambassador, lest he 
 should feel it his duty (he was a relative of Marco 
 Melfi) to obtain a lettre de cachet from the king of France 
 for my benefit. 
 
 " As soon as I realized what my position was, I re- 
 solved to rely upon myself alone ; and you may rest 
 assured, Monsieur Goefle, that I deserve some credit for 
 maintaining my integrity under such circumstances ; so 
 abandoned, and reduced to such cruel straits in a city sc 
 
THE SNOW MAN. iSi 
 
 luxurious and full of tempations as Paris ! Only a short 
 time before I had been living under a splendid sky ; a 
 guest in palaces ! Then, a ^careless traveller, I had 
 wandered through enchanted? lands ; but now I was the 
 gloomy and dejected tenant of a garret, struggling with 
 cold, famine, and s<^netipies with disgust and discour- 
 agement. And yet, thanks to God, I came through vic- 
 torious ; that is to say, I did not cheat anybody, and did 
 not die of starvation. I succeeded in having a few lit- 
 tle books published, and though I did not make any 
 money by them, they gave me something of a position in 
 a small circle of humble and modest men of science. I 
 had the honor of furnishing, indirectly, the materials for 
 a number of articles in the Encyclopedia, on natural 
 science and on Italian antiquities. A marquis of lit- 
 erary taste employed me as his secretary, and clothed me 
 decently ; and so I was once more afloat. If dress is 
 not everything in Paris, it is safe to say, at least, that a 
 respectable exterior is indispensable to one who would 
 escape from poverty. Now, thanks to my marquis and 
 my coat, society was otice more open to me. This was 
 another dangerous rock, and I once more risked being 
 shipwrecked. Pray.^ not think me conceited if I say 
 that it would have been much more to my advantage in 
 some respects, if I had been as ugly and as awkward as 
 your friend Stangstadius. A good-looking man without 
 means, in society as It is now constituted, will every- 
 where find a door open to fortune — and to shame. No 
 matter how circumspect he may be, he is sure to find 
 himself pursued at every step by the eager and deter- 
 mined women of gallantry who swarm in great cities. 
 Had I not been protected by the memory of the chaste 
 and proud Sophia, I might probably have suffered my- 
 self to be enticed into the labyrinths of these insinuating 
 and industrious animals. 
 
 "However, I overcame this danger ; but after a year's 
 residence in Paris, at the very moment when, thanks to 
 my labor and economy, I was in a fair way to receive an 
 independent position, I was seized with an extreme dis- 
 gust for the city, and an unconquerable longing to travel 
 
l82 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 Massarelli was the chief cause of this disgust. He had 
 not, like myself, been able to endure the privations and 
 anguish of waiting. When we first began to be embar- 
 r/issed, he carried off the theatre of marionettes from 
 our lodging, and tried to earn a living in the public 
 streets, amongst a class of people of the very worst sort. 
 Unfortunately for him, he had not taken much pains to 
 correct his accent, and he had no success. So he fell 
 upon my hands again, and for several months, while I 
 was jn the greatest difficulties myself, I was obliged to 
 feed and clothe him. At last, in spile of his constantly 
 renewed oaths of reformation, and his efforts to work 
 with me, he disappeared. But still, I did not get rid of 
 him after all. Every few weeks he came to beg from 
 me, and sometimes he was intoxicated. I shut the door 
 in his face, but he dogged me about. At last, having 
 contrived to make a little money, by means of various 
 infamous transactions, he came once more, drunken and 
 repentant, to weep in my bosom ; he wanted now to 
 return all that I had given him, and, moreover, to share 
 with me lilie a brother ! His money and his protestations 
 disgusted me equally, and I refused all overtures. He 
 lost his temper, and wanted to fight, but this I contempt- 
 uously refused. Then he undertook to strike me, and I 
 was obliged to give him a beating. Next day he wrote 
 to ask my forgiveness, but my patience was at an end ; 
 and as I used to meet him everywhere, sometimes even 
 in good society — God only knows how he gained admis- 
 sion there — I was apprehensive of being compromised 
 by some knavish act upon his part. I had not the selfish 
 fortitude to expose publicly a man who had once been 
 dear to me ; and preferred rather to give up the conflict, 
 and retreat myself. Fortunately, I was now able secure 
 good recommendations, and, among others, those of Co- 
 mus, who was just then creating a great excitement in 
 Paris with his exhibitions in catoptrics — that is, a 
 phantasmagoria managed by mirrors, in which, instead 
 of spectres and devils, he showed nothing but agreeable 
 and graceful figures. His remarkable intellect, and his 
 habits of penetrating observation, had given him such a 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 183 
 
 power of judging the faces of men, and such a knowl- 
 edge of the human heart, that he could read people's 
 very thoughts, almost as if endowed with an actual gift 
 of divination. Moreover, his profound studies in ap- 
 plied mathematics enabled him to solve, while appar- 
 ently merely performing diverting and ingenious feats, 
 various problems entirely beyond the comprehension of 
 ordinary people, and this skill many persons likened to 
 magic. 
 
 " The age we live in is remarkably intelligent, and yet 
 the love of the marvellous — a sentiment offering a sin- 
 gular contrast to its other tendencies, so powerful and 
 ill-regulated in the past — still struggles in many minds 
 against the severer authority of reason. You know 
 something about this in your country, where your 
 famous and learned Swedenborg is still more sought 
 for as a sorcerer than as a seer ; while he himself claimed 
 to understand the secrets of another world. I do not 
 say that Comus is more sincere or more virtuous than 
 Swedenborg, who I know must be mentioned with en- 
 tire respect, but he has more wisdom and earnestness of 
 purpose, ^e does not pretend to act in virtue of any 
 other laws than those which the human mind can dis- 
 cover ; and he is generous in communicating his secrets 
 to scientific men and travellers, who desire to utilize 
 them in the cause of science. 
 
 "He received me with great kindness, and offered to 
 take me with him to England, to assist him in his experi- 
 ments. I was strongly tempted to accept, but my pref- 
 erences led me to apply myself to mineralogy, botany, 
 and zoology ; and also to the study of manners and of 
 societies. It seemed to me that England had been too 
 thoroughly explored to furnish a promising field for new 
 observations. And besides, Comus was at that time 
 devoted to a special pursuit in which I did not think I 
 could be useful to liim. He was going to London to 
 superintend personally the making of some very accurate 
 instruments which he had not been able to have man- 
 ufactured to his satisfaction in Paris. I did not like the 
 idea of remaining for a year, or two years, in Loudon ; I 
 
184 
 
 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 was tired of living in a great city ; I felt a violent long- 
 ing for freedom, movement, above all for the privilege 
 of being my own master. Though I had every reason 
 to be pleased with my employers up to this time, I was 
 so ill-suited to a dependent position that it really made 
 me ill. 
 
 " Comus introduced me to a great many eminent men ; 
 such as MM. de Lacepede, BufFon, Daubenton, and Ber- 
 nard de Jussieu. I took a lively interest in the rapid 
 and magnificent progress of the Jardin des Plantes, and 
 the zoological cabinet, which were daily being directed 
 and enriched by these noble and learned men. Splendid 
 gifts from wealthy persons in a private station in life, 
 and the precious contributions of travellers, were con- 
 stantly being sent to them. An irresistible ambition 
 seized me to enroll myself in the number of these pro- 
 moters of science ; these humble adepts, satisfied with 
 benefiting humanity, without demanding either glory or 
 profit. I saw, indeed, the 'tall man with ruffles,* M. de 
 Buffon, appropriating extensively, for the gratification of 
 his vanity, the patient and modest labors of his associ- 
 ates. But suppose it is true that he had this weakness, 
 that he wished to be M. le Gomte, and to exert the feudal 
 rights of his seigniory ; that he sounded his own praises on 
 every occasion, and claimed the credit of works, which, 
 very frequently, he had only been consulted about ; — 
 what mattered it? This was his taste. It was not that 
 of his generous and intellectual companions. They 
 smiled, let him say what he pleased, and only worked 
 the harder ; fully persuaded that individual interests are 
 of no real importance in researches directed towards the 
 advancement of the human species. Thus they were 
 happier than he ; their happiness was that which Comus 
 understood, and to which I aspired. It seemed to me 
 that they had chosen the better part, and I was ambi- 
 tious to follow in their steps. I offered them my ser- 
 vices, therefore, after profiting to the best of my ability 
 by their public lectures and private conversations. M. 
 Daubenton was of opinion that my love of science and 
 aptitude for the languages were qualities that would in- 
 
THE SNOW MAN, 185 
 
 gure my success, and that I ought to be encouraged. My 
 poverty was the only obstacle. 
 
 "* Science is growing rich/ he said proudly, as he 
 looked at the cabinet and garden, which were so rapidly 
 increasing; 'but scientific men are rather too poor to be 
 great travellers. Indeed, they live lives of privation in 
 every respect. You must be prepared for that.' 
 
 "I was prepared for everything. I had succeeded in 
 saving a little money, which, in my judgment, would go 
 a great way, considering the frugal sort of life from 
 which I did not shrink. I secured a regular appoint- 
 ment to a scientific mission, so as to avoid being taken 
 for a vagrant or a spy in foreign countries, and set out 
 provided with a year's support, and leaving the rest to 
 JProvidence. And yet with the testimonials I carried, 
 proving the innocent and honorable aim of my wander- 
 ing life, I should have been able to obtain more or less 
 pecuniary assistance from scientific bodies, and even 
 from private individuals friendly to science. But I was 
 unwilling to make any such demands, for I knew how 
 greatly the Jussieu family had impoverished itself in 
 sacrifices of the kind, and I preferred to devote myself 
 exclusively at my own risk and peril. 
 
 "Thus, 6nce more, began for me a series of happy 
 days. The time before me seemed infinite! — it would 
 last, at least, as long as my resources. This was not 
 saying a great deal ; and to prolong my journey, and^ 
 fully satisfy my passion for travelling, I practised, from 
 the outset, the strictest economy. At my very first stop- 
 ping-place, I put on a stout, coarse, mountain costume, 
 bought an ass to carry the little baggage that I had, my 
 books, instruments, and specimens, and proceeded on 
 foot to the Swiss mountains. I will not dwell upon my 
 labors, journeys and adventures. Whenever I have 
 leisure, I intend to write an account of my travels ; and 
 even the recent loss of my journal will not be an insur- 
 mountable obstacle, thanks to my uncommonly good 
 memory. In these solitary expeditions I recovered my 
 excellent health, my careless ease, my confidence in the 
 future, my natural gayety; all the qualities that my life 
 
l86 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 in Paris had been gradually destroying. I felt that 5 
 was in harmony with the memory of the Goffredis — that 
 I was happy. 
 
 '*My knowledge of botany and mineralogy was suf- 
 ficient to enable me to execute what I had prom- 
 ised in these two specialties ; and moreover, as I 
 wasted no time in social indulgences, I had leisure to 
 gratify my inclinations as an observer, and somewhat 
 also as an artist and poet — that is, a person who feels 
 the divine unity of the beauty of nature. At each im- 
 portant stopping place I forwarded reports, and even 
 specimens, to Paris, and I wrote long letters to M. Dau- 
 benton, well knowing that the romantic impressions of 
 a young man would not be displeasing to him. 
 
 "At the end of nine or ten months, I had reached the 
 Carpathians, still accompanied by my ass, whom I found 
 of the greatest service, and who was so docile and well 
 trained to follow me everywhere, that he was never in 
 my way. Just at this time, in a remote and lonely place, 
 I met a beggar with a long beard, who was no other than 
 Guido Massarelli. Divided between disgust and pity, 
 I was hesitating whether to speak to him, when he 
 recognized me, and approached with an aspect so humble 
 and dejected, that pity carried the day. I was happy my- 
 self at that time, and therefore kindly disposed. Seated on 
 the grass in a grove of tall trees, I was eating with a good 
 appetite, while my ass was grazing a few steps off. To 
 enable him to rest better, I had taken off his load, and 
 had placed the pannier containing my provisions for the 
 day between my knees. There was not much in it, but 
 enough for two. Massarelli looked pale and feeble, as if 
 dying of hunger. 
 
 " ' Sit down,' I said, *and eat. I am quite certain it 
 is through your own fault that you have been brought 
 into this miserable condition, but it shall never be said 
 that I did not help you once more.* 
 
 "He proceeded to tell his adventures, whether true or 
 false, acknowledging his faults in words of a base hu- 
 mility, and yet, in fact, always excusing himself, by 
 attributing them to the ingratitude or harshness of 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 187 
 
 others. I could only pity him for being what he was ; 
 and after half an hour's conversation, I gave him a few 
 ducats and resumed my journey. We were going in 
 opposite directions, to my great satisfaction ; but I had 
 not advanced a quarter of an hour when I was seized 
 with a vertigo that obliged me to stop, overcome with 
 weariness and a desire to sleep. I could not comprehend 
 what had brought on this sudden indisposition, for I had 
 never had such an attack in my whole life ; and, having 
 shared my bottle with Guido, I had scarcely drunk a 
 glass of wine. I supposed that it might be a sort of 
 sun-stroke, or was perhaps the effect of a poor night's 
 sleep at the inn where I had stopped. At any rate, I 
 laid down in the shade to take a nap. This may have 
 been imprudent in a place so extremely solitary, but it 
 was absolutely impossible for me to do otherwise ; I was 
 overcome by a heavy and irresistible drowsiness, like 
 that of intoxication. 
 
 " When I awoke, my head was still heavy and vacant, 
 and in fact I was feeling extremely ill ; I was in the same 
 place, but had been robbed of everything. I thought at 
 first that it was the evenin«r twili<?ht, and that I had been 
 asleep six hours ; but when I saw the sun rising through 
 the fog, and the dew glittering on tlie grass, the certainty 
 was forced upon me tliat I had slept straight through a day 
 and night. My ass had disappeared as well as my baggage, 
 my pockets were empty,; nothing had been left but the 
 clothes on my back. While looking about, I observed 
 one valueless object which the thieves had overlooked, or 
 thought not worth taking. This was a little cocoa-nut cup 
 which I always used in travelling, to avoid the vulgar habit 
 of drinking from a bottle. It was this squeamishness that 
 liad cost me so dear ; at a moment when my back was 
 turned, Guido had thrown a narcotic into my cup. Even 
 now, the bottom was lined with some kind of salt, crys- 
 tallized. Guido was evidently no beggar, but the captain 
 of a band of robbers. The footmarks all around me 
 ehowed that a number of persons had been on the spot. 
 
 "I examined the immediate vicinity closely, and at 
 
iSS THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 last espied something written with chalk upon a rock 
 near by. It was in Latin, and to the following effect : 
 
 " 'My friend, I could have killed you, and it was my 
 duty to do so ; but I pardon you. Sleep well.' 
 
 ''It was the handwriting of Guido Massarelli. Why 
 was it his duty to have killed me? In return for the 
 blows I had given him with my cane at Paris ? That is 
 possible, for it is certainly true that the Italian retains 
 his revengeful disposition, and never forgets an injury, 
 even when his mind and character have been utterly 
 corrupted. But what could I do to revenge myself in 
 my turn? There was nothing that would not require 
 time, money, and investigation, and I was without a sou, 
 and was beginning to feel hungry. 
 
 "'Well,' I thought, as I set out once more on my 
 journey, ' it was written that one day or other I should 
 beg. But in spite of bad luck, I swear that I will not 
 be a beggar long. I must find some new business, and 
 get on my feet again.* 
 
 " I made my way out of the mountains, and found a 
 hospitable reception with a family of kind peasants, who 
 even obliged me to accept some provisions for the road. 
 They told me that a band of robbers infested the coun- 
 try, and that their chief was called the ' The Italian.' 
 
 " Still pushing on, I reached the province of Silesia*. 
 It was my intention to enter a complaint in the first town 
 I came to, and put the authorities on the track of the 
 robbers. As I walked along, thoughtful, and absorbed 
 in a thousand plans, all equally impracticable, for once 
 more filling my purse without appealing to public charity, 
 I heard a short, uneven gallop behind me, and, turning 
 round, was astonished to recognize my ass, my poor 
 Jean, coming after me as well as he could, for he was 
 wounded. People usually despise the ass ! They are 
 welcome to do so ; but this animal, in my opinion, is 
 almost as intelligent as the dog. I had already had 
 many convincing proofs that it is so, while travelling 
 with this faithful servant ; and, on this occasion, he 
 showed that he was capable of feeling a reasonable 
 attachment, and was endowed with a mysterious and 
 
THE SNOJ^ MAN. 189 
 
 truly extraordinary Instinct. Stolen and carried oft', he 
 had undoubtedly run away, as soon as he had been re- 
 lieved of his load. The robbers had fired on him, but 
 he had kept on, disregarding their shots ; he had found 
 and followed my track, and now rejoined me with a bul- 
 let in his thigh. 
 
 "I confess that we had a scene worthy of Sancho 
 Panza and his ass ; nay, even more pathetic, for I had a 
 wounded friend to assist. I extracted the ball which 
 had lodged in the thigh of my interesting companion, 
 and washed the wound with the most touching care. 
 The poor beast submitted to be treated and bandaged 
 with the stoicism of his own species, and with an intel- 
 ligent coDfidence that is apparently not confined to ours. 
 Now that I had recovered my ass, I was not entirely 
 without resources. When the ball vras extracted, he 
 stopped limping. He was an uncommonly handsome 
 animal, large and strong, and would be worth — . But I 
 did not go so far as to embody in precise figures this cow- 
 ardly and detestable idea ! To my honor, I would state 
 that I rejected it with indignation. There could be no 
 question of selling my friend ; the only problem was to 
 feed two stomachs instead of one. 
 
 " I advanced towards Troppau as I best could. Jean 
 ate thistles along the road, and I deprived myself of part 
 of my allowance of bread, so as to supply him with a 
 delicacy in his convalescence. At Troppau the common 
 people took pity on me, and provided me with food and 
 lodging, with that charity which is so highly valued and 
 so meritorious among the poor. The authorities of the 
 town gave but little credit to my story. My coarse gar- 
 ments were those of a pedestrian, and I had no docu- 
 ments whatever to prove that I was a person of studious 
 pursuits, and entitled to confidence. I talked well, it is 
 true : too well for a rustic ; but these frontier countries 
 are overrun by innumerable dexterous adventurers. Only 
 a little while before, they informed me, an Italian, claim- 
 ing to be a great nobleman, had given out that he had 
 been robbed in the mountains, and it was afterwards dis- 
 
190 
 
 THE SNOW MAN, 
 
 covered that he was the chief of the very baud he had 
 pretended to denounce. 
 
 ''I thought it best not to press the matter ; for, from 
 the recollection of Guido Massarelli, to the suspicion 
 that I was associated with him, there was but a step. So 
 I returned to my poor entertainers. They received me 
 very kindly, blamed the conduct of their magistrates, 
 and looking covetously at Jean, added : 
 
 " ' Fortunately your ass is left, and you can sell him.* 
 
 "Seeing that I was not inclined to take their hint, 
 they proceeded to make me a proposition, in the guise 
 of advice. I might remain with them, they said, for two 
 or three months, if I could be contented with their way 
 of living. During this time I could look for work, if 
 there was anything I was able to do ; and if I could pay my 
 expenses at the end of the term agreed upon, I would not 
 be obliged to leave Jean as an equivalent. This was 
 good advice, and I accepted it ; resolving, however, that 
 I would dig in the earth, if necessary, so as to release 
 my pledge, poor Jean, who was still useful to his master. 
 
 "My landlord was a shoemaker. In order to show 
 that I was not idle, I asked w^hether I could help him in 
 any way, though I did not know his trade. 
 
 *"I see that you are a good fellow,* he said, ' for you 
 have an honest face. There's a fair to-morrow in a vil- 
 lage two leagues from here, to which I shall not be able 
 to go. Load your ass with my goods, go in my stead, 
 and sell all the shoes you can. You shall have ten per 
 cent, of the profits.' 
 
 " The next morning I was at my post selling shofes, as 
 if I had never done nothing else in my whole life. 1 
 knew nothing at all about the tricks peculiar to this sort 
 of business, whether conducted on a small or grand scale, 
 but it occurred to me to pay all the women compliments 
 on their little feet ; and the people were so amused by my 
 extravagant nonsense, that my entire load was disposed 
 of in a few hours. In the evening I returned gayly home 
 to my employer, who was surprised at my success, and 
 obstinately refused to let me deduct the price of my board 
 from my share of the profits. 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 191 
 
 "Once more, therefore, I was provided with a trade, 
 and a supply of pocket-money sufficient for the necessities 
 of my new position. Hans, my employer, now sent 
 me oil a three days' tour through the neighborhood, and 
 I succeeded in selling off some old stock that had been 
 on his hands a long time. On my return, he paid me 
 more than he had agreed, but when I said something 
 about leaving him, he flew into a tremendous passion, 
 and then shed tears ; he treated me, in short, like an un- 
 grateful son, and ended by offering to give me his daugh- 
 ter in marriage, if I would remain. The girl was 
 pretty, and threw me artless and tender glances. I be- 
 haved like a fool, or so my former gay companions 
 would have said. It is certain that I did not even at- 
 tempt to kiss her, and that I made my escape in the 
 night, taking with me Jean and two rix dollars, and 
 leaving an equal sum behind me to pay my board at the 
 house of the good shoemaker of Troppau. 
 
 *' It was quite indifferent to me where I went, provided 
 only that I could obtain sufficient means to continue my 
 journey without being obliged to confide to the persons 
 in the various towns of Germany and Poland to whom I 
 had brought letters of introduction, a story of disaster, 
 of which I could furnish no proof, except my destitution. 
 The suspicions of the burgomasters of Troppau had cured 
 me of the idea of relating my misfortunes. My testimo- 
 nials were lost, and I had nothing but probable assertions 
 with which to replace them. Now, no story ever seems 
 probable when you are asking assistance. However, this 
 did not make me at all unhappy. I was already accus- 
 tomed to my situation, and had one more occasion in my 
 life to' observe that to-morrow always comes for those who 
 have patience with to-day. 
 
 " Two days later, I entered a poor tavern, and sat 
 down at a table. Opposite me was a short, strong-built 
 young fellow, who was seated with his elbows leaning on 
 the table, and who seemed to be asleep. They brought 
 me a pot of beer and some bread and cheese, for which I 
 paid a half-zwanziger. On this allowance I had money 
 enough to last eight davs. When the landlady spoke to 
 
192 
 
 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 the young man at the other side of the fabfo ht made nc 
 reply, and a little after^ as he raised his head, I saw that 
 he had been crying. 
 
 " ' You are hungry,' I said to him, ' and have no money 
 to pay for your supper/ 
 
 '' ' Fact ! ' he answered, laconically. 
 
 " ' Very well,* I replied, ' where there's enough for 
 one, there's enough for two. Help yourself.' 
 
 " Without answering a woi-d, he drew a knife from his 
 pocket and cut into my bread and cheese. When he had 
 eaten in silence, he thanked me briefly, and with an ap- 
 pearance of sincerity, and I had the curiosity to ask him 
 the cause of his distress. He told me his name — I for- 
 get what it was — but the name he was travelling under 
 was Puffo. He was from Leghorn — a rather poor rec- 
 ommendation, at least in Italy, for persons of a certain 
 class. In the opinion of the sailors all along the Medi- 
 terranean coast, to call a man a Livornese is almost 
 equivalent to calling him a pirate. My friend probably 
 would have justified the prejudice ; he had been a sailor, 
 and a little of a freebooter. At present he was a stroll- 
 ing mountebank. 
 
 " I listened to him without much interest, for he did 
 not narrate well, and it is only the way in which they are 
 told that gives any value to the stories of such adventur- 
 ^ ers ; in substance they are all pretty much the same. How- 
 \ ever, when this man began to speak about his unprofitable 
 theatre, I pricked up my ears and asked him what sort of 
 representations he gave. 
 
 " ' Mon Dieu I ' he cried, ' that's the kind, and ^it's the 
 worst business I ever had anything to do with. The 
 devil take the man who put it into my head ! ' 
 
 '' As he spoke, he pulled a marionette from his bag, 
 and threw it angrily on the table. 
 
 " An~ex^lamation of surprise escaped me. This mar- 
 ionette, frightfully dirty and worn out, was my own 
 handiwork. It was a hurattino of my own make ! Yes, 
 indeed, it was my leading character, the chief of my com- 
 pany, my own witty and charming Stentarello, the orna- 
 ment of all my performances in thetownsof the Apennines, 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 193 
 
 the darling of the pretty Genoese women, the child of my 
 scissors and my fancy, the very pillar of my theatre. 
 
 " ' What ! ' I cried, ' you wretched fellow ! You own 
 Stentarello, and can't make money with him ? ' 
 
 " ' They told me,' he replied, ' that he had made a great 
 ,deal of money in Italy. The man who sold him to me in 
 Paris said that he had bought him of a well-dressed Ital- 
 ian gentleman, who declared that he had made his fortune 
 ,with him. Perhaps it was you ?' 
 
 " He went on to say that he had been quite successful in 
 France in the public streets with our theatre and actors ; 
 and that as he knew several languages, he had tried trav- 
 elling abroad, but that fortune had deserted him ; he had 
 gone on from bad to worse, up to the very moment when t 
 met him. He had now resolved to sell ' the shop,* as he 
 called it, and to try and train a bear, which he intended 
 to catch in the mountains. 
 
 " ' Come,' said I, ' show me your theatre, and let me 
 see what you can do.' 
 
 " He accordingly took me to a barn, where I helped 
 him set up his establishment ; and I recognized the best 
 members of my troupe among wretched ordinary marion- 
 ettes, covered with rags and injuries. PufFo proceeded 
 to play me a scene as a specimen of his powers. He ma- 
 noeuvred the burattini dexterously enough, and was not 
 ''without a certain coarse wit, but it really pained me to 
 the heart to see my actors fallen into such hands, and 
 reduced to playing such parts. But when I thought 
 about it, I saw that Providence must have brought us to- 
 gether — myself and my actors — for our mutual good. 
 I proceeded at once to give a representation in the vil- 
 lage, and received in all a ducat for it, to the utter stupe- 
 faction of Puffo, who from that moment entirely abandoned 
 to my guidance theatre, actors, and even the responsibil 
 ity of his own destiny. 
 
 " I now felt that I was really under the protection of 
 heaven, for I had found once more the means of pros- 
 ecuting my travels with comfort, without incurring any 
 indebtedness, and without exposing my name and my 
 features to the caprice of the public. In a very few days 
 
 13 
 
194 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 all the marionettes were dismounted, cleaned, fresh 
 painted, new clothed, and properly packed in a conven- 
 ient and portable chest ; the theatre was refitted in like 
 manner, and enlarged to admit two operators. Puffo I 
 engaged as an assistant, his duty being to keep the estab- 
 lishment in good order, to take charge of it, and, at the 
 same time, to carry part of it on his stout shoulders, as 
 he was already in the habit of doing ; for I was more 
 than ever determined to devote Jean to the service of 
 science, and to employ him in carrying the materials and 
 specimens which I was collecting. . 
 
 " Puffo is certainly a poor assistant. He is slow- 
 witted, and yet he never breaks down ; for he has the 
 gift of talking without saying anything. He has a bad 
 accent in every language ; but, at any rate, he can make 
 himself understood in several, which is a great point, 
 and his chief recommendation. In the dialogue he takes 
 but little part, but I have succeeded in curing him of his 
 coarse habit of swearing. I put into his hands the pop- 
 ular, low comedy scenes, which serve as interludes, to 
 give me a few minutes' rest. When three or four actors 
 are on the stage, I make use of his hands, and carry on 
 all the parts of the conversation myself, with sufficient 
 skill to persuade the audience that they are listening to 
 several different voices. But you have seen my perform- 
 
 j ances, M. Goefle, and know that I succeed in amusing. 
 
 / However, we did nothing very remarkable in Germany, 
 / and it occurred to me that perhaps we should do better in 
 / Poland, for the Poles have the wit of the French and the 
 taste of Italians. We accordingly traversed Poland, and 
 at Dantzig, after a successful tour of six weeks, embarked 
 for Slock"5oTm, where we have done extremely well. It 
 was"wEiIe there that I received the invitation of the Baron 
 de Waldemora. I accepted it with pleasure, knowing 
 tEaTit would enable me to see a country which I have 
 found more interesting than any that I have hitherto vis- 
 ited. I have always loved the north, whether from the 
 strong contrasts which it offers to southern countries, or 
 from a patriotic instinct that has influenced me ever since 
 my childhood. And yet nothing is less certain than the 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 195 
 
 northern origin which was attributed to my childish lan- 
 guage — altered, imperfectly spoken, or half-forgotten as it 
 was — by the learned philologist to whom I have referred. 
 No matter ; whether dream or presentiment, I have al- 
 ways beheld in imagination the romantic country which is 
 now before my eyes ; and it was by way of affording my- 
 self a pleasure-trip that I lengthened my present journey. 
 I came across Lake Malar, and thence down to Lake 
 Wetter, so as to explore the whole region of the great 
 lakes. 
 
 " It was, however, written that I was to be pursued by 
 mishaps. Puffo, who has grown fat since I have sup- 
 ported him, and who is beginning to be afraid of fatigue, 
 Avanted to hire a sleigh to cross that mysterious Lake 
 Wetter, whose depths are apparently troubled by volcanic 
 disturbances. The ice broke in, and I lost my clothes and 
 my money. Fortunately, PufFo was at that moment walk- 
 ing, and helped out the driver, but the horse and sleigh 
 were lost. Fortunately also, I had followed the shore, 
 with Jean, the theatre, my actors, and my scientific ma- 
 terials. So, thank heaven, all is not lost, and to-morrow 
 I shall be in funds again, for I am to give a representation, 
 for a sum agreed upon, at the chateau of the .Snnw-Man." 
 
 " Well," said M. Goefle, as he once more took the hand" 
 of Christian Waldo, "your story has interested and 
 amused me. I don't know whether you told it with any 
 particular pleasure, to yourself, but your quick way of 
 talking while you walked about the room, your Italian 
 gesticulation, and your face, which is certainly expressive 
 and prepossessing, whatever country it niay belong to, 
 have made your recital very attractive. You have a fine 
 mind and an excellent heart, and the faults of which you 
 accuse yourself seem to me very trifling, compared with 
 the evil courses into which you might easily have fallen, 
 thrown, as you were, so early into the world, without ad- 
 visers or resources, and with a handsome face, too — which 
 is a real instrument of perdition for either sex, in a place 
 80 corrupt as Paris or Naples." 
 
 "But do you believe, Monsieur Goefle, that society is 
 more moral or pure here at the north? I should be 
 
196 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 pleased to think that such is the case, but what I hava 
 seen at Stockholm — " 
 
 " Ah, my dear boy ! if you judge of us by the in- 
 trigues, vanity, violence, and infamous venality of our 
 nobility, whether of the cap or hat faction, you will be- 
 lieve us the very last of all the nations in the universe. 
 This would be wrong, however, for as a people we are 
 really good. It only needs a revolution, or a considerable 
 war, to bring to the surface our great qualities — the par- 
 ticles of pure gold sunk to the bottom. Just now you see 
 only the froth on the surface. But to return to yourself: 
 you have not explained to me about your residence in 
 Stockholm. How is it, in a place so full of intrigue and 
 distrust, that you could wear a mask, and yet escape an- 
 noyance from the three or four different police organiza- 
 tions that are at work for the different parties ? " 
 
 " Because I do not wear a mask, as you can see very 
 well for yourself, Monsier Goefle ; it would be very troub- 
 lesome to do that, and as soon as I am a hundred steps 
 away from my booth, it is easy enough, with a little adroit- 
 ness, and a few very simple precautions against the obser- 
 vation of the inquisitive, to remove it, and go with my 
 face uncovered. I am not important enough to make 
 anybody very determined to see me, and the slight mys- 
 tery that I keep up does a good deal towards maintaining 
 my popularity. And, after all, I have not so far retained 
 my prejudices as a society man, that I should be much 
 distressed to have my mask fall off some day in the street, 
 and to be recognized by a chance passenger as a very ob- 
 scure adept of science, who occupies himself about his 
 studies at other hours, and in other portions of the city." 
 
 " Ah ! that is just what you have not told me. When 
 you are at Stockholm you have, on occasion, another name 
 than Christian Waldo, and another lodging besides that 
 where Jean and Puffo live, and the rest of your troupe in 
 their boxes ? " 
 
 " Exactly, Monsieur Goefle. As to the name — do you 
 really want to know it?" 
 
 " Certainly I do. You do not distrust me?" 
 
 " Oh, if you are afraid of that, I comply at once, with 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 197 
 
 pleasure. The name is only Dulac — the French for my 
 original fanciful name of del Lago. I assumed it at Paris, 
 as a precaution against any accident which might draw 
 upon me the notice and vengeance of the Neapolitan am- 
 bassador." 
 
 " Very good. And under that name yon have suc- 
 ceeded in establishing good connections in Stockholm?" 
 
 " I have hardly tried to do so, as I did not feel any 
 need of haste. I wanted, in the first place, to become 
 acquainted with the scientific and artistic riches of the 
 city, and then to study the physiognomy of the inhabitants 
 as well as their tastes and customs. A stranger, without 
 friends, finds it extremely easy to study the manners and 
 prevailing sentiments of a people by haunting their places 
 of public resort. This is the method I adopted, and my 
 present purpose is to become familiar with the whole of 
 Sweden, and then to put myself in communication with 
 the leading men of science at Stockholm and Upsal, es- 
 pecially M. Linnaeus. By that time I must receive the tes- 
 timonials for which I have written to Paris, and, at any 
 rate, shall perhaps have something of interest to submit 
 to that illustrious man. I may find specimens in distant 
 localities that he has overlooked, and be able to afford 
 him pleasure by offering them to him. There is no jour- 
 ney in which useful discoveries, or useful observations 
 upon matters already recorded, may not be made. When 
 a young man visits a great master, he is bound to bring 
 tribute from his studies or his explorations ; otherwise 
 he only occupies valuable time in the mere gratification 
 of his own vanity or curiosity. You said something about 
 the police : they let me entirely alone after one brisk ex- 
 amination, in which my answers were frank, and seemed 
 quite satisfactory. The good people with whom I lodged, 
 and who treated me as kindly as if I were one of their 
 own family, readily guaranteed my good conduct, and 
 kept from the public the little secret of my double indi- 
 viduality. So you see. Monsieur Goefle, that at present 
 I am excellently situated, and may well feel in very 
 good spirits, having command of • my own movements, a 
 
198 
 
 THE SNOW MAN, 
 
 sufficiently profitable occupation, the love of science, and 
 all the world open before me ! " 
 
 " But you lost your money in Lake Wetter — *' 
 
 "Oh, but the lakes, Monsieur -Goefle, are certainly 
 inhabited by good spirits, with whom I am in relations, 
 without knowing it. Am I not Christian del Lago ? 
 Either the troll of Lake Wetter will return me my purse 
 when I am least expecting it, or he will see that it comes 
 into the hands of some poor fisherman, who will have 
 the good of it, so that it will be a capital arrangement 
 any way." 
 
 "But still, — have you any money in your pocket, my 
 boy?" 
 
 "Absolutely nothing. Monsieur Goefle," replied the 
 young man, laughing. "I had exactly enough to get 
 here, by pinching my own stomach a little, so as to allow 
 my attendant and my ass all they wanted ; but I am to 
 receive thirty rix dollars this evening for my perform- 
 ance ; and after enjoying this capital breakfast in com- 
 pany with yourself and this excellent stove, and in sight 
 of the splendid landscape all set with diamonds, that I 
 see shining out yonder, through the smoke with which our 
 pipes have filled the room, I feel myself the richest and 
 most fortunate of men." 
 
 "You are decidedly an original," said M. Goefle, 
 rising, and knocking the ashes from his pipe. "You are 
 a singular mixture of the man and the child, the scientist 
 and the adventurer. It even seems to me that you are 
 extravagantly enjoying this last phase of your experi- 
 ence ; and that instead of finding it disagreeable, you 
 are making your assumed and rather exaggerated pride 
 an excuse for protracting it." 
 
 "Permit me. Monsieur Goefle," answered Christian; 
 "in the matter of pride there is no middle course; it 
 must be everything or nothing. I have tried poverty, 
 and I know how easy it is, in poverty, to become de- 
 graded. One who is left to depend entirely upon his 
 own resources, must therefore accustom himself not to 
 fear poverty ; he must even know how to make it a 
 source of amusement. I have told you how it distressed 
 
THE SNOW MAN. T99 
 
 me to be poor in a great city. There, among temptations 
 of every kind, such a position is very dangerous to a 
 man who is young and vigorous, and who has known 
 what it is to be carried away by passion. Here, on the 
 contrary, on my travels, that is to say, at liberty, and 
 protected by an incognito which will allow me to-morrow 
 to assume a respectable position in society, I feel as gay 
 as a school-boy in vacation ; and I confess that I am in 
 no haste to assume again the chains of constraint and 
 the annoyances of conventionality." 
 
 "After all, I understand it," said the doctor. "My 
 imagination is not duller than other people's ; and I can 
 easily conceive that there is a romantic pleasure in such 
 a wandering, careless life. Yet you are fond of society. 
 It was not for the sake of investigating the frozen moun- 
 tains at midnight that you borrowed my dress suit." 
 
 At this moment the door opened, and Ulphilas, to 
 whom M. Goefle had no doubt given orders, came to say 
 that the horse and sleigh were ready. Ulph seemed 
 quite sober. 
 
 " What !" cried the doctor with surprise, "what time 
 is it? Noon? It is impossible! That old clock has 
 gone crazy ! But no," he continued, looking at his 
 watch, "it is noon, really; and I must go and consult 
 with the baron over the great lawsuit, on account of 
 which I have come here. It surprises me, by the way, 
 since he knows I am here, that he should not have 
 thought fit to send before now and inquire after me ! " 
 
 "But his lordship, the baron, did send," said Ulph; 
 "did I not tell you, M. Goefle?" 
 
 "Not at all." 
 
 "He sent an hour ago, to say that he was ill last 
 night, or that he would have come himself — " 
 
 "Here? You exaggerate the baron's politeness, my 
 dear Ulph. The baron never comes to Stollborg ! " 
 
 "Very seldom. Monsieur Goefle ; but — " 
 
 " Well, well ! And father Stenson — is there no way 
 of seeing him ? I must make the good old gentleman a 
 little visit before I go over to the chateau. Is he as deaf 
 as ever?" 
 
200 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 "A great deal more so, Monsieur Goefle ; he will nol 
 hear a single word you say." 
 
 "Well, then, I will talk by signs." 
 
 "But, Monsieur Goefle, the fact is my uncle don't 
 know you are here." 
 
 "Ah, he doesn't? WeU, he will find it out." 
 
 "He will scold me terribly for not having told him, 
 and for having allowed you — " 
 
 "To do what? To lodge in this room, I suppose? 
 Very well ; tell him that I took possession without ask- 
 ing your permission." 
 
 " Only imagine," added M. Goefle, in French, to Chris- 
 tian, "that we are here unlawfully, and without the 
 knowledge of M. Stenson, the overseer of the old cha- 
 teau. And another very strange thing is, that the said 
 Monsieur Sten, as well as his estimable nephew here 
 present, are so convinced that the old ruin is haunted by 
 unhappy and malevolent spirits, that they are very reluc- 
 tant to live here at all." 
 
 As he said this, M. Goefle's smiling face became seri- 
 ous all at once, as if, though in the habit of laughing at 
 such things, he really was reproaching himself for doing 
 so ; and he abruptly asked Christian if he believed in 
 apparitions. 
 
 "Yes — in hallucinations," replied Christian, without 
 hesitation. 
 
 "Ah ! Have you ever seen any, then?" 
 
 "Sometimes — in a fever, or under some powerful 
 mental preoccupation. In the latter case they were not 
 so distinct as in the fever, and I could see that it was an 
 illusion ; but the appearances made a sufficient impres- 
 sion upon me to trouble me a good deal." 
 
 "Just so — exactly so!" cried M. Goefle. "Well, 
 only imagine — but I'll tell you this evening; there's no 
 time now. I must go, my friend ; I shall go and see the 
 baron. He will perhaps detain me to dinner — at two 
 o'clock. But in any event I will return as soon as pos' 
 sible. Ah, by the way — will you do me a service 
 during my absence ? " 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 201 
 
 "Two — three, if you wish, Monsieur Goefle; what 
 is it?" 
 
 "To take my valet-de-chambre up out of his bed." 
 
 "To wake him, you mean?" 
 
 "No, no! To take him up, to put on his clothes, 
 button his gaiters, put him into his breeches ; they are 
 very tight, and he is not strong enough — " 
 
 "Oh, I understand ; some old servant — an old friend, 
 ill, or infirm ? " 
 
 " No, not exactly. Stay, here he is! What a mir- 
 acle ! He has dressed himself all alone ! Very well 
 done. Master Nils ! "Why, you are improving ! Up at 
 noon, and dressed yourself! Haven't you fatigued your- 
 self too much?" 
 
 "No, Monsieur Goefle," said the child, with a trium- 
 phant air. " See, I have buttoned my gaiters nicely." 
 
 "A little crooked; but it's done, at any rate; and 
 now I suppose you will go and rest yourself until 
 night?" 
 
 "Oh no. Monsieur Goefle: I want something to eat; 
 I am very hungry ; it has kept me from sleeping well 
 for an hour at least." 
 
 "There," said M. Goefle to Christian, "you see what 
 manner of serving-man my housekeeper provided me 
 with ! At present, I shall leave him under your charge. 
 Make him obey you, if you can ; for my part, I have 
 quite given up trying. Come, Ulph, go on ; I'll come 
 after you. Well, what's the matter ? what is it ? " 
 
 " They brought a letter for you a little while ago," an- 
 swered Ulphilas, whose ideas became more luminous in 
 proportion as the sun ascended towards the zenith, " and 
 I put it in my pocket, and had forgotten — " 
 
 " To give it to me? Too true ! You see, Christian, 
 how well you are waited upon at StoUborg." 
 
 M. Goefle opened the letter, and read as follows, inter- 
 rupting himself at every sentence to make comments in 
 French : 
 
 " ' My dear advocate — ' 
 
 " I know that handwriting ! It's the Countess Elveda I 
 A great coquette. The Russian party in petticoats ! 
 
202 THB SNOW MAN, 
 
 " * Let me see you before any one else. I knew the 
 baron expects you at noon. Have the goodness to leave 
 StoUborg a little early, and come to my room. I want to 
 talk to you about some matters of importance — ' 
 
 " Matters of importance ! Some silly piece of wick- 
 edness, as black as charcoal, and consequently as plain to 
 be seen as charcoal on snow ! Faith, it's too late ! the 
 time is past." 
 
 " Certainly, the time is past," observed Christian, "and 
 what she wants to tell you is not worth the trouble of 
 hearing." 
 
 " Ah ! ah ! Then you know what it is ? " 
 
 " Perfectly ; I'll tell you about it at once, and I'm not 
 afraid that you will lend your influence to helping on a 
 scheme as horrible as it is ridiculous. The countess wants 
 to marry her pretty niece, Margaret, to the dead-and-alive 
 old Baron Olaus." 
 
 " Yes, I know that very well, and I have openly laughed 
 at the idea. Marry such a beautiful May to such a pale 
 December ! One would have to be as much of a white- 
 cap as the peak of Sylfiallet to think of such a thing ! " 
 
 "Ah, I was sure you would feel so. Is it not abom- 
 inable. Monsieur Goefle, to propose to sacrifice Margaret 
 in such a way? — " 
 
 "Hallo! Margaret? Why, you and Margaret must 
 be on very intimate terms? — " 
 
 "Very far from it. I have' only seen her. She is 
 charming." 
 
 " She is so considered. But the countess — how the 
 devil did you come to know her, and how did you Ibarn 
 about her private plans ? " 
 
 " That is another story ; I will tell you about it if you 
 have time — " 
 
 " What? No, I have not ; but here's a postscript that 
 I did not notice. I don't understand it at all : 
 
 "'I must compliment you upon your nephew's fine 
 figure and his wit.' 
 
 " My nephew ! I have no nephew ! Is the countess 
 crazy ? 
 
 " ' Nevertheless, his good manners failed him for oncci 
 
THE SNO W MAN, 
 
 203 
 
 and very reprelienslbly. He really deserves to receive a 
 severe reprimand from you for having been guilty of such 
 rudeness ! But I will talk it over with you, and try to 
 make up for his foolishness — I almost wanted to say in- 
 solence.' 
 
 " Rudeness ! Insolence ! Monsieur my nephew seems 
 to have been well occupied ! But where the devil am I 
 going to find the young gentleman, to give him his severe 
 reprimand ? " 
 
 "Oh, dear Monsieur Goefle ! " said Christian, in a pit 
 eous tone, " you will not have to look very far. How is 
 it you have not reflected that if I could obtain admission 
 to the ball-room without my mask, last night, it cannot 
 have been by the name of Christian Waldo ? " 
 
 " I do not deny that ! Then it was under the name of 
 Goefle?" 
 
 " My invitation was in my pocket under that honorable 
 name." 
 
 ^^ So, sir," said M. Goefle, with severity, while his eyes 
 sparkled with anger, " you don't content yourself with 
 carrying off other people's toilet, from hair-powder down to 
 shoe-soles inclusive, but yon must also go so far as to 
 take their names, and leave them to be responsible for the 
 follies you may choose to commit. That is altogether be- 
 yond endurance ! " 
 
 Here good-natured M. Goefle, in spite of himself, burst 
 out laughing, at the absurd predicament of Christian 
 Waldo. The handsome and passionate young man, who 
 found it diflicult to bear so direct a reproof, seemed tempted 
 to make rather a sharp reply, and then his anger was in- 
 creased by the conduct of the servants. On one side 
 Ulph, perceiving from M. Goefle's tone that he was angry, 
 although he did not understand a word that he said, was 
 unconsciously imitating his looks and gestures, while little 
 Nils, quite as ignorant of the facts in question, placed him- 
 self opposite Christian, in a haughty and almost threat- 
 ening attitude. 
 
 Provoked by these two absurd figures imitating and 
 burlesquing M. Goefle, Christian was strongly tempted 
 to knock down the man and kick the boy, but he knew 
 
204 
 
 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 perfectly well that he was in the wrong, and he was, 
 moreover, much pained at having offended so kind and 
 amiable a person as the doctor of laws. Indignation and 
 repentance, therefore, were depicted alternately upon his 
 expressive countenance, and with such vividness that the 
 lawyer was quite disarmed. His laugh at once disarmed 
 his two satellites, who began to laugh also with returning 
 confidence, and went about their business, while Christian 
 gave M. Goefle a brief account of his defiance of the 
 baron, which the Countess Elveda called rude and inso- 
 lent, but for which, in his opinion, he was not at all to 
 blame. M. Goefle, pressed as he was for time, listened 
 attentively, and when he had finished, said : 
 
 " Assuredly, my dear boy, you have done nothing to 
 dishonor the name of Goefle ; on the contrary, your con- 
 duct was that of a gentleman, but you have none the less 
 placed me in a cruel embarrassment. Whether or not 
 Baron Olaus remembers his epileptic attack — for which, 
 it seems, he is indebted to you — he will not forget, you 
 may rest assured, that you have offended him. As you 
 have been told, he is a man who never forgets anything, 
 and you will do well to disappear at once in your character 
 of Goefle, since Goefle you have chosen to become. Do 
 not quit this chamber without being masked ; become 
 Christian Waldo again, and you have nothing to fear." 
 
 "But pray tell me what should I have to fear from the 
 baron, even if I should present myself to him with my 
 face uncovered ? Is he actually capable of having me as- 
 sassinated ? " 
 
 " I know nothing about that. Christian ; I swear to you, 
 upon my honor, nothing at all ; you may confidently be- 
 lieve me on this point. If, in my business relations with 
 him, I had gathered the least proof of the acts he is 
 charged with, those relations would be discontinued. I 
 am very indifferent to lucrative patronage, and I should 
 tell my client some very plain truths, whether it did him 
 any good or not. Nevertheless, there are some reports 
 so well authenticated, and there are so many cases where 
 misfortunes have occurred to persons who have opposed 
 the baron, that I have sometimes asked myself if he had 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 205 
 
 not the evil eye — the jettatura, as you call it in Italy. 
 At any rate, not to bring any unnecessary bad luck upon 
 myself, please allow me to report that my nephew is ab- 
 sent; that he started this very morning on a distant 
 journey.*' 
 
 "You may rely upon my absolute prudence, since I 
 have been the means of exposing you to a risk. I will 
 not leave the room Without being masked, or so disguised 
 that no one shall recognize me for the rather too gallant 
 and chivalrous stranger who danced at the ball last night." 
 
 M. Goefle and Christian Waldo shook hands upon this 
 agreement. Nils, whose services had been confined to 
 eating his breakfast during the conversation, was now 
 well wrapped up in furs by his master, who was obliged 
 to lift him upon the driver's seat of the sleigh, and to 
 place the reins and whip in his hands. Once seated, how- 
 ever, he drove off like an arrow, and descended the steep 
 elope of the rock with skill and confidence. To drive a 
 horse was the one thing that he knew how to do, and did 
 without murmuring. 
 
 As for Ulph, he proceeded to make up the bed in which 
 Nils had slept, for Christian, and to prepare the sofa, 
 which was quite large enough to be comfortable, for the 
 child, as M. Goefle had directed before his departure. 
 Then he went to wait upon his uncle, but always discreet 
 in concealing his disobedience, he did not say a single 
 word about the presence of visitors in the donjon. 
 
 VII. 
 
 npHE reader has perhaps not forgotten that old Stenson 
 -*■ lived in a pavilion at the end of the small second 
 2ourt, which, together with the outer enclosure, which 
 was somewhat larger, and the buildings adjoining, com- 
 posed the dilapidated manor of StoUborg. There was a 
 legend connected with the original erection of this ancient 
 castle. At the time of the first introduction of Christian- 
 ity into Sweden, it was said to have grown out of the 
 
2o6 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 rock in one night, in consequence of a vow of the pagan 
 castellan, whose house (then built of wood) had nearly 
 been blown off into the lake by an autumnal gale, and 
 who had thereupon promised to embrace the new religion, 
 if heaven would protect him securely from the wind. The 
 roof of the house had already been carried away, but 
 scarcely had he pronounced his vow, when a granite tower 
 arose, as if by enchantment, from the rock. The castellan 
 was forthwith baptized, and no hurricane could ever again 
 harm his strongly and solidly-built habitation. 
 
 Notwithstanding this veracious history, the antiquaries 
 of the country have the hardihood to assert that the square 
 tower of StoUborg dates no further back than to the reign 
 of King Birger, that is to the fourteenth century. However 
 that may be, the chateau and its small domain, in the fif- 
 teenth century, became the property of a brave gentleman 
 of the name of Waldemora. In the seventeenth century, 
 Olaf de Waldemora became a favorite of Queen Christina, 
 who, by arbitrarily alienating portions of the crown do- 
 mains, conferred upon him considerable landed estates in 
 this part of Dalecarlia. History does not name this Wal- 
 demora as a lover of the fantastic inheritrix of Gustavus 
 Adolphus. Possibly, in some strait for money, tlife queen 
 may have sold him these valuable estates at a low price. 
 It is certain that at the reduction of 1680, when the ener- 
 getic Charles XI. revised the titles of all grants of land, 
 and reunited to the crown domain all that had been un- 
 lawfully alienated by his.#predecessors — a terrible but 
 salutary measure, to which Sweden owes the endowment 
 of her universities, schools, and magistracy, the crea- 
 tion of the post-office, the army indelta, and other ben- 
 efactions, for which the " old caps " had hardly forgiven 
 the crown at the time of our story — at this time the 
 titles of the Baron de Waldemora were found valid ; he 
 retained the great estates which he had inherited from 
 his grandfather, and completed the embellishments of 
 the new chateau, built by the latter upon the shore of the 
 lake, and called by his name. 
 
 One tower was all that remained standing of the" old 
 family chateau. This tower appeared to be extremely 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 207 
 
 lofty, in consequence of the great substructure of masonry 
 Guilt up to its base from the very edge of the water, 
 but it was in fact but two stories high, and contained only 
 the bear-room and the guard-room, which were on the 
 ground floor, almost on a level with the court, and two 
 or three chambers above, where for twenty years, that is, 
 ever since the door on the staircase had been built up, no 
 person had entered. The rest of the manor had been 
 rebuilt several times, and formed, what is called in Nor- 
 way, a gaard ; or, in other words, an assembly of several 
 families living in a community. Dwelling-rooms, kitch- 
 ' ens, dining-rooms, stables, and store-rooms, in such com- 
 munities, instead of being brought together as much as 
 possible under one roof, as is the common practice, form 
 separate buildings, each with a roof of its own ; so that 
 altogether they present the aspect of a numerous group 
 of small houses entirely distinct from each other. Many 
 customs prevail equally in Sweden and Norway, espe- 
 cially along the mountainous frontier of Dalecarlia. At 
 the period when StoUborg, deserted for the new chateau, 
 became a mere farmstead, there were several gaards, 
 similar to the one we have 'described, scattered through 
 the cotintry. As is commonly the case all over Sweden, 
 and in all countries where they build in wood, these prem- 
 ises had often caught fire, and the more ancient of the 
 little edifices still showed traces of it. Their charred 
 ridge-poles and warped roofs were sharply defined, like 
 black spectres, upofi the whiteJbackground of the mountain. 
 The court, surrounded by its mossy shed, which gave 
 a unity — such as it was — to all these different buildings, 
 and from whose eaves hung a glittering fringe of icy sta- 
 lactites, thus presented th^^appearance of a group of 
 abandoned Swi^^ chalets. WVhe farm establishment had 
 long ago been transferred elsewhere, and the whole manor 
 had been left uB&r the charge of Stenson, who no longer 
 had any repairs made upon the worthless houses, which 
 were now only used to store fodder and dry vegetables. 
 Tlie rough flags of the court w^ere furrowed in all direc- 
 tions by a thousand irregular little hollows, ploughed by 
 the viojence of currents in thaws ; not one of the doors was 
 
2o8 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 on its hinges, and it seemed as if, unless prevented by 
 some vow as efficacious as that of the first castellan, the 
 least gust of the winds of spring or fall would sweep the 
 ruinous structures off into the lake. 
 
 The second court, which was in the rear of this one, 
 was a modern addition, much less picturesque, but in- 
 finitely more comfortable. It had been built by the 
 Baron Olaus de Waldemora at the time when he inher- 
 ited the property of his brother Adelstan. He caused 
 this second small gaard to be erected for his faithful Sten- 
 son, so as to prevent the latter, who had a horror of the 
 place, from going to live elsewhere. This addition con- 
 sisted of another group of buildings, lower than the first, 
 and upon the opposite slope of the rock. Their steep 
 roofs rested at the back against the solid rock itself, and 
 were constructed in the singular manner usual in that 
 country, with a layer of pine logs well caulked with 
 moss, covered with strips of birch bark, over which is 
 laid finally a bed of earth turfed on the top. This turf, 
 on the roofs of rustic cottages in Sweden, is very care- 
 fully tended, as is well known, and is sometimes laid out 
 like a garden with flowers and shrubs. The grass upon 
 them is very thick and rich, and the cattle find it their 
 choicest pasturage. 
 
 It was in this portion of the old manor, called espe- 
 cially the gaard, while the other was called the court, 
 that Stenson had lived for twenty years. Of late, he had 
 become so old and feeble that he hardly ever left his own 
 house, which was well warmed, very neatly furnished, 
 and painted on the outside of an iron-rust red. Here he 
 was certainly very conveniently situated. His dwelling- 
 rooms were separate from his nephew's lodging, and he 
 had a kitchen in one small edifice, and a dairy in another. 
 This only served, however, to render the existence of the 
 mysterious old man more monotonous and melancholy. 
 It was observed, or at least it had been observed when 
 the bouse was built, how careful he had been to have all 
 the doors and windows looking away from the tower. 
 The only communication between the two buildings was 
 a small side-door, and to reach Stenson's pavilion it was 
 
THE SNO W MAN, 209 
 
 necessary to go through a narrow zigzag passage. It 
 looked as if he had been afraid to have a door opening 
 directly towards the tower, lest he should see it. But he 
 may have barricaded himself in this way merely as a 
 precaution against the west wind, which blew from that 
 direction. 
 
 As if in confirmation of the reports current about him, 
 it was extremely rare for Stenson to quit his house, unless 
 to enjoy a little sunshine in the small orchard at the 
 water's edge. Even here he always turned his back to 
 the tower as he walked, and when the declining sun threw 
 the slender shadow of the weathercock upon his alleys, it 
 was said that he would leave them and flee precipitately 
 into his house, as if he were filled with horror and pain 
 by this ill-omened shade. The freethinkers of the new 
 chateau — a major-domo and footmen of the modern sort 
 — attributed his peculiarities to the excessive caution 
 and timidity, carried almost to monomania, of a frail and 
 sickly old man ; but Ulphilas and his companions regarded 
 them as the irrefragable proof that the gloomy old castle 
 was haunted by evil spirits and frightful spectres. Never, 
 for twenty years, they said, bad Stenson crossed the court 
 and entered the western gate. Wheaever business called 
 him to the new chateau, he went by way of the little or- 
 chard, at whose base his own boat used to lie in the 
 summer. 
 
 The presence of the baron at the new chateau — his 
 usual residence when he was not attending to his duties 
 as a member of the Stendoerne, or Diet — made no 
 changes in Stenson's daily life ; but still Ulphilas had 
 for some days observed that his uncle was singularly 
 agitated. He asked questions concerning the donjon, as 
 if he was solicitous about the preservation of this 
 accursed old giant. He inquired of Ulph whether he 
 went there from time to time to ventilate the bear-room, 
 at what hours his visits were made, and whether he had 
 seen anything remarkable there. To-day, Ulph, not 
 without remorse, but without hesitation, told him a lie ; 
 he shook his head and shrugged his shoulders as a sign 
 that he had seen nothing new. In fact, Ulph had strong 
 
 H 
 
2IO THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 reasons for hoping that Stenson, who was confined to his 
 room by the cold, would not learn anything about what 
 had happened ; and he had heard the rattling of certain 
 crowns intended for him, in the pocket of M. Goefle, 
 without seeing any signs that the old vaults of Stollborg 
 proposed to crumble with indignation for so small a mat- 
 ter. Without being greedy, Ulph did not dislike making a 
 little money, and perhaps he was beginning to feel some- 
 what reconciled to the donjon. 
 
 After telling this direct falsehood, and serving his 
 uncle's second meal, he was going away, when the old 
 man asked for a certain Bible which he seldom used, 
 and which stood on a particular shelf of his library. 
 Stenson directed him to place it before him on the table, 
 and then motioned him to retire. Ulph, however, was 
 curious to see what his uncle was about, and as he was 
 very certain that he would not be heard, he came in 
 again in a moment, and standing behind the old man's 
 chair, peeped over and saw him pass the knife at random 
 between the leaves of the large book, and then open it, 
 and look attentively at the verse where the point of the 
 knife had stopped. Three times he tried this experiment ; 
 a practice half devout and half cabalistic, that prevails 
 even among the Catholics of the north, for inquiring of 
 the Almighty the secrets of the future, according to the 
 interpretation of the words supposed to be indicated by 
 destiny. When he had performed this ceremony, Sten- 
 son buried his face in his hands upon the closed book, as 
 if to consult it with his brain, after having questioned it 
 with his eyes ; and Ulph went away, a good deal dis- 
 quieted with the result of the experiment. He had read 
 the three verses over his uncle's head. They were 
 these, in the order in which they had chanced to occur : 
 
 ^' Destruction and death say. We have heard the fame 
 thereof with our ears." 
 
 "Did I not weep for him that was in trouble? Was 
 not my soul grieved for the poor ? " 
 
 "A good man leaveth an inheritance to his chil- 
 dren's children ; and the wealth of the sinner is laid up 
 for the just." 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 211 
 
 Detached verses from tins mysterious and sublime 
 book will generally adapt themselves to almost any 
 meaning which the imagination is desirous of obtain- 
 ing. Accordingly, old Sten, who had trembled at the 
 first verse, and clasped his hands over the second, 
 drew a long breath at the third, as if his oppressed soul 
 was relieved. But Ulphilas, who had drank too much 
 the night before to be a competent interpreter of the 
 utterances of the sacred volume, asked himself with an- 
 guish whether the old Bible had not, under the form of 
 some allegory too deep for his intelligence, disclosed to 
 his uncle the secret of his falsehood. 
 
 He was aroused from his revery by the appearance 
 of a new visitor in the court. This was Puffo, who had 
 come to arrange for the evening's performance with 
 Christian. Puifo was not a demonstrative person ; he 
 did not like the country in winter, and he did not speak 
 a word of Dalecarlian. But still he was in a very good 
 humor just at the present moment, and for sufficient 
 reasons. He bade Ulph good-day, in quite a friendly 
 manner, while the latter was greatly surprised to see 
 him enter the bear-room unceremoniously, as if he was 
 quite at home there. 
 
 Puffo found Christian occupied in classifying the min- 
 eralogical specimens in his box. 
 
 "Well, master, what are you thinking of?" said he. 
 *' It's no time now to be playing with those little pebbles ; 
 we must get ready for the piece this evening." 
 
 ''^Parlleu! I know that very well," replied Christian; 
 "but what could I do without you? It is high time for 
 you to show yourself. Where the devil have you been 
 since yesterday?" 
 
 Putfo informed him — but without making any ex- 
 cuses for his absence — that he had finally found a good 
 supper and good bed at the farm, that he had slept 
 late, and having made acquaintance with a servant from 
 the chateau, who was there, had told whom it might 
 concern of the arrival of Christian Waldo at Stollborg. 
 After breakfast the major-domo of the new chateau had 
 sent for him, had talked to him very pleasantly, and 
 
212 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 informed him that the exhibition of marionettes would 
 be expected at eight precisely that evening. The major- 
 domo had added : 
 
 " You will mention to your employer Christian, that 
 his lordship wishes a very brilliant entertainment, and 
 he begs him to be infinitely witty." 
 
 ''Excellent!" said Christian. "Plenty of wit, by 
 order of his lordship the baron. Let him take care, 
 lest I prove altogether too witty for him ! But, Puffo, 
 did you hear nothing about the baron's illness ? " 
 
 "Yes, he was ill last night, it appears," replied the 
 stroller, "but he has recovered. Perhaps he was only 
 drunk, though the servants say he does not drink at all. 
 But who's going to believe that a man as rich as he is 
 would cheat his stomach out of good liquor when he has 
 it in his cellar?" 
 
 "I wager that you did not cheat yourself, Puffo, out 
 of whatever came under your hand." 
 
 " Faith," said Puffo, " thanks to a servant who is 
 in love with a little girl at the farm, and who invited 
 me to eat at his table, I had some very decent brandy. 
 It was corn brandy, rather rough, but it's warming, 
 and I slept capitally after it." 
 
 "I am delighted at your windfall. Master Puffo ; but 
 we must go to work. Come, go at once and see that 
 Jean has plenty to eat and drink, and then come back 
 and receive your instructions. Hurry ! " 
 
 Puffo went out, and Christian, not without a sigh, 
 closed his box of minerals, and was opening that which 
 contained the hurattini, when the noise of sleigh-bells 
 drew him to the window. It was not the doctor of laws 
 returning so soon ; it was the pretty blue and silver 
 sleigh which had brought Margaret to StoUborg the 
 evening before. 
 
 Must we confess it? Christian had forgotten the 
 promise which that agreeable young lady had made to 
 the apocryphal M. Goefle of repeating her visit next 
 day. The truth is, that he had no longer considered this 
 visit possible, on account of what had happened at the 
 ball, and had consequently said nothing about it to M 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 213 
 
 Goefle. Perhaps he regarded the whole adventure a8 
 inevitably ended, and perhaps he even wished to have it 
 so ; for to what could it lead, unless he should attempt 
 to abuse the inexperience of a child, and so secure her 
 contempt and her curse ? 
 
 In the meanwhile, the sleigh was approaching; it 
 was now ascending the hill of Stollborg, and Christian 
 could see the pretty head of the young countess, half 
 hidden in her ermine hood. What was to be done? 
 Would he be courageous enough to shut the door in her 
 face, or to send her word by PufFo that the doctor was 
 absent ? Pshaw ! Ulph would tell her so of his own 
 accord! He had only to keep quiet, and the sleigh 
 would return as it had come. Christian remained at the 
 window, so as to watch it descend the hill, but it did 
 not descend. The door opened, Margaret entered, and 
 the young man had barely time to close hastily the 
 open box where the marionettes were indiscreetly exhib- 
 iting their great noses and smiling mouths. 
 
 '' What, monsieur !" cried the young girl, with an ex 
 clamation of surprise, "are you still here? I did not 
 expect that. I hoped that you would be gone." 
 
 "Did you meet no one in the court?" said Christian, 
 who was, perhaps, not sorry to throw the blame of this 
 circumstance upon destiny. 
 
 " I saw no one," said Margaret ; " and, as my visit is 
 secret, I came in very quickly, so that no one should see 
 me. But, once more. Monsieur Goefle, you ought not to be 
 here. The baron must know, by this time, who it was 
 who ventured to defy him. I give you my word that you 
 ought to go away." 
 
 " Go away ! You say that very cruelly. But you re- 
 mind me that I really have gone away already.. Yes, 
 yes, be satisfied ; I have gone never to return. M. Goefle 
 has intimated to me that he might be involved in my diffi- 
 culties, and I have promised him to disappear. You find 
 me in the very act of packing up." 
 
 " Oh ! Go on, then ; do not let me detain you." 
 
 " Are you in such great haste never to hear me spoken 
 of again? Very well, imagine that your wish is accom- 
 
214 
 
 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 plished ; that I have already embarked for America at 
 least, and am fleeing under full sail from my terrible enemy, 
 while shedding a few tears at the memory of that first 
 quadrille — the last, too, that I shall ever dance — " 
 
 " With me, not with others? " 
 
 "Who knows? The I who is speaking to you is a 
 shade, a phantom, a mere reminiscence of what happened 
 yesterday. The other I, about taking his departure, is 
 the sport of the waves and of destiny. I care about him 
 as much as I do for an inhabitant of the moon." 
 
 " Good heavens ! how gay you are. Monsieur Goefle ! 
 Do you know I am. not so at all?" 
 
 " True," said Christian, struck with Margaret's sad 
 expression ; "I am ashamed to have spoken of myself, 
 when I ought to have been expressing my anxiety about 
 the consequences of the events of last evening. Will you 
 be good enough to answer me, if I venture even now to 
 make inquiries of you ? " 
 
 " Oh, you are well entitled to do so, since chance has 
 so fully informed you about my affairs already. My 
 aunt reproved me severely last evening, and Mad- 
 emoiselle Potin had orders to pack my trunks and take me 
 back to Dalby to-day ; but this morning everything is 
 changed, and, after a private interview with the baron, 
 who, she says, has quite recovered his health and good 
 spirits, it was decided that I should remain, and should 
 have nothing to do to-day, but to think about my toilet 
 for this evening. By the way, have you heard that Chris- 
 tian Waldo is actually here ? They say, indeed, that he 
 is stopping at Stollborg. You must have met him, in 
 that case. How is it — have you seen him ? " 
 
 " Certainly." 
 
 " Without his mask ? Oh, how does he look? Has he 
 really a death's head ? " 
 
 " Worse than that. He has a wooden head ! " 
 
 " Oh no ! You are joking." 
 
 "Not in the least ! To see him you would swear that 
 his face had been whittled out of a block, with a dull 
 knife. He looks like the ugliest of all his marionettes. 
 Like this cue, for instance ! " 
 
THE SNOW MAN, 
 
 215 
 
 And Christian pointed to the grotesque physiognomy 
 of a police officer that stuck out of the box, and which 
 Margaret would probably have seen herself if she had not 
 been so preoccupied. 
 
 " What, really ! " said she, a little apprehensively. 
 "And is that his conjuring-box? Does he occupy this 
 room with you ? " 
 
 " No ; don't be afraid, you will not see him. He has 
 gone out, and he asked as a favor, of M Goefle, to be al- 
 lowed to leave his baggage here." 
 
 " Poor fellow ! " said Margaret, pensively ; " and so he 
 is as ugly as that ! What stories people tell ! Some per- 
 sons who have seen him insist that he is handsome. And 
 is he old?" 
 
 ' ' Somewhere about forty-five. But what are you think- 
 ing about, and why are you so sad ? " 
 
 " I don't know — only I feel sad." 
 
 " What — although you are to remain at the chateau, 
 and see the marionettes this evening ? " 
 
 " Ah ! please, Monsieur Goefle, do not treat me quite 
 so much like a child. Last night, at the ball, it is true 
 that I was gay j I enjoyed myself and felt happy, because 
 I thought I had once for all escaped from the baron. But 
 to-day 1 see very well that my aunt has renewed her 
 hopes, and I must meet again a man whom I shall al- 
 ways sincerely hate from this time forward. Did he not 
 insult me in a cowardly manner yesterday ? It is useless 
 for my aunt to say that he was joking. One does not 
 joke with a girl of my age as with a child. I have been 
 trying to cure my wounded pride by persuading myself 
 that he was delirious — that his nervous attack had al- 
 ready begun when he spoke so coarsely to me, and that 
 is what my friends think also. But how do I know what 
 will happen to-day, when I meet him ? Whether he is ill- 
 tempered or crazy, who will defend me if he insults me 
 again? You will not be there, and nobody else will 
 dare — " 
 
 " What ! Nobody dare? But wrhat sort of men have 
 you around you then ? And all those brave young fellows 
 whom I saw last evening — " 
 
2i6 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 " Yes, I believe they are brave. But they know noth* 
 ing of me, and they may imagine I deserve such outrageous 
 treatment from the baron. It is a poor recommendation 
 for me to have been introduced into society by my aunt, 
 since she has the reputation — although most surely it 
 is undeserved — of sacrificing everything to political in- 
 terests." 
 
 " Poor Margaret ! " exclaimed Christian, struck by the 
 painful position of this lovely girl. 
 
 He was so evidently sincere, and without the least 
 thought of offensive familiarity, that Margaret did not re- 
 sent his taking her hand ; and besides, he dropped it again 
 immediately, as he thought of their relative positions. 
 
 " Well," he said, "you must take some resolution or 
 other, at any rate." 
 
 "It is taken already. It is only the first step that 
 costs. From this time I will affront the terrible Olaus 
 whenever we meet ; I will tell him what I think of him 
 before all the world ; I prefer to pass for a perfect demon 
 of malice, rather than for the favorite of this Dalecarlian 
 pasha. And, after all, I shall defend myself better alone ; 
 for, if you were present, I should be afraid of having you 
 take my part at your own peril, and that would make me 
 more acquiescent. But I will not forget any more for 
 that, the good counsel you gave me, and the chivalrous 
 way in which you repulsed that frightful baron. I do not 
 know whether we shall ever see each other again, but 
 wherever you are, you will always have my good wishes, 
 and I will pray to God to make you happier than I .am." 
 
 Christian was extremely touched by the sincere and 
 affectionate manner of this charming girl. He made no 
 display of affected gallantry, but his expressions, and the 
 very sound of his voice, revealed the deepest emotion. 
 
 " Kind Margaret ! " he said, lifting her pretty hand 
 to his lips. " I swear to you truly that I also will remember 
 you. Ah ! why am I not rich and noble ? Perhaps then 
 I should have power to help you, and most certainly I 
 would do everything in the world to obtain the happiness 
 of being able to do so. But I am nothing, so I can do 
 nothing," 
 
THE SNOW MAN, 
 
 217 
 
 " But I thank you just as much," replied Margaret. 
 " You seem to me like a brother that I have never known, 
 whom God has sent to me for a moment in the hour of my 
 distress. Let this short meeting be so considered, and we 
 will say good-by, without despairing of the future." 
 
 Margaret's candor caused Christian to feel a sense 
 of remorse. M. Goefle might return at any moment, 
 and it would be impossible for the young countess, after 
 having been so much struck with the similarity between 
 the voices of the false uncle and false nephew, not to 
 detect the entire absence of any such resemblance when 
 she should see them together. Besides, it was certain 
 that M. Goefle would not lend himself to any such deceit ; 
 and it pained Christian to think that Margaret would re- 
 tain an unfavorable recollection of him. So he confessed 
 the truth of his own accord, acknowledging that he had 
 allowed himself, as he did not know her, to play a joke 
 at her expense, by disguising himself in the doctor's pe- 
 lisse and cap, and pretending to be he. He added that 
 he had deeply repented, upon discovering how angelic a 
 nature it was that he had thus been trifling with. Margaret 
 was a little displeased. She had had an instant's revelation 
 of the truth, when Christian's voice first fell upon her ear 
 at the ball ; but his manner was so perfectly natural when 
 he told her that he had heard everything from the next 
 room, that she had dismissed all doubts from her mind. 
 
 " Ah ! " she said, " how skilful you are in deceiving, 
 and how easy it is to be duped by your explanations ! I 
 cannot be offended at your joke in itself, for I was guilty 
 of an imprudence in coming here, and I was properly 
 punished by a mystification. But what I am sorry for is 
 that you should have carried on the deceit for so long, with 
 so much assurance and such an appearance of candor." 
 
 " Say with remorse, and a consciousness of guilt. One 
 fault always occasions others, and — " 
 
 " And what? What more have you to confess?" 
 
 Christian had been on the very point of telling the 
 whole truth. But he paused ; for he remembered at that 
 instant that at the name of Christian Waldo Margaret 
 would fly, annoyed and indignant. He therefore resigned 
 
2i8 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 himself to a half sincerity : to the young countess he con< 
 tinued t. be Christian Goefle. But this dissimulation, 
 which would have merely amused him with any one else, 
 became extremely irksome when he saw her limpid eyes 
 fixed on him with an expression of fear and reproach. 
 
 "I only meant to play with her," he said to himself, 
 " as one child might with another ; but now, in spite of 
 all we could do, sentiment has intervened, and the more 
 honorable and delicate it is, the more guilty I feel — '* 
 
 He became sad in his turn, and Margaret perceived it. 
 
 *' Come," she said, with a smile all radiant with good- 
 ness, "let us not allow any regrets to spoiLour romantic 
 meeting. We are about to part, but we do so with our 
 kind feelings towards each other unchanged. You have 
 not abused my confidence by turning me into ridicule ; on 
 the contrary, you have helped me to rely upon myself, 
 and to struggle against an unfortunate destiny. Instead 
 of feeling hurt and ridiculous, I feel that I am standing 
 more firmly on my poor feet than I was yesterday at this 
 hour." 
 
 "That is true, is it not?" said Christian, warmly; 
 " and I call heaven to witness — " 
 
 " Go on," said Margaret. 
 
 " I call heaven to witness," he repeated, with enthusi- 
 asm, " that I have been influenced by no selfish motive in 
 anything I have done ; that my only thought has been to 
 promote your happiness." 
 
 " I know it is so, Christian," exclaimed Margaret, ris- 
 ing, and holding out her hand to him ;/' I know wellthat 
 in me you have only beheld your poor sister in the sight 
 of God. I thank you for it ; and now I must say fare- 
 well, for your uncle will be coming back. He does not 
 know me, and it will be quite useless to tell him that I 
 have been here. But you may tell him whatever else 
 you think proper. I am very sure that he will not work 
 against me, and that he is as honorable and generous as 
 yourself." 
 
 "• But still," said Christian, who saw with regret the 
 end of his romantic adventure rapidly approaching, "you 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 219 
 
 came to say something to him. Perhaps he ought to 
 know it." 
 
 "I came to ask him," said Margaret, with a little hes- 
 itation, " to tell me plainly what my aunt's intentions 
 were in case of an open revolt upon my part. But that 
 again was an act of cowardice,! do not require to know. 
 Let her banish me, isolate me, imprison me, strike me — 
 what does it matter? I will not yield, I promise you. I 
 swear to you, I will never marry any man whom I can- 
 not — esteem." 
 
 Margaret dared not say love, and Christian was just as 
 powerless to utter that word, but their eyes said it, and 
 their cheeks glowed with a sympathetic blush. After 
 conversing confidentially for an hour, their souls, in that 
 brief glance, spoke to each other, and acknowledged their 
 inward emotion, and yet neither of them was conscious 
 of the fact ; Margaret, because she did not know that she 
 loved, and Christian, because he felt certain that he did 
 not. And yet, when Margaret had stepped into her 
 sleigh again, and when Christian could see her no longer, 
 they were both conscious of a sudden pain, as if their 
 hearts had been rent asunder. Tears, that she did not 
 feel, coursed slowly down the young girl's cheeks ; while 
 Christian, buried in confused reveries, sighed as deeply 
 as if he had awakened from a dream of sunshine to fin( 
 himself once more in the frigid winter. In order tc 
 watch the sleio-h the longer, he went back to the bear- 
 room, and stepped between the two sashes of the window, 
 when a rustling behind him made him turn round, and he 
 beheld a sight that filled him with amazement. 
 
 An old man, thin and pale, but with noble features, 
 and carefully dressed in a gray suit of ancient fashion, 
 was standing erect in the midst of the chamber, with a 
 green branch in his hand. Christian had not heard him 
 enter, and the figure, illumined by the declining sun, 
 which, as it neared the west, was sending a red and dusty 
 beam of light through the one long window of the 
 sombre room, seemed a fantastic vision. His expres- 
 sion, moreover, was as singular as his unexpected pres- 
 ence. He seemed undecided ; astonished, as it were, to 
 
220 THE SNO W MAN. 
 
 find himself in that place ; and his small, glassy eyes in- 
 spected with amazement the changes which the new 
 guests had made in the previous melancholy arrange- 
 ments of the room. A moment's reflection satisfied 
 Christian that this strange apparition, instead of being a 
 spectre, was probably old Stenson, come to wait upon M. 
 Goefle and surprised at not finding him. But what was 
 the meaning of that green branch, and why that timid 
 and disappointed look? 
 
 It was, in fact, old Stenson ; and his sight being as 
 good as his hearing was poor, he had quickly noticed that 
 the fire was burning, the table set, and the clock going. 
 He did not move quickly, however, and Christian had 
 time to draw back behind the folds of an old curtain, 
 nibbled almost to a fringe by the mice, before the old 
 man's eye had reached the open window. From this hid- 
 ing-place he could watch him without being seen. Sten- 
 son's idea was that his nephew, of whose drunken habits 
 he was aware, had, without notifying him, invited some 
 of his boon companions to a Christmas revel in the bear- 
 room. The height of his indignation no one but himself 
 could have expressed. His first care was to put out of 
 sight the traces of such scandalous disorder. He began 
 by scattering all the live coals in the stove, so that the fire 
 should go out of itself; and then, before either clearing 
 off the table, or going to send the delinquent to do it, he 
 stopped the pendulum of the clock, and put the hands back 
 to four o'clock, where it had stood before the profane hand 
 of Christian had set it going. Next, he turned and looked 
 up, as if to count the candles in the chandelier, but the 
 sun shone in his eyes, and he stepped forward to the win- 
 dow, probably to shut it. 
 
 At this moment. Christian, seeing that he was about 
 to be discovered, came forward. But at this appari- 
 tion, standing in a nimbus of the rays of the setting 
 sun, Stenson, who was probably not the least supersti- 
 tious member of his family, recoiled to the middle of 
 the floor under the chandelier, with a countenance of 
 such anguish, that Christian, forgetting the old man's 
 deafness, spoke to him kindly and respectfully, with the 
 
THE SNOW MAN, 221 
 
 intention of reassuring him. Bat his voice was lost 
 without awakening an echo, in the large and fast chilling 
 room. Stenson fell on his knees before him, stretching 
 out his arms as if to implore his protection or to bless 
 him, and holding out, with a treraulousness that was 
 almost convulsive, the cypress-bough, as one offers a 
 votive palm-bough to some divinity. 
 
 "Why, my good man," said Christian, raising his 
 voice, and coming nearer, "I am not God, nor even 
 the Christmas angel that comes in at the window or 
 down the chimney. Get up ! I am — " 
 
 But he stopped short, for a livid pallor overspread the 
 old man's face, which was already so wan. He perceived 
 that his appearance had thrown Stenson into mortal 
 terror, and drew back to allow him to recover himself. 
 This the old man did in a measure, but only suffi- 
 ciently to think of escaping. He dragged himself along 
 for a few instants, and then rising up with difficulty, 
 fled through the sleeping chamber, murmuring, as he 
 went, disconnected words, without any distinguishable 
 meaning. Christian, who supposed that he was suffer- 
 ing from some attack of mental disorder, brought on 
 by old age or excessive religious devotion, refrained 
 from following him, for fear of making him worse. 
 There was a small slip of parchment fastened to the 
 branch which the old man had let fall at his feet, and 
 picking it up, he read the following three verses of the 
 Bible, written upon it in a reasonably firm hand : 
 
 " Destruction and death say. We have heard the fame 
 thereof with our ears." 
 
 *'Did I not weep for him who was in trouble? Was 
 not my soul grieved for the poor ? " 
 
 "A good man leaveth an inheritance to his children*? 
 children, and the wealth of the sinner is laid up for the 
 just."^ 
 
 Christian had no time to employ his imagination in 
 hunting for answers to this riddle. The day was rapidly 
 drawing to a close. It was only half-pasi one in the 
 afternoon, and already the transparent shadows of the 
 snowy peaks around were lengthening upon the blue sur 
 
222 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 face of the lake. It was a beautiful sight, and, had his 
 aifairs permitted, Christian would have loved to gaze 
 upon it. These short northern days have aspects infin- 
 itely picturesque ; and even at noon they are full of 
 striking effects, as painters say, resulting from the 
 obliquity of the sun's rays, which cover the landscape 
 with strong lights and shades, such as in other countries 
 are only visible at morning and evening. This is prob- 
 ably the reason of the beautiful sunlight which northera 
 travellers are so enthusiastic about. It is not alone the 
 extraordinary landscapes, impetuous waterfalls, immense 
 lakes and splendid auroras of Sweden and Norway, of 
 which they retain such intoxicating recollections ; quite 
 as remarkable, they affirm, is the delicious purity of the 
 atmosphere, in w^hich even the most trifling objects 
 assume a brightness and a charm of which nothing, any- 
 where else can give an idea. 
 
 But our hero, while he observed the beauty of the 
 heavens, observed also the swift decline of the day, and 
 discerned, afar off, the actual preparations for the very 
 entertainment for which, in fulfilment of his engagement, 
 he was to be in part responsible. The chimneys of 
 the new chateau were sending out thick columns of black 
 smoke, that showed strongly against the evening sky, 
 flecked with rosy and pearl-hued clouds. Gun-shots, 
 repeated by the mufiled echoes of the snowy hills, an- 
 nounced that the huntsmen were at work to supply the 
 spits of those Pantagruelian fireplaces. Busy messen- 
 gers on skates were speeding in all directions, crossing 
 each other's tracks, and occasionally falling headlong 
 upon the ice of the lake. All the country round was 
 being ransacked for everything it could furnish, from 
 the monstrous back -logs that were to adorn the fires in 
 every room of the house, down to the poor little white 
 partridge, which had trusted to his winter's garb to pro- 
 tect it from the sagacious eye of man, and the pitiless 
 scent of the hunting-dog. 
 
 The fifth night of the Christmas festivities — for 
 this was December 28th — promised to be a splendid 
 one. Christian alone was not enjoying the prospect ; ho 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 233 
 
 was becoming impatient for the return of Puffo. Having 
 resumed his poor devil's suit, pulled his abundant hair 
 over   his handsome forehead, and his steeple-crowned 
 hat down over his eyes, he went to hunt up his subordi- 
 nate in the court, in the gaard, and even in the kitchen, 
 where he had so frightened Ulphilas the evening before. 
 It never occurred to him to go down into the cellar. If 
 he had, he would have discovered Puffo, established in 
 the very paradise of his dreams. 
 
 He was about returning, when it occurred to him to 
 explore Stenson's little fruit-garden. With a prelim- 
 inary glance, to be sure that the old overseer whom he 
 had alarmed so much was not there, he descended the 
 steep walk that led down to the edge of the lake. From 
 this point he could see the whole length of the gaard, 
 built along the slope that plunged down to the little bay. 
 The old masonry was so well united to the rock, that 
 one could hardly distinguish the natural from the arti- 
 ficial fortification, especially under their clothing of long 
 wall-plants, crystallized by the frost, and hanging down 
 below into the lake, where they were deeply imbedded 
 in the ice. As he stood there, he tried to trace the route 
 he had followed the day before, on his expedition into 
 the secret passage of the bear-room. We promised the 
 reader an account of this expedition, and this is the 
 proper time for it. 
 
 It will be remembered that in setting out to hunt up 
 something for supper, he had ventured into a passage 
 hidden by a door very neatly fitted into the wood-work, 
 and leading from under the stairs, which he supposed 
 might conduct to the lodging of M. Stenson. Such was, 
 however, by no means the case. After a few steps 
 along a confined passage, Christian had come to a nar- 
 row staircase, steep, and obstructed with rubbish, as if 
 no human foot had ascended it for a long time. At the 
 foot of the staircase, which was very long, he had found 
 an open door. Surprised at this free entrance to a pas- 
 sage apparently itself so mysterious, he was stepping 
 through it, when a gust of wind extinguished his caudle, 
 and he was left in darkness. He still advanced cau* 
 
224 ^^^ SNOW MAN. 
 
 tiously a few steps, when the moon appeared from behind 
 some clouds, and he saw that he was in a sort of cavern, 
 or gallery, opening at intervals upon the lake. The 
 water of the lake penetrated into this gallery, which 
 seemed to be a natural excavation. He followed it for 
 some distance, walking upon the ice the latter part of the 
 way, until he reached, at last, a small wicket, over which 
 he climbed without difficulty, and thus gained admit- 
 tance first to the fruit-garden, and thence to M. Stenson's 
 gaard. 
 
 Christian at once recognized this little gate, flanked on 
 either side by two young yew-trees, cut into a sugar-loaf 
 shape ; and, witli this for a guide, he was able to recog- 
 nize the principal points of his nocturnal expedition. 
 Although he had no particular expectation of finding 
 Puffb in that quarter, he passed through the fruit-garden, 
 and walked along the lake around the outer cliffs, in the 
 direction of the donjon. He was curious to see by day- 
 light the path along which he had made his way the night 
 before, partly by feeling, and partly by the light of the 
 moon. 
 
 He soon came to the entrance of what he had taken for a 
 grotto. It was, in fact, only a deposit of enormous blocks 
 of granite, of that sort termed erratic boulders — that is, 
 blocks isolated from their primitive location, and now 
 lodged where they could not have been originally formed. 
 The position of such boulders is due, it is supposed, to 
 some primeval or modern cataclysm — avast rush of 
 waters, or the slow transportation of glaciers or icebergs — 
 which has brought them from distant regions to their final 
 resting-place. Those now in question were rounded, like 
 so many enormous pebbles, and their capricious super- 
 position, one above another, seemed to indicate that while 
 whirled along by a tremendous force, they had been sud- 
 denly arrested and piled against the mica-schist mass of 
 StoUborg, of which they thus became, as it were, but- 
 tresses or outworks. It was difficult to walk among them, 
 on account of the snow, which, during the storm of the 
 night before, had been swept, or rather rolled by the wind 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 225 
 
 into great drifts or ridges, stretching, like a vast winding- 
 sheet, along the range of boulders. 
 
 Christian found his progress so impeded, that he was 
 about to retrace his steps, when he was struck by the pic- 
 turesque aspect of the donjon towering above him, and 
 withdrew a little to see it to better advantage. He tried, 
 mechanically, to make out the position of the bear-room, 
 and easily recognized it by its one window, about a hun- 
 dred feet above the level of the lake, and fifty above the 
 summits of the boulders. The cold was not very extreme, 
 and Christian, who always carried a little drawing-book 
 in his pocket, began an outline sketch of the tower, with 
 its lofty escarpment in the rock below, and its chaos of 
 gigantic boulders, which were flung together in such a way 
 as to form — like the sandstone rocks at -Fontainebleau — 
 covered passages and galleries, whose effect was extremely 
 fantastic. 
 
 While studying this characteristic scene. Christian heard 
 some one singing, at first without paying much attention 
 to the fact. It was a woman's voice, and that of a rustic, 
 true enough in intonation, but veiled, and sometimes trem- 
 ulous, as of an infirm or aged person. She seemed to 
 be chanting a kind of psalm, and, although monotonous, 
 there was something agreeable in the melancholy air. 
 This sad and quavering melody soothed the mind of the 
 artist as it continued, and brought him into the very mood 
 for understanding and representing the features of a locality 
 with which the voice seemed to be in perfect harmony. 
 The words of the chant were at first indistinct ; but as 
 Christian listened mechanically, he gradually recognized 
 them as Swedish, pronounced with the Dalecarliau ac- 
 cent. Their meaning now seemed so strange, that he 
 began to listen more attentively : 
 
 " I saw a tower, a square tower by the setting sun. 
 Its gates look to the north. Drops of poison sweat from 
 its openings. It is paved with serpents. 
 
 " The tree of the world embraces it ; the strong ash- 
 tree shakes. The great serpent bites the waves. Th^ 
 eagle screams ; with its pale beak it tears the corpses • 
 the ship of the dead is launched. 
 I? 
 
i26 THE ^NOW MAN. 
 
 "Where are the Ases and the Alfes? They sigh by 
 the entrance of the caves. The sun begins to be dark- 
 ened ; all things perish. 
 
 " But earth, green and beautiful, begins to brighten 
 again from the east ; the waters awake, the cascades flow. 
 
 " I saw a palace fairer than the sun upon the top of 
 Gimli — I see it no more. The Vala falls again into the 
 night." 
 
 In these sombre poetical fragments Christian gradually 
 recognized verses, arranged or repeated at random, from 
 the antique poem called the Voluspa. This, considering 
 the rustic pronunciation of the singer, he thought very ex- 
 traordinary. Could it be that the peasants in that country 
 had preserved a tradition of the sacred chants of the Scar ^ 
 dinavian mythology? This seemed hardly probable, and 
 yet who could have taught them to this woman ? Chris- 
 tian, who, as a traveller, was curious on all subjects, re- 
 solved to find and cross-examine the singer, as soon as he 
 had finished his sketch ; but when he returned his album 
 to his pocket a few moments afterwards, the voice had 
 ceased. He looked all about, but could see no one. Sup- 
 posing that she must be concealed behind the boulders, he 
 proceeded to explore them, and found this not much easier 
 than walking in the deep margin of the snow-drift outside. 
 Within the expanse of the principal cavern, which followed 
 the turns of the rock for some fifty steps, there was no foot- 
 ing except on a floor of ice, very slippery and wavy on the 
 surface, as if the rippling water had been instantaneously 
 frozen on some cold autumn night. • 
 
 However, our adventurer succeeded in discovering the 
 traces of his own steps, made the night before, when he 
 imagined he was walking over fragments of bricks and 
 tiles ; and soon he found, also, the mysterious door, by 
 which he had issued from the donjon. It was now fast- 
 ened with two strong iron staples and a padlock, the key 
 of which had been carried off. This must have been just 
 »done ; the singer was undoubtedly some dependent, like 
 Stenson and Ulphilas, who was employed about the old 
 manor. She could not be far off, for he had heard her 
 singing scarcely five minutes before, and she must have 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 237 
 
 been behind the boulders, for Christian could see over the 
 lake in all directions, and from top to bottom of the cliffs 
 at the base of the tower, and no one was visible. He 
 now retraced his steps to leave the grotto, which, as it 
 was only lighted by a natural opening in about the middle 
 of its whole extent, was rather dark. Pausing for a mo- 
 ment under this natural opening, to look at the sky, he 
 saw, between himself and the heavens, an object project- 
 ing over the rock from the smooth and naked flank of the 
 donjon. This he quickly recognized as the under-side of 
 the stone balcony that supported the double window of the 
 bear-room, and which was so situated that any one, with 
 a cord or ladder, might easily descend through the space 
 between the rocks below, when he would at once find 
 himself under cover in the vault which they formed just 
 at this place. 
 
 Christian, always inclined to be romantic, immediately 
 thought out a plan of escape to be adopted in case of 
 siege or captivity in Stollborg. He scaled the irreg- 
 ular rocks that formed the sides of the grotto, and, with a 
 good deal of exertion, climbed out through the opening 
 which, he was satisfied, had not been made by the hand 
 of man. This examination led him to reflect, as we 
 have all had occasion to do at least once in our lives, 
 that even in the most desperate situations chances occa- 
 sionally occur so improbable that they seem to belong, 
 not to real life, but to the world of the imagination. 
 However, still bent upon pursuing the singer, he con- 
 tinued his examination amongst the boulders, between 
 almost any two of which there was room for penetrating. 
 Finding no one, he was just giving up the chase, when 
 he heard the voice again, coming this time from much 
 lower down than he had supposed it to be when he heard 
 it in the first place. He went towards it, but as he ap- 
 proached the spot where he thought the mysterious rhap- 
 sodist must be stationed, the chant, which had suddenly 
 ceased, like that of the cicada on the approach of man, 
 was heard once more in another direction, and from much 
 higher up, as if floating in the air above him. Raising 
 his head, Christian now perceived, in the side of the 
 
228 THE SNOW MAN, 
 
 donjon, a long fissure, half hidden by ivy, and extending 
 almost vertically, from a window in the upper story, a 
 good deal to the right of the window in the bear-room, 
 down to a ruinous part of the wall, below which were 
 some other masses of rock. 
 
 He even thought that he could see pieces of stone 
 falling along this fissure, as if some person had just made 
 their way into it ; but, on approaching as near as he 
 ''ould, it seemed to him quite inaccessible, and he went 
 further on. 
 
 And now the voice once more began its plaintive chant, 
 and Christian — amused at first, but finally with a feel- 
 ing of irritation — followed the singer from one place to 
 another in the little chaos of granite rocks. He was con- 
 stantly disappointed, until he really began to be somewhat 
 startled. These savage verses, fragments of a gloomy 
 apocalypse, disconnected and wild, as if inspired by de- 
 lirium, had something frightful in them, when heard in that 
 gloomy place, at that melancholy evening hour. Christian 
 thought involuntarily of the water-witches who are the 
 centre of all the legends of Sweden, and indeed of all 
 popular beliefs throughout the north of Europe. 
 
 At last he persuaded himself that the voice must come 
 from the tower itself. Perhaps some captive was hidden 
 there in a secret dungeon. He called aloud three times, 
 using at a venture the mythological name of Vala, that is 
 Sibyl, which the singer, in her chant, had seemed to wish 
 to appropriate. At this the voice became silent again, 
 as if in confirmation of the superstitious belief ^of the 
 country, that whenever you succeed in calling one of 
 the malevolent or melancholy spirits who dwell among 
 the mountains by its name, it is either frightened or con- 
 soled, and in either case is reduced to silence. 
 
 But still another thought haunted Christian, as he 
 finally turned to go back to the tower by an outside path. 
 He could not help asking himself whether one of the vic- 
 tims of the mysterious Baron Olaus, crazed with suffering, 
 was not lamenting in a dungeon under his feet. How- 
 ever, he forgot all about this fantastic idea, wlien he 
 found M. Goefle seated at table in the bear-room. 
 
THE SNO W MAN. 239 
 
 " Well," said the lawyer, without troubling himself to 
 rise, "you came near bringing me into a pretty scrape 
 with your prank last evening. The baron, strange to 
 say, did not mention a word about it ; but the Countess 
 Elveda absolutely would not believe me when I protested 
 and swore that I had neither a nephew nor a natural 
 child." 
 
 "What, M. Goefle ! did you disown a son who has 
 done you so much honor?" 
 
 "I did indeed ; it would have been quite impracticable 
 for me to keep up the joke, or to assume the responsi- 
 bility of such a mystification ! Do you know that you 
 did not escape observation by any means ? Quite inde- 
 pendently of the scene with your host, everybody 
 seems to have been struck by your style and graces, the 
 ladies especially. In the countess's room I met five or 
 six of the more fashionable ladies of the province, who 
 were quite infatuated about you ; and when I swore upon 
 my honor that I had nothing whatever to do with this 
 unknown, you should have heard their suppositions and 
 commentaries ! Some of them were inclined to suggest 
 that it might have been Christian Waldo, of whom so 
 many adventurous stories are told ; but the prevailing 
 opinion was that you were the prince royal, travelling 
 incognito about his future kingdom." 
 
 " Prince Henry, who is now at Paris?" 
 
 "Yes; and this served capitally to account for the 
 baron's nervous attack, for he detests the prince, and 
 would naturally have been agitated on meeting him, by 
 the conflict between his hate and resentment on the one 
 hand, and the respect due to the future heir of the throne 
 on the other." 
 
 " But the Countess Elveda cannot have been deceived 
 by such a silly idea as that ? " 
 
 " Oh no, certainly not, she knows the prince too well ; 
 but she is extremely fond of quizzing, and she amused 
 herself by pretending to these ladies that you were so 
 much like our future monarch, that she did not know 
 what to think. Only, as I was going out, she took me 
 aside and said: 'You are severe, my friend, in disown- 
 
230 THE SNOW MAN, 
 
 ing this imprudent young man. For my own part, I 
 thought him very agreeable, and if he does not resemble 
 you in features, he takes after you at least in his wit and 
 distinguished manners.' " 
 
 "Why, Monsieur Goefle, that is very flattering to me. 
 But then she persists in believing me your son?" 
 
 " Without doubt ; and the more I protested to the con- 
 trary, the more she laughed, and insisted that it was im- 
 possible for me to disown you, since you had so publicly 
 presented yourself in society under my name. ' The 
 wine is drawn,' she said, ' and you must drink it. He is 
 a roguish fellow, and is trying to plague you. It is a 
 just punishment of the follies of our youth, to become 
 the parents of ' such terrible children ! ' Please to ob- 
 serve the stain which you have brought upon my reputa- 
 tion ! At last, to rid myself of you, I said that whether 
 son or nephew, you had gone away ; that I had packed 
 you off in disgrace for having been disrespectful to his 
 lordship the baron." 
 
 " Very right. Monsieur Goefle : you did quite right ; 
 for, as to the baron, I don't know whether I am dream- 
 ing, but I am really beginning to consider him almost as 
 much of a Blue-Beard as the reports about him represent. 
 I should have found out all about it, if I had had more 
 time." 
 
 " Ah ! ah ! really ? Well, you must tell me all about it ; 
 but, in the meanwhile, have something to eat. It is after 
 two o'clock, and you must be almost dead Avith hunger." 
 
 "I? No, not at all. It seems to me as if I had just 
 got up from table. Were we not eating until almost 
 noon?" 
 
 '' Well, but don't you know that in such a cold climate 
 as this you need to eat every two hours? I have just 
 had coffee at the new chateau ; this is dinner, now ; at 
 four, we will have coffee together ; at six we will have 
 the aftonward ; that is, we will take some bread and but- 
 ter and cheese, while waiting for supper." 
 
 " Good heavens ! how you keep at it ! I knew per- 
 fectly well that that was the regimen of the fat burghers 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 231 
 
 at Stockholm ; but you, M. Goefle, who are so slender 
 still!" 
 
 " Well, do you want me to become a skeleton ? I 
 should very quickly, if I should vary from our customs. 
 Believe me, you had better conform to them, or you will 
 very soon be ill." 
 
 " To enable me to obey you, M. Goefle, I need two 
 things : time, and my assistant Puffo. Now, time is 
 flying ; and Puffo only appeared to me a moment, and 
 then disappeared, perhaps not to return until to-morrow 
 morning." 
 
 "But could I not help you myself? What is to be 
 done?" 
 
 "A good many things ; but most of all, to decide upon 
 our piece and run it over together, so that that animal, 
 Puffo, may be ready to represent with me. He has a 
 sufficiently good memory, if he can have one rehearsal 
 before the performance ; but now, as we have been trav- 
 elling some days without doing anything, and as he is 
 probably drunk to night already — " 
 
 " Come, come ! You have five hours before you — an 
 immense quantity of time ! More than I have needed, 
 sometimes, to prepare a cause a great deal more com- 
 plicated than your comedies of marionettes ! I promise 
 to help you, I tell you, but on condition that you will sit 
 down and eat with me, for I don't know anything more 
 uncomfortable than to eat alone." 
 
 " You will permit me to be pretty quick, then, won't 
 you ? " said Christian, taking a seat opposite the lawyer, 
 " and not to talk too much, for I shall need all my lungs 
 this evening." 
 
 "Very well, very well," replied M. Goefle, cutting off 
 for Christian an enormous piece of cold veal — a dish 
 greatly esteemed by the middle classes in Sweden, when 
 properly cooked ; " but what were you saying to me just 
 after you came in ? What was it you would have dis- 
 covered, if you had had a little more time ? " 
 
 Christian related his adventure, and at the close of 
 his story asked M. Goefle if he supposed the lower part 
 of Stoliborg contained any old prison. 
 
332 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 " Upon my word I don't know anything about it/* re- 
 plied the advocate. " It is very possible that there may 
 be some kind of cell in the great mass of masonry here 
 under our feet, and if so, I have no doubt that it has 
 been used as a prison. Our ancestors were not persons 
 of very refined manners, and even yet our nobility have 
 justiciary rights on their own domains." 
 
 " And do you think it equally probable that this sub 
 structure of the donjon may be serving as a prison now?" 
 
 " Who knows? What are you thinking of ?" 
 
 "That possibly some person may be wickedly buried 
 there, a still living victim of one of the thousand dark 
 and secret crimes attributed to the vengeful baron." 
 
 " Really, it would be strange enough to discover that ! " 
 said the lawyer, who had suddenly become thoughtful. 
 " Are you sure you were not dreaming when you thought 
 you heard the voice and strange songs ? " 
 
 " Sure ! how can you ask? " 
 
 " There is no knowing ; you said yourself a little while 
 ago that people are sometimes subject to hallucinations. 
 Now the ear, as well as the eye, may become the medium 
 of the illusion ; and you ought to be aware — to be prop- 
 erly on your guard — to what an extent hallucinations 
 prevail in Sweden, especially towards the north, where 
 really, with two-thirds of the population, they are a sort 
 of chronic condition." 
 
 " Yes, I know that such visions become contagious 
 when reinforced by superstition ; but I beg you to believe 
 that I have no faith in the witches or evil spirits of either 
 lakes, torrents, or old castles, and that I could not be in- 
 fluenced, therefore, in any such way." 
 
 " Nor I, assuredly. And yet — Well, Christian, there 
 must be, independently of superstition, something inex- 
 plicable in the effects produced by the natural scenery and 
 conditions of the north upon vivid imaginations. It is 
 in the air ; in the singular sounds that go ringing along 
 the ice ; in the mists, full of mysterious forms ; in the 
 marvellous mirage of our lakes, called the hagring^ an 
 extraordinary phenomenon which you must have heard 
 of, and which you may see at any moment. Possibly 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 233 
 
 Fomething of it may result from physical disorders in the 
 circulation of the blood, induced by constantly passing 
 out of the icy atmosphere into the over-heated air of our 
 rooms, and the contrary. Anyhow, it is a fact that we 
 find the most reasonable people, those in the most perfect 
 health, the least credulous, even such as have passed the 
 greater portion of their lives free from illusions, all at 
 once becoming subject to them. Even I myself — " 
 
 " Go on, I beg you, M. Goefle — at least unless the 
 subject is too painful ; you are as white as your napkin." 
 
 " I do really feel quite unwell. I have felt so two or 
 three times to-day. What a poor machine is man ! Any- 
 thing that his reason cannot explain either frightens him 
 or annoys him. Pour me out a good glass of port, 
 Christian. Your health ! I am glad, on the whole, that 
 I declined the invitation to dine over yonder ; I like bet- 
 ter to be here with you in this gloomy room, that I can 
 laugh at, after all — Well, as you are eating without being 
 hungry to please me, and are listening to me in spite of 
 your own business matters, I will tell you about my hal- 
 lucination ; it is at least as singular as yours : 
 
 " It was no longer ago than last evening, and in this 
 very place where we now are. I was in the other room, 
 quite absorbed in investigating a very interesting legal 
 matter, while my little valet, after making me a good 
 deal of trouble, at last condescended to go to sleep. I 
 had intended to stay with him, by a great effort of patience, 
 for a quarter of an hour or so ; not more, for I was hungry, 
 though I did not know that food had been brought. How- 
 ever, the demon of study, who has the art of making every 
 pursuit interesting, even that of the law, took possession of 
 me so completely, that I forgot everything, until my poor 
 stomach was obliged fairly to shout into my ears that it 
 was eleven o'clock at night. 
 
 " Well, I looked at my watch, and sure enough it was 
 eleven o'clock. The truth is, that my housekeeper is in 
 the habit of looking after me, and calling me to my meals, 
 and I had quite forgotten that in this den of a place, left 
 to the care of that lunatic of an Ulphilas, I should not be 
 notified of anything whatever. Nils, as I told you, is a 
 
234 ^^^ SNOW MAN. 
 
 servant whom Gertrude selected for me, so as to teach m« 
 the duties of the valet-de-chambre. Well, as I had fasted 
 for full seven long hours, I got up at once, took the light 
 and came into this room, where I found the dishes that 
 you had brought on the table ; I gave Ulphilas the credit 
 of this rather late hospitality, and set about satisfying my 
 appetite probably rather voraciously. 
 
 " You know already, my dear Christian, that this old 
 ruin has the reputation of being haunted by the devil. 
 At least, this is the opinion of the orthodox portion of the 
 community, who account for the circumstance by affirm- 
 ing that it was used, not long ago, as a chapel by a 
 Catholic lady, the Baroness Hilda, widow of Adelstan, 
 the elder brother — " 
 
 " Of Baron Olaus de Waldemora," said Christian , 
 " but have the Dalecarlians such a horror of Catholicism 
 as that.?" 
 
 " They abominate it," said M. Goefle, " as much as 
 they did the reformed religion before the time of Gustavus 
 Vasa. They are a race who neither love nor hate by 
 halves. As to this demon who haunts Stollborg, old 
 Stenson does not believe in it, but he does thoroughly 
 believe in the Gray Lady ; who, he says, is nothing else 
 than the spirit of the late baroness, who died ill this room 
 more than twenty years ago. 
 
 " An hour before, I had been laughing at apparitions, 
 to reassure my little serving-lad ; but you know how it is 
 with dreams. Very often some careless word heard or 
 spoken in the course of the day, and forgotten tha next 
 moment, proves to be the seed from which they blossom 
 mysteriously, and without our own consciousness ; and so 
 we bear them in our minds until night, when, as soon as 
 our eyes are shut and our reason is asleep, they rise up 
 before our deluded vision in fantastic forms, endowed now 
 with tenfold their real significance, and, perhaps, horror. 
 
 " It must be, it seems to me, that hallucinations — 
 that is, waking dreams — obey exactly the same law. ] 
 had ended my supper, and was about lighting my pipe, 
 when suddenly there swept through the room a shrill, 
 melancholy sound, like that of the wind when it rushes 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 235 
 
 through a door suddenly opened ; the air was at the same 
 time stirred and chilled, and the flames of the candles that 
 stood upon the table flickered. At the moment, I hap- 
 pened to be looking towards the door of the vestibule, and 
 seeing that this was firmly fastened and motionless, I sup- 
 posed that Nils had awaked, and had opened the opposite 
 door, that of the guard-room. 
 
 " ' Ah ! ' I cried, as I got up, ' there you are again ! 
 Do go to sleep, will you, you cursed little coward !' 
 
 " I stepped to the door, thinking that the little rascal 
 had not ventured to open it wide, but had only set it ajar, 
 to be sure I had not gone away. But this door was shut 
 as tight as the other. 
 
 *' Had the child closed it again when he saw that I was 
 there, and had the slight sound he must have made escaped 
 me, while I was looking for my pipe and refilling the stove ? 
 It was possible. I went into the guard-room, but Nils 
 was fast asleep, with his little fists clenched. Evidently 
 he had not stirred. I covered up the fire in the chimney, 
 for fear of some accident, and came back into this room, 
 where everything was still. The melancholy whistling 
 was not repeated. I concluded that a gust of wind had 
 come in through some open joint somewhere in the wood- 
 work, and resumed my pipe, and the papers which I was 
 examining for the baron. 
 
 '' This business was a rather intricate and subtle law 
 question, and was quite interesting to me, but I need not 
 trouble you with it. All I need say is, that it involved a 
 certain contract for the sale of property executed some 
 time ago by Baron Adelstan ; and that his name, as well 
 as that of his wife Hilda de Blixen, were repeated in 
 almost every sentence of the instrument. The names of 
 this married couple, both of whom died in the flower of 
 their age, one in a tragical and mysterious manner, and the 
 other in this very room, and probably in that same unfur- 
 nished and dilapidated old bed in the opposite corner, may 
 have made some impression upon my mind, of which I was 
 not conscious. I was quite absorbed in my examination, 
 and the fire in the stove was roaring well, when I thought I 
 heard a creaking on the staircase, several times repeated. 
 
236 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 I was quite startled, and at the same time was so ashamed 
 of my o^vn emotion, that I would not even turn my head 
 round to see what it was. It was not surprising that the 
 damp old wood-work was beginning to feel the effects of 
 the hot fire in the stove, and that it should occasionally 
 emit these unaccustomed sounds. 
 
 "I went on with my reading again; but now, the 
 creaking of the steps and the balustrade was followed 
 by a different sound, not unlike the rasping of an iron 
 tool on the wall, guided by a hand so feeble and uncer- 
 tain, that it might easily have been mistaken, at moments, 
 for the scratching of a rat among those old maps. I 
 looked up, but seeing nothing, kept on with my work, 
 for I would not permit myself to be disturbed by these 
 unaccountable noises, peculiar to all such old rooms, and 
 which are always occasioned in the simplest manner. It 
 is silly to be searching for the causes of such things, 
 when one has more important business to attend to. 
 
 '' However, a third and still a different sound compelled 
 me to turn round again, and look once more at the stair- 
 case. I could hear the large parchment map, that cov- 
 ers the built-up door, shaking and crackling in a singular 
 manner. I saw it rise up repeatedly ; it shook upon the 
 rings by which it hangs, and stood out, as if some 
 body, not unlike a human form, was moving behind it. 
 For the moment, I was startled in good earnest. It was 
 possible that some thief had managed to secrete himself 
 there, and was waiting for an opportunity to spring out 
 upon me. I jumped up hastily to take my sword from 
 the chair, where I had laid it when I came in, but it 
 was not there." 
 
 "For a sufficient reason, I regret to say," observed 
 Christian. " It was at my side." 
 
 " I do not know," resumed M. Goefle, " whether I 
 concluded that Ulphilas, with unusual neatness and solic- 
 itude, had put away the weapon. The truth is that I 
 had not looked in my portmanteau, and had not been at 
 all uneasy at not finding my clothes, which I had hung 
 upon the back of the arm-chair. I am not in the habit 
 of attending to such matters myself, and most probably 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 237 
 
 had entirely forgotten having placed them there. Not see- 
 ing the sword, I had time to collect myself a little, and 
 to make up my mind that I was unnecessarily alarmed. 
 Nobody could want to kill me, and if a robber had 
 taken a fancy to my purse, the wisest course would be to 
 let him have the small amount it contained without re- 
 sistance. 
 
 "So I returned, and advanced towards the stairs, 
 quite coolly and resolutely, I give you my word. And 
 exactly at this moment it was that the hallucination took 
 place. There, stay a moment, Christian ! Look at that 
 portrait ; to the right of the window." 
 
 " I have already tried to see it," said Christian, "but 
 the light is so bad where it hangs, and the flies or the 
 damp have defaced it so much, that I could hardly make 
 it out at all." 
 
 " Well, then, take a light and look at it. It is getting 
 dark, at any rate, and will soon be time to light up." 
 
 Christian lit the three-branched candlestick that had 
 been left on the table, stood up on a chair, and with 
 the help of his album, which he held between his eyes 
 and the flickering lights, proceeded to examine the pic- 
 ture carefully. 
 
 "I see it very indistinctly still," he said. "It is a 
 portrait of a rather tall woman, elegantly formed ; she 
 is seated, and wears a black veil, as is the custom with 
 Swedish ladies in winter, to protect their eyes from the 
 glare of the snow. I can see her hands, which are very 
 well painted, and very beautiful. Ah ! ah ! the dress is 
 pearl-gray satin, with bows of black velvet. Is it the 
 portrait of the Gray Lady?" 
 
 " Exactly. It is the Baroness Hilda." 
 
 " Let m6 see the face, then. There, I catch it now ; 
 it is handsome — an agreeable and sweet countenance. 
 Stay, wait a moment, M. Goefle ! That face inspires me 
 with a feeling of sympathy ; it moves me." 
 
 "So you don't care to listen to my story any longer?" 
 
 "That's all; — yes, indeed I do. I am pressed for 
 time, and yet your adventure interests me so much that 
 I must hear the end of it. I'm ready." 
 
238 THE SNOW MAN, 
 
 "Well, then," continued the lawyer, "as my eye3 
 again fell upon that great map of Sweden which is now so 
 still, a human figure came out from under it, lifting it 
 aside as one does a tapestry curtain. It was the figure 
 of a tall and thin woman, not slender and beautiful, as 
 the original of the portrait must have been, but livid 
 and wasted, as if she had just risen from the tomb ; 
 and the gray dress, too, soiled, worn, and with the black 
 ribbons unfastened and hanging loose, seemed to be 
 trailing with it the very earth of the grave. My dear 
 friend, so horrible, so frightful was this painful vision, 
 that I closed my eyes to avoid seeing it. When I opened 
 them again — but whether in a moment or in a second, I 
 cannot say, for I took no account of time — the figure 
 was standing upon the floor directly before me. She 
 had descended the stairs — I had heard them creaking 
 again — and was staring at me with haggard eyes, and 
 with a fixity that I can only call cadaverous ; so totally 
 was it devoid of thought, interest, or even life. It was 
 really a corpse standing upright there within two steps 
 of me ! As for me, I remained motionless, like one fas- 
 cinated — a very ugly-looking object myself, probably — • 
 and with my hair standing up on my head, for what I 
 know — " 
 
 "Upon my word," said Christian, "a disagreeable 
 apparition enough ! I believe if I had been in your 
 place, I should certainly have sworn, or broken some- 
 thing ! Did this last long ? " 
 
 "I don't know ; it seemed to me that it would never 
 end. I shut my eyes again to lose sight of it ; and 
 when I reopened them, the spectre v/as moving towards 
 the side of the bed. I can scarcely describe its further 
 movements. It seemed as if it were opening the cur- 
 tains, and bending down to speak to some being whom 
 it saw there — invisible save to those ghastly eyes. Then 
 it turned as if to open the window ; though it did not 
 really open it. And finally, it returned towards me. 
 By this time I had somewhat recovered myself, and 
 tried to make a deliberate examination of the face ; but 
 this was more than I could do. I could see nothing but 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 239 
 
 those great dead eyes — it seemed as if I were powerless 
 to remove my own from them. Besides, the phantom 
 now passed me quickly. If it noticed me at all, it did 
 not seem irritated or disturbed by my presence. It flitted 
 uncertainly along the room ; tried to return to the stairs, 
 and appeared unable to find them. Then the fleshless 
 hands began to feel aloDg the walls, and suddenly it 
 disappeared. Again a rush of wind ran whistling through 
 the room, and rang in my ears ; it ceased, and as, during 
 the whole of this experience, I had been perfectly conscious 
 of being in my right mind, I perceived at once the ces- 
 sation of the unaccustomed sounds, together with the 
 disappearance of the fantastic image. 
 
 " I felt of myself — there was no doubt as to my iden- 
 tity. I pinched my hand, and felt it perfectly. I looked 
 at the bottle of rum, but I had hardly made a beginning 
 upon it. Evidently I was neither in a trance nor intoxi- 
 cated. Indeed, I no longer felt even an emotion of 
 terror, and very coolly said to myself that I must have 
 been asleep standing. I finished my pipe while reflect- 
 ing upon the affair, and even indulged my imagination 
 so far as to half wish to undergo another such hallucina- 
 tion, so that I might try to overcome it ; but the phe- 
 nomenon was not repeated, and I went very quietly to 
 bed. It was some time before I fell asleep, but I expe- 
 rienced no other inconvenience." 
 
 " But then," said Christian, " what should have made 
 you so uncomfortable just now, when you were only 
 thinking the matter over ? " 
 
 " Why, because the mind is so constituted, I suppose. 
 There are emotional reactions. By hearing of delusions, 
 you may become a little deluded yourself. Twice al- 
 ready, to-day, I have recalled stories of this kind, that 
 are certainly either fables or dreams, and yet which em- 
 body great and mysterious moral truths." 
 
 " How is that, M. Goefle?" 
 
 " Good heavens ! it happened to my own father, who, 
 like myself, was an advocate and professor of law, to see 
 the ghost of a man who had been unjustly condemned to 
 death more than ten years before, and who called upon 
 
240 
 
 THE SNOW MAN, 
 
 him for justice to his despoiled children, and for the re* 
 habilitation of his own memory. He saw this spectre at 
 the foot of a gibbet which he was passing. He looked 
 into the affair, found that the phantom had told the truth, 
 instituted proceedings, and gained his cause. Doubtless 
 the ghost was an illusion, but it was an appeal to my father's 
 conscience. Now, whence came that appeal? From the 
 grave ? Certainly not. From heaven ? Who knows ? " 
 
 " Well, M. Goefle, what do you conclude as to the ap- 
 parition of last night ? " 
 
 " Nothing at all, my dear friend, but I am none the 
 less troubled, every little while, with the idea that the 
 Baroness Hilda may perhaps have been the victim of a 
 calumny, and that God has given permission, not that her 
 soul should visit me, but that my own mind should be so 
 strongly impressed with the recollection of her, as to bring 
 her image before my eyes, and thus influence me to make 
 researches into the truth of the matter." 
 
 *' But what was the charge brought against this famous 
 baroness, then ? " 
 
 " That she fabricated an audacious falsehood, with the 
 design of depriving Baron Olaus of his rightful in- 
 heritance." 
 
 " Will you please tell me that story, too, M. Goefle? 
 I feel extremely curious about it, since you have seen this 
 spectre." 
 
 " Certainly, I intended to do so ; and, fortunately, it is 
 not long. 
 
 " Baron Magnus de Waldemora, who was com- 
 monly called ' the great iarl ' (though ' iarl ' means prop- 
 erly 'count,* the term is very commonly applied to all 
 nobles of a certain rank and importance), had two sons. 
 The elder, Adelstan, was quick, impetuous, and ardent 
 in disposition, while the younger, Olaus, at present sur- 
 named the Snow Man, was mild, aflectionate, and stu- 
 dious. They were both tall, handsome, and strong, and 
 together were their father's pride. His fortune was con- 
 siderable — an unusual advantage in our country, where 
 the wealth of the nobility was immensely diminished by 
 the reduction of 1680. The right of primogeniture does 
 
THE SNOW MAN, 
 
 241 
 
 not prevail with us, but all the sons inherit equally. 
 Still, even half of this inheritance was, it might seem, 
 enough to satisfy either of the brothers, and if there was 
 ever a young man who appeared incapable of jealousy it 
 was Olaus — a youth of calm exterior, inclined to quiet 
 raillery, for whom the father seemed to feel a sort of pref- 
 erence, and who was generally more liked than his elder 
 brother. 
 
 "The latter was of a noble character, but his frank 
 ness was so great as sometimes to verge upon rudeness. 
 He had early shown an active disposition, and had a pas- 
 sion for travelling and novelty. At thirty he had already 
 been all over Europe, and,- during his stay in France, had 
 acquired certain philosophical views, which caused great 
 apprehensions to the e]4er members of his family, and 
 even to his father. His friends wished him to marry, 
 and he agreed to do so, requiring only that his bride 
 should be the choice Of his heart. Accordingly he mar- 
 ried a beautiful young lady whom he had known in 
 France, the Countess Hilda de Blixen, an orphan of a 
 noble Danish family, who had no other dowry than her 
 mental attractions, her beauty, and her virtue. This was 
 a great deal, you would say, and I am entirely of your 
 opinion. It was also that of the old Baron Magnus, 
 who, although at first disposed to disapprove of the con- 
 nection as a mere love-Bf^tch, soon learned to love and 
 cherish his daughter-in-law. 
 
 '' Some assert that Olaus was disappointed at this recon- 
 ciliation, and that he had tried to make a quarrel between 
 his father and Adelstan. It has been hinted, moreover, 
 that Baron Magnus, who was a strong and healthy man, 
 died in a very sudden manner. Both these charges are 
 of old date, and absolutely without any proof. 
 
 " What is certain, however, is, that from the time of 
 sharing the inheritance there existed a serious misunder- 
 standing between the two brothers. My father himself 
 was present during a certain discussion about the prop- 
 erty, when Baron Adelstan spoke in the bitterest manner 
 to Olaus, who had reproached him mildly for having lived 
 so much at a distance from his family, neglecting hia 
 16 
 
242 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 home duties and responsibilities, in order to gratify his 
 taste for travelling. 
 
 " ' My father/ he said, ' never knew the value of your 
 hypocritical affection. Perhaps he understands it only too 
 well, now that he is in his grave ! * 
 
 ••' The bitterness of this sarcasm, and the moderation 
 with which Olaus received it, caused my father to express 
 great disapproval of the frightful suspicion which the elder 
 brother hinted. Adelstan said no more, but he never in- 
 timated that he had changed his opinion. Many utter- 
 ances of his to the same effect are remembered, whose 
 implications have remained without proof, but — at least 
 as far as some persons about him are concerned — not 
 without weight. 
 
 " Baron Magnus had not laid aside any such sums of 
 money as would admit of the purchase by one brother 
 from the other of either portion of the real estate, and the 
 question of selling the lands and the chateau therefore 
 came up. Olaus refused the income which his brother 
 offered to settle upon him, notwithstanding that the 
 amount was larger than he himself offered to Adelstan 
 in case the lands should be adjudged to him. The plan 
 of selling had, however, to be given up, for no purchasers 
 came forward. This immense chateau, situated in a re- 
 mote region on the confines of a wilderness, was no longer 
 adapted to the requirements of modern society, whose 
 tendency is to draw people to the capital, or southern prov- 
 inces. My father, however, succeeded in making a cleai 
 statement of the whole revenues and expenses of the ^es- 
 tate, and on this basis he fixed upon a proper figure for 
 the annuity to be paid to the one brother, by whichever 
 should continue in possession of the domain, and it was 
 agreed to cast lots for the choice. The result was \i favor 
 of the elder brother. 
 
 "Olaus showed no vexation, but it is asserted that he 
 was, in fact, extremely chagrined, and that he lamented 
 to those in his confidence the unjust fate which drove 
 away from the heritage of his fathers a person like him- 
 self, accustomed to a country life, and fond of quiet, in 
 order to bestow this beautiful residence upon an incon* 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 243 
 
 Stant and restless being like Adelstan. By such com- 
 plaints, by the friendly familiarity of his manners, and by 
 liberal gifts bestowed upon the numerous retainers of the 
 house, he formed for himself a party of adherems who soon 
 threatened to impede the elder brother in managing his 
 affairs, and even in maintaining his domestic authority. 
 
 " My father, who was obliged to remain here some 
 weeks, while concluding the settlement of the estate, per- 
 ceived all this, but he had grown weary of these constant 
 family dissensions, and probably he did less than justice 
 to the frank and loyal character of the elder brother. He 
 seems to have been very much influenced by the plaus- 
 ible manners and apparent goodness of heart of Olaus, 
 and, except where questions of equity were concerned, in 
 which case my father was rigorously impartial, the younger 
 brother was his favorite. My father went away after 
 having endeavored to arrange for the residence of both 
 brothers at the chateau. Olaus was anxious to retain at 
 least a foothold at Stollborg, but Adelstan refused to allow 
 him this privilege, with a firmness that seemed somewhat 
 harsh. 
 
 " As soon as Olaus left for Stockholm, where he pro- 
 posed to establish himself, Adelstan sent for his wife, 
 who, during these discussions about the property, had 
 been residing with a friend at Falun, together with her 
 young son, then only a few months old, and the young 
 couple went to housekeeping at Waldemora. And 
 now it was, after many suspicions and much gossiping 
 talk, that a secret was discovered — or so it was stated 
 — which the young people had hitherto concealed from 
 the public. Baroness Hilda was said to be a Catholic. 
 She had been brought up in France, and there — accord- 
 ing to the stories in circulation — in compliance with the 
 Mashes of an aunt and the circle of her friends, had im- 
 prudently devoted herself to theological studies, and 
 had been led away by the pride of knowledge to abjure 
 the religion of her fathers, which she was tauglit to 
 believe was of too recent date. It was even said that 
 false miracles had been employed, so as to extort from 
 her imprudent vows. On these points I can give you ncr 
 
244 
 
 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 information of any kind. I might have been acquainted 
 with the baroness, but no opportunity occurred of bringing 
 us together, and we never met. She is said to have 
 been very intelligent, and thoroughly educated. It is 
 quite possible that she may have changed her religion 
 from conscientious motives and intellectual conviction ; 
 and, for my part, I acquit her on this charge with a 
 great deal of philosophy. Unfortunately, the public 
 could not be brought to do this. In Sweden, there is 
 a very strong attachment to the established religion, and 
 the dissenters are so few that they are at once marked 
 out from the rest of the community. They are fre- 
 quently rebuked, and even persecuted ; not so cruelly as 
 in less enlightened times, but with sufficient harshness to 
 render their lives painful and miserable. The law even 
 admits of their being exiled. 
 
 "A terrific scandal therefore arose, when it was dis 
 covered, or was supposed to be so, that the baroness, 
 who had always been rather lax in her attendance at 
 the parish church, had secretly erected a chapel to the 
 Virgin Mary in this very old donjon ; where, unable to 
 command the services of a priest of her religion, she 
 was in the habit of offering up special and private 
 prayers of her own. This secret worship the peasants 
 regarded as little better than sorcery. However, as the 
 baroness did not attempt to make proselytes, and never 
 spoke of her religion, the matter was gradually hushed 
 up. She did a great deal of good, and her lovely char- 
 acter overcame many prejudices. 
 
 " The young couple had now been established at Wal- 
 demora for about three years, with their one son, whom 
 they idolized.- The sweet temper of the baroness had 
 modified the slight harshness of her husband's dispo- 
 sition, which arose from his uncompromising indepen- 
 dence and integrity of character. They were beloved 
 and appreciated; and both the retainers of the family 
 and the neighbors were beginning to forget all about 
 Olaus, notwithstanding the letters that he frequently 
 wrote, so as to have the pleasure of signing himself 
 'The poor exile!* Pastor Mickelson, the minister of 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 245 
 
 the parish, whose church you probably saw about haV 
 a league from here, was Olaus's most faithful adherent 
 Olaus had always made a great display of piety ; while 
 Adelstan's toleration was excessively vexatious to the 
 pastor, who was somewhat fanatical in his Lutheranism. 
 The baron, moreover, had exerted his influence to have 
 a certain ceremony of the divine service discontinued : 
 namely, the employment of a certain staff which the 
 beadle used in his official duty of awakening those who 
 fell asleep during the sermon. The question was brought 
 before the bishop, who decided upon a compromise ; 
 the beadle was to be allowed to tickle the noses of the 
 sleepers with a switch, but not to rap them over the 
 head with the stick. The pastor never forgave Baron 
 Adelstan for this assault upon his authority, and still 
 less the young baroness, who was said to have- laughed 
 at this Dalecarlian method of enforcing devotion by 
 blows with a staff. He never ceased annoying the young 
 iarl and his wife, and was always stirring up against 
 them the country people ; themselves very prone to relig- 
 ious intolerance. 
 
 "In the meanwhile, the young couple persevered in 
 trying to promote improvements on their estate. The 
 baron was severe in dealing with abuses, and drove off 
 w:ithout pity all persons of disreputable character ; he 
 also put an end to the shameful practice of inflicting 
 stripes on servants, and to the humiliating relics cf the 
 past serfage of the country people. The Dalecarlian 
 peasant is usually well disposed, but he is as far as pos- 
 sible from being a friend of progress. Many of them 
 were loath to part with the old abuses, and found it dif- 
 ficult to reconcile themselves to asserting their personal 
 dignity. 
 
 " One day — truly a most unhappy day — the baron 
 was obliged to go to Stockholm on business ; and as it 
 was the time of the autumn rains, which made travelling 
 difficult, and often impracticable, he was obliged to 
 leave his wife behind at the chateau. As he was re- 
 turning to his home in about a fortnight from this time, 
 Baron Adelstan was assassinated in the gorges of Falun. 
 
24(5 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 lie had travelled on horseback ; and, in his impatience to 
 pee his beloved Hilda, had ridden on in advance, leaving 
 his people to finish a meal which seemed to him rather 
 too protracted. He was then thirty-three years old, and 
 his widow twenty-four. 
 
 " This murder made a great excitement, and astounded 
 the whole country. In many districts the Dalecarlians 
 are fierce and passionate, and among these mountains 
 the Norwegian duel, with knives, is still in vogue, but 
 such a thing as a cowardly and secret assassination is 
 almost unexampled. The people in the vicinity did not 
 venture to accuse any one, and indeed they had no 
 grounds for doing so. Certain foreign miners disap- 
 peared suddenly from Falun, but they could not be 
 traced. Baron Adelstan had not been robbed, and there 
 was but one person in the world for whose interest it 
 was to get rid of him. Some whispered cautiously the 
 name of Baron Olaus ; but the majority rejected such a 
 suspicion with horror, and my father first of all. 
 
 " Baron Olaus appeared overwhelmed with despair at 
 his brother's death. He hastened into the country, 
 weeping and lamenting rather too ostentatiously, per- 
 haps, and testifying the most disinterested devotion to 
 his sister-in-law. Every one was very much edified by 
 his conduct, except the baroness herself, who received 
 him with extreme coldness, and, after several hours, 
 requested him to leave her alone with her grief; for 
 which she could not be consoled. The baron accord- 
 ingly left, to the great regret of the retainers of the 
 family, whom he had quite overpowered with gifts and 
 kindness. On the very evening of his departure, little 
 Harold, the son of the baroness, was taken with con- 
 vulsions, and died before morning. 
 
 " Driven quite to despair by this final blow, the un- 
 happy mother lost all prudence, and loudly accused 
 Olaus of having first caused the assassination of her 
 husband, and then of poisoning her child, so as to get 
 possession of their fortune. But her cries were unan- 
 swered — they did not even reach the outer world 
 There was no skilful physician within reach, to verifj . 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 247 
 
 the nature of the child's death, and none of her domes- 
 tics chose to run the risk of seeking for proofs against 
 Baron Olaus. Pastor Mickelson, who practised as a 
 physician in his parish, declared that Harold had died 
 as children often do, from the effects of teething, and 
 that the poor baroness was unjust and insane ; which, 
 unfortunately, was very possible. 
 
 " Baron Olaus had not gone far when word reached 
 him of his nephew's death ; upon which he at once 
 returned, apparently as full of grief as the baroness 
 herself. She, however, overwhelmed him with maledic- 
 tions, to which he only replied by sad and heart-rending 
 smiles. Every one lamented her misfortunes ; as a 
 widow, a mother, even as an insane person, she was a 
 worthy object of compassion ; but no one thought of accus- 
 ing the generous, the patient, the sensible Olaus. Per- 
 haps he was thought even more to be pitied than she, as 
 being doomed to endure suspicions so outrageous. He 
 was admired, moreover, for not allowing himself to be 
 irritated ; his very complaints were uttered in a tone full 
 of tenderness, and he begged Hilda to continue to reside 
 at the chateau, and to live with him as a sister with a 
 brother. For my part, I am quite convinced that the 
 baron is a great knave, and that he did not regret his 
 nephew's death, and yet I am far from considering him 
 an actual monster ; he has never seemed to me to be 
 a man of sufficient boldness to commit great crimes. 
 The baroness had suffered too much, and was in a state 
 of too much mental excitement to be able to judge coolly. 
 She charged him with having killed father, brother, and 
 nephew ; and all at once she formed a singular resolu- 
 tion, which I think was an act of vengeance and despair, 
 and altogether an ill-judged measure. 
 
 " She called together the magistrates and civic author- 
 ities of the province, and declared to them, in presence 
 of all her own household, that she was pregnant, and that 
 she intended to maintain all the hereditary rights of the 
 child whose natural guardian she was. She made this 
 declaration with great energy, and announced that she 
 should proceed to Stockholm, in order to have her condi* 
 
248 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 tion fully authenticated, and to ascertain her legal rights 
 until the birth of her child. 
 
 " Baron Olaus listened to this declaration with great 
 calmness, and replied, in substance, thus : 
 
 " ' It is perfectly unnecessary to expose yourself to the 
 fatigues and risks of this journey. The hope that my 
 dear brother's lineage will be revived fills me with satis- 
 faction, nor will I consent to a renewal of any controver- 
 sies. It is evident that my presence annoys and irritates 
 you, and never shall it be said that the disturbed state of 
 your mind was aggravated by any voluntary act of mine. 
 I will myself withdraw, therefore, and will not return here 
 until after the birth of your child — always, supposing 
 that you are not deceived as to your condition.* 
 
 " Olaus did, in fact, depart, saying to everybody that 
 he did not believe a word of this story of pregnancy, but 
 that he was in no haste to enter into his inheritance. 
 
 " 'For the sake of propriety, and in consideration of 
 my sister-in-law's unhappy state of excitement,' he added, 
 ' I prefer to wait, and can very well afford to do so for a 
 year, if necessary, so that the truth may be established.' 
 
 " These were the views he expressed to my father at 
 Stockholm, whither he now immediately returned, and 
 my father, I remember, blamed him for being too con- 
 fiding, and over-delicate. He thought Baroness Hilda 
 had invented this posthumous child, and intimated that it 
 would not be the first time that a widow had brought for- 
 ward a supposititious heir so as to despoil the rightful 
 inheritor. The baron, however, replied with infinite 
 mildness : 
 
 " ' What would you have me do? I am tired of the 
 hateful suspicions which this exasperated woman is trying 
 to fasten upon me, and can best refute them by proving the 
 disinterestedness of my own conduct. And furthermore, 
 to provide against being pursued by her hatred even here, 
 I think it will be best for me to travel until my affairs 
 can be settled.' 
 
 " Shortly after this Baron Olaus went to Russia, where 
 he was received by the czarina with much attention, and 
 where he began to construct that web of intrigues whose 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 249 
 
 result has been to make him one of the most tenacious 
 and dangerous of the cap-party of the Diet. It has been 
 asserted that his character developed very rapidly during 
 his stay at the Russian court, and that, at his return, he 
 had acquired such views, manners, and principles, as caused 
 him, from that time, to appear totally changed. He was 
 still always tranquil and smiling, but there was something 
 terrible in his tranquillity, something sinister in his smile. 
 He was still friendly and caressing in his manner to in- 
 feriors, but his friendliness was contemptuous, and his 
 caresses the soft touch of the covered claw. In short, he 
 was precisely what he is to-day — except so far as ad- 
 vancing years and ill-health have intensified his more 
 gloomy traits — a problematic being, who is either the 
 most consummate of villains or the victim of a most 
 strange combination of terrible circumstances. He now 
 entered upon a career of intrigue and crime, which the 
 czarina has shown great skill in turning to her own ad- 
 vantage, and of which the virtuous baron himself was 
 very soon heard to speak with complaisant admiration ; 
 and it was at this time that, he began to be called ' The 
 Snow Man,* either to signify that his heart had been frozen 
 during his residence in Russia, or that his reputation had, 
 as it were, thawed in the clearer and warmer sunshine 
 of his own country. The surname was made the more 
 appropriate by his physical characteristics, for, in the 
 course of time, a livid paleness became the habitual color 
 of his face, his hair turned prematurely gray, his carriage 
 was stiff, and his bloated hands were invariably as cold as 
 death. 
 
 " But I must not anticipate. This change in the baron, 
 which was, perhaps, only the effect of an exhausting strug- 
 gle against unjust suspicious, did not become thus striking 
 until after the death or disappearance of all the persons 
 whose existence might have been disadvantageous to him. 
 While still in Russia he caused it to be reported in Sweden 
 that he was mortally ill, and it was believed by many that 
 this was one of the first proofs of his accomplishments as 
 an intriguer. This report was said to be totally unfounded ; 
 and when it was afterwards asked what reason lie (;ould 
 
250 
 
 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 have had foi the strange whim of declaring that he wag 
 dying at St. Petersburg, his enemies alleged that it was 
 to relieve Baroness Hilda from her fear of him, and thus 
 prevent her from coming to have her child born at 
 Stockholm. Unfortunately — I am stating the views of 
 the enemies of Olaus — the baroness fell into this snare. 
 She remained at Waldemora during the summer, and, 
 when her pregnancy was so far advanced that it was im- 
 possible for her to travel (she had become quite feeble in 
 consequence of her many afflictions). Baron Olaus sud- 
 denly reappeared, as well and active as ever, in the neigh- 
 borhood of the chateau. 
 
 " There, Christian, that is all I can tell you of the story 
 as it is generally current. The sequel is a secret history. 
 What the facts are, can only be conjectured or imagined, 
 until the proofs shall be discovered, if any such exist, and 
 «hall ever come to light. 
 
 " The baroness was so frightened at learning that the 
 baron was staying at Pastor Mickelson's, that she re- 
 solved to shut herself up in the old chateau, which wasf 
 so very limited in extent — for the new gaard had not 
 then been built — that it could easily be defended by a 
 small number of faithful servants. At the head of these 
 were Adam Stenson, already grown old in the service at 
 the chateau, and a confidential female attendant, whose 
 name I have forgotten. 
 
 " Now, what took place after that? It has been said 
 that the baron succeeded in corrupting all the guardians 
 of Stollborg, even the confidential waiting-woman and 
 the incorruptible Stenson. But I would risk my right 
 hand on the faith of Stenson ; and, indeed, the continued 
 good understanding between this excellent man and the 
 baron, is to me almost conclusive proof of the innocence 
 of the latter. There are two versions of the conclusion 
 of this tragedy : one is that the baron imprisoned his 
 sister-in-law so closely, and made her so unhappy in Stoll- 
 borg, that she actually died of sorrow and chagrin ; the 
 other is, that she was already insane when she took up her 
 abode there, that she soon became liable to dreadful 
 fits of mania, and died amidst transports of impious 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 253 
 
 fury, cursiDg the evangelical religion, and proclaiming the 
 kingdom of Satan. 
 
 '^ Amid all these varying rumors there is, however, one 
 fact certain, and that is that her pregnancy was a simu- 
 lated one. Ten months after her husband's death, in the 
 last days of the year 1746, the baroness died at StoUborg, 
 where she had been living for three months in a state of 
 bodily languor and mental disorder. On her death-bed, 
 she formally acknowledged to Pastor Mickelson and the 
 baron, that she had not been pregnant, but had intended 
 to bring forward a counterfeit child, who was to have been 
 a boy, in order to retain the control of her husband's prop- 
 erty, and to gratify her hatred of Baron Olaus. There 
 is still a third version, which I really only mention with 
 reluctance. It is that the baroness actually died of star- 
 vation in this donjon, but this Stenson has always emphat- 
 ically denied. Whatever the facts are, the last moments 
 of Hilda are enveloped in mystery. None of her own 
 relatives were living, and her husband's family, frightened 
 at the reports that prevailed about her religious opinions, 
 shut their eyes to the whole . business, and did not move 
 in her behalf. They had, in fact, always liked the com- 
 pliant Olaus, who flattered their prejudices, better than 
 the high-spirited Adelstan, who was constantly offending 
 them. It is said that this story came to the ears of the 
 king, and that he had meant to investigate it, but that the 
 senate, in which Olaus had powerful friends, requested his 
 majesty to attend to his own business — that is, to attend 
 to nothing at all. 
 
 *' My father was in very ill-health when Baron Olaus 
 came to tell him his own version of his sister-in-law's 
 death. For the first time my father manifested some sur- 
 prise, and even a disposition to blame the baron. He told 
 him he had done wrong to expose himself to such grave 
 suspicions, and that if proceedings should be commenced 
 against him his defence would be difficult. The baron, 
 on this, showed him the declaration of Pastor Mickelson, 
 in his double capacity of clergyman and physician, in 
 which he testified to the feigned pregnancy of the baron- 
 ess, a,nd to her death, in consequence of an illness of 
 
252 
 
 THE SNOW MAN, 
 
 which he had made a careful diagnosis, and had treated 
 in a skilful and judicious manner, as all the physicians 
 who had since been consulted on the subject had agreed. 
 Moreover, he produced the declaration of the baroness, 
 signed by her own hand, affirming that she had made a 
 false representation of her condition. This paper my 
 father examined rigorously, and even caused it to be scru- 
 tinized by experts in handwriting, but he found it impreg- 
 nable. Still, I remember that he blamed the baron for 
 not having called in ten physicians, instead of one only, 
 for authenticating the facts for his own defence in so 
 weighty a matter. But he never suspected him of any 
 crime or imposture, and in this belief he died, a short 
 time afterwards. 
 
 " After a time, murmurs were heard against the baron, 
 whose conduct began to make him hated, but he very 
 soon made himself feared also ; there was no one whose 
 direct interest it was to avenge his supposed victims, and 
 no one came forward generous and bold enough to defy 
 him. I myself would have done this, although then 
 young at the bar, as I should be ready to do this moment 
 if my suspicions were sufficiently aroused. But I was 
 naturally influenced by my father's opinion, and he had 
 never gone further than to find fault with Olaus for not 
 being prudent enough in his own behalf. Besides, my 
 father's death took place just about that time, and you can 
 readily imagine that my sorrow, which was very keen, 
 diverted my mind from other objects. 
 
 " I inherited the management of the baron's law busi- 
 ness, and, as I have said, notwithstanding the increasing 
 dislike with which his political conduct and his personal 
 manners have inspired me, I have never from that day to 
 this been able to find the least proof of the crimes with 
 which he is charged, or even to get hold of any probable 
 or reliable evidence on the subject. -Among his tenantry 
 and retainers there has been a reaction in opinion about 
 him, as might well have been expected ; for as soon as he 
 no longer needed their sympathy, he took no further pains 
 to make himself popular. His domestics are all strangers, 
 persons whom he substituted for the old servants immedi* 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 253 
 
 ately upon taking possession of the estate, and he pays 
 them in a manner to secure from them blind obedience 
 aiid absolute discretion. Stenson is the only one of the 
 old household whom he has retained ; he employed him 
 for a long time as steward, but at last allowed him to re- 
 tire, on account of his great age. He provides him with 
 a suitable retreat, an honorable pension, and has always 
 treated him with great respect, and even with marked 
 friendliness. This has been supposed to indicate that 
 Stenson was his accomplice ; but, Christian, it is this 
 very fact that satisfies me as to the truth of the matter, 
 and which makes my own conscience easy ; for Stenson is 
 actually a holy man, a model of all the Christian virtues " 
 
 VIII. 
 
 /'CHRISTIAN had listened attentively to the lawyer's- 
 ^"-^ narrative, and, after a few moments' reflection, he 
 observed : 
 
 " There is a great deal in this history tiiat seems to me 
 extremely ambiguous. I feel sorry for that poor Baron- 
 ess Hilda ; of all the persons of this drama, she is the 
 one who interests me the most. Who knows whether 
 she did not really die of starvation in this horrible cham- 
 ber, as so many believe." 
 
 *' Ah ! that is entirely out of the question ! " cried M. 
 Goefle. " The idea really tormented me, so much has 
 been said about it ; but Stenson, who assuredly would 
 never have allowed such a thing to happen, gave me his 
 word of honor that he had served and waited upon the 
 baroness to the last, and was with her during her last 
 moments. She did really die of inanition, but it was 
 because her stomach refused to retain food. The baron 
 spared no pains to furnish her with whatever she desired." 
 
 " No doubt," replied Christian ; " if he is as adroit as 
 your story indicates, he would be unlikely to commit a 
 useless murder. All that he needed was to kill the poor 
 lady with fear or grief. But there is still another expla« 
 nation, M. Goefle ; my own version I " 
 
254 ^^^ SNOW MAN. 
 
 "What is that?" 
 
 " That she is not dead." 
 
 "That is impossible. And still, no one evfti* kne"w 
 what was done with her body." 
 
 " There — you see ! " 
 
 "The pastor refused it burial in the parish cenetery. 
 There is no Catholic cemetery here, and it would seem 
 that she must have been buried by night in Sienson's 
 orchard, or elsewhere." 
 
 "Why, did Stenson never tell you?" 
 
 " Stenson will not be questioned on this point. The 
 memory of the baroness is at once dear and awful to him. 
 He loved her sincerely, and served her zealously ; but he 
 refuses to say anything about her religious belief, what- 
 ever it may have been, and it both terrifies and dii tresses 
 him to have the subject even referred to." 
 
 " Very well ; but what does he say of the baro»i?" 
 . "Nothing." 
 
 "That perhaps is saying a great deal." 
 
 "Very true; but still, silence is not a charge of 
 murder." 
 
 "Then we need discuss it no further, if you are satis- 
 fied, M. Goefle. And after all, what does it matter to 
 us ? The past is past. Only, you said that the sight of 
 that spectre had filled your mind with strange doubts." 
 
 " That was only because it is a weakness of our profes- 
 sion to turn everything into a subject of investigation — 
 though I have always tried to guard myself against it. 
 We have enough to do to arrive at the facts of the . dif- 
 ferent cases with which we are intrusted, without volun- 
 teering to batter our brains over those that do not 
 concern us. Beyond a doubt, it is because I have been 
 idle for a few days that my mind keeps at work in spite 
 of myself, and that I have summoned up from the shades 
 of the forgotten past, the form of the Baroness Hilda — " 
 
 "Particularly," said Christian, "as the being who 
 appeared to you was not perhaps a vision, but quite 
 simply some living person, whose costume happened to 
 be like that of the old picture." 
 
 " I should be glad to think so, but people who pasa 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 255 
 
 through walls are none other than the sad inhahitantg 
 of the land of gloomy imaginations." 
 
 "Wait a moment, M. Goefle ; you saw the phantom 
 enter; but you have not told me which way it disap- 
 peared." 
 
 " I could not, since I do not know. I should say on 
 the same side where it came in." 
 
 " By the secret door, then." 
 
 "Is there one?" 
 
 "Did you not know it?" 
 
 "No, I did not, really." 
 
 "Well, then, come and see it." 
 
 Christian took the candle and lighted M. Goefle to the 
 spot ; but the secret door was shut from the outside. It 
 was so accurately fitted into the wood-work that it was 
 impossible to distinguish it from the other panels, which 
 were all ornamented with a similar raised moulding, 
 and so thick that it gave back the same dull sound as 
 the rest of the oak wainscot. Besides, it was strongly 
 fastened behind by the large bolts that Christian had 
 noticed the evening before. He had left them unfast- 
 ened, but they had now been bolted, probably by the 
 same hand that had padlocked the outer door at the foot 
 of the secret staircase. Christian mentioned all this 
 to M. Goefle, who was obliged to take his word for it, 
 as he had no means of going to certify the facts. 
 
 "Believe me, M. Goefle," said Christian, "either 
 some old servant of M. Stenson's came in here yesterday 
 to put the room in order, without knowing that it had 
 been invaded, or the Baroness Hilda is kept a prisoner 
 somewhere in the building, either under our feet or over 
 our heads ; in the walled-up rooms above, for aught that 
 I know. And by the way, how about that built-up 
 door — you did not tell me where it led to, nor why it 
 was closed. And yet that seems to me a rather inter- 
 esting circumstance." 
 
 "A very ordinary one. Stenson told me all about it. 
 The room over this was for a long time completely out 
 of repair. When the Baroness Hilda took refuge at 
 StoUborg, she had the door closed up because it let in 
 
256 
 
 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 the wind and the cold. After her death, Stenson had 
 it opened, to make repairs in the masonry of the upper 
 part of the building. But as it would have cost more 
 than it was worth to make the place habitable, and as 
 nobody would have ventured to occupy rooms that were 
 regarded as the devil's very head-quarters, on account of 
 the Catholic chapel that was supposed to have been 
 erected there, Stenson, with the baron's permission — as 
 he himself told me — built it up solid again with his own 
 hands. He did this both out of economy — there being 
 no further use for the door — and to put a stop to the 
 superstitious stories in circulation about the old building," 
 
 "Still, M. Goefle, you saw the supposed phantom 
 come out from behind the map of Sweden that covers 
 that masonry ? " 
 
 " Oh, that was only a dream ! Go and look, Chris- 
 tian. You will be more successful than I was, if you 
 can find a practicable door there. Do you think I did 
 not go and examine the place as soon as the vision dis- 
 appeared ? " 
 
 "Of course," said Christian, who had already ascended 
 the stairs, raised the map of Sweden, and was rapping 
 at different parts of the wall beneath it. " There's noth- 
 ing here but a wall as thick as the rest, if I can judge 
 by the dulness of the sound. The red paint also is 
 accurately matched, and well laid on across the joinings ; 
 but did you notice, M. Goefle, how this plaster is 
 scratched in the middle here?" 
 
 " Yes ; I thought it had been done by a rat ! " ^ 
 
 "Very strange sort of work for a rat! Do you see 
 what regular little circles he has traced on the wall ? " 
 
 "True; but what of it?" 
 
 " Every effect has a cause ; that is what I am seeking. 
 Did you not say that among the sounds you had heard 
 there was a scratching?" 
 
 " Yes ; a grinding, as if of some tool." 
 
 "Well, do you know what I think it was? Some 
 feeble or unskilful hand trying to break a hole in the 
 wall, and look through." 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 257 
 
 *It must have been with a nail, then, or something 
 still smaller, for the scratch in the plaster is certainly not 
 more than two lines deep." 
 
 "Not so much; and yet it has been cut into perse- 
 veringly in many places." 
 
 ** Stenson may have made those marks, to fix in his 
 mind something or other that he did not choose to write 
 down. Come, you must know how to decipher all sorts 
 of lapidary inscriptions." 
 
 "I kuow enough to say that it is no inscription, and 
 belongs to no known language. I hold to my idea, that 
 it was an attempt to pierce the wall. See, in each place 
 there is a small hole with bevelled edges, made with 
 a blunt instrument, and around it a circle, scratched into 
 the white of the plaster, as if a pair of scissors had been 
 used, after the fashion of a pair of dividers, but with one 
 prong — that serving as the feeble support — broken." 
 
 " You are ingenious." 
 
 " Ingenious enough for that ; do you see that little 
 pile of white dust recently fallen on the upper stair ? " 
 
 "Well?" 
 
 "Well, this person — whoever you may choose to 
 consider her, an illustrious captive, or an old servant, 
 who runs about the building at all hours — came here 
 last night ; not for the first time, but for the twentieth 
 at least — to try and look through this wall. Or, stay 
 — better yet ! She knows there is a secret there — 
 some invisible means of opening this invisible door — 
 and she is searching, and feeling, and digging, to try and 
 discover it. If we watch her to-night we shall find a 
 clue to the mystery." 
 
 "Upon my word, that is a good idea, and I accept it 
 the more willingly because it relieves my mind of a real 
 burden. Instead of being a seer of visions, I should 
 then have seen a real person. I very much prefer to 
 think it is so, although I am a little ashamed of myself 
 for having had any doubts on the subject. However, 
 Christian, I must tell you one thing frankly. I do not 
 believe there is any prisoner here, for, in that case, 
 there would have to be a prison and a jailer. Now thig 
 
 17 
 
25S THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 room was open on both sides when you arrived, since 
 you came in by one door and went out by the other, 
 and there is no one for a jailer except Stenson, who is 
 honest and devoted." 
 
 " But the baroness was certainly imprisoned here with 
 more or less severity, and your honest Stenson was em- 
 ployed here then — " 
 
 "No, it has never been made to appear that there 
 was any actual imprisonment ; and even if it were so, 
 Stenson was not master of Stollborg at that time. Now, 
 when he alone has charge of it, for I presume you do 
 not count Ulphilas as anybody — " 
 
 " Say what you like, M. Goefle, there is some mystery 
 here ; and whatever it is, whether great or trifling, I mean 
 to solve it. But, great heavens, what am I thinking about I 
 Time is passing, PuiFo does not come back, and here 
 I am amusing myself by inventing a romance when I 
 ought to be thinking about the one I am to perform ! I 
 knew, M. Goefle, that when you made me eat, you would 
 set me talking and make me forget my work ! " 
 
 " Well, well, my boy, make your preparations, then. 
 I promised to help you, you know ! " 
 
 " You can't help me, M. Goefle, I must have my assist- 
 ant. I'll go and look him up." 
 
 "Very well, go then. In the meanwhile I will go 
 and see Stenson, to whom I have not yet had leisure to 
 pay my respects, and who probably does not know I am 
 here. He never comes into these premises — " 
 
 " Ah, I beg your pardon, M. Goefle, he does. He 
 came in here only a little while ago. I saw him while 
 you had gone out. There ; I forgot to tell you of it. 
 He took me either for the devil or for a ghost, for he was 
 in an awful fright, and made his escape stumbling, and 
 absolutely out of his wits with terror." 
 
 "Pshaw! Really? Is he so much of a coward as 
 that? But I have no right to laugh at him, after imag- 
 ining that I saw the Gray Lady. He certainly cannot 
 have taken you for her ! " 
 
 " I don't know who he took me for — perhaps for the 
 ghost of Baron Adelstan," 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 259 
 
 "What? "Well, it is possible. There is his portrait, 
 opposite to his wife's ; it is much of your size and figure. 
 Still — in that costume — " 
 
 "I had not put it on. I was still in your black 
 clothes." 
 
 "Why, what are you doing now? Masking?" 
 
 " No, I only put my mask on my head in case 1 
 should have to go as far as to the new chateau to find 
 Puffb." 
 
 "Let me see the mask — it must be very unpleasant." 
 
 " Not at all ; it is on a plan of my own ; light and 
 supple, all of silk, and lifting upon the head like the visor 
 of a cap that can be put up or down at pleasure. When 
 raised and hidden by my hat, it at least helps to hide 
 my hair, which is so thick that it would attract attention. 
 When it is down — I find it very comfortable, by the 
 way, in this climate — it is in no danger of falling, and 
 I am not annoyed by being constantly obliged to tie and 
 untie a ribbon, which, moreover, is liable to break or be- 
 come entangled. See what a neat invention it is ! " 
 
 "Excellent ! But your voice — how will you keep from 
 being recognized by that ? " 
 
 " Oh, that is my talent, my specialty ! You know it 
 very well, for you have been present at one of my per- 
 formances." 
 
 " True. I would have taken my oath that there were 
 a dozen of you in the box. I must see you this evening, 
 by the way ; I shall go and sit with the audience, but I 
 don't want to know the piece beforehand. Well, good 
 luck to you, my boy ! I'm going to try and extract some 
 explanation out of old Sten about my apparition. But 
 what is that cypress-bough that you are putting on the 
 frame of the Gray Lady's picture ? " 
 
 "That is another thing that I forgot to tell you. M. 
 Stenson brought it. I don't know what he meant to do 
 with it, but he threw it down at my feet ; and whatever 
 his intention was, I am going to make a memorial offer- 
 ing of it to this poor Baroness Hilda." 
 
 "You maybe sure. Christian, that this was also the 
 intention of the good old man. It is either to-morrow or 
 
36o THE SNOW MAN, 
 
 to-day — stay a moment; I have a good memory for 
 dates — Mon Dieu! this very day is the anniversary of 
 the death of the baroness. That accounts for S ten's pre- 
 vailing on himself to come here, to offer some prayer or 
 other." 
 
 "Then," said Christian, as he detached the little slip 
 of parchment which M. Goefle had taken for a ribbon 
 from the branch around which it was rolled, " see if you 
 can explain the verses of the Bible that are written on 
 that. My time is so short that I will go without waiting 
 now." 
 
 "Stay," said M. Goefle, who had put on his spectacles 
 to read the slip of parchment ; "if you go as far as to 
 the new chateau, and find Master Nils, who has not come 
 back here to attend to my lunch, will you do me the pleas- 
 ure to take him bv one ear and bring him along with 
 you?" 
 
 Christian promised to bring him, alive or dead, but he 
 did not have to go very far to find both his own valet 
 and M. Goefle's. He went into the stable, where it oc- 
 curred to him to look before leaving the court, and there 
 he found Puffo and Nils snoring side by side, and both 
 of them equally drunk. Ulphilas, who could bear liquor 
 better, was walking backward and forward about the 
 place, very well satisfied at not being left alone at night- 
 fall, and from time to time casting a fraternal eye upon 
 the two comrades of his revel. Christian saw how things 
 had gone. Nils, who understood both Swedish and Da- 
 lecarlian, had acted as interpreter between the two drunk- 
 ards, and their growing friendship had been cemented in 
 the cellar. The poor little valet did not require much 
 of a trial to become quite oblivious of his master, even 
 supposing that he had been distressing himself particu- 
 larly about him before. Now, he was lying warm and 
 snug in the dry moss which they use for litter in that 
 country, with cheeks red and nose on fire, and, as well as 
 Puffo, had forgotten all about the cares of this vile 
 world. 
 
 "Very good," said M. Goefle to Christian, who met 
 him in the court, and brought him to see this touching 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 26 1 
 
 spectacle ; " as long as the little rascal is not ill, I am very 
 well satisfied not to have to Avait upon him." 
 
 "But what am I to do, M. Goefle?" said Christian, 
 in a great deal of perplexity ; " I can't do without this 
 beast of a Puffo. I have shaken him, but in vain. He's 
 dead for the present. I know him ; he won't be himself 
 for ten or twelve hours." 
 
 ''Pshaw, pshaw!" answered M. Goefle, who was evi- 
 dently preoccupied ; "go and select your piece, and don't 
 trouble yourself; a smart fellow like you is never at a 
 loss." 
 
 And leaving Christian to get out of his difficulties as he 
 best might, he walked on with his usual short, quick, de- 
 termined step, straight to the pavilion, in the new gaard 
 which Stenson occupied. Evidently the three verses of 
 the Bible were whirling about busily in his head. 
 
 The lower floor of this pavilion was a sort of vestibule, 
 which Ulphilas, who was afraid of being alone, preferred 
 to his own lodging, and where he slept under the pretence 
 of being at hand to wait upon his uncle, whose great age 
 needed constant attendance. Ulph had just come into this 
 vestibule, and had thrown himself down upon his bed, where 
 he was already fast asleep and snoring. M. Goefle was about 
 ascending to the upper floor, when he was arrested by the 
 sound of voices in conversation. Two persons were talk- 
 ing, with great animation, in Italian. The voice of one of 
 them was pitched in a high key, as is often the case with 
 deaf persons, who cannot themselves hear what they are 
 saying ; this was Stenson. He spoke the language with a 
 good deal of facility, but with a detestable accent, and 
 very incorrectly. The other person, who was speaking 
 pure Italian in a noticeably clear voice, and with a very 
 distinct pronunciation, seemed to make himself heard, in 
 spite of the old man's deafness. M. Goefle was very 
 much surprised to find that Stenson understood Italian, 
 and could express himself in it either well or ill, for he 
 did not know that he had ever had any occasion to use it. 
 The conversation was being carried on in Stenson's office, 
 which opened into his sleeping-room. The door at the 
 bead of the stairs was closed ; but M. Goefle, taking a 
 
262 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 few steps up, heard a fragment of the dialogue, in suh« 
 stance as follows : 
 
 "No," said Stenson, "you are mistaken. The baron 
 has no interest in making this discovery." 
 
 " Possibly, M. Steward," replied the unknoT\Ti ; " but 
 it will not cost me anything to ascertain." 
 
 "Then you propose to sell the secret to the highest 
 bidder?" 
 
 "Perhaps so. What do you offer?" 
 
 " Nothing ! I am poor, because I have always been 
 honest and disinterested. I do not even own anything in 
 this place. I have only my life. You may take that, if 
 you choose." 
 
 At these words, which seemed to imply that old Sten- 
 son was at the mercy of some bandit, M. Goefle sprang 
 up two more steps at a stride, to come to the rescue ; but 
 the Italian resumed, with perfect composure : 
 
 "What should I do with that. Monsieur Stenson? 
 Come, take courage ! you can get yourself out of the 
 difficulty by looking up some of your old crowns in your 
 old box. Old people always have one. You found the 
 means of paying Manasses, so as to secure his discretion." 
 
 " Manasses was an honest man. That salary — " 
 
 "Was not intended for him, I have no doubt ; but he 
 thought otherwise, for he always kept it for himself 
 alone." 
 
 " You are slandering him." 
 
 "Well, whether that is so or not, he is dead ; and tlit 
 other — " V 
 
 " He is dead, too. I know it." 
 
 " You know it ! How do you know it ? " 
 
 " I am not obliged to say. But I am certain that he is 
 dead, and you can tell the baron anything you please. I 
 am not afraid of you. Adieu ! I have not long to live, 
 so leave me to prepare for another world ; it is the only 
 thing that I occupy myself about. Adieu ! Leave me, 
 I tell you. I have no money." 
 
 " That is your last word, is it ? You know that withiu 
 two hours I shall have taken service with the baron ? " 
 
 "That makes no difference to me." 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 263 
 
 "You don't suppose I have come so far to be paid with 
 nothing but such talk ? " 
 
 " Do whatever you choose." 
 
 The door now opened, and M. Goefle stepped resolutely 
 up towards the person who came out. He found himself 
 confronting a man who seemed about thirty years of age, 
 and who was quite handsome, though his face w^as singu- 
 larly pale, and forbidding in expression. The lawyer's 
 eyes met the stranger's as they passed close to each other 
 on the narrow stairway ; the gaze of the former was 
 open, severe, and scrutinizing ; that of the latter, oblique 
 and distrustful. The unknown, however, bowed civilly, 
 and passed down to the foot of the stairs, while M. Goefle 
 proceeded to the top ; but having reached those points, both 
 turned for another look, and the advocate was struck with 
 something diabolical in the sallow face below him gleam- 
 ing in the light of the small lamp that hung before the 
 inner door of the vestibule. On entering Stenson's room 
 he found him seated with his head resting on his hands, as 
 motionless as a statue, so that he was obliged to touch his 
 arm to make known his presence. Even then, such was 
 the old man's abstraction, that he looked up with a stupe- 
 fied air ; it was some moments before he recognized his 
 visitor and recovered his presence of mind. Recollecting 
 himself at last, he arose with a great effort and saluted M. 
 Goefle with his usual politeness, inquiring after his health, 
 and offering his own chair, which the lawyer, however, de- 
 clined. On taking his hand, he found it warm and wet, 
 either with perspiration or with tears. M. Goefle was deeply 
 moved ; he felt a great esteem and affection for Sten, and al- 
 ways treated him with the respect that was the proper trib- 
 ute to his age and character. It was easy to see that the 
 old man had passed through a terrible crisis, and that he 
 had endured it with dignity ; but what could this secret 
 be which this stranger with the suspicious face and 
 cynical language appeared to be holding suspended, like 
 the sword of Damocles, over his head? 
 
 Stenson had by this time recovered his usual grave, 
 and rather cold and ceremonious, demeanor. He had 
 never been companionable with any one. "Whether from 
 
264 I'HE SNOW MAN. 
 
 pride or shyness, he was as reserved with people whom 
 he had known thirty years, as with those whom he met 
 for the first time ; and he was in the habit, moreover, of 
 replying in monosyllables to all questions, the most im- 
 portant as well as the most trifling ; knowing this, M. 
 Goefle had been the more surprised at his connected con- 
 versation with the unknown, which he had overheard. 
 
 *' I did not know that you had come to Waldemora, M. 
 Goefle," he said ; " is it about the lawsuit? " 
 
 "Yes, the baron's suit with his neighbor of Elfdalen, 
 who, I think, may be in the right of it ; I have advised 
 the baron to arrange the affair, -v^rithout pushing it to a 
 legal decision. Can you hear me, M. Stenson?" 
 
 " Yes, monsieur, perfectly." 
 
 As the old man, from an excess of politeness, always 
 made this reply whether he heard or not, M. Goefle, who 
 was determined to have some conversation with him, put 
 his mouth to his ear, and took pains to articulate every 
 syllable very distinctly, but he soon saw that this precau- 
 tion was less necessary now than had been the case in for- 
 mer years. Stenson's deafness, far from having increased, 
 seemed to be sensibly diminished. M. Goefle congratu 
 lated Sten on this, but he shook his head, and said : 
 
 "It is temporary only ; it changes a great deal. To- 
 day I hear everything." 
 
 " Does not this occur when you have experienced some 
 strong emotion ? " asked M. Goefle. 
 
 Stenson looked at the lawyer with surprise, and, after 
 hesitating a moment, made this answer — which was no 
 answer at all : 
 
 "I am nervous — extremely nervous." 
 
 "Might I inquire," asked M. Goefle, "who the man 
 was whom I just met going out from here ? " 
 
 " I do not know." 
 
 " Did you not ask his name? " 
 
 "He is an Italian." 
 
 " But what is his name?" 
 
 " He said it was Guido." 
 
 "Does he propose to enter the baron's service? " 
 
 "Possibly," 
 
THE SNOW MAN, 265 
 
 ** He has a bad face." 
 • " Do you think so?" 
 
 " However, it will not be the only one about tho baron." 
 
 Stenson gave no sign of assent, and his face remained 
 impassible. It was not easy to enter into conversation 
 on delicate and confidential topics with a man whose 
 ceremonious bearing seemed constantly to say, ^' Talk of 
 your own business to me, not of mine." But M. Goefle 
 was urged on by the demon of curiosity, and would not 
 allow himself to be repulsed. 
 
 " This Italian was talking to you rather rudely," he 
 said with abruptness. 
 
 " Do you think so?" replied the old man, with an air 
 of indifference. 
 
 " I heard him while I was coming up stairs." 
 
 Sten's face showed some traces of emotion, but he asked 
 no question betraying any uneasiness at what M. Goefle 
 might have heard. 
 
 " He was threatening you," added the latter. 
 
 " With what ?" asked Stenson, shrugging his shoulders ; 
 " I am so old — " 
 
 " He threatened to reveal something to the baron, 
 which it is greatly to your interest to keep concealed." 
 
 Stenson remained perfectly quiet, as if he had not 
 heard. M. Goefle persisted : 
 
 " Who is this Manasses who is dead? " 
 
 The same silence upon Stenson's part, while his im- 
 penetrable eyes, fixed on M. Goefle, seemed to say, " If 
 you know, why do you ask ? " 
 
 " And the other ^^ the advocate went on, " what other 
 was he speaking of? " 
 
 " Were you listening, M. Goefle? " questioned the old 
 man in his turn, with a tone of extreme deference, but in 
 which there was a distinct accent of disapproval. 
 
 The advocate felt some embarrassment, but his con- 
 sciousness of his good intentions reassured him. 
 
 " Are you surprised, M. Stenson," he asked, after a 
 pause, " that when I suddenly heard an unknown voice 
 speaking to you in a threatening tone, I should have ap- 
 proached to help you, if necessary ? " 
 
266 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 Stenson held out to M. Goefle his aged, wrinkled hand, 
 which had become cold once more. 
 
 His lips moved for some moments without uttering a 
 Bound — a natural action with a person unaccustomed to 
 talking, and struggling to overcome his habitual reserve ; 
 but he hesitated so long, that M. Goefle, to encourage 
 him, said : 
 
 " My dear M. Stenson, there is a secret oppressing you, 
 and you are in serious danger in consequence." 
 
 Stenson sighed, and replied laconically : 
 
 " I am an honest man, M. Goefle ! " 
 
 " And yet," answered the lawyer, with emphasis, "your 
 conscience — a pious and sensitive one — is reproaching 
 you for something ! " 
 
 " Something? " repeated Stenson, with an air mild and 
 yet firm, as much as to say, "Let me hear what you can 
 allege against me ! " 
 
 " You have, at least, to fear the vengeance of the 
 baron ? " 
 
 " No," answered Stenson, with sudden decision of tone, 
 " I know what the doctor told me." 
 
 " Has the doctor given him up? Is his complaint so 
 much advanced as that? I saw him this morning. He 
 looked to me as if he might last a good while." 
 
 " For months," replied Stenson, " and I may last for 
 years, I consulted the doctor yesterday ; I do so every 
 year." 
 
 " You are waiting for his death, then, to reveal some- 
 thing of importance. But you are aware that he is said 
 to be capable of having people whom he is afraid of as- 
 sassinated. What do you think on that subject? " 
 
 Stenson answered by a look of surprise, which M. 
 Goefle thought unquestionably assumed, for it was suc- 
 ceeded immediately by an expression of repressed anx- 
 iety. Stenson knew how to restrain himself, but not how 
 to dissimulate. 
 
 " Stenson," said the lawyer, with the energy of genuine 
 Bincerity, as he took both the old man's hands in his, " I 
 tell you again, some oppressive secret is weighing upoQ 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 267 
 
 you. Open your heart to me as a friend. You may rely 
 upon me, if there is an injustice to be made good." 
 
 Stenson hesitated for some moments ; then, taking a 
 key from his pocket, he opened, in an agitated manner, 
 a drawer of his desk, and, showing M. Goefle a small 
 sealed box, he said : 
 
 " Your word of honor?" 
 
 "I give it you! " 
 
 "And upon the holy Bible? *' 
 
 " Upon the holy Bible — now then ? — " 
 
 " Well, then, if I die before /i^m, open, read, and act. 
 But only after I am dead." 
 
 M. Goefle glanced at the box, and saw his own name 
 and address upon it. 
 
 " You had already chosen me for this trust," he said ; 
 " I thank you for it, my friend, but, if your life is threat- 
 ened, why not tell me the whole at once? There, dear 
 M. Stenson, I am beginning to open my eyes ! The 
 baron — " 
 
 Stenson made a sign that he would not answer. 
 
 " He starved his sister-in-law to death ! " 
 
 " No," cried Stenson, with the emphasis of truth, " no, 
 ao ! That was not the case ! " 
 
 " But that declaration respecting her pregnancy — she 
 was forced to sign it." 
 
 " She signed voluntarily, of her own free-will. I was 
 present, and signed it also myself." 
 
 " But what became of her body? Was it thrown to 
 the dogs?" 
 
 "Oh, my God! Was I not there? It was buried 
 with religious services." 
 
 "By you?" 
 
 " By my own hands. But you are inquisitive ! Give 
 me he box ! " 
 
 " Do you doubt my oath? " 
 
 " No," replied the old man ; " keep it — and ask me 
 no more questions." 
 
 He once more pressed M. Goefle's hands, took a seat 
 near the fire, and, either in reality or by design, relapsed 
 into entire deafness. M. Goefle, to divert his mind, and 
 
268 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 hoping, after a little, to draw him again into a confidential 
 mood, endeavored to talk with him about the lawsuit on 
 which the baron had consulted him in the morning. But 
 this time he was obliged to write what he wanted to say, 
 when the old man answered with his usual clearness. 
 His opinion was that the mineral property of the mountain- 
 track in litigation belonged to the Count de Rosenstein, 
 a neighbor of the baron. He stated good grounds for 
 this belief, and, after searching among his papers, which 
 were all arranged and marked with the greatest care, he 
 laid out the actual proofs. M. Goefle observed that this 
 was his own opinion, and that he should be forced to have 
 a disagreement with the baron, if the latter should persist in 
 seeking to employ him in a bad cause. He added some re- 
 flections as to the presumed wicked character of his client, 
 but Stenson showed no signs of understanding these allu- 
 sions ; and as it is impossible to take a person by surprise 
 in a written conversation, M. Goefle had to give up the 
 idea of questioning him further. 
 
 On his way back" to the bear-room, the lawyer consid- 
 ered whether he ought to communicate to Christian the 
 understanding he had entered into with Stenson, and con- 
 cluded that he was, on the Avhole, bound to silence. He 
 was, besides, not just now in a confidential humor. Agi- 
 tated by a thousand strange thoughts and contradictory 
 suppositions, his brain was as actively at work as if he 
 had just been intrusted with a difficult suit full of impor- 
 tant questions. The exact contrary Avas the case,, for 
 Stenson had prohibited him from even feeling curiosity. 
 This interdict, however, was altogether null ; M. Goefle 
 could not at all impose silence upon the tumult of his 
 hypotheses. However, Christian's attitude made it easy 
 for him to be reserved. Far from questioning him, the 
 young man had forgotten all about their last conversation, 
 and was absorbed by his comedy. He was, moreover, 
 very much discouraged ; and when the lawyer asked if he 
 had arranged to do without his assistant, he answered 
 that he had been trying in vain to do so for the last hour. 
 He could, it is true, dispense with his services after a 
 fashion ; but at the risk of many accidents and undesir- 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 269 
 
 able omissions in the presentation of the piece. On the 
 whole, he would have to make such heavy drafts on his 
 brain and strength, and undergo such great fatigue, that 
 he felt like giving up the whole thing. 
 
 "It is true," he said to M. Goefle, who was trying to 
 encourage him. "I give you my word that, to use a 
 juggler's phrase, the game is not worth the candle. In 
 plain words, I should tire myself to death, without ben- 
 efit to my reputation, and I should swindle the baron out 
 of his money. Do you know what I intend to do, M. 
 Goefle ? Renouncing the idea of shining in this neigh- 
 borhood, I shall bundle up all this luggage, and take up 
 my line of march for some town where I can look up an- 
 other assistant, competent to help me in representing, and 
 pious enough to keep the oath which I shall exact from 
 him, to drink nothing but water, even though all the 
 mountains of Sweden should run down with wine ! " 
 
 "The devil ! the devil !" exclaimed M. Goefle, greatly 
 discomposed at the idea of losing his fellow-lodger ; " if I 
 thought I could make these small gentlemen perform a 
 little — but, pshaw ! I never could learn it ! " 
 
 "Nothing easier. Try. The forefinger in the head, 
 the thumb in one arm, the middle finger in the other — 
 that's it ! that's it, exactly. Come, make a bow. Lift 
 the hands towards heaven ! " 
 
 " That's easy enough ! But to make the gestures 
 match the words, and then to find something to say ! 
 I can only improvise monologue." 
 
 " Well, that's a great deal. Come, now, argue a case. 
 Lift that arm, and forget that you are M. Goefle ; keep 
 your eye on the figure that you are directing. As you 
 speak, the gestures that you would naturally make with 
 your arms, and the whole carriage of your person, will be 
 reproduced of themselves at your fingers' ends. You only 
 need to be convinced that the hurattino is a real person, 
 and to transfer your individuality from yourself to him." 
 
 " Diantre 1 That is very easy for you to say ; but 
 without any practice — well, let's try it. Suppose I am 
 arguing, -— what shall I argue, by the way ? " 
 
270 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 " Defend the baron from the charge of having caused 
 the assassination of his brother ! " 
 
 ' ' Defend ! I would rather argue against than for him." 
 
 '' If you are against him, you will be pathetic ; if for 
 him, you may perhaps be comic." 
 
 *' So be it," said M. Goefle, extending the hand on 
 which he held the marionette, and making it gesticulate. 
 " Here goes ; attend : 
 
 " What accusation can you bring against my client, you 
 who reproach him for an action so simple and natural as 
 merely the suppression of a troublesome member of his 
 family ? Why should he be blamed for that? When has 
 it ever been expected that a man fond of money and dis- 
 play should pay regard to the vulgar consideration which 
 vou call the riofht to live ? The ri^rht to live ! We all 
 claim it equally, and if we have the right to live, have Ave 
 not also the right to live as we please ? But if we cannot 
 live without a considerable fortune, without the privileges 
 of an elevated station ; if we find that we should die of 
 shame and mortification, fairly burst with ennui, to use a 
 colloquial phrase, unless able to command luxury, castles, 
 credit, and power ; if all this is so, why, then, we pos- 
 sess the right, we demand the right, we seize the right, 
 of removing from our path all obstacles whatever whicli 
 may impede the most expansive, extensive, and radiant 
 development of our whole moral and physical being. In 
 our justification we may — " 
 
 " Higher ! " interrupted Christian, who was laughing 
 at the satirical argument of the lawyer. 
 
 "We may cite," continued M. Goefle, elevating the 
 pitch of his voice, " the traditions of ancient times, from 
 Cain down to the great King Birger-Iarl, who starved his 
 two brothers to death in the chateau of Nikoeping. Yes, 
 gentlemen, we point you to the ancient customs of the 
 north, and, moreover, to the glorious example of the 
 court of Russia of late years. Who of you will venture 
 to weigh petty moralities against the great consideration 
 of a reason of state? I say a reason of state, gentlemen. 
 Do you know what that is ? " 
 
 " Higher ! " repeated Christian ; " higher, M. Goefle ] " 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 27 1 
 
 ** A leason of state," squealed M. Goefle, in a falsetto 
 — for the range of his voice did not extend high at all — 
 "a reason of state is, in my judgment — " 
 
 " Higher ! " 
 
 "Goto the devil! I shall burst my pharynx! I've 
 had enough, thank you, if I've got to scream in tnat 
 Y.ay." 
 
 '• Why, no, my dear sir ! I did not tell you to speak 
 higher. I've been lifting up my arm to you this hour ; 
 you do not observe that if you hold the marionette down 
 there at the level of your breast no one can see it, and 
 that you will be playing exclusively for your own benefit. 
 See here : your hand must be higher than your head. 
 Come, now, let's try a dialogue. I am the counsel on the 
 other side, and I interrupt you in an excess of indignation, 
 which I cannot restrain : ' I absolutely cannot endure this 
 any longer ; and since the judges think proper to sit sleep- 
 ing on the bench before such an abuse of the faculty of 
 human speech, notwithstanding the specious eloquence of 
 my illustrious and powerful adversary, I — ' Interrupt 
 me, M. Goefle ; you must always interrupt." 
 
 "'The counsel for the prosecution,'" said M. Goefle, 
 "'is not arguing at present.' I am playing the judge, now." 
 
 " Very good ; but use another voice." 
 
 "I don't know how." 
 
 " Yes, indeed ; you have one hand free. Pinch your 
 nose." 
 
 " Good ! " said M. Goefle, with a strong twang. 'The 
 counsel for the prosecution wall speak in his own turn.' " 
 
 " Bravo ! ' I insist on speaking this moment ! I de- 
 mand the right of confounding the odious sophistry of the 
 defence ! — ' " 
 
 " ' Odious sophistry ! ' " 
 
 " Capital ! oh, capital ! In an angry tone ! Now I 
 reply : ' Orator without principle ! I hand you over to 
 the ban of Public Opinion ! ' Give me a slap, M. 
 Goefle." 
 
 " What ! — give you a slap ? " 
 
 "Certainly, my lawyer, I mean ; fair in the face, axid 
 let it be a loud one. The public always laughs at 
 
2^2 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 that sound. Hold tight with your fingers ; I'm going to 
 pull your cap off. Now we collar each other. Bravo ! 
 Pull the marionette off my fingers with yours, and 
 throw it over into the audience. The children run after 
 it, pick it up, examine it with admiration, and throw it 
 back into the theatre. Take care and have it fall on 
 its head ; the public will almost burst with laughter. 
 God only knows what for, but they always do it. Abuse 
 and blows are a delighful spectacle to the crowd ; and 
 under cover of the laughter, your personage marches off 
 the stage with a triumphant air." 
 
 "And we have time to take breath ! In good season, 
 too ; I have talked myself hoarse." 
 
 "Take breath? Oh, not at all! The operators can 
 never stop to take breath. We must hurry and take the 
 actors for the next scene ; and for fear the audience 
 will lose its interest before an empty stage, we must keep 
 up the dialogue, as if- the actors who just went off were 
 still quarrelling behind the scenes, or as if those on the 
 point of coming on were chattering about what had just 
 happened." 
 
 " Plague on it ! Why it's a business that would wear 
 out a horse ! " 
 
 " I don't deny it ; still you get excited and warmed 
 up, and keep on growing more and more spirited. Well, 
 let us try another scene, M. Goefle. Let us bring 
 out — " 
 
 "But I have had quite enough of it, I believe. Do 
 you suppose I want to help you conduct the exhibition?" 
 
 "I thought you meant that you would help me this 
 evening ! " 
 
 "I? What! I go on the stage.?" 
 
 " Who will know that it is you } The theatre will be 
 set up immediately before the door of a room where no one 
 is allowed to enter. There is a curtain between you and 
 the audience ; and, if necessary, you can mask yourself, 
 if there is any risk of being met in the corridors as you 
 go in or out." 
 
 "True enough, nobody sees you, nobody knows that 
 you are there ; but my voice, my pronunciation ? Be* 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 273 
 
 fore I should have uttered a dozen words every one 
 would say: 'Good! that's M. Goefle ! * A fine efFect 
 that would have, from a man of my age, practising a 
 dignified profession ! It's impossible ; don't think of it." 
 
 "It's a great pity — you would succeed capitally ! " 
 
 "Do you think so?" 
 
 "Most assuredly. You would have secured me a 
 great success." 
 
 "But that devil of a voice of mine, that everybody 
 knows ! " 
 
 " There are a thousand ways of changing that. I can 
 show you three or four in a quarter of an hour, and that 
 is more than you would need for this evening." 
 
 "Well, what are they? If I were only sure that 
 nobody would suspect me of such a piece of nonsense ! 
 Ah, there's an instrument that I can see the use of — a 
 nose -pinch I And this one is to be used in the mouth, 
 either on the tongue or under it." '• 
 
 "Oh no!" said Christian; "those are rude con- 
 trivances that Pufib uses. You are too intelligent to 
 need them. Now listen, and imitate me." 
 
 "Really," said M. Goefie, after some experiments that 
 were promptly successful, " it is not so bad ! I used to 
 act in private theatricals in my younger days, and I did 
 as well as other people. I understand very well how to 
 imitate a toothless old man, a drawling coxcomb, and a 
 pedant that licks his lips at every word. Now, if you 
 will not make me talk too much and fatigue my throat, 
 I will go through three or four scenes with you. But we 
 must have a rehearsal. What is the piece ? Where is 
 it r What's the name?" 
 
 "Wait a minute, M. Goefie. I have a number of 
 manuscripts that you would be ready with after read- 
 ing them over once ; especially since the one repre- 
 sented, summed up in few words, and written in large 
 letters, is always hung up before us inside of the front 
 of the theatre. But what I should like in playing with 
 you is, to arrange a new piece, which would entertain 
 you more, and would give scope to your faculty for im- 
 18 
 
274 
 
 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 provising. Now, if you will take my opinion, we will 
 go right to work, and get one up between us." 
 
 ^That's an excellent idea ! " said M. Goefle. "Well, 
 quick, then ! let's sit down here ; we can make room 
 enough on this table. What shall the subject be?" 
 
 "Whatever you like." 
 
 "Well, then, your own history. Christian ; or at least 
 some parts of it, just as you told it to me." 
 
 " No, M. Goefle, my history is not an amusing one, 
 and it would not inspire me with any brilliant fancies. 
 The only romantic part of it is just that which I am myself 
 ignorant about, and I have often taken this as the basis 
 of my Stentarello's adventures. Stentarello, you know, 
 is a personage who adapts himself to all characters and all 
 situations. Well, one of my fancies is to attribute to 
 him a mysterious birth, such as mine was ; and I often 
 begin my pieces by making him narrate the precise cir- 
 cumstances of that story, whether true or false, which 
 the little Jew told Sophia Goifredi. I have sometimes 
 amused myself by the idea that I should some day hear 
 an exclamation or a cry in the audience that would be 
 the means of directing me to my mother. But that is a 
 mere fancy. As for Stentarello, he is a comic individ- 
 ual, sometimes young and sometimes old, according as 
 I nail a blond or a white wig on his head. Of course, 
 in order to be laughed at, he must be ridiculous. In 
 such a plot as I refer to, and which I propose that we 
 should adopt, he goes about in search of his parents, 
 taking it for granted that he is nothing less than the 
 natural son of a king. Then the action of the piece 
 takes him through a series of absurd adventures, in the 
 course of which he makes various ridiculous blunders, 
 until he ends by discovering that he is the son of a 
 mere country clown ; but by that time he has had so 
 many mortifications, that he thinks himself fortunate to 
 find food and shelter with his father." 
 
 "Very good," said M. Goefle, "we will make him an 
 epicure, and the son of a cook or confectioner." 
 
 " Exactly the thing. That's the idea. Well, shall we 
 begin ? " 
 
THE SNOW MAN, 275 
 
 " Do you write, if you can do it legibly. My writing 
 can hardly be read. My hand can't keep up with the 
 flow of my ideas, and I scratch away like a cat. The 
 deuce — what a good hand ! But what are you doing ? " 
 
 "Putting down the dramatis personoe" 
 
 "Yes, I see that; but you have written in the first 
 act : Stentarello in swaddling clothes f " 
 
 " That is my idea. I am tired of making my poor 
 Stentarello repeat the story of being let down by a cord 
 out of a window into a boat. If you agree, I will paint 
 that scene instead." 
 
 "Paint it? But how the devil will you do it?" 
 
 " I have an old castle amongst my scenery here." 
 
 "What good will that do?" 
 
 "I will transform it into StoUborg. We will give it 
 another name, but I will use the same romantic view 
 that struck me so forcibly on the lake at sunset, and of 
 which I made a sketch." 
 
 "You are going to paint?" 
 
 "Yes ; while you write, whether well or ill, it makes 
 no difference ; I have deciphered such quantities of hi- 
 eroglyphics with my poor Goffredi ! Remember, we have 
 very little time. I have whatever is necessary to change 
 my scenes for the requirements of any special occasion. 
 A little dissolved glue in a tin box, and a few bags of 
 powdered paint of different colors, are enough. The can- 
 vas is no larger than the back of my theatre, and the 
 colors dry in five minute*. That will be about as much 
 time as I shall need to introduce a window into my 
 square tower. See, Monsieur Goefle, in the first place 
 I render it practicable by making a slit in the canvas 
 with my shears, and then I Avarm my glue on the stove. 
 With this charcoal I sketch that row of great boulders. 
 Some of them hang over — I studied them carefully, for 
 it is a wonderful group. I give the tone of ice to this 
 foreground — oh no, it must be water, since we are to 
 have a boat — " 
 
 " Where will you get it? " 
 
 " In the property-box there. Don't you suppose I have 
 a boat? There are ships, too, and carriages, and carts, 
 
276 
 
 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 and all kinds of animals. I could not get along at all 
 without that collection of profiles that are necessary in all 
 my pieces, and which take up very little room. Another 
 idea, M. Goefle : I will put the boat in that vault under 
 the boulders." 
 ''What for?" 
 
 " Why, because it will give us a splendid effect ! We are 
 to have a verv mysterious birth for our infant, I suppose ? " 
 " Of course." 
 "Environed with perils?" 
 " Necessarily." 
 "A natural child?" 
 " As you please about that," 
 
 "A jealous husband? No, no adulterers! If this 
 does really happen to be my own story, I should prefer 
 not to be the fruit of an unlawful love. My mother — 
 poor woman, I have perhaps nothing with which to re- 
 proach her — is saving me from the vengeance of some 
 brother or savage uncle, capable of killing me in order to 
 hide a discreditable or clandestine marriage." 
 
 " Very good ; I'll be the Spanish nobleman — some 
 implacable uncle who is trying to kill the child ! The in- 
 nocent creature is concealed in the bottom of the lake, at 
 the risk of a little drowning, after having been thrown out 
 of the window, to save it from all danger." 
 
 " Oh, no, no, M. Goefle ! you are altogether too fan- 
 tastic ! That is not my style at all. I always maintain 
 a certain verisimilitude, even in romancing, for you . can 
 neither make people laugh nor cry with impossible situa- 
 tions. No, no, we must have some regular assassins, as 
 ugly and grotesque as they can be made. While they are 
 standing guard on top of the boulders, watching the win- 
 dow, the boat, which fortunately has already stealthily 
 received its precious charge — that's the regular style — 
 glides noiselessly along beneath the rocks, under the very 
 feet of the unsuspecting watch. The audience is affected, 
 and all the more because it is laughing at the same time 
 at the faces of the assassins — people like extremely to 
 laugh and cry at the same time — and the curtain falls 
 on the first act, amid thunders of applause ! " 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 277 
 
 "Excellent, excellent!" said M. Goefle ; "but, while 
 you are moving the boat, will there be no person at the 
 window?" 
 
 " Certainly. Have I not two hands? With the left I 
 propel the skiff over the limpid waves, and with the right 
 I hold up at the window the faithful waiting-woman, who 
 has lowered down the basket, and who lifts towards heaven 
 her pretty little wooden arms in an attitude of supplication, 
 and prays in a sweet voice, ' Divine Providence ! watch 
 over the child of mystery ! ' " 
 
 " Yes, but the mother ; is she not to be seen?" 
 
 " No, that would not be the correct thing." 
 
 "And the father?" 
 
 " The father is in Palestine. That is the place where 
 we always send the people we don't know what to do 
 with." 
 
 "That will do very well ; but if there are to be assas- 
 sins, a haughty Castilian uncle, and a faithful waiting- 
 woman, Stentarello must belong to a noble family." 
 
 "The devil ! yes ; how shall we arrange that?" 
 
 " It is perfectly easy. The child whom we lower from 
 the window is the young Alonzo, son of the duchess. 
 Stentarello is the son of his grace's pastry-cook." 
 
 " But what is the pastry-cook to do?" 
 
 " I don't know. It's your business to find that out. If 
 you keep on painting you won't help me at all." 
 
 " But only see, M. Goefle, how beautifully my sky is 
 coming out ! " 
 
 "Too much so ; it is too prominent." 
 
 " You are right, so it is ! What an eye you have, M. 
 Goefle ! I must bring up the color of my donjon, then, 
 a little." 
 
 " That will do very well. That rosy sky is just about 
 right now, and gives a very good idea of the brilliant 
 cloud effects that we have here. But that is not a Spanish 
 sky, is it?" 
 
 " Well, why not lay the scene in Sweden? " 
 
 " Oh dear me, no ! Don't you see that as we have ar- 
 ranged the play, particularly with that view of Stollborg 
 that you have been painting, a certain comparison might 
 
278 
 
 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 be suggested — if you should give your imagination free 
 play?" 
 
 '' With the story of the Baroness de Waldemora? " 
 
 " Might there not? In reality there would be no sort 
 of similarity, since she had no child. But there are per- 
 sons who might suppose that we were representing the 
 pretended captivity of the Gray Lady. No, Christian, 
 lay the scene in Spain ; it will do much better." 
 
 " Spain be it, then ! Well, the pastry-cook has a son, 
 just born, who is to grow up into the illustrious Stenta- 
 rello. Now, the cook of the chateau, who has sent to 
 this pastry-cook by order of the baron — " 
 
 "The baron?" 
 
 " That is your fault, you put the baron into my head 
 by talking of your possible comparisons. Our traitor 
 must be called Don Diego, or Don Sancho." 
 
 " With all my heart. Now, the baron's cook — 
 There ! I am as bad as you ! — Don Sancho's, I mean — 
 what did he send to the pastry-cook ? " 
 
 " A magnificent pie in a basket, to be baked." 
 
 " I see, I see ! He had placed this basket in the boat. 
 The boatman, employed to carry off and preserve the 
 Child of Mystery, does not notice it, and thus carries 
 away two baskets ; then he makes a mistake, and puts the 
 pie out to nurse, and gives the pastry-cook the baby to 
 bake." 
 
 " So the good pastry-cook brings up both the children, 
 or, rather, he mistakes and brings up the child of the 
 duchess. Thus there arise endless entanglements, and 
 we can go forward with confidence to our denouement. 
 Courage, M. Goefle ! the painting is done, and now for the 
 pen again. Let us arrange the scenes. Scene First: 
 The cook, solus." 
 
 "Wait, Christian! Why not have the child quietly 
 carried down by a staircase ? " 
 
 "True, particularly as StoUborg has a secret staircase, 
 but it was watched by the assassins." 
 
 " Were they incorruptible?" 
 
 " No, but the duchess is very short of money, while the 
 traitor has his pockets full." 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 279 
 
 " Why don't he go himself to the tower where his vic- 
 tim is imprisoned, and throw the child out of the window, 
 without so much ceremony ? " 
 
 " I really don't know. We must make it out that the 
 child is not yet born, and that they are waiting for the 
 fatal moment." 
 
 " That will do very well ! The child, then, must be 
 born at the very moment that Don Sancho enters the 
 donjon and ascends the stairs. Paquito, the waiting- 
 woman, lowers down the infant that has just seen the 
 light. But tell me, is the child to be visible ? " 
 
 " Certainly. I am going to paint it in its cradle. 
 There's a string for the rope. All those things are cut 
 out in profile ; they are to be seen from a distance." 
 
 *' So the traitor, to his great disappointment, finds the 
 bird flown. What does he do ? Shall we make him fall 
 out of the window and break his skull on the rocks ? " 
 
 " Oh no ! Keep that for the catastrophe of the piece ; 
 it's a capital one." 
 
 "Very well then, in his rage he kills his unhappy niece. 
 A cry is heard, and the murderer appears at the window, 
 exclaiming • * My honor is avenged ! ' — " 
 
 "His honor! I would rather have him say: 'My 
 fortune is made ! ' " 
 
 "Why?" 
 
 "Because he is the heir of the duchess. We must 
 not make him a scoundrel by halves, since we are to 
 fracture his skull for him at the end." 
 
 "That is certainly very logical, but — " 
 
 "But what?" 
 
 " Why, that would be the exact history of Baron 
 Olaus, as his enemies relate it. A female relative im- 
 prisoned, who disappears — " 
 
 "What difference does it make, as long as you are 
 sure that the story is not true ? " 
 
 "I am as sure as it is possible to be ; and yet — do 
 you know, with your mysterious voice, your idea of a 
 prisoner in the vaults down below, your explanation of 
 my last night's vision, and your verses from the Bible, 
 
z8o THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 you have made me a perfect dreamer ; my mind is filled 
 with all sorts of strange notions." 
 
 ''But as there is every reason to believe that these 
 notions are nothing more than the work of our own imag- 
 inations, we shall run no risk of offending any one. 
 And besides, M. Goefle, even if, under my mask and 
 with my assumed name of Christian Waldo, I should 
 awaken unpleasant memories in the baron's mind, please 
 to tell me what difference that will make to me ? or to 
 you either, since you will be perfectly incognito as well 
 as myself — " 
 
 " But it will be easy for the baron to have me watched 
 and discovered ; — he has only to give orders to some of 
 those rascally servants of his — " 
 
 " Oh, if you are to be exposed to any real danger, let 
 us give it up at once ; but in that case we must choose 
 another subject immediately." 
 
 M. Goefle was silent, and absorbed in thought for some 
 moments, greatly to the annoyance of the impatient 
 Christian, who saw with anxiety the steady advance of 
 the hands of the clock. At last, the advocate, striking 
 his forehead, and jumping up with a certain nervous ex- 
 citement of manner, cried out, as he began to pace rapidly 
 up and down the room : 
 
 "Well, well! Who can say that I am not shrinking 
 from the pursuit of the real truth ? Shall I be a mere 
 cowardly courtier of this problematical being? Is it not 
 my duty to satisfy myself once for all? Shall I let it be 
 said that an adventurer — let me rather say a good and 
 handsome child of fortune, who most surely deserves a 
 better fate — that he, in his heedless career, is courageous 
 enough to defy a powerful enemy, v/hile I, dedicated by 
 my very office to the service of the truth, the appointed 
 defender of human and divine justice, allow myself to be 
 lulled to sleep by a selfish indolence, not far removed 
 from cowardice ? Christian," added M. Goefle, resuming 
 his seat, but still with much excitement of manner, "go 
 on to the second act ! Let us make a terrible thing of it ! 
 Let your marionettes cover themselves with glory ! They 
 eball be real persons, living beings, instruments of des- 
 
THE SNOW MAN, 281 
 
 tiuy, like the players in the tragedy of Hamlet, who ter- 
 rify and make pale the triumphant criminal, who is 
 finally unmasked. Conae, to work ! Suppose — suppose 
 all the crimes which are charged against the baron ; that 
 he poisoned his father, assassinated his brother, and 
 starved his sister-in-law to death." 
 
 " Precisely ; in this room, too ! " said Christian, who 
 was thinking of the scenery for his third act. "What 
 a capital scene it will make ! We must make the child 
 — the son of the duchess, of course — come back at the 
 end of twenty-five years, to search out the truth and punish 
 the murderer ! We can make the marionettes break 
 down the mysterious wall, and discover there — behind 
 that brick- work — I could very quickly get up the scenery 
 for that, I should have time enough — " 
 
 " Discover vi^hat ? " asked M. Goefle. 
 
 "I don't know," replied Christian, suddenly becom- 
 ing thoughtful, and even gloomy. " The ideas that occur 
 to me are so terrible, that I must give up that part of 
 the plot ; it takes away all my inspiration ; and, instead 
 of continuing the piece, I should have to go and break 
 down that wall myself, out of a mere rage of curiosity — " 
 
 " Come, come, friend Christian, don't go crazy ! It is 
 quite enough if I am so ; this whole thing is nothing 
 but imagination, and I cannot conscientiously attach 
 weight to suspicions which perhaps originate only in 
 an overworked stomach, or a brain restless from inac- 
 tion. Come, finish the piece, and let it be inoffensive if 
 it is to be amusing. For my part, I must do a little 
 work for myself ; I have a portfolio of papers to exam- 
 ine that Stenson gave me, and I must prepare a definite 
 opinion upon them, for I promised the baron this morn- 
 ing to have it ready, and he may send for it at any. 
 moment." 
 
 Christian accordingly set to work at his drama, and 
 M. Goefle at his parcel of papers, each at the end of a long 
 table, to the middle of which they had pushed the break- 
 fast dishes. Ulphilas now entered, and silently began to 
 rearrange the table. He was in his usual state of half- 
 couscious drunkenness, and shortly he entered upon a 
 
282 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 long discussion with M. Goefle, which Christian neither 
 understood nor heard, as to the merits of a certain soup 
 of milk, beer and syrup, a national dish, which M. 
 Goefle wanted for supper, and which Ulphilas claimed to 
 prepare as skilfully as any man in Sweden. By the 
 promise of this delicacy he disarmed the anger of the 
 lawyer, who had scolded him for getting his little valet 
 tipsy. Ulphilas, besides, swore he did not know what 
 M. Goefle meant, and perhaps in good faith, considering 
 the steady coolness with which he himself carried all 
 kinds of liquors. 
 
 By six o'clock, Christian had completed his task, 
 while M. Goefle, who seemed restless and agitated, was 
 still at work. As Christian happened to look towards 
 him, he noticed the fixed and abstracted expression of 
 his eyes. Supposing that this might be the lawyer's 
 usual appearance while at his work, he abstained for a 
 time from interrupting him, but finally thought it neces- 
 sary to ask, which he did a little uneasily, if he would 
 not read the outline of the piece. 
 
 "Yes, certainly," said M. Goefle ; "but why not read 
 it over to me ? " 
 
 "Impossible, M. Goefle. I must select my actors, 
 arrange their costumes in some sort of harmony, collect 
 my scenes, load my ass, and hurry over to the new cha- 
 teau, so as to take possession of the quarters intended 
 for us, set up the theatre, arrange the lights, etc. I have 
 not a moment to lose ; we must begin at eight o'clock.*' 
 
 "Eight o'clock? The devil! What a detestable 
 hour ! They don't have supper at the chateau until ten 
 o'clock, and pray when shall we have our supper?" 
 
 " Oh, to be sure ! The fifth meal of the day ! " cried 
 Christian, in despair, but rapidly continuing his prepa- 
 rations. "For heaven's sake, M. Goefle, have your 
 supper now, and be ready an hour from this time ! You 
 can read over the piece while you are eating." 
 
 " Oh, of course ! A fine regimen you propose ! To 
 eat without an appetite, and to read in the meanwhile, 
 so as to make it impossible for me to digest my food." 
 
 " Very well ; then let us think no more about it ! I'll 
 
THE SNOW MAN, 283 
 
 try to get along by myself. I'll do my best ! Pshaw i 
 Some good angel or other will come to my rescue." 
 
 " No, no ! " cried M; Goefle ; " by no means ! I'll 
 be the good angel. I promised you ; and I'm a man of 
 my word." 
 
 "No, M. Goefle ; I thank you, however, all the same. 
 You are not used to the business. It will not suit a 
 reasonable man like you to interrupt your important 
 business to put a fool's cap on your head ! It was indis- 
 creet in me to think of such a thing." 
 
 "What!" exclaimed M. Goefle. "Pray what do 
 you take me for? A mere babbler, who makes prom- 
 ises that he knows he can't keep ; or an old pedant, who 
 don't know enough to talk good nonsense?" 
 
 Christian saw that the best way to keep the lawyer 
 up to the enterprise was to oppose him, and that the 
 worthy gentleman was really very much in earnest in his 
 scheme of transforming himself into a merry-andrew, 
 without any more preparation than Christian himself 
 required. He continued, therefore, to maintain his show 
 of reluctance as to accepting his services, and did not 
 leave him until he was almost vexed at Christian's 
 doubts, besides being fully resolved, and, indeed, all on 
 fire to fulfil his engagement ; even although he should 
 have to eat his milk-and-beer soup without an appetite, 
 and no matter how tremendous the violation of all his 
 customary habits. 
 
 Christian had proceeded half way from Stollborg to 
 Waldemora, when he suddenly found himself face to 
 face with a sort of black phantom, speeding over the ice 
 with uneven leaps. It required but a moment's thought 
 to recognize M. Stangstadius, who, like himself, was car- 
 rying a small dark lantern, and who was evidently pre- 
 paring to accost him. Feeling very confident that he 
 would not be recognized by a person so oblivious of 
 others, he thought it unnecessary to put down his mask, 
 or to change his voice in answering him. 
 
 " Hallo, my friend ! " called out the man of science, 
 without even condescending to look at him; "do you 
 '»ome from Stollborg?" 
 
284 "^HE SNOW MAN. 
 
 "Yes, sir." 
 
 " Did you see Dr. Goefle there?" 
 
 " No, monsieur," replied Christian, who saw at once 
 how dangerous to his colleague's good resolutions the pro- 
 fessor's visit might prove. 
 
 " What ! " said Stangstadius ; " Dr. Goefle not at Stoll- 
 borg? He told me he was lodging there." 
 
 " He was," said Christian, with great coolness, " but 
 he left for Stockholm two hours ago." 
 
 " Left? Left without waiting for my visit, when I told 
 him this very morning that I would come and take sup- 
 per with him at the old tower? It's impossible." 
 
 " He must have forgotten it." 
 
 " Forgotten ! Forgotten that /was coming to see him. 
 That's a likely story, indeed ! " 
 
 "" Well, sir," said Christian, " you can go over there if 
 you choose. You will find neither supper nor company." 
 
 " Well, then, I must give it up. But it's the most ex- 
 traordinary thing. That poor Goefle must have gone 
 crazy ! " 
 
 Turning about, M. Stangstadius walked along by the 
 side of Christian, who continued on towards the chateau ; 
 but in a few seconds the philosopher, on reflection, 
 changed his purpose, and, talking aloud to himself after 
 his fashion, said : 
 
 " So, Goefle has gone off! Well, he's a scatter-brained, 
 extravagant fellow. But there's that nephew of his — for 
 he has a nephew — a charming young man and a capital 
 talker. He must have told him that I was comiirg, and 
 he no doubt is waiting for me. I must go over ; certainly 
 I must ! " 
 
 Stopping abruptly, he turned to Christian : 
 " See here, friend," he cried, " I have made up my 
 mind to go to Stollborg after all, and as I have been 
 walking a great deal to-day in the snow, I am extremely 
 tired. Lend me your pony, will you ? " 
 
 " It would give me great pleasure to do so, monsieur ; 
 but if you are proposing to go there after M. Goefle's 
 nephew — " 
 
 *' Certainly, yes ; Christian Goefle, that's his name. 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 285 
 
 Did you see him? You are one of the servants at Stoll- 
 borg, I suppose. Very well, go back there with me. 
 Give me the beast, walk on ahead, and tell them to pre 
 pare supper. That's a good idea." 
 
 Thereupon M. Stangstadius, without troubling himself 
 to wait for leave from Christian, undertook to mount 
 Jean, whom he persisted in taking for a horse, and whose 
 small stature and quiet pace had impressed him very 
 favorably. As to his load, he paid no sort of attention 
 to that, although it was very effectually in his way. 
 
 "Let the beast alone, will you ! " said Christian, an- 
 noyed at his obstinacy. " M. Goefle's nephew went away 
 with his uncle, and StoUborg is shut up like a prison." 
 
 " The young man gone too ! " cried Stangstadius, in 
 the greatest amazement. "i¥bn Dieu I some great mis- 
 fortune must have happened in that family, or both uncle 
 and nephew would never have forgotten my promise. 
 But they must, anyhow, have left a letter for me, and I'll 
 go and get it." 
 
 " They did not leave any letter," said Christian, be- 
 thinking him of a new expedient ; " they directed me to 
 say to some person of the name of Stangstadius at the 
 new chateau that they had been obliged to go away. 
 That is why I am going to the new chateau." 
 
 " Person of the name of Stangstadius ! " cried the in- 
 sulted philosopher ; " is that what they said? " 
 
 " No, monsieur ; that is what I said. I don't know 
 this M. Stangstadius, myself." 
 
 ''Ah, you said it, did you, you idiot? Person of the 
 name of Stangstadius, indeed ! Don't know him your- 
 self, you great beast ! Good, by George ! I like that ! 
 Very well, learn to know me, then. I am the first nat- 
 uralist — But what's the use? Such monstrous ignora- 
 muses as one finds on this poor earth ! Stop your horse, 
 you animal ! Did I not tell you I wanted to ride ? I'm 
 tired, I say. Do you suppose I don't know how to man- 
 age any kind of beast whatever ? " 
 
 " Come, come, M. Naturalist," said Christian, with 
 perfect coolness, although feeling very much annoyed at 
 this interview, which was delaying him so unexpectedly ; 
 
286 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 " don't you see that the poor creature is loaded up to his 
 eyes already ? " 
 
 "What of that? Unload him, I say! you can come 
 back for your load." 
 
 " Impossible. I can't spare the time." 
 
 "What! you disobey me? What sort of savage are 
 you? You are the first Swedish peasant who ever re- 
 fused to assist Dr. Stangstadius. I will inform against 
 you, miserable rascal, I give you my word. I'll com- 
 plain of you ! " 
 
 " To whom ? The Baron de Waldemora ? " 
 
 " No, for he would have you hung ; and good enough 
 for you, too. But I am kind-hearted ; I want you to un- 
 derstand that. I am the best man alive, and I forgive 
 
 you." 
 
 "Nonsense!" said Christian, who could not help at 
 times diverting himself a little with the strange persons 
 whom he encountered in his wandering life. "I don't 
 know you, and I strongly suspect that you are not the 
 person you claim to be. You a naturalist ! Out upon 
 you ! You can't even tell a horse from an ass." 
 
 "An ass?" said Stangstadius, diverted at once, for- 
 tunately, from his whim of equitation ; "do you pretend 
 to have an ass there?" 
 
 He inspected Jean with his lantern ; but thanks to 
 Christian's solicitude, the animal was so well wrapped 
 up in skins of various kinds, that it presented a most fan- 
 tastic appearance. 
 
 "An ass? It can't be ! An ass could not live in this 
 latitude. What you, in your brutal ignorance, call an 
 ass, is nothing more than some kind of mule at the most ! 
 Come, let me see it ; — take off those borrowed skins — " 
 
 " Hold, monsieur !" said Christian ; " whether Stang- 
 stadius or not, you have tired me out. I can't talk with 
 you any longer. Good-evening." 
 
 With that, he tickled the legs of the faithful Jean with 
 a switch ; the animal broke into a trot, and the two 
 quickly left the philosopher behind them. But soon, 
 Christian, who was always good-natured, felt a sort of re- 
 morse for his rudeness. As he reached the edge of the 
 
THE SNOW MAA. 287 
 
 iake, he looked back, and saw the poor doctor of sciences 
 following on with much difficulty, and many slips and 
 tumbles. He must really have been very much fatigued 
 to have been at all conscious of it, for his identity was 
 concentraled in his brains and in his tongue ; and still 
 more to have confessed it : for he claimed to be the most 
 robust man of the age. 
 
 " If his strength should fail him," thought Christian, 
 " he might lie down there on the ice, and, in this region, 
 a moment's sleep out of doors on such a night as this 
 would, perhaps, be fatal — particulary to a feeble being 
 like that. Come, stand still, Jean ! wait for me." 
 
 He hastened towards M. Stangstadius, who had, in fact, 
 come to a halt, and was perhaps revising his determina- 
 tion of going to dine at StoUborg. At this idea. Chris- 
 tian redoubled his speed ; but Stangstadius, who was not 
 always so brave as he pretended, and who had conceived 
 strong prejudices against a person so little inclined to 
 bow down before his greatness as his late companion, in- 
 stantly suspected him of the worst designs against his 
 own person ; and, recovering his strength, he set off to- 
 wards Stollborg as hard as he could go. But this did 
 not suit Christian at all, and he began to run also, and 
 quickly came up with him. 
 
 "Wretch !" cried the learned man in a broken voice, 
 for his terror and exhaustion had reached a climax, "you 
 mean to kill me, I know ! Yes, my enemies have hired 
 you to extinguish the very light of the world ! Let me 
 alone, you miserable scoundrel ! don't touch me ! Think 
 who it is that you are about to lay hands on ! " 
 
 " Come, come ! compose yourself, M. Stangstadius," 
 said Christian, laughing at his terror ; " and have a bet- 
 ter appreciation of people who want to do you a service ! 
 Come, get on my back, and be quick about it ; I am all 
 in a perspiration with running after you, and I don't 
 want to stay here and take cold." 
 
 Stangstadius complied, though with a good deal of re- 
 luctance, but he was relieved when he saw how easily 
 the powerful young man lifted him, and carried him 
 ashore. There, Christian placed him on his feet, and 
 
288 THE SNOW MAN, 
 
 hastened forward, to escape his generosity ; for, in hia 
 gratitude, the worthy Stangstadius was rummaging hia 
 pockets for a two-sou piece, convinced that this would be 
 a royal gift for one who had had the happiness of ren- 
 dering him a service. 
 
 // 
 
 IX. 
 
 /"CHRISTIAN left the professor to proceed towards the 
 ^-^ main entrance of the chateau, while he himself 
 sought the side door, which in all feudal manors leads 
 to the courts and outer buildings. Drawing down his 
 mask, he called a servant, who helped him unload ; and 
 then, after seeing that his ass was suitably accommodated, 
 he ascended a private staircase leading to the apart- 
 ment of M. Johan, the major-domo of the new chateau. 
 The latter did not wait for him to announce himself. 
 
 "Ah ! Ah ! The man in a black mask," he exclaimed, 
 in a benevolent and patronizing tone. " So, you are the 
 famous Christian Waldo ! Come along, my good fellow, 
 I'll take you to your quarters myself, and you can make 
 all your preparations at your leisure ; you have a full 
 hour yet." 
 
 Assistance was now given to transfer Christian's bag- 
 gage to the room which was to serve him as a green- 
 room, and at his request the keys were put .into his 
 hands. Then he shut himself up alone, and having re- 
 moved his mask to be more at his ease, set to work to 
 mount his theatre, though not without some rubbing of 
 his shoulders. M. Stangstadius was not very heavy, but 
 his deformed body was so singularly angular, that he felt 
 as if he had been carrying a great bundle of crooked 
 sticks. 
 
 He had been shown into a small saloon, in which there 
 were two doors, one opening upon a passage leading to the 
 private staircase by which Christian had just entered, es- 
 corted by the affable major-domo, and the other upon the 
 end of a large and richly-decorated gallery, called the 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 289 
 
 Hunting-gallery, where Christian had met Margaret the 
 night before. The theatre was to stand just within the 
 gallery before this door (it was a large folding-door), and 
 the spectators were to be accommodated within the gal- 
 lery itself. Christian, upon measuring the width of the 
 door-way, found that the theatre would just extend across 
 it ; so that when the whole was in order, he would be per- 
 fectly isolated from his audience, and quite at home in his 
 little saloon. This arrangement, therefore, was an excel- 
 lent one for securing his own freedom of movement, and 
 his incognito, as well as that of M. Goefle. 
 
 From the number of arm-chairs and other seats dis- 
 posed in front of the theatre, Christian judged by a short 
 estimate, without counting in detail, that his audience 
 would consist of about a hundred persons conveniently 
 seated, ladies probably — and of a hundred gentlemen, 
 more or less of whom would have to stand behind them. 
 The gallery was wide, and of unusual depth, so that it 
 was, on the whole, the most convenient place in which 
 Christian had ever exhibited. The vaulted and frescoed 
 ceiling made its acoustic properties perfect; the chan- 
 deliers, which were already burning, gave an excellent 
 light, and by merely lighting up the wings of the portable 
 theatre, the dimensions of its little stage assumed exactly 
 the appearance of depth which it required. 
 
 Christian made all his preparations with the most crit- 
 ical care. He was really fond of his little theatre, and 
 had adapted to it a number of ingenious contrivances 
 which made it something like a miniature of a real the- 
 atre. He would, in fact, have been successful as a 
 painter of interiors and of landscape, if the love of the 
 natural sciences had not occasioned him to confine him- 
 self mostly to mere decorative work ; but his natural 
 gifts were so good, that he could scarcely execute even 
 work intrinsically frivolous, without giving it the distinct 
 impress of his own graceful and tasteful originality. 
 His little scenes were accordingly fresh and charming iu 
 design, and always produced an agreeable effect. He 
 took the greatest pains with them, especially when he 
 was going to exhibit before an intelligent audience ; and 
 
 *9 
 
290 
 
 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 if he occasionally felt impatient at having to spend so 
 much time over such details, he consoled himself by re- 
 calling the favorite axiom of GofFredi : "Whatever is 
 worth doing at all is worth doing as well as possible, 
 even if it is only whittling toothpicks." 
 
 Christian, therefore, was completely absorbed in mak- 
 ing his preparations. Having cast a precautionary glance 
 around the deserted gallery, he set up the frame of his 
 theatre experimentally in the door-way with all the 
 scenery and lights, and, stepping out into the audience- 
 room, he seated himself in the best place to judge of the 
 effect of his perspective, so that he might adjust properly 
 the entrances and movements of his actors. 
 
 The two or three minutes' rest thus obtained was very 
 welcome to him. He was more or less hardened to the 
 extremes of all climates, but he found that in the over- 
 heated rooms of the houses of the north, he quickly felt 
 fatigued. He had slept the night before only a few 
 hours, in his arm-chair ; and either from the exhausting 
 experiences of the day, or from his walk on the ice with 
 a professor of geology on his shoulders, he was overtaken 
 by a sudden and irresistible drowsiness, and sank into 
 one of those brief naps, in which the transition from the 
 world of reality to dream-land is so sudden as to be im- 
 perceptible. He seemed to be in a garden, on a warm 
 summ(ii''s day, and to hear the sand in one of the paths 
 near him crackling under a stealthy tread. Some one 
 was cautiously approaching ; and although he could not 
 see the person, he felt an intuitive certainty that it was 
 Margaret. He awoke without being startled, on feeling 
 what seemed to be a breath stirring in his hair. Quickly 
 recovering himself, he jumped up and found that his 
 mask had fallen off and lay at his feet. He stooped to 
 pick it up, without turning round to see who had wakened 
 him, and was startled in good earnest, when a man's 
 voice, only too well known to him, remarked : 
 
 "It is perfectly useless to hide your face. Christian 
 Waldo ; I have recognized you. You are Christian 
 Goffredi." 
 
 Christian, astonished, turned, and saw standing before 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 291 
 
 him, in good condition, well-dressed, and fresh shaved, 
 no other than Guido Massarelli. 
 
 "What! Is this you?" he exclaimed. "What are 
 you doing here, when you ought to be dangling at the 
 end of a rope, at the meeting of four cross-roads, in some 
 wood." 
 
 " I am one of the household," said Guido, smiling 
 calmly and disdainfully. 
 
 "You one of the baron's household? Ah, to be sure ! 
 It does not surprise me. After being a swindler, and a 
 highway robber, what remained except for you to be- 
 come a lackey ? " 
 
 "I am not a lackey," replied Massarelli, with the 
 same composure ; "I am a friend of the family. Quite 
 an intimate friend. Christian, and you would do well, 
 moreover, to try and be on good terms with me. It 
 would be the greatest piece of good fortune that could be- 
 fall you." 
 
 " Master Guido," said Christian, as he moved his 
 theatre back into the inner saloon, " it is unnecessary to 
 have an explanation now ; but I am glad to know that 
 you are staying here, where I shall be able to find you." 
 
 " Is that a threat, Christian?" 
 
 " No, it is a promise. I am in your debt, as you know 
 very well, my dear friend, and as soon as I have paid off 
 my indebtedness here — that will be done as soon as I 
 have given an exhibition of marionettes an hour from 
 this time — I shall make it my business to settle my ac- 
 count with you, by giving you the very best flogging you 
 ever had in your life." 
 
 While speaking. Christian passed back into the green- 
 room, and began putting out his lights and dropping his 
 curtain. Massarelli followed, closing the doors of the 
 gallery as he did so ; and Christian, whose back was 
 necessarily turned towards him at that moment, said to 
 himself that this bandit would be very likely to make use 
 of his advantage to try and assassinate him. Still, he 
 despised him too much to show any distrust, and he went 
 on threatening him with a severe chastisement for his 
 crimes, in a tone as calm as that assumed by tlie rascal 
 
292 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 himself. Fortunately for the imprudent Christian, Guido 
 was by no means a courageous man, and kept his dis- 
 tance, ready to retreat in case his adversary should seem 
 disposed to make a present payment on account. 
 
 *' Come, Christian," he began again, when he supposed 
 the young man might have given vent to his first out- 
 break of resentment, " let us have a reasonable conversa- 
 tion before proceeding to extremities. I am perfectly 
 ready to give you satisfaction for all my transactions with 
 you, and you have no right to insult with idle words a 
 man whom you know you cannot terrify." 
 
 *' What a pitiful fellow you are ! " said Christian, be- 
 ginning to be angry, and walking straight up to him. 
 " Satisfaction from you, you prince of cowards? Oh no, 
 Guido ! the way to do with a fellow like you is to slap 
 him in the face, and, if he resists, to beat him like a dog : 
 nobody ever fights with him ; you must know that. So 
 drop your high tone, you scoundrel, and don't dare look 
 me in the face ! Down with you, on your knees, before 
 me, or I'll strike you this very moment ! " 
 
 Guido, as pale as death, fell on his knees without a 
 word, while great tears, either of fear, or shame, or rage, 
 rolled down his cheeks. 
 
 " Very good," said Christian, half in disgust and half 
 in pity ; "now get up and go. I pardon you, but never 
 voluntarily cross my path again ; and if we chance to 
 meet, no matter where, don't venture to speak to me. 
 For me, you are dead. Out with you, lackey ! This 
 room is mine for two or three hours." 
 
 " Christian," cried Guido, rising, and speaking with a 
 vehemence affected or sincere, as the case maybe, "hear 
 me for only five minutes." 
 
 "No." 
 
 " Christian, listen to me ! " persisted the bandit, step 
 ping before the door of the staircase, which Christian was 
 about to throw open ; " I have something of importance 
 to tell you — something upon which your fortune and 
 your life depend." 
 
 " My fortune," said Christian, laughing contemptu- 
 ously, " went into your pocket, you thief ! It was so little 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 293 
 
 that I don*t care much about it, either way. And as to 
 m7 life, try and take it, if you think best." 
 
 " It has been in my hands, Christian," said Guido, 
 who, as soon as he was assured of his enemy's generosity, 
 had recovered all his assurance ; "possibly it may be so 
 again. You had outraged me, and I was strongly tempted 
 by opportunity to revenge myself ; but I could not forget 
 that I had once loved you ; and even now, in spite of your 
 additional insults, it only depends upon you to have me 
 love you as much as ever." 
 
 " Many thanks," replied Christian, shrugging his 
 shoulders ; " come, away with you ! I have no time to 
 listen to your pathetic drivelling ; I have known it by 
 heart this long time." 
 
 " I'm not so guilty as you think. Christian. When I 
 robbed you in the Carpathians it was out of my power to 
 do otherwise." 
 
 " That is just what everybody says who has surren- 
 dered himself to the devil." 
 
 " I had surrendered myself to the devil, it is very true, 
 for I was the chief of a band of robbers. My comrades 
 had marked you out for a victim ; their eyes were upon 
 us, and, if I had not taken good care to drug you, so as 
 to prevent a useless resistance, they would have killed 
 you." 
 
 " Then I am under obligations to you. Is that what 
 you are driving at } " 
 
 " That is it, exactly. I am now in a fair way to make 
 my fortune. Even to-morrow I shall be in a position to 
 restore all that I took from you — forced to do so by men 
 whom I could not control as I wished. A few days later 
 they robbed me myself, and left me in exactly the same 
 case in which you were left." 
 
 " They did quite right. You richly deserved it " 
 
 " Christian, do you remember the amount that waa 
 taken from you ? " 
 
 " Perfectly." 
 
 " And shall you be at Stollborg to-morrow?" 
 
 *' I don't know. It does not concern you, either.** 
 
294 
 
 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 " As you please. But to-morrow I shall bring you the 
 money." 
 
 " Spare yourself the trouble. I am at home at Stoll- 
 borg, and / do not receive" 
 
 "But yet — " 
 
 " Silence ! I have heard you long enough." 
 
 " But if I bring you the money — " 
 
 " The same sum that you took from me? No, I pre- 
 sume not ! You drank that out a long time ago. Well, 
 then, as the money you speak of can't be the same, and 
 as it must be the proceeds of some theft, or of something 
 worse, if possible, I don't want it. Please to take that 
 for granted, and don't trouble yourself with any more 
 talk about restitution. I am not fool enough to believe 
 you, and if I did, I should promise you just as faithfully 
 as I now do, to throw the price of your vile exploits into 
 your face." 
 
 Christian was on the point of thrusting Guido out, but 
 the latter yielded at last, and went. The exhibitor was 
 about to close the door again, when M. Goefle, all cov- 
 ered up in furs, appeared, ascending the stairs, manuscript 
 in hand. The lawyer had either eaten very quickly, or 
 not at all ; he had devoured the play, which he rapidly 
 mastered, and, fearing that he would not have time enough 
 to rehearse, had hurried over from Stollborg on foot, by 
 the light of the stars. He had concealed his face and 
 disguised his voice, in order to inquire for Christian 
 Waldo's room ; and, in short, had used all the precau- 
 tions of a young lover stealing to a mysterious rendezvous. 
 His head, for the present, was full of nothing but the hu 
 rattini ; he had forgotten the mysteries of Stollborg as 
 completely as if he had never troubled himself on the 
 subject. However, as he was running lightly up the 
 stairs, he found himself, for the second time that day, 
 obliged to pass a man of evil countenance, who was rap- 
 idly descending. This second meeting brought back to 
 his mind the strange fancies in which he had been in- 
 dulging about Baron Olaus, Stenson, and the deceased 
 Hilda. 
 
 " Stay," he said to Christian, who gayly congratulated 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 295 
 
 him on his zeal ; " look at that man who just passed me, 
 and who is now going along the corridor below. Did he 
 come from this room ? Is he a servant of the baron's ? 
 Do you know him ? " 
 
 " I know him a great deal too well, and I was just 
 under the necessity of telling him my opinion of him," 
 said Christian. " That man — whether a servant or not 
 — is the very Guido Massarelli whose adventures I told 
 you something about this morning, in relating my story." 
 " You don't say so ! Well, that is a strange encounter, 
 on my word ! " cried M. Goefle ; " and it may, perhaps, 
 give you some trouble. You are enemies, and, if you 
 have treated him as he deserves, he will injure you as 
 much as possible." 
 
 " How can he injure me? He is such a coward I I 
 made him go down on his knees to me." 
 
 " In that case — well, I don't know what he will do, but it 
 is a fact that he has discovered some important secret." 
 " A secret concerning me? " 
 
 " No," said M. Goefle, who was on the point of speak- 
 ing freely, when he remembered his resolution not to re- 
 veal anything relating to Stenson ; " but, at any rate, you 
 are hiding Christian Goffredi under the mask of Christian 
 Waldo, and he will betray you." 
 
 " What if he does? I have not dishonored the name 
 of Goffredi, and I hope the time will come when my sin- 
 gular adventures will redound to my honor, rather than 
 to my discredit. Pray what have 1 to fear from any one's 
 opinion ? Am I either idle or debauched ? I despise all 
 the Massarellis in the world ! Have I not already made 
 even a chivalric reputation in Sweden and elsewhere, 
 under my buffoon's mask? More good actions are at- 
 tributed to me, indeed, than I have performed, and I have 
 become a sort of hero of romance. Was I not last night 
 the Prince Royal of Sweden ? And if this reputation of 
 mine should become too fantastic, cannot I change my 
 name whenever I shall think proper, and adopt a se- 
 rious profession? It is important upon your account 
 (and tliat is the only reason I give it a thought, M. 
 Goefle) to prevent your pretended nephew, who attended 
 
296 
 
 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 the ball last night, from being recognized under the mask 
 of Christian Waldo ; but this is the only thing we need 
 trouble ourselves about. Now Massarelli was not here 
 last night, I am sure of it, and he knows nothing about 
 that adventure ; otherwise I should have heard of it. 
 However, in any event, you will only need to repeat what 
 is the truth, and adhere to it, that you have never had 
 either nephew or natural child, and that you are in no 
 way responsible for the practical jokes of a professional 
 jester like Christian Waldo." 
 
 " After all, I am as indifferent upon the subject as 
 yourself," replied M. Goefle, taking off his wig, and cov- 
 ering his head with a light black cap which Christian 
 gave him ; "do you suppose I am such a coward as to 
 be afraid of the ogre of this castle? Christian, I am 
 about to make my first appearance as an exhibitor of 
 marionettes. Well, if you should ever be reproached 
 with having earned your living as a showman, so as to 
 devote yourself to^^snce, you can reply that you knew a 
 man holding an honorable position in a dignified profes- 
 sion, who became your fellow-performer for his own 
 amusement." 
 
 " Or rather out of kindness to me. Monsieur Goefle." 
 
 " Kindness for you, if you choose, for I really like 
 you ; but it would be wrong to suppose that I feel any 
 distaste for this performance. On the contrary, it seems 
 to me that it will be immensely diverting. In the first 
 place the piece is charming, comic to the highest degree, 
 and at the same time pathetic, in certain parts. You 
 showed your wisdom in avoiding all allusions in the present 
 arrangement. Come, Christian, let us rehearse ! We 
 haven*t more than half an hour. Let's be quick ! Are 
 we all safe here? Can no one either hear us or see us?" 
 
 Christian had some diflaculty in preventing M. Goefle 
 from fatiguing his voice and exhausting himself in the 
 rehearsal. The successive scenes were briefly indicated 
 upon the schedule, and two or three questions and replies 
 devoted to each of them were quite sufficient to give fur 
 command of the principal situations, which were to be 
 the basis of the public improvisation. What was most 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 297 
 
 important was to lay the marionettes in the proper order 
 on. the platform behind the scenes arranged for the pur- 
 pose, so as to find them without confusion, when they 
 should be required on the stage ; to bring them forward 
 correctly in their turns ; and to have a good understand- 
 ing about their entries and exits, and the main tenor of 
 the story. The dialogue itself they left to the inspiration 
 of the moment. M. Goefle was the most delightful and 
 intelligent associate Christian had ever had. He was 
 quite electrified by the collision of their wits, and, when 
 eight o'clock struck, he was in a brilliant flow of spirits, 
 such as he had not experienced since playing with Massa- 
 relli, then so agreeable and attractive. That distant and 
 I now sadly faded remembrance caused him a moment's 
 \ melancholy, which, however, he quickly shook off as he 
 \ remarked to M. Goefle : 
 
 " There, I hear them coming into the gallery. Be all 
 ready, my dear comrade, and good luck to us ! " 
 
 At this moment some one knocked at the further door, 
 and the voice of Johan, the major-domo, asked for Chris- 
 tian Waldo. 
 
 " I beg pardon," called out Christian, " but you can't 
 come in now. Speak through the door ; I can hear." 
 
 Johan answered that Christian was to be in readiness 
 to open the performance ; and that three raps on the door 
 would notify him when to begin. At that signal the door 
 would be opened to allow the theatre to be set forward. 
 
 This being agreed upon, still another quarter of an 
 hour had to pass before the ladies could all be suited with 
 seats, where their dresses and graces could be properly 
 displayed, and where each should be near the cavalier 
 most agreeable to herself, or to whom she most wished 
 to be agreeable. Christian, who was used to such delays, 
 busied himself with arranging the refreshments that he 
 had found in the little saloon upon a table, where it would 
 be conveniently at hand, in case he or his companion 
 should want to clear their voices between the acts. When 
 he had done this, both he and M. Goefle stepped into the 
 theatre, which was covered in with curtains securely fast- 
 ened in front and at the sides. The back, which was 
 
298 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 movable, was set far enough to the rear to allow room 
 for several side-scenes. 
 
 The two operators now awaited the three raps, Chris- 
 tian calmly, M. Goefle with an almost feverish impatience, 
 which he expressed openly. 
 
 '' What, do you feel vexed? " said Christian. " "Well, 
 that shows that you are excited ; it is a good sign. You 
 will be brilliant." 
 
 " I hope so," replied the lawyer ; " though, to tell you 
 the truth, it seems to me just now as if I should not be 
 able to say a single word, and should break down. That 
 would be extremely agreeable ; it makes me dizzy to 
 think of it. No case that I ever argued before the most 
 august assembly, no question involving the life and honor 
 of a client, or my own success, ever agitated my mind 
 and strained my nerves as this farce is doing. Will those 
 chatterboxes of women that I hear cackling through the 
 doors never be quiet? Do they want to smother us in 
 this box ? I'll break out and abuse them if this continues." 
 
 Finally the three blows were struck. Two footmen, 
 stationed in the gallery, opened simultaneously the two 
 sides of the door, and the little theatre was seen to move 
 forward lightly, as if of its own accord, and to take its 
 place before the door-way, which it entirely filled. Four 
 musicians, whom Christian had stipulated for, played a 
 brief quartette in the Italian style. The curtain rose, and 
 the applause which was given to the scenery afforded the 
 operators time to place their marionettes in position for 
 appearing upon the stage. 
 
 Christian never began his performances without inspect- 
 ing his audience through a little peep-hole, which he had 
 contrived for the purpose. The first person he saw hap- 
 pened to be the very one he was looking for. Margaret 
 was seated next Olga, in the front row. She was in a 
 delicious toilet, and looked positively ravishing. Chris- 
 tian next noticed the baron, who was in the front row of 
 the gentlemen's seats, behipd those of the ladies, and 
 whose lofty stature made him at once conspicuous. He 
 was even paler, if possible, than the evening before. Mas- 
 earelli ^id not seem to be present, but Christian saw with 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 299 
 
 pleasure Major Larrson, Lieutenant Erwin Osburn, and 
 the other young officers who, on the previous evening, 
 during the ball and after it, had shown him such cordial 
 sympathy, and whose ruddy countenances, already lighted 
 up with the expectation of pleasure, were full of kindly 
 interest. At the same time, Christian could hear them 
 praising the scene. 
 
 '^ Wliy, that is StoUborg ! " said several voices. 
 
 " True," said Baron Olaus, in his metallic voice, " I 
 really believe that they have tried to represent old StoU- 
 borg." 
 
 As for M. Goefle, he could neither hear nor see ; he 
 was for the moment horribly discomposed. To give him 
 time to recover himself. Christian began with a scene be- 
 tween two actors, which he played alone. His voice 
 adapted itself with singular ease to the different utter- 
 ances of the beings he was Representing ; and not only did 
 he vary his intonations, he made each character, at the 
 same time, use just the language which was best suited to 
   its part and position in the little comedy. From the very 
 /outset the audience were charmed with his natural and 
 /jruthful style. M. Goefle, whose duty it was for the mo- 
 ment to represent an old man, very soon came in with his 
 part. At first he did not succeed very well in disguising 
 his voice, but the audience were so far from suspecting 
 his presence, and were so thoroughly convinced that 
 Christian did all the talking, that there was the greatest 
 amazement at the infinite resources of the operator. 
 
 " Wouldn't you be willing to swear," said Larrson, 
 " that there were a dozen persons in there? " 
 
 " There must be four, at least," said the lieutenant. 
 
 " No," replied the major, '' there are only two, the 
 master and his assistant. But the assistant is a mere 
 brute, who very seldom speaks, and who has not opened 
 his mouth, so far." 
 
 " But hark ! there are two persons speaking. I dis- 
 tinctly hear two different voices." 
 
 *' Pure delusion ! " replied the enthusiastic Larrson ; " it 
 is Christian Waldo all alone. He can represent two or 
 three or four persons all at the same time, and more too, 
 
300 
 
 THE SNO W MAN. 
 
 perhaps ; who knows ? He is the very devil. But attend 
 to the piece ; it is wonderfully entertaining. One would 
 like to commit his plays to memory, so as to write them 
 out." 
 
 In spite of all this praise, however, we shall not under- 
 take to enter into the details of this play for the reader's 
 benefit. Such fugitive compositions are like all oral or 
 t musical improvisations ; it is a mistake to suppose that 
 / they would appear so well if transcribed and preserved. 
 / Their unexpectedness is a chief part of their attractive- 
 ^ ness, and it is just because we can only recall them indis- 
 tinctly, and that the imagination, therefore, has full 
 opportunity to embellish them, that we remember them 
 as so charming. Whatever Christian produced in these 
 extempore efforts had always spirit, character, and taste. 
 And as for the imperfections inseparable from an im- 
 promptu recitation, the rapid movement of the piece, and 
 the artist's adroitness in introducing new characters as 
 soon as he found himself growing weary of those already 
 upon the stage, caused them to be entirely overlooked. 
 
 As for M. Goefle, his genuine natural eloquence, his 
 ready wit, when excited, and extensive and varied infor- 
 mation, made it very easy for him to do his part, when 
 he had once recovered from his fright. His prompt- 
 ness in seizing any fancy of his interlocutor, and making 
 the most of it, gave rise to the most entertaining digres- 
 sions ; and the usual amazement at the variety and 
 knowledge displayed in Waldo's dialogue, was greater 
 than ever. 
 
 Although declining to enter into the particulars of 
 Christian's comedy, we must at least explain how it was 
 he had changed the first act ; with which, in its original 
 form, M. Goefle, it will be remembered, had been so 
 deeply impressed. 
 
 Restrained by the fear of really compromising the 
 advocate by some unintentional allusion, he had made 
 the villain of the piece a comic character, a sort of Cas- 
 sandre, deceived by his ward, and constantly seeking the 
 corpus delicti — the Child of Mystery — but without any 
 criminal designs against him. Christian was very much 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 301 
 
 surprised, therefore, as he began the last scene of the 
 first act, to hear a movement in the audience, as if a sort 
 of shudder had passed over it, and a general whispering, 
 which, to his practised ear, skilled in detecting the senti- 
 ments of his spectators, even while he himself was 
 speaking, seemed to express blame rather than praise. 
 
 "What can have happened?" he asked himself. 
 
 Glancing at M. Goefle, he saw that he looked trou- 
 bled, and was tapping the floor with one foot, as if 
 vexed, while he moved his marionette nervously about 
 upon the stage. 
 
 Christian, imagining that he had forgotten some part 
 of the plot, hastened to relieve him by bringing forward 
 the boatman, and, hurrying up the conclusion of the act, 
 he lowered the curtain. This was followed neither by 
 applause nor hisses, but there was a general rush in the 
 audience, as if they were hurrying out, to avoid hearing 
 anything further. Peeping through his eye-hole, before 
 withdrawing the theatre behind the door for the inter- 
 mission, he saw, in fact, that his whole audience, 
 although not yet disperse<i, had risen ; and, with their 
 backs turned towards the theatre, were discussing some 
 event in low voices. The only words he could distin- 
 guish were: ''^ Gone out! He has gone out!" And 
 glancing round the room to see who could be meant, he 
 saw that the baron was no longer in the gallery. 
 
 " Come," said M. Goefle, nudging him with his elbow, 
 "let's move back into the green-room. Why are you 
 waiting? It's the intermission." 
 
 The theatre, therefore, rolled back within the saloon, 
 the doors were closed ; and as he rapidly shifted his 
 scenes for the second act, Christian asked M. Goefle if 
 be had noticed anything in particular. 
 
 "The deuce!" said the lawyer, with a good deal of 
 excitement ; "I have done it finely this time ! What do 
 you «ay?" 
 
 '* Your performance? It was excellent, M. Goefle." 
 
 "I was stupid, crazy! It is inconceivable that a 
 man accustomed to speak in public on the most del- 
 icate subjects, and about the most involved and doubtful 
 
302 
 
 THE SNO W MAN, 
 
 cases, should have been overtaken by such an accident ! 
 Can you understand it ? " 
 
 "But what accident, for heaven's sake, Monsieur 
 Goefle?" 
 
 "What, are you deaf? Did you not hear me make 
 three most frightful blunders?" 
 
 "Pshaw! I probably made a hundred; it happens 
 every day. Nobody notices them." 
 
 "You think so? Nobody notices them? I'll wager 
 something that the baron left the room before we were 
 through." 
 
 "He did, that's the fact ! Is he so very critical that a 
 careless connective or an ill-chosen word — " ' 
 
 "What ! A thousand devils ! That is not the matter 
 at all ! I would rather have had my tongue cut out than 
 to have said what I did. While you were stooping down 
 to bring the boat under the rocks, and I was making the 
 men on guard talk, only imagine that I paid three times, 
 'the baron,' instead of 'Don Sancho' I I did, three 
 times ! Once by mere oversight, again when I had no- 
 ticed it, and meant to correct mysel**; and a third 
 time — I never heard of such a thin/:'^ Christian — to 
 say exactly the very word that one intei^ds not to say ! 
 There was some fatality about it ; I am <^lmost ready to 
 believe, as our peasants do, that evil spirits intermeddle 
 with our doings ! " 
 
 " It is very curious, really," said Chri^ti^n, " but it 
 might have happened to any one. Whv are you so 
 much annoyed about it, M. Goefle? The baron can 
 never suspect that it was done on purpose. And besides, 
 is he the only baron in the world? Are there not a 
 dozen of them, perhaps, in the very audience before us ? 
 Come, let us attend to the second act ; time is pacing, 
 and they may call for us at any moment." 
 
 "If they don't send to countermand the perform^'ace. 
 There, some one is knocking ! " 
 
 "It is the major-domo again. Step in under ^he 
 frame, M. Goefle ; I will put on my mask and opcL 'the 
 door ; he must see what is going on." 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 303 
 
 .When M. Goefle was out of sight, and Christian 
 masked, the door was opened to M. Johan. 
 
 "What is the matter?" asked Christian, going 
 promptly to the point. " Shall we go on ? " 
 
 "Why not, M. Waldo?" said the major-domo. 
 
 "I fancied that his lordship was indisposed." 
 
 "Oh, he often suffers from nervousness, when he 
 remains long in one place. It is nothing, however. He 
 has just sent me to tell you that you are to go on whether 
 he returns or not ; he would regret to have the company 
 disappointed of their entertainment. But what an odd 
 idea that was of yours, M. Christian, to represent our 
 old Stollborg in your theatre !" 
 
 "I hoped it might please his lordship the baron," 
 said Christian, with effrontery. "Was I mistaken?" 
 
 "His lordship is enchanted with the idea; he said 
 over and over, ' Capital ! How good it is ! You would 
 think it was the old donjon itself.*" 
 
 "I'm very glad indeed," returned Christian; "in 
 that case we'll continue. Your servant, M. Major-domo ! 
 Come, M. Goefle, take courage," he said, when Johan 
 had gone; "you see it's all correct, and that we have 
 been only dreaming all day. Now I wager that the 
 baron is the best fellow in the world, you will see that 
 he will be converted, and we shall have to canonize 
 him.'* 
 
 The baron concluded to return, after all, and the sec- 
 ond act, which was short and lively, seemed to amuse 
 him extremely. Don Sancho did not appear. M. Goefle 
 made no more slips of the tongue, and succeeded so 
 well in disguising his voice, that nobody suspected his 
 presence. In the next intermission he drank sundry 
 glasses of port to keep up his spirits, and during the 
 third and last act, which was even more successful than 
 the two preceding ones, he was, perhaps, a little elevated. 
 
 The comic scenes in which Stentarello entertained the 
 public, Christian varied with a sentimental by-plot be- 
 tween other characters. In the last act, Alonzo, the 
 child of the lake, discovered that Rosita, the daughter of 
 the worthy couple who had adopted and brought him up, 
 
504 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 was not his sister, whereupon he avowed his love to her. 
 This well-known dramatic situation is always a delicate 
 one to manage. There is something unwelcome in see- 
 ing a brother pass suddenly from a sacred friendship to a 
 passion which, in .spite of the change of circumstances, 
 persists, as it were, in seeming unholy. This young girl 
 and Alonzo were the only two of his characters whom 
 Christian had not burlesqued. He had represented the 
 latter as a good-hearted young man, with views and pur- 
 suits like his own. The audience felt a sympathy for his 
 generous and adventurous qualities, and the ladies, quite 
 forgetting that it was only a marionette which they be- 
 held, were charmed with the pleasant voice which dis- 
 coursed to them of love with a certain chaste tenderness, 
 and in a frank tone, far different from the mannerisms of 
 the fashionable French pastorals of the day. 
 
 Christian was familiar with Marivaux, whose works 
 present such a striking union of elaborate thought, with 
 simplicity of feeling and passionate emotion. He had 
 been deeply penetrated with all that is true and great in 
 this charming genius, and he really excelled in represent- 
 ing the part of a lover. The scene was too short. It 
 was encored vehemently, and Christian, yielding to the 
 wish of the public, picked up Alonzo again — he had al- 
 ready pulled him off his fingers — and brought him back 
 upon the stage in a manner at once ingenious and natural. 
 " Did you call me ? " he said to the young girl, and 
 this simple phrase was uttered with an expression so 
 timid, so profoundly loving, and so heartfelt, that Marga- 
 ret hid her face behind her hand, to conceal a deep blush. 
 The fact is, that the young girl was passing through a 
 strange experience. Out of all the audience, she alone 
 had recognized in the voice of Alonzo that of Christian 
 Goefle ; perhaps because she alone had conversed with 
 him sufficiently to remember his voice distinctly. It is 
 true that Christian Waldo made his young lover talk in 
 a higher key than his own natural intonation, but still 
 there were certain inflections and vibrations that startled 
 Margaret every moment. When the love scene came, 
 she was absolutely certain ; and yet Christian Goefle had 
 
THE bNOW MAN. 
 
 305 
 
 not said a single word of love to her. She kept her 
 thoughts to herself, however ; and when Olga, who was 
 cold and sarcastic, nudged her with her elbow, and asked 
 if she was crying, the innocent child replied with artless 
 hypocrisy that she had caught a bad cold, and was try- 
 ing to SDQOther her cough. 
 
 As for Olga, she, too, was dissimulating, though in a 
 very different way. When the play was over, she pre- 
 tended to feel a great contempt for the little gentleman, 
 who was such a " bashful lover," and yet her heart had 
 been beating violently. In fact, there are some Russian 
 women who are habitually heartless and calculating, but 
 who, nevertheless, have very ardent passions. Olga had 
 resolutely committed herself to an interested marriage ; 
 and yet, in spite of herself, she could not help feeling a 
 secret horror of the baron, ever since she had been en- 
 gaged to him. When he spoke to her after the play, his 
 harsh voice and icy look gave her a chill, and she remem- 
 bered without, or even against her intention, the soft tones 
 and vivid expressions of Christian Waldo. 
 
 Upon his side, the baron seemed to be in excellent hu- 
 mor. The unfortunate Don Sancho, who was to have 
 made his appearance again towards the close of the piece, 
 had prudently been suppressed by M. Goefle. Between 
 the first and second acts, he and Christian had agreed 
 together as to this modification. They arranged to make 
 Rosita the daughter of Don Sancho, who was supposed 
 to have died during the intermission. She turned out to 
 be the heiress of his vast fortune, and marries Alonzo at 
 the end of the play, so as to make up for the spoliation 
 which he had suffered. Adventures, blunders, romantic 
 incidents, and comic scenes, and most of all Stentarello, 
 with his ingenuous selfishness and his cowardice, filled 
 out the slender framework of the little comedy, which 
 was received with general enthusiasm, notwithstanding 
 the dissent of M. Stangstadius, who did not listen to a 
 single word, and pooh-poohed everything from beginning 
 to end. He was quite out of patience to think that any- 
 body could be interested in a frivolous affair in whiclf 
 there was nothing scientific. 
 
 20 
 
3o6 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 Meanwhile, M. Goefle had thrown himself into an 
 arm-chair in the green-room, where he was shut up w ith 
 Christian ; and while the latter, always active and indus- 
 trious, busied himself with taking down, arranging, and 
 folding all the different parts and implements of his the- 
 atre — packing the dramatis person^e into their box, 
 and folding the theatre itself into one bundle, which, 
 although heavy, could easily be carried — the advocate 
 wiped the perspiration from his forehead, sipped his 
 Spanish wine, and, in short, gave himself up, heart and 
 soul, to enjoyment and relaxation, as he was in the habit 
 of doing at home when he took off his professional robe 
 and cap, to retire, as he was accustomed to phrase it, into 
 the bosom of private life. 
 
 This charming man had experienced few disappoint- 
 ments in public life, and few private troubles. What he 
 had really felt the want of, since he had settled down to 
 the sober, tranquil career of a middle-aged man, was 
 novelty, the element of adventure. This he pretended to 
 hate, and thought he did hate it ; and yet he suffered from 
 the monotony of his existence, because he possessed a 
 vivid imagination, and great versatility of talent. Nat- 
 urally, therefore, at the present moment, he was in un- 
 usually high spirits, without knowing why. Although 
 fatigued, and bathed in perspiration, he was sorry that the 
 play was over ; for at least ten additional acts, ready for 
 performance, were floating in his mind. 
 
 " I ought to be ashamed of myself," he said ; " here am 
 1 resting, while you are hard at work setting things to 
 rights. Cannot I help you? " 
 
 "No, no, M. Goefle, you would not know how. Be- 
 sides, I have done already. Are you still too warm to 
 think of walking back to Stollborg?" 
 
 " To Stollborg ! Must we return there, and go off 
 stupidly to bed, excited as we are ? " 
 
 '' Why, as to that, M. Goefle, it rests with you to step 
 out of the door at the foot of this side stairway, and then 
 go round to the main entrance and take supper (they have 
 just rung the bell), and enjoy the amusements which, I 
 presume, have been prepared for the remainder of tho 
 
THE SNOW MAN, 
 
 307 
 
 evening. But my part is played. Since you have denied 
 your own blood, since I can no longer appear by your side 
 tinder tl le name of Christian Goefle, I must go and take 
 something or other to eat, and study a little mineralogy 
 until I grow sleepy." 
 
 '^ Sure enough, my poor boy, you must be tired." 
 
 " I was before we began ; now I am excited, just as 
 you are, M. Goefle. In improvising, one is always most 
 wound up when it is time to stop. Exactly when the cur- 
 tain falls is just the right time to begin ; you are full of 
 fire, of feeling, of wit." 
 
 " Very true, and I'll stay with you for that reason, for 
 you would be uncomfortable enough by yourself. I un- 
 derstand all about that state of mind. It is just so when 
 one has concluded an argument ; but this is even more 
 stimulating. I would like myself to do I don't know 
 what, this very minute : recite a tragedy, compose a poem, 
 set the house on fire, get drunk — anything to satisfy this 
 craving of the mind after something out of the ordinary 
 line." 
 
 "Take care, M. Goefle," said Christian, laughing, 
 *' the last may happen to you." 
 
 "Tome? Never! never! I am sorry to say that I 
 am sober to excess — stupidly so, in fact." 
 
 " But see there — that bottle is half empty ! " 
 
 " Half a bottle of port for two — there is nothing scan- 
 dalous in that, I hope?" 
 
 " I beg your pardon, but I haven't touched it. I drank 
 nothing but lemonade." 
 
 " If that is so," said M. Goefle, pushing away the glass 
 he was about to fill, " hence, perfidious beverage ! To get 
 tipsy alone is the most melancholy business in the world. 
 Will you come over to Stollborg and drink with me? 
 Or — stay, when I was here this morning I heard some- 
 body saying that there was to be a race by torchlight on 
 the lake to-night, unless there should be more snow ; but, 
 on the contrary, the weather was magnificent when I 
 came over. Let us join the party. Every one is priv- 
 ileged, you know, to appear disguised during the Christ- 
 
3o8 
 
 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 mas entertainments, and faith ! I remember this moment 
 that Countess Elveda said something about a masquerade/* 
 
 " A good idea," said Christian, " and exactly in my 
 line — the man in the mask ! But what shall we do for 
 costumes ? I have a hundred or more there in my box, 
 but neither of us could very well bring himself down to 
 the size of a mariouette.'* 
 
 *' Oh, perhaps we can find something over at Stollborg." 
 
 " Not in my wardrobe then, most assuredly." 
 
 "Well, in mine, perhaps. If we can't do anything 
 else, we can put on oar clothes wrong side out. But a 
 little imagination — " 
 
 " Very well I Go on, then, M. Goefle, I will follow 
 you. I have still to load up Jean and receive my money. 
 Take this mask ; I have another. Possibly there may be 
 some inquisitive fellows on the stairs." 
 
 "Or some inquisitive ladies — on your account. Be 
 quick. Christian ! I'll go on in advance." 
 
 And M. Goefle, as springy and active as if but twenty 
 years old, darted down stairs, pushing his way past the 
 servants, and even jostling certain ladies, very carefully 
 wrapped up, who had quietly crept in to try and see the 
 famous Christian Waldo as he should pass. Christian 
 himself, consequently, attracted no attention at all, and 
 met comparatively few persons, when a moment after- 
 wards he followed, carrying his box and his great bundle. 
 
 "That must be the assistant," they said, " since he's 
 carrying the things. He must needs wear a mask too, 
 the booby ! " 
 
 And they lamented their ill-success in failing to catch 
 the least glimpse of the face or even of the figure of 
 Waldo himself, who had shot off" like lightning. 
 
 When Christian had finished loading his ass, he returned 
 to the green-room, and had scarcely entered it when M. 
 Johan made an effort to take him by surprise, so as to 
 satisfy his curiosity about him. The major-domo tried 
 the door stealthily, hoping to enter without knocking, on 
 the pretext of paying the amount due for the exhibition. 
 Christian, conjecturing who his visitor was, resolved to 
 have a little amusement at the expense of this insinuating 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 309 
 
 gentleman. Accordingly, he masked himself carefully, 
 and, leaving but one candle burning, opened the door, 
 which he had not forgotten to lock, with a great deal of 
 politeness. 
 
 "Have I the pleasure of speaking with M. Christian 
 Waldo himself?" asked the major-domo, as he handed 
 him the sum agreed on. 
 
 " The same ! " said Christian ; " you must surely re- 
 member my voice and dress, since you saw me only a 
 little while ago." 
 
 " Certainly, my dear fellow, but your assistant masks 
 himself too, it seems ; he passed me a while ago on the 
 stairs, looking as mysterious as yourself, and wrapped up 
 in much better style, by George ! than he was yesterday, 
 when you arrived." 
 
 " The fact is that the rascal, instead of carrying my 
 cloak on his arm, takes the liberty of putting it on his 
 back. I let him do it, for he is a chilly sort of fellow." 
 
 " Ah, indeed ! Well, there is one thing about this 
 chilly fellow that surprises me greatly. That is, that yes- 
 terday he was a full head shorter than you." 
 
 " Does that surprise you?" said Christian, drawing on 
 his powers of improvisation ; " then you cannot have no- 
 ticed his feet to-day." 
 
 " Why no, really. Was he on stilts? " 
 
 " Not exactly, but on pattens four or five inches high." 
 
 "But what for?" 
 
 " Why, M. Major-domo ! How can a man as intelli- 
 gent as yourself ask such a question as that?" 
 
 " I confess I don't understand it," said Johan, biting 
 his lips. 
 
 " Well, then, M. Major-domo, you will easily see that 
 if the two operators in a theatre like mine are not pretty 
 nearly of the same height, one of them would have to let 
 his head appear, which would not produce a good efiect 
 among the burattini, but v*^ould rather look as if an inhab- 
 itant of Saturn had come amongst them ; or else the other, 
 the shorter of the two, would have to stretch his arms up 
 so high, that he could not endure the fatigue through two 
 scenes." 
 
3IO 
 
 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 '•' Then your assistant wears pattens to bring him up 
 to your height ! Upon my word that's very ingenious ! " 
 And Johan added, with a sceptical air : 
 
 " It's singular that I did not hear the noise of those 
 pattens, when he was going down stairs a while ago." 
 
 " There again, M. Major-domo, your natural shrewd- 
 ness seems to be slumbering ! If those pattens were not 
 well shod with felt they would mal^e an insupportable clat- 
 tering in the theatre." 
 
 " Oh, that's the reason, is it? But you don't explain 
 to me how it is that this fellow, vulgar and stupid as he 
 is, can support you so brilliantly ? " 
 
 " It can't be explained," answered Christian ; '" but, 
 nevertheless, it is almost always the way with an artist. 
 He shines on the stage — or I should say, in this case, 
 under the stage — but once outside the theatre, he turns 
 dark again, particularly if he happens to have the bad 
 habit of drinking with the servants in the families where 
 he may happen to stop." 
 
 " What ! Do you imagine that he has been drinking 
 here with — " 
 
 " With some of your footmen. They must have given 
 you a report of his interesting conversation, M. Major- 
 domo, since you are so well informed about the low grade 
 of his intelligence." 
 
 Johan bit his lips again ; and Christian felt convinced 
 either that Puffo, in his drunkenness, had betrayed his 
 incognito in a measure, or that Massarelli, for a sum of 
 money, had done so without any reserve. 
 
 The only name that Puffo knew him by was Dulac, but 
 Massarelli had known him under all his successive names, 
 except, perhaps, that of Christian Goefle, so recently im- 
 provised. Christian tried to conjecture how this might 
 be, while observing closely the major-domo's evident and 
 keen desire to see his face. He soon came to the con- 
 clusion that he was not so curious to satisfy his doubts as 
 to his death's head, as to ascertain whether or not the 
 performer was one and the same person with M. Goefle's 
 pretended nephew, whose face the major-domo had seen 
 plainly the evening before. 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 31 1 
 
 *' Come, confess," the latter said at last, after many 
 insidious questions, to all of which the adventurer had 
 replied very guardedly ; "if some agreeable lady — a 
 charming young person — say the Countess Margaret, for 
 instance, should ask to see your face, would you be 
 equally obstinate in refusing?" 
 
 " Who is the Countess Margaret ? " asked Christian, in 
 the most innocent manner in the world, though he felt a 
 great inclination to give M. Johan a box on the ear. 
 
 " Mon Dieu! " rejoined the major-domo, "I mentioned 
 her because she is by all odds the most beautiful woman 
 in the chateau at the present time. Did you not see her ? " 
 
 "Pray where could I have seen her?" 
 
 " In the front row of ladies." 
 
 " Why ! do you suppose that when I am playing a 
 piece with twenty actors in it, almost entirely alone, I 
 have time to look at the women? — " 
 
 " I don't say that, but really now, would you not like 
 to please a beautiful young lady ? " 
 
 "To please her? M. Johan," exclaimed Christian, 
 with well-afFected emotion, " without meaning it, you are 
 asking me a very painful question. You do not seem to 
 know that nature has been pleased to make me frightfully 
 ugly, and that my unfortunate appearance is my only rea- 
 son for taking so much pains to conceal myself." 
 
 "It is so reported," replied Johan, "but the contrary 
 is also asserted ; and his lordship, as well as all the com- 
 pany, and the ladies particularly, are extremely anxious 
 to know what they are to believe." 
 
 " I certainly could not subject myself to the pain of 
 gratifying such a misplaced desire as that. I prefer to 
 /supply you with evidence which will enable you to dissuade 
 them." 
 
 As he spoke. Christian, relying upon the dim light 
 which he had provided, lifted his black silk mask, and, as 
 it were precipitately, and with a kind of desperate effort, 
 suffered the major-domo to behold, for a moment, a second 
 mask of waxed cloth, so skilfully made that it bore every 
 resemblance to an actual human face ; without close ex- 
 amination by a strong light, no one would have suspected 
 
312 THE SNOW MAN, 
 
 the cheat. And what a face was thus disclosed — flat- 
 uosed, sallow, and horribly blemished by a great wine- 
 colored birth-mark ! Johan, in spite of his suspicious 
 nature, was deceived, and could not refrain from an ex- 
 clamation of disgust. 
 
 ''1 really beg your pardon, my dear friend," he ex- 
 claimed, recovering himself, "you are much to be pitied ; 
 and yet, your talent and your wit are advantages which I 
 envy you." 
 
 The major-domo was himself so ugly that Christian 
 could scarcely refrain from bursting into a laugh at the 
 idea that he should consider himself so much handsomer 
 than the mask. 
 
 '' And now," he said, after replacing the black mask, 
 " tell me frankly why you were so anxious to know the 
 extent of my" ugliness." 
 
 '" Mon Dieu I " exclaimed Johan, after a moment's hes- 
 itation, assuming a confiding air, " Til tell you. And, by 
 the way, if you would help me to find out a certain se- 
 cret — a foolish joke which more than one person here 
 is interested in discovering, you would confer a great ob- 
 ligation — you know what I mean — an obligation that 
 would be munificently rewarded by the master of the 
 house. It's a mere piece of pleasantry ; there's a bet 
 about it." 
 
 " I would like nothing better," answered Christian, 
 curious to hear the communication, whose nature, how- 
 ever, he anticipated ; " what is it.? " . 
 
 " You are lodging at StoUborg, are you not?'^ 
 
 " Yes ; you would not take me in here." 
 
 " Where did you sleep — in the bear-room? " 
 
 " I did, and capitally too." 
 
 " Capitally, did you ? The ghost they talk about — " 
 
 "It is not about a ghost that you want to question me. 
 You don't believe in them any more than I do." 
 
 " True ; but there was a strange apparition here at the 
 ball, whom nobody knew. This you might have met at 
 Stollborg." 
 
 *' I^o, I have seen no apparition," 
 
THE SNOW MAN, 
 
 313 
 
 " But when I say an apparition — Did you not see a 
 lawyer there, one M. Goefle, a very able man? " 
 
 '' Yes ; I had the honor of conversing with him this 
 morning. He occupies the room there with two beds in 
 it." 
 
 " With his nephew ? " 
 
 " I saw nothing of any nephew." 
 
 " Nephew or not, a young man of about your height, 
 whose voice I did not notice particularly, but with a very 
 agreeable face, dressed in a black suit throughout — a 
 very good-looking young fellow — " 
 
 " Good-looking? I wish to heaven it could have been 
 myself, M. Johan ! But I was so very sleepy that I 
 should hardly have known it even if he had been there. 
 I only saw a drunken fellow whom they call Ulphilas." 
 
 ''And did M. Goefle see nothing of this stranger?" 
 
 " I dSn't think he did." 
 
 " Did he know nothing of him?" 
 
 "Ah! that reminds me — yes, I recollect. I heard 
 M. Goefle complaining about some person who had made 
 use of his name to attend the ball. Is that it ? " 
 
 " Exactly." 
 
 "But, M. Major-domo, if you were so puzzled about 
 this unknown, why didn't you have him followed? " 
 
 " We were not puzzled at the time. He had given 
 himself out for a near relative of the advocate, and, as 
 a matter of course, we expected to see him again. It was 
 only this morning, when the lawyer had disavowed him, 
 that the baron thought of inquiring who the unknown 
 could be, who, under a feigned name, had ventured to in- 
 troduce himself into the house. No doubt it was some im- 
 pertinent fellow who had laid a wager about it ; one of 
 the students from the Falun Mining-school, perhaps — 
 unless, indeed, he really should be a natural son ot the 
 advocate — as he himself, it seems, intimated — whom his 
 father, however, does not permit to assume his name." 
 
 "All that seems to me hardly worth the trouble of 
 so much inquiry," observed Christian, with an air of 
 indifference. " Will you allow me now, M. Major-domo^ 
 to go and have some supper ? " 
 
3H 
 
 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 *' Yes, by all means. You shall come and take supper 
 with me.'* 
 
 ''No, thank you. I am very much fatigued; I must 
 beg you to excuse me." 
 
 " So you insist on going back to StoUborg. You must 
 be very poorly accommodated there." 
 
 "Very well, on the contrary." 
 
 "But have you a bed, even?" 
 
 "I am to have one to night." 
 
 "Does that drunken Ulphilas provide you a decent 
 table?" 
 
 " It could not be better." 
 
 "Will you repeat your performance for us to- 
 morrow ? " 
 
 "At what time?" 
 
 " The same as this evening." 
 
 "With great pleasure. Your obedient servant ! " 
 
 "Ah, a single word, M. Waldo. Would it be an 
 indiscretion to inquire what is your real name ? " 
 
 "By no means, M. Johan. My real name is Stenta- 
 rello, very much at your service." 
 
 "You are a wag. I suppose it is you who always 
 play that part in a comedy?" 
 
 "Always, except when it is my assistant." 
 
 " You are mysterious ! " 
 
 " Certainly, in matters that relate to the secrets of my 
 theatre. Otherwise, I should have neither reputation 
 nor success." ^ 
 
 "Well, at any rate, will you allow me to inquire why 
 you named one of your characters the baron?" 
 
 "Ah, as to that, you must ask the footman who made 
 PufFo drunk. For my part, I am used to his blunders, 
 and I should never have noticed it, if he had not told me 
 about it himself, in a great fright." 
 
 "Had he perhaps picked up some foolish gossip or 
 other?" 
 
 " About what? Will you be so good as to explain ? " 
 
 " No, no, it is not worth the trouble," replied Johan, 
 who saw — thanks to Christian's adroitness, or perhaps 
 bis carelessness — that their relative positioqa bad be* 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 315 
 
 come inverted, and that he himself, instead of asking 
 questions, was being compelled to answer them. But 
 still he could not help returning to a subject to which he 
 had already referred. 
 
 "So, then," he said, "it seems you have a scene so 
 much like Stollborg as to be mistaken for it." 
 
 "I had one that happened to look a little like Stoll- 
 borg, yes, it is true ; but I completed the resemblance 
 on purpose." 
 
 "Why?" 
 
 "Why, as I told you, by way of a compliment to the 
 baron. I always make a point of representing some 
 locality in the neighborhood wherever I may happen to 
 be performing, so as to add to the attractiveness of my 
 exhibitions. At my next stopping-place Stollborg will 
 be changed again, and a new scene displayed. Did the 
 baron think it poorly painted? No wonder, I had so 
 very little time." 
 
 While talking. Christian had amused himself by study- 
 ing the disagreeable countenance of Johan. He was a 
 man of about fifty, rather stout, vulgar in manner, and 
 with features whose expression seemed at first good- 
 natured and apathetic. But even the night before, Chris- 
 tian, as he handed him the letter of invitation found in 
 M. Goefle's pocket, had detected a sort of inquisitorial 
 watchfulness, veiled by an assumed indifference, in his 
 oblique glance. He was still more struck at present by 
 these indications of a false, hypocritical character — 
 a sort of caricature, as it seemed, of his master's, 
 the baron. Still, as Johan was nothing after all but 
 an upper servant, without education or real finesse. 
 Christian had no difficulty in playing a better comedy 
 than he, and in effectually persuading him of the perfect 
 innocence of his intentions. And in the meanwhile, for 
 his own part, he obtained from the interview a quasi- 
 certitude in regard to the story of Baroness Hilda. It 
 seemed to him perfectly evident that a drama of some 
 kind had been enacted at Stollborg, and that the baron 
 bad either been terrified or enraged at witnessing his per- 
 
3i6 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 forraance ; since it had represented in dramatic form, 
 no matter with what intention, this triple conjunction   
 a prison, a victim, and a jailer. 
 
 A S for Johan, he was assuredly the baron's confidant, 
 ■^^*- and perhaps had been one of the actors in this 
 drama. He had tried to discover how far Christian 
 Waldo, as a wandering story-teller, had become ac- 
 quainted with the mystery; but Christian had adroitly 
 insinuated that the servants of the chateau had been 
 guilty of an indiscretion, and, for the present at least, 
 had freed both himself and M. Goefle from any sup- 
 posed participation in the matter. 
 
 We will now leave Christian, who proceeded phil- 
 osophically to drive the heavily-laden Jean from the new 
 chateau, and revert to certain matters that had been 
 occurring during his interview with the major-domo. 
 Let us go back to the moment when M. Goefle set out 
 for StoUborg: the moon was rising, and the aurora 
 borealis beginning to shine with renewed splendor, and 
 lighted on his way by their combined effulgence, he 
 walked rapidly across the lake, humming a tune, and 
 every now and then unconsciously gesticulating. 
 
 By this time supper had been served to the guests at 
 the new chateau, and the size and beauty of the splendid 
 Christmas-cake, which, according to the Norwegian 
 usage, was to remain uncut upon the table until the sixth 
 of January, was attracting the admiration of the ladies. 
 It was a masterpiece of confectionery ; and, with due 
 respect to the gallantry of the period as well as to the 
 observances of a religious festival, it had been made to 
 resemble the temple of Paphos. It was ornamented 
 with monuments, trees, fountains, people and animals. 
 The pastry-work, and crystallized sugar of all colors, 
 imitated the most precious materials, and were elab- 
 orately wrought into the most fantastic forms. 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 317 
 
 The baron, on the plea of having important letters to 
 r3ad and answer, had intrusted the duty of doing the 
 honors of the supper-table to an elderly single lady of 
 his family, a person thoroughly accomplished in the 
 duties of the mistress of the house, and a complete 
 cipher in all other respects. The truth was, that the 
 baron, who never lacked excuses for excluding himself 
 when, he happened to feel preoccupied, was, at the 
 present moment, shut up in his private cabinet with a 
 man with a pale face, who called himself Tebaldo, and 
 who was no other than Guido Massarelli. Guido had 
 not obtained this tete-a-tete without effort. Johan, 
 who was very jealous of his master's confidence, had 
 tried to extract his secret from him, so as to turn 
 it to his own advantage ; but Massarelli was not the 
 man to be deceived in that way. He had insisted ; 
 and after waiting about the chateau for the wliole day, 
 he had at last succeeded in obtaining the interview, 
 whose results he had anticipated, when he had boasted 
 in advance to Christian that he was a friend of the 
 family. The conversation, which was carried on in 
 French, begun with a strange narrative, to which the 
 baron listened with a sarcastic and contemptuous ex- 
 pression. 
 
 "You have made a very startling statement," he 
 observed, at last, to Massarelli ; " and I should even 
 say, if I could believe what I have heard, a very im- 
 portant revelation. But I have so often been deceived 
 in matters of a delicate nature, that I must insist on other 
 proofs than mere verbal ones, before trusting you. The 
 story you have related is strange, romantic, improb- 
 able—" 
 
 "And yet M. Stenson acknowledged its accuracy; 
 he did not even attempt to deny it," replied the Italian. 
 
 " So you say," coldly answered the baron ; " unfor- 
 tunately, I am unable to corroborate your assertions. 
 If I should interrogate Stenson, he would certainly 
 deny it, whether it be true or imaginary." 
 
 " Very probably, your lordship. A man so capable of 
 dissimulation as to have imposed upon you for twenty 
 
3l8 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 years, will not be at a loss for a falsehood now ; but, if 
 you will contrive to overhear a conversation between us, 
 you can learn the truth. I will undertake to make him 
 admit it again, and in your hearing, provided he has 
 no suspicion of your presence." 
 
 "It would not be difficult, so deaf as he is, to intro- 
 duce one's self into his premises ; but since, according 
 to him, the person is dead, why need I concern myself 
 about the past life of old Stenson? He must neces- 
 sarily have acted in good faith ; and though he had done 
 me a great wrong by keeping silence, and thus permit- 
 tmg odious suspicions to rest upon me, yet — since time 
 has rectified former prejudices — " 
 
 " Not so entirely as your lordship seems to believe," 
 observed the Italian, who was scarcely inferior to the 
 baron himself in cool audacity. "The story is current 
 throughout the country, and Christian Waldo must cer- 
 tainly have heard it on his way here." 
 
 " If that were the case," said the baron, with a look 
 betraying his secret rage, "that juggler would never 
 have dared introduce it in public, and before my very 
 face, into a scene of his comedy." 
 
 "And yet one of his scenes did really represent the 
 old donjon. I examined the locality to-day, and Chris- 
 tian Waldo, who is lodging at StoUborg, must certainly 
 have done the same. The Italians — they are very bold 
 fellows, your lordship, these Italians ! " 
 
 "I see they are, M. Tebaldo. You say that this 
 Waldo is lodging at StoUborg, and therefore must have 
 painted this scene on purpose, and from nature. It is 
 hardly probable that he could have done it so quickly. 
 The resemblance between his decoration and the old 
 tower must have been accidental." 
 
 " I think not, your lordship ; Waldo has great facility, 
 and paints as rapidly as he improvises." 
 
 "You know him, then?" 
 
 "Yes, your lordship." 
 
 " What is his real name ? " 
 
 *'That is what I proposed to communicate to yom 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 319 
 
 lordship, if the sum I have mentioned does not seem to 
 you exorbitant." 
 
 •'But what interest can I have in learning his real 
 name ? " 
 
 "An interest that is immense ; all important." 
 
 The emphasis with which the pretended Tebaldo pro- 
 nounced these last words, seemed to make some impres- 
 sion on the baron. 
 
 "You say," he resumed, after a pause, "that the 
 person referred to is dead?" 
 
 " Stenson affirms that it is so," 
 
 "And your" 
 
 "I doubt it." 
 
 "Perhaps Christian Waldo knows?" 
 
 "He knows nothing at all about it." 
 
 "You are certain of that?" 
 
 " I am certain." 
 
 "But you are trying to give me to understand that 
 this person is the same with — " 
 
 "I did not say that, your lordship." 
 
 "Then you are trying to say it and not to say it. 
 You wish to be paid in advance for information probably 
 chimerical." 
 
 "No, I, have only demanded your lordship's signature, 
 to be used in case you shall afterwards be satisfied with 
 what you receive from me." 
 
 "I never give my signature. If any one doubts me, 
 so much the worse for him." 
 
 " In til at case, your lordship, I will carry my secret 
 away with me again. He whom it concerns, at least as 
 much as it does yourself, shall have it for nothing." 
 
 Tebaldo was going resolutely out of the cabinet, 
 when the baron recalled him. These two men were 
 both secretly agitated, and for a similar cause : they 
 were afraid of each other. Before Guido had had time 
 to lay his hand upon the knob of the door, he said to 
 himself: "lam crazy; the baron will have me assas- 
 smated to secure my silence." Upon his side, the baron 
 reflected: "Perhaps he has already spoken; he alone 
 can tell me what I really have to fear." 
 
320 THE SNO W MAN. 
 
 "M. Tebaldo," said the baron, "suppose 1 should 
 tell you that I have known him longer than you imag 
 ine ? " 
 
 " I should be delighted on your account, your lord- 
 ship," answered the Italian, with audacity. 
 
 "This person is not dead. He is here — or at least 
 he was here yesterday. I saw him, and recognized him." 
 
 "Recognized him?" said Massarelli, with surprise. 
 
 "Yes, recognized. I know what I am saying. He 
 called himself by the name of Goefle, either with or 
 without the permission of a respectable gentleman of 
 that name. You can therefore speak freely. You see 
 that I am on the right track, and that it is simply pu- 
 erile to endeavor to direct my suspicions upon this moun- 
 tebank, Waldo." 
 
 The Italian, astonished, was silent. He had arrived 
 only that morning, and knew nothing of what had 
 passed the evening before. He had met M. Goefle, but 
 without knowing who he was. He could not speak 
 Swedish, and still less Dalercarlian ; and had found no one 
 to talk to except the major-domo, who could speak a 
 little French, but was very distrustful. Accordingly 
 he was perfectly ignorant of the appearance of Christian 
 Goefle at the ball, and really did not know what the 
 baron was speaking about. The latter, on seeing his 
 surprise and discomfiture, imagined that he was con- 
 founded, by finding him already in possession of the 
 truth. 
 
 "Come," he said, "speak out, and make an end of 
 it. Tell me the whole. You may rely upon a recom- 
 pense corresponding to the service which you may ren- 
 der me." 
 
 But the Italian had already recovered his assurance. 
 Persuaded that the baron was on a false scent, and 
 resolved not to surrender his secret for an inadequate 
 recompense, his only thouglit at present was to gain 
 time, and to escape from the clutches of this man who 
 was reputed so terrible, and who might play him an ill 
 turn in case of a peremptory refusal to explain himself. 
 
 "Is your lordship willing," he said, "to give me 
 
THE SNO W' MAN. 
 
 32] 
 
 twenty-four thousand crowns, and allow me twenty-four 
 hours to place in your presence, and within your power, 
 the person whom it is so much for your interest to 
 know?'* 
 
 ''Twenty-four thousand crowns is little," replied the 
 baron, ironically ; "twenty-four hours is a great deal." 
 
 "It is but little, for a man who is alone." 
 
 "Are you in want of assistance? I have very adroit 
 and trustworthy people in my employment." 
 
 "If I am to share the twenty-four thousand crowns 
 with them, I would rather act alone, at my own risk and 
 peril." 
 
 "But which is it that you propose to do.?" 
 
 "Whatever your lordship shall direct." 
 
 "Indeed ! You seem to be suggesting — ^*' 
 
 At this moment, the baron was interrupted by a sort 
 of scratching upon the outside of one of the doors of the 
 cabinet. 
 
 " Wait here for me," he said to Massarelli, and went 
 out into another room. 
 
 Guido now rapidly reviewed the situation. He was 
 terrified by the baron's calmness, and began to think that 
 correspondence would be a more prudent mode of trans- 
 acting the business. Hoping to escape, he crossed the 
 room, and tried the door by which he had entered. It 
 Vv^as shut and latched by some secret device, which he 
 could not detect, notwithstanding a certain degree of me- 
 chanical skill. He looked out of the window ; it was 
 eighty feet from the ground. 
 
 He noiselessly tried the door by which the baron had 
 gone out ; it was as close shut as the other. The desk 
 stood open, and within it was visible a delectable assem- 
 blage of rouleaux of gold. 
 
 " Ah ! " said Massareli to himself, with a sigh ; " the 
 doors must needs be strong, and the locks good, if they 
 trust me here alone with all those bright pieces." 
 
 His position began to seem to him serious, and even 
 alarming. He listened, hoping to catch what was said in 
 the next room, but could not distinguish a single word 
 
 21 
 
322 
 
 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 However, we shall take the liberty of reporting the con- 
 versation that was held there : 
 
 "Well, Johan," said the baron, "did you succeed? 
 Did you see this Waldo's face ? " 
 
 " Yes, your lordship. He is not yesterday's man ; he 
 is a monster." 
 
 " Worse looking than you? " 
 
 "I am a beauty compared with him." 
 
 " Did you have a good look at him? " 
 
 " As distinct as I have of you, at the present moment." 
 
 "Did you take him by surprise?" 
 
 " Not at all. I said I was curious to see him, and he 
 was so obliging as to unmask." 
 
 " And how about the other, the false Goefle?" 
 
 "No news." 
 
 " Very singular. Has nobody seen anything of him 
 anywhere ? " 
 
 " This Waldo did not meet him at StoUborg, and M. 
 Goefle knows nothing at all about him." 
 
 " Perhaps Ulphilas may have seen him?" 
 
 " Ulphilas declares that nobody has been at Stollborg 
 but M. Goefle, his domestic, and this frightful looking 
 fellow, whom I just now saw myself." 
 
 "M. Goefle has a domestic, has he? That is our un- 
 known in disguise." 
 
 "It's a child of ten years old." 
 
 "Then I am quite at a loss." 
 
 " Has your lordship received any information from this 
 ItaUan?" 
 
 " No ; he is either a liar or a lunatic. But in any 
 event, I must discover the incognito fellow who insulted 
 me. You say he smoked and talked with Major Larrson 
 and his friends?" 
 
 " Yes, in the lower saloon." 
 
 "Then those young men are hiding him ; he is at the 
 major's bostoelle ! " 
 
 " I will have it watched. The major is not the man to 
 keep a secret, with that careless way of his. He came 
 here this morning, and has not been home to-day. His 
 lieutenant — " 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 323 
 
 *' Is au ass ! But these young people hate me." 
 
 " What have you to fear from this unknown ? " 
 
 "Everything, and nothing. What do you think of 
 thisTebaldo?" 
 
 " A blackguard." 
 
 " Then we must not let go of him. You understand.^ ' 
 
 "Perfectly." 
 
 " How far are they with supper? " 
 
 " The dessert will be served shortly." 
 
 " I must go and show myself. Give orders to get out 
 my handsomest sleigh and the best four-horse team." 
 
 "Do you join the race on the lake?" 
 
 " No ; on the contrary, I shall try and rest. But I 
 want the people here to think me remarkably well ; I shall 
 be detained by public business. Have a courier all ready 
 and booted, and be sure that he is seen. Give orders 
 and counter-orders about him. Let it be supposed that 
 I am very busy, and, of course, in good health." 
 
 " Then you want your beloved heirs to burst with 
 vexation ? " 
 
 " I want to bury them, Johan." 
 
 " Amen, my dear master ! Shall I wait on you as far 
 as the supper-room?" 
 
 "No, I like to go silently and take my company by 
 surprise ; just now, especially." 
 
 The baron accordingly departed for the supper-room, 
 and Johan went into the cabinet, where Massarelli, who 
 was waiting with great anxiety, found the time pass 
 very slowly. 
 
 " Come, my boy," said Johan, with his most gracious 
 air, " it's supper-time." 
 
 " But — am I not to see the baron again this evening? 
 He told me to wait here." 
 
 "He sends you word by me to have a quiet supper, 
 and wait for further orders. Do you suppose you are the 
 only person he has to listen to ? Come along. Are you 
 afraid of me? Do I look like a bad sort of fellow? " 
 
 " You do, upon my word," said Guido to himself, as 
 he slipped a stiletto, which he knew how to handle verj^ 
 skilfully, into his sleeve. 
 
324 
 
 THE SNO W MAN, 
 
 Johan espied the performance, and hurried out of tha 
 room. Guido endeavored to follow, but he was seized by 
 two colossal fellows, who were stationed at the door, and 
 who led him, with a pistol at his head, to the prison of 
 the chateau. There he was searched and disarmed, and 
 then handed over to the guardian of the place, a sort of 
 bravo and adventurer, in short a professional villain, who 
 was known in the chateau as "the captain," but who 
 never made his appearance in the saloons. 
 
 Johan, who had followed, supervised the examination 
 tliat was made of Guido's pockets and clothes with a be- 
 nign air. When certain that he had no papers concealed 
 about him, he withdrew, saying : 
 
 " Good-night, my young friend. Next time, don't try 
 any tricks." 
 
 He added to himself: 
 
 "He said he had the proofs of a great secret. Either 
 he has lied like an idiot, or he has been cautious, like 
 a man that understands business ; but he was not cautious 
 enough. So much the worse for him. A small dose of 
 imprisonment will fetch either the proofs or the con- 
 fession." 
 
 Meanwhile the baron, although in great physical pain, 
 quietly entered the supper-room, ate a little with an air 
 of appetite, and was as gay as it was in his nature to be. 
 That is, he stated, with an icy smile, sundry propositions 
 of a frightfully atheistical kind, and indulged in various 
 odious and cruel insinuations about sundry persons who 
 were absent. 
 
 When calumniating his neighbors, it was the practice 
 of this amiable gentleman to speak in a low voice, and 
 with an air of indifference ; but, on such occasions, his 
 heirs and flatterers were only too ready to repeat his 
 witty sayings with much nois* and laughter. As was 
 natural, many persons present Would/ be- shocked by these 
 remarks ; but, by accepting^ t^' ;ir host's invitation, they 
 had put it out of their powei* to contradict him boldly, 
 and such timid defence of the absent as they Ventured 
 upon only served, as a matter of course, to make their 
 case the worse. The baron %ould repeat his remarks 
 
THE SNOW MAN, 325 
 
 with an air of disdainful bravado, and would be eagerly 
 sustained by his satellites. Those of his guests who were 
 really right-minded could only sigh and blush at their own 
 weakness in having allowed themselves to be dragged into 
 such an ogre's den. But the master of the house never 
 protracted any discussion. After hurling some bitter sar- 
 casm at good-natured and timid people, he would rise and 
 go out, leaving it quite uncertain as to whether or not he 
 intended to return. A universal sense of constraint would 
 prevail, until it became evident that he was not going to 
 return, and then everybody would take breath, even his 
 most unscrupulous dependents, who were quite as uneasy 
 in his presence as the rest of the company. 
 
 On this evening, however. Baron Olaus lost a good op- 
 portunity of revenging himself, and inflicting pain upon 
 auotlier. Had he known of Margaret's two visits to StoU- 
 borg, he would not have failed to proclaim the fact in 
 some bitterly satirical way. Fortunately, Providence had 
 guarded the young girl's innocent secret. Her enemy, 
 who would have read in her conduct conclusive proofs 
 that the counterfeit Goefle was at Stollborg, had not re- 
 ceived the slightest hint on the subject. Johau had 
 caused Ulpliilas to be closely questioned about all the per- 
 sons who had visited the old tower in the course of the 
 day ; but Ulpliilas had not seen Margaret, and he had a 
 sufficient reason for making a singularly appropriate reply 
 to all inquiries about Christian's appearance ; to wit, the 
 terror with which he had been inspired by the young 
 man's grimaces and threats in an unknown tongue. To 
 Ulphilas he had appeared even more frightful without a 
 mask than he had seemed to Johan with one ; the asser- 
 tions of the boor satisfied the major-domo that his opin- 
 ion was correct, and le4 him to confirm the baron in his 
 error. The result of t?^e investigation was, therefore, 
 that the handsome Christian Goefle had disappeared, and 
 that the real Christian W^ldo was a monster. 
 
 The baron communicated this latter piece of intelligence 
 to the party at the supper-table with a kind of satisfaction ; 
 for, just as he came in, they were praising the artist, and 
 
326 
 
 THE SNOW MAN, 
 
 he found a certain pleasure in dissipating an agreeable 
 
 illusion. 
 
 " You ought not to spoil his beauty in the eyes of 
 Countess Margaret, baron," said Olga, " she was enthu- 
 siastic over his delivery, and now I wager anything that 
 she will not take the least pleasure in listening to him." 
 
 Margaret, who was seated near Olga and the baron, 
 pretended not to hear, so that she need not be obliged to 
 answer, in case the latter should seek to enter into conver- 
 sation with her, as he had already tried in vain to do sev- 
 eral times since the previous evening. 
 
 " You think, then," resumed the baron, still addressing 
 Olga/ but speaking quite loud, "that Countess Mar- 
 garet would not be touched by a lover's plea, unless it 
 should be urged by a young and handsome man." 
 
 " I am sure of it," answered Olga, lowering her voice , 
 " and no man is handsome, in her eyes, who is more than 
 twenty-five years old." 
 
 Olga intended this as a delicate compliment to her 
 semi-centennial intended, but he wag not in a good hu- 
 mor, and the arrow missed aim. 
 
 " She is probably quite right," he replied, so low that 
 no one but the young Russian could hear him ; " the longer 
 one lives after that fortunate age the more one loses one's 
 good looks, and the less can he expect to marry for love." 
 
 " True," said Olga, " if he does lose his good looks, 
 but — " 
 
 " But even if he does not become altogether horrMe,'* 
 persisted the baron, "he will still be fortunate, if he is 
 able to contract a sensible marriage." 
 
 Olga was about to reply, but he closed her mouth by 
 adding : 
 
 " Do not find fault with that poor child. She has one 
 great merit in my eyes — she is sincere. When she hates 
 people she shows it so frankly, that the fortunate man who 
 shall succeed in pleasing her may trust her completely. 
 She is a person who will never deceive." 
 
 Olga had no opportunity to reply, for the baron turned 
 away and began talking to some one else. 
 
 The young Kussian was extremely irritated, and very 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 327 
 
 much disquieted. When they arose from the table, Mar- 
 garet, who was equally anxious, though from a very dif- 
 ferent cause, approached her. 
 
 ''What was the baron saying?" she asked, drawing 
 her aside ; "he was talking about me, I know, for he 
 was looking straight at me for two or three minutes." 
 
 "You only fancied so," answered Olga, dryly; "he 
 does not think of you at all any more." 
 
 " Ah ! I wish I could be sure of it. Tell me the 
 truth, dear. Is it so?" 
 
 " Your anxiety, Margaret, is not very delicate, allow 
 me to say. You think that, in spite of your severity to 
 him, he still adores you." 
 
 " Very well, why not?" asked Margaret, resolving to 
 pique her companion for the sake of getting at the truth ; 
 "perhaps I shall succeed in supplanting you, in despite 
 of myself, exactly by being severe ! " 
 
 A flash of wounded vanity gleamed in the eyes of the 
 pretty Russian. 
 
 " Margaret," she said, '^you want war, and you shall 
 have it. Here, take back your present ! You gave me a 
 handsome bracelet, but I don't want it any longer. Here 
 is a ring that is much handsomer." 
 
 She drew a box from her pocket, which she opened ; it 
 contained two ornaments — Margaret's bracelet and the 
 baron's ring. 
 
 " The black diamond ! " cried Margaret, shrinking back 
 in terror. " What ! are you not afraid to touch it? " 
 
 But before Olga could reply, she recovered herself: 
 
 "No matter, no matter," she said, embracing her, "I 
 decline war, dear friend, and I really thank you, with all 
 my heart, for showing me your engagement-ring. Keep 
 the bracelet, I beg of you ; be assured of my thanks and 
 my friendship." 
 
 Olga burst into tears. 
 
 " Margaret," she said, " if you betray me I am ru- 
 ined. I swore to keep my engagement secret for eight 
 days ; and if the baron suspects that I have failed in my 
 word — and he will, if you show how glad you are— he 
 
328 
 
 THE SNOW MAN, 
 
 will break it off, and begin to think of you again — espe< 
 cially since he has never ceased to do so." 
 
 "And that is what you are crying for? Why then, 
 you love him, do you not ? Well, my dear friend, how- 
 ever strange your preference seems to me, it sets you 
 right, in my opinion. I thought that you were merely 
 ambitious. If you love, I love you — and I am sorry for 
 you ! " 
 
 "Ah I" said Olga, "you are sorry for me, are you 
 not?" 
 
 Drawing Margaret to the end of the gallery, she sobbed 
 upon her shoulder, and could scarcely keep from breaking 
 out into violent hysterical cries. Margaret carried her 
 away to her own room, where, after a time, she quieted her. 
 
 " There, I am well again now," said Olga, rising ; " I 
 have had two or three such attacks since yesterday, but 
 this is the last ; I feel it. I have made up my mind ; I in- 
 tend to be calm. I can trust you, and I will not be weak, 
 I will not be afraid, I will not suffer any longer." 
 
 She took the ring from her pocket, put it on her finger, 
 and turned pale again as she gazed upon it, with a melan- 
 choly expression. Then, taking it off, she said : 
 
 " I must not wear it yet." 
 
 And she replaced it in the box, and in her pocket. 
 
 Margaret left her without understanding what was 
 really passing in her mind. This strange passion for a man 
 of the baron's age and character seemed to her inexplicable, 
 but she was so generous and so simple-hearted that she 
 believed in it ; while the truth was that Olga, seized with a 
 sudden hatred for her betrothed husband, and disgust at 
 her betrothal ring, was struggling against what she called 
 her human weakness — was trying hard to quell the revolt 
 of her heart, her mind, her whole being, so that she might 
 consummate, without shrinking, her unhappy and dan- 
 gerous conquest of a great name and a high social position. 
 
 During this scene the baron had been giving orders for 
 the race and masquerade, as if he had expected to be 
 present at them himself. But, having done this, he left 
 his guests to make their preparations for the evening's en« 
 tertainment, and retired to his own room, worn out with 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 329 
 
 fatigue and pain. In the meanwhile his horses, magni- 
 ficently harnessed, and restrained with difficulty by the 
 coachman, who pretended to be waiting for his master, 
 were gayly prancing before his private door. 
 
 He was, in fact, shut up with his physician, a young 
 man of larger attainments than experience, who, for a 
 year past, had been attached exclusively to his service. 
 
 " Doctor," said he, putting aside a dose which the 
 young man offered him in a timid and apprehensive man- 
 ner, "you are not treating me properly! More opium, 
 I'll venture ! " 
 
 " Your lordship requires quieting medicines ; your nerv- 
 ous system is in a state of extreme agitation." 
 
 "By Jove ! I know that perfectly well ; but pray soothe 
 without weakening me. Relieve me from this convul- 
 sive tremor, but do not deprive me of my strength." 
 
 The sick man was demanding an impossibility, but the 
 physician dared not tell him so. 
 
 " I am in hopes," he said, " that this draught will quiet 
 without enfeebling you." 
 
 "Well, but will it act quickly? I want to sleep two 
 or three hours, and then get up and attend to some busi- 
 ness. Can you guarantee that I shall regain my usual 
 command of my faculties in the course of the night?" 
 
 "Your lordship is driving me to despair! Do you 
 propose to go to work again to-night after yesterday's at- 
 tack, and to-day's? You cannot go on in that way." 
 
 "But have I not an uncommon constitution? And 
 have you not told me a hundred times that you would cure 
 me ? Have you been deceiving me ? Are you making 
 sport of me ? " 
 
 "Ah!" replied the physician, with a distressed ex- 
 pression, "you surely could not believe such a th'ng ! " 
 
 " Well, well, give me the draught. Will it act at once ? '* 
 
 "In a quarter of an hour, provided you do not destroy 
 its effect by your agitation." 
 
 " Give me my watch. There, put it by my side. I 
 want to see if you are sure of the effects of your own 
 drugs." 
 
330 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 The baron drank off the potion, seated himself in hia 
 great arm-chair, and rang for his valet-de-chambre. 
 
 " Go and find Major Larrson," he said, " and say to 
 him from me that I beg him to superintend the race. He 
 understands about such matters better than any one else." 
 
 The valet went out, but the baron recalled him al- 
 most instantly. 
 
 "Tell Johan to go to bed and to sleep. I shall want 
 him at three o'clock in the morning. Let him come him- 
 self, and wake me up. Go now — no, wait, I am to hunt 
 to-morrow. Is everything ready? Yes.'' Very good. 
 Now you may go." 
 
 The valet really went this time ; and the young phy- 
 sician, who was very much agitated, remained alone with 
 his patient. 
 
 " Your draught has no effect at all," said the latter, 
 impatiently. " I ought to have been asleep by this 
 time." 
 
 " If your lordship will persist in tormenting yourself 
 about a thousand and one details — " 
 
 " The devil ! my dear sir, if I were not obliged to tor- 
 ment myself, I should not need a physician. Come, 
 take a seat. Let us have a little quiet conversation." 
 
 " If, instead of talking, your lordship would reflect 
 quietly." 
 
 "Reflect! I reflect a great deal too much as it is. 
 It is that that makes me so feverish. No, no, let us talk, 
 as we did last night. I fell asleep, you know, talking. 
 You are aware, doctor, that I have resolved definitely to 
 marry ? " 
 
 "That pretty Countess Margaret?" 
 
 " Not at all ; she's a little fool. I am going to marry 
 the stately Olga. I mean to have some Russian children." 
 
 "They will be handsome, that is certain." 
 
 " Yes, if my wife has good taste ; for I don't believe 
 one word of your flatteries, doctor. My wife will not be 
 faithful to me. What difference does it make, provided 
 that I have an heir ; provided all my hopeful relations, 
 cousins and second cousins, are baffled and infuriated. 
 Doctor, I insist upon living long enough to see that ; do 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 331 
 
 you understand? Now see to it; — rememl»er I don't 
 bequeath you a single ducat. I shall pay you exor- 
 bitantly as long as I live, so as to make it your interest to 
 do well by me ; but that is all. As for my wife, I shall 
 treat her in the same way. During my life, she shall 
 have all the luxury, all the jewels she wants, and more 
 and more every year. After my death, unless she has 
 saved something, she will have nothing at all ; I won't 
 leave her even the guardianship of her own child. Far 
 from it ; I don't want to be poisoned." 
 
 " You are feeding your mind on gloomy ideas, your 
 lordship ; that's a bad diet." 
 
 " What nonsense that is, doctor ! It is as if you 
 should tell me that I did wrong to have too much bile in 
 my liver. Is it my fault?" 
 
 "But can't you force yourself to dwell on cheerful 
 ideas ? There's that comedy of marionettes, for instance. 
 It was very amusing." 
 
 "Think about a set of puppets? Do you want to 
 turn me into an idiot?" 
 
 " For the time being, certainly, if I could quiet down 
 the fire of your thoughts — " 
 
 "No compliments about my intellect, I beg you. I 
 am conscious that it is failing, decidedly." 
 
 "Your lordship is the only one who perceives it." 
 
 The baron shrugged his shoulders, yawned, and was 
 sileut for a few minutes. His eyes seemed to grow larger, 
 the pupils dilated, and his lower lip drooped a little. 
 Sleep was approaching. 
 
 Suddenly he started up, and pointed to the wall. 
 
 "There it is again," he cried, "just as it was yester- 
 day ! It was a man at first, and then the face changed — 
 Thare, she is looking out of the window — she bends 
 over — run, run, doctor ! They have deceived me! be- 
 trayed me ! I have been fooled like a child — A child ? 
 No, there was no child ! — " 
 
 By this time he was wide awake, and sitting down 
 again, he added, with a gloomy smile : 
 
 "It was in Christian Waldo's comedy; — a juggler's 
 
332 THE SNOW MAN, 
 
 trick ! You see, doctor, I am thinking about the puppets, 
 as you wished. I feel heavy — do not leave me." 
 
 And even as he spoke, the baron fell asleep, with his 
 eyes open like a corpse. 
 
 In a few moments, his eyelids relaxed and then closed. 
 The doctor felt his pulse. It was too full and heavy. 
 In his opinion the patient ought to be bled, but how 
 could he induce him to allow it? 
 
 " A thankless, odious, impossible task to be keeping 
 this man alive, in spite of heaven and himself!" Thus 
 reflected the poor doctor. "Either he has constant at- 
 tacks of insanity, or else he is tormented by remorse. I 
 feel as if I should go crazy myself from being with him ; 
 the terrors of his iniagination seize upon me, too, as if 
 I were becoming the accomplice of some crime, by try- 
 ing to save his life ! " 
 
 But the young man had a mother, and a betrothed 
 sweetheart ; and as a few years of lucrative employment 
 would enable him to marry the one, and save the other 
 from poverty, he had consented to be nailed to this 
 corpse, incessantly galvanized into a seeming life by the 
 resources of his art. Sometimes he was full of devotion 
 to his task, and again felt so broken down with fatigue 
 and disgust, that he scarcely knew whether he would pre- 
 fer to have his patient die or recover. The young man 
 was of a kindly disposition and an excellent heart. This 
 constant intercourse with an atheist was freezing him ; 
 and he had not even the privilege of defending his opinions, 
 for contradiction irritated the patient. He was sociable 
 and cheerful, while the sick man, under his outward 
 habit of sour and cynical raillery, was gloomy and mis- 
 anthropic. 
 
 While the baron lay there asleep, moreover, the pleas- 
 ures of the night were under full headway. The sounds 
 of fireworks and music, the barking of the dogs roused 
 out of their kennels by the stamping of the horses that 
 were being harnessed, the laughter of the ladies in the 
 corridors of the chateau, the gleaming lights that could 
 be seen moving upon the lake, everything that was going 
 on outside of the silent and gloomy chamber where the 
 
THE SNOW MAN, 333 
 
 sick mail, immovable and livid, lay in heavy slumber, in- 
 tensified the young man's sense of isolation and servitude. 
 
 The Countess d'Elveda, in the meanwhile, was ab- 
 sorbed in conspiring with the Russian ambassador against 
 the nationality of Sweden ; while the cousins and second 
 cousins of the baron were keeping watch upon the door 
 of his apartments. 
 
 "He will go," they whispered to each other ; "no, he 
 will not be able. He is more ill than he will confess. 
 He is better than people think." 
 
 How were they to ascertain ? The servants, perfectly 
 devoted to the absolute will of this master, who paid well, 
 and punished well too — for in Sweden, servants at this 
 period were still liable to corporal punishment — invari- 
 ably replied, when questioned, that the baron had never 
 been better. And as for the doctor, the baron, on en- 
 gaging him, had required him to give his word of honor 
 that he would never reveal the serious nature of his malady. 
 
 As the reader has already been told, the baron, to ac- 
 count for his frequent disappearances from his entertain- 
 ments, had caused it to be generally understood that he 
 was always liable to be called away by some one or other 
 of his numerous and important engagements. This was, 
 moreover, to a certain extent true ; he was accustomed 
 to supervise the details of the political intrigues in which 
 he was concerned ; and his private affairs were embar- 
 rassed with the lawsuits to which his restless disposition 
 and despotic claims were constantly giving rise. Now, 
 however, superadded to all these causes of excitement, 
 was a strange trouble, indistinct as yet, but which pro- 
 duced more effect upon his bodily health than all his 
 ordinary annoyances together. Forgotten suspicions, ap- 
 prehensions long ago quieted, had been reawakened in 
 his mind since the ball of the evening before, and still 
 more since the exhibition of marionettes. The result 
 had been one of the nervous attacks to which he was 
 liable, whose effect was to distort his mouth, and give a 
 distinct cast to one of his eyes. As he was very vain of 
 lis beauty — his face, although wasted, was still noble 
 and regular — especially at the present time, when he 
 
334 
 
 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 was proposing to be married, he had shut himself up as 
 much as possible since this disfiguration came on, and 
 was receiving medical treatment, to carry him through 
 the attack as rapidly as possible. 
 
 As soon as he awoke from his slumber, his first care 
 was to look in a glass which was placed near him. 
 Pleased to find that he had recovered his natural expres- 
 sion, he said to the physician : 
 
 "Come, there's another one over! I feel as if I had 
 slept well. Did I dream, doctor ? " 
 
 "No," replied the young man, but with some embar- 
 rassment at the falsehood he was telling. 
 
 "You don't say that very frankly," answered the 
 baron. "Now, if I talked in my sleep, you must tell me 
 exactly what I said. You know I insist upon it." 
 
 "You only uttered disconnected words, without mean- 
 ing. They did not indicate any distinct thoughts." 
 
 "Then your prescriptions must really be having a 
 good effect. The physician whom I employed formerly, 
 used to tell me my dreams. They were strange enough 
 — frightful ! I seem to have none now but insignificant 
 ones." 
 
 "Are you not aware of it yourself, your lordship? 
 Don't you feel less fatigued on waking than formerly ? " 
 
 "No, I can't say that I do." 
 
 "That will come in time." 
 
 "I hope so! Now, doctor, you may leave me, if 
 you please; you can go to bed. If I need you, I^will 
 send and have you waked up. I feel as if I could sleep 
 a while longer. Send me my valet-de-chambre ; I will 
 try and get into bed." 
 
 " My predecessor," said the young doctor to himself, 
 as he went out, "heard too much, and repeated too freely 
 what he heard. The baron, in consequence, was 
 ofilinded ; they quarrelled, and the doctor was perse- 
 cuted, until he had to leave the country. A good lesson 
 to me ! " 
 
 Christian, meanwhile, had rejoined M. Goefle, at 
 Stollborg. The doctor of laws was in great triumj»h. 
 He had forced the lock of one of the great wardrobes in 
 
THE SNOW MAN, 335 
 
 tlie guard-room, and had found some feminine garments, 
 wliich were quite magnificent. 
 
 "These things," he said to Christian, "must cer- 
 tainly be a remnant of the wardrobe of the Baroness 
 Hilda ; either forgotten, or religiously preserved by Sten- 
 son. They will do nicely for costumes, they are so 
 thoroughly old-fashioned. They belong twenty years 
 back, at least. See if you can't get into one of them. 
 The baroness was tall, and it's no harm if your dress 
 should be a little short. I mean to contrive a sultan's 
 dress for myself, with my pelisse and a turban of some 
 kind. You can help me get one up. Christian ; you are 
 an artist. Every artist must know how to make a 
 turban." 
 
 Christian was not at all intoxicated, and tlie burgla- 
 rious performance of M. Goefle rather disturbed him. 
 
 "People are always accusing persons in my line ot 
 such things," he said, "and generally with some rea- 
 son. You will see that this will make me trouble." 
 
 "Bah! bah! I am here," cried M. Goefle; "I will 
 take all the responsibility. Come, Christian, put on this 
 dress ! Try it, at any rate ! " 
 
 "My dear M. Goefle," said Christian, "just let me 
 swallow something or other, no matter what ; I am dying 
 of hunger." 
 
 " Sure enough ! But be quick." 
 
 "Besides," said Christian, who, standing as he was, be- 
 gan at the same time to eat his supper and to examine the 
 clothes that were displayed before him, " I don't know 
 how it is, but I feel a sort of reluctance to touch those 
 old relics. The fate of that poor Baroness Hilda was 
 such a sad one ! Do you know that I have been growing 
 more and more suspicious about the manner of her 
 death?" 
 
 "Go to the devil!" answered M. Goefle. "I am not 
 in the mood for fiojurinff over all those old stories now. I 
 want to laugh and fly about. Come, come. Christian, 
 to work ! let those melancholy notions go over until 
 to-morrow. See — put on this polonaise dress ; it*? 
 
336 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 splendid. If you can only get your shoulders through 
 it, the rest will come right of itself." 
 
 "I don't believe I can," said Christian, as he put his 
 hand into one of the pockets. " But what a little hand 
 she must have had, to go into such a small place as that." 
 
 " And you as well, it seems ! " 
 
 ''Yes, but I can't draw mine out again. Stay, what's 
 this ! Why, a note ! " 
 
 "Let's see, let's see !" cried the doctor of laws ; "that 
 must be very curious ! " 
 
 "No," said Christian, "we ought not to read it." 
 
 "Why not?" 
 
 "I don't know — it seems like a profanation." 
 
 "In that case, I have been guilty of a great many— 
 it's part of my trade to rummage secret family archives." 
 
 And M. Goefle seized the old yellow paper, and read 
 as follows : 
 
 "My dearly beloved Hilda: 
 
 "I have just reached Stockholm, and find the 
 Count de Rosenstein here. I shall not be obliged, there- 
 fore, to go on to Colmar, and shall set out on my return 
 on the 10th instant, to embrace you again, and comfort 
 you, and take care of you, and to indulge with you in 
 new dreams of happiness, since God has once more 
 blessed our union. I send you this by express, to put 
 you at ease about my journey, which was not all un- 
 pleasant, though so fatiguing that I congratulated my- 
 self more than once upon my prudence in not bringing 
 you with me, in the situation in which you are. As far 
 as to Falun, I had to ride on horseback the whole way. 
 Farewell, then, my love, until the 15th or 16th, at latest. 
 We shall have no lawsuit with Rosenstein ; it will be all 
 arranged. 
 
 "I love you. 
 
 "Adelstan DE Waldemora." 
 
 " M. Goefle," said Christian to the lawyer, who was 
 silently refolding the dress, "does it not seem to you 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 33^ 
 
 horribly sad to find this letter of love and conjugal hap- 
 piness among the clothes of this dead lady?" 
 
 "It is melancholy ! " replied M. Goefle, taking off his 
 spectacles and his extempore turban. "And so very 
 strange ! Do you know that this letter has set me to 
 thinking? But the poor baroness was mistaken; she 
 was not pregnant, for she made a voluntary declaration 
 to that effect ; Stenson told me so to-day. He was 
 present when she signed it. But let's see the date of 
 that letter." 
 
 M. Goefle replaced his spectacles, and read : " Stock- 
 holm, 5th March, 1746." 
 
 "Yes," he continued, " that agrees, if I remember 
 right. Pshaw ! That story is too sad for a man who 
 wants to amuse himself. But I will keep the note, how- 
 ever ; it might suggest something. I will examine my 
 father's papers again. But come. Christian, have you 
 given up the idea of disguising yourself?" 
 
 "With those old clothes that smell of the grave? Yes 
 indeed! they have chilled me to the marrow of my 
 bones. She was virtuous, cultivated and beautiful, you 
 told me this morning ; the pearl of Dalecarlia ! And 
 she died quite young, did she not ? " 
 
 "At twenty-five or twenty-six ; about ten months after 
 the date of this note: it was in March, 1746, that 
 Baron Adelstan was assassinated. These are probably 
 the last Avords he ever wrote to his wife, and probably 
 that is the reason she carried the letter in her pocket 
 until her death." 
 
 "How unfortunate she was!" said Christian. "A 
 youug wife, a young mother, suddenly left a widow and 
 childless ; and then to die a victim to the baron's ha- 
 tred—" 
 
 "Oh, there is no proof whatever of that! But hark 
 to the firing ! The race is beginning, and here we are 
 talking over matters that have no interest for anybody, 
 and which, after all, are none of our business. If you. 
 feel melancholy this evening, my boy, stay at home ; 
 for my part, I want to run about. I must get out intc 
 the air. I have done too much dreaming to-day." 
 
 22 
 
338 
 
 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 Christian would really have preferred to remain at 
 home, but M. Goefle was so excited that he was rather 
 afraid to let him go alone ; so he said : 
 
 " Come, let us give up the disguises. It will not do 
 for us to be seen together with our faces uncovered, so 
 let us both go masked. You shall be Christian Waldo, 
 as you are the best di-essed ; and as I have been taken 
 ibr my assistant once already to-night, I will be Puffo." 
 
 "Very well imagined!" cried M. Goefle. ''Come 
 along ! By the way, we will leave the light burning for 
 Master Nils ; he may wake up, and then he will be 
 frightened, and perhaps hungry. I will leave a leg of 
 chicken here under his nose." 
 
 " Little Nils ! Is he here again ? " 
 
 " Why yes, certainly ! The first thing I did, on return- 
 ing, was to go and hunt him up in the stable, bring him 
 in here, undress him, and put him to bed. The young 
 monkey would have frozen before morning, out in that 
 straw." 
 
 " Had he come to his senses at all?" 
 
 " Oh, perfectly ; at least enough to complain that 1 
 troubled him dreadfully, and to grumble while I was put- 
 ting him to bed." 
 
 '' And where can Puffo be? I did not see him in the 
 stable when I put Jean in there again." 
 
 " I did not see him, either ; he must have gone to get 
 drunk again with Ulphilas. Well, much good may it do 
 them ! It is almost midnight ; let us go. You will help 
 me harness my horse. Ah ! you may be sure that my 
 good Loki will not come in last." 
 
 " But will they not recognize you from your horse and 
 sleigh?" 
 
 " No, there's nothing particular about the sleigh. It is 
 true that I bought the horse in this neighborhood only last 
 year ; but we will cover him up with his travelling-cloth." 
 
 The goal selected for the race proposed by the baron, 
 and intrusted to the superintendence of Major Larrson, 
 was the hogar which stood at the further end of the lake, 
 about half a league from Stollborg and the new chateau. 
 These two buildings, as we have said, were quite near 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 339 
 
 each other, the oue being built on an island not far from 
 the shore, and the other on the shore itself. A hogar is 
 a tumulus, or mound, such as are supposed to have been 
 used as burial-places by the ancient Scandinavian chiefs. 
 They are usually round, and very steep. The top is flat, 
 and formerly, it is said, platforms were erected upon 
 them, where the barbarian kings pronounced judgment, 
 using them as courts of justice. They are met with 
 in all parts of Sweden, and, indeed, are exceedingly 
 numerous. 
 
 The one at which the race was to terminate presented 
 a fantastic appearance; it had been crowned with a 
 triple row of torches of resin, and through their dark 
 red flames, and clouds of smoke, a gigantic white figure 
 was visible, towering on high. This was a statue of 
 snow, formless and cplossal, which the peasants had built 
 up during the day, by order of the baron. Knowing per- 
 fectly well the surname that had been conferred upon him, 
 he had banteringly promised the ladies to show them, by 
 way of a surprise, a portrait of himself upon the top of 
 the mound. The rudeness of the work harjnonized with 
 the savage features of the landscape, and recalled the idols 
 of former ages, with their large heads and short rough gar- 
 ments, which, according to tradition, represented Thor, 
 the Scandinavian Jupiter, holding the terrible hammer 
 above his crowned head. 
 
 This white colossus, seeming to float up in the air, had 
 a very impressive effect, and no one regretted having ven- 
 tured out into the cold night air to enjoy so strange a 
 spectacle. There was an aurora borealis, pale, and con- 
 tending with the light of the moon ; but the alternations 
 of color, and the waves of rising and falling light, which 
 characterize this phenomenon, gave the landscape a 
 shifting uncertainty of outline, and cast over it a chang- 
 ing play of lights and shadows which it is impossible to 
 describe. Christian fancied that he was dreaming ; and 
 he repeated over and over again to M, Goefle that this 
 strange scenery, notwithstanding the inclemency of the 
 climate, appealed to his imagination more powerfully than 
 anything he had seen in all his travels. 
 
340 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 The exercises of the race had already begun when oui 
 two friends joined the party, and they drove along the 
 flank of the other vehicles, so as not to interfere with their 
 prearranged order. The ice had been carefully exam- 
 ined, and the road, marked out by colossal torches, 
 wound past the points of rock and islets covered with 
 pines and birch-trees, which dotted the surface of the 
 lake. A phalanx of richly-ornamented sleighs, four 
 abreast, flew along the course like arrows ; the skill of the 
 drivers, and the perfect training of the horses, maintain- 
 ing them at exactly the same distance from each other. 
 
 Towards the shore where the hogar stood the lake was 
 deeper than elsewhere, and presented a broad expanse, 
 perfectly level and unobstructed. On reaching this, all 
 the sleighs came to a halt in a semicircle, and the young 
 people who were to compete for the prize took their places 
 in a line, ready for the signal. The ladies, and older gen- 
 tlemen, left their vehicles, and ascended a little island, pre- 
 pared for the purpose by being thickly laid with pine boughs, 
 where they would be able to behold and judge the prowess 
 of the competing parties without danger of freezing their 
 feet. A great fire, built upon the rocks behind the nat- 
 ural gallery where the audience was thus assembled, cast 
 a powerful red glow over the whole scene. 
 
 The picture presented by the assembled company was 
 not less strange than the landscape which served as its 
 frame. Everybody wore masks, and found them a com- 
 fortable defence against the coldness of the air. For a 
 similar reason, all the costumes were heavy, and well 
 furred ; but this did not prevent a great display of gold, 
 embroidery, and glittering weapons. The racers were 
 plainly visible in their light, uncovered sleighs, which repre- 
 sented fantastic images of different animals : gigantic silver 
 swans with red beaks, dolphins of green and gold, fishes 
 with tails curved over their backs, and so on. Major Larr- 
 son was mounted on a frightful dragon, and was himself 
 disguised as a monster, crowned with glittering thunder- 
 bolts. The judges who were to award the prize could be 
 seen moving to and fro on the top of the hogar, costumed 
 as antique warriors with winged helmets, or with hoods 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 3^1 
 
 having a horn over each ear, as Odin is represented in his 
 costume of ceremony ; that is to say, in all the splendor 
 of his divinity. 
 
 Christian tried to recognize Margaret among the ladies, 
 who were disguised as sibyls, or barbarian queens. He 
 could not succeed ; and from that moment the whole 
 ceremonial, without losing its brilliancy, lost all interest 
 for him, except as a mere spectacle. M. Goefle, how- 
 ever, who did not feel the same disappointment, continued 
 very much excited. 
 
 •' Christian," he cried, " in spite of our costumes, which 
 are no costumes, and our sleigh, which is only a sleigh, 
 why should we not take a place in the line ? Because my 
 brave Loki has no plumes, nor stuffed birds, nor horns on 
 his head, will that make his legs any the worse } " 
 
 " That is for you to say, doctor," replied Christian ; 
 " you know him ; you can tell whether he will cover us 
 with glory or with shame." 
 
 " It will be with glory ; I know it." 
 
 " Go on, then." 
 
 "But the poor fellow will be tired. He will get 
 heated, and God only knows whether he will not have 
 inflammation of the lungs ! " 
 
 " Don't go, then." 
 
 '' The devil take your indifference. Christian ! For my 
 part, my hands are burning to try it." 
 
 " Try it, then ! " 
 
 " But for a sensible man like me to run his horse's legs 
 off, just to beat a parcel of boys ! It's absurd. Christian, 
 isn't it?" 
 
 " It is, if you think so ; it all depends upon the degree 
 of intoxication with which we go into such amusements." 
 
 "We'll go ! " exclaimed M. Goefle ; " to resist the sug- 
 gestions of intoxication is to be reasonable ; that is, to be 
 stupid. Get up, Loki ! " 
 
 "Wait!" cried Christian, jumping out of the sleigh. 
 " Let me take off his head-cover. How can he run with 
 his nose muffled up like that? " 
 
 "Very true, Christian; thank you, my boy, but be 
 quick ! they are all ready." 
 
342 THE SNOW MAN, 
 
 Scarcely had the doctor of laws spoken before a fire- 
 work, placed upon another islet at the rear of the course, 
 went off with a formidable noise. It was the signal for 
 starting. 
 
 " Go on ! go on !" cried Christian to M. Goefle, who 
 would have held in Loki until the young man had resumed 
 his seat ; " you are losing time ! " 
 
 He encouraged the horse, who set off at the top of his 
 speed, while Christian remained with the head-cover in 
 his hand, watching the career of the advocate and his 
 faithful Loki. He did not look after them very long, 
 however. As he moved a little to one side to get out of 
 the way of the remaining horses, who, excited by the fire- 
 works and the example of their companions who had joined 
 in the race, were stepping about in a very lively way, he 
 found himself close to a blue and silver sleigh, which he rec- 
 ognized as Margaret's. This light vehicle was modelled 
 in the spreading shape of a carriage-body of the time of 
 Louis XV., and was mounted, or rather set down upon 
 runners, so that it was easy to look, without any effort 
 whatever, directly through the glasses, which were now 
 slightly incrusted by frost. Supposing, of course, that 
 Margaret was upon the rocky audience gallery with her 
 companions. Christian did not expect to find her within. 
 Still he looked, all the same, and, to his surprise, beheld 
 her in her usual costume, and without a mask. A little 
 indisposed, or pretending to be so, she had remained alone, 
 and was watching the race through the door of the sleigh. 
 The driver had taken a place a little aside from the rest, 
 and had turned the sleigh in such a way as to give Mar- 
 garet a good view of the course ; and this also enabled 
 Christian to gaze at Margaret and to be quite near her, 
 without being seen by the rest of the company, who were, 
 besides, absorbed in gazing at the race. 
 
 He would not have ventured to speak to her, and he 
 took pains to assume a careless attitude, as if his being 
 there was quite accidental, when she suddenly lowered the 
 glass to speak to him. He was still holding the head-gear 
 of the horse, and she took him for a servant. 
 
 " Tell me, my friend," she said, in a low voice, thougt 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 343 
 
 without any affectation, "who is that man in a black 
 mask like yours, who just passed, and who is racing now? 
 It is your master, is it not. Christian Waldo ? " 
 
 "No, mademoiselle," replied Christian, in French, and 
 without changing his voice or accent, "lam Christian 
 Waldo ! " 
 
 " Ah, mon Dieu ! how fortunate ! " replied the young 
 girl, with an intonation of joy that she could not repress ; 
 and lowering her voice still more, for Christian had come 
 close up to the door, "is it you, M. Christian Goefle? 
 What suggested to you to assume that character this 
 evening ? " 
 
 " Perhaps it was in order to remain here without com- 
 promising my uncle," he replied. 
 
 "Then you did care a little about staying?" she 
 rejoined, in a tone that made Christian's heart beat. 
 
 He had not the courage to reply that he did not care ; 
 it was more than he could do ; but he felt that it was time 
 to put an end to a coniedy so dangerous, if not to the 
 young countess, at least to himself, and, with an effort 
 of truthful self-sacrifice that made him dizzy, he said 
 promptly : 
 
 " 1 wanted to stay so as to undeceive you. I am not 
 the person you supposed. I am what I tell you. Christian 
 Waldo." 
 
 " I do not understand," she said ; " is it not enough to 
 have mystified me once? Why do you wish to play 
 another part ? Do you suppose I did not recognize your 
 voice when you were performing with Christian Waldo's 
 marionettes with so much spirit ? I saw very plainly that 
 you were more brilliant than he — " 
 
 "But what makes you believe that?" said Christian, 
 astonished ; " to whom do you suppose you were listening 
 this evening?" 
 
 '^ To you and to him. There were two voices, I am 
 sure, perhaps three — yours, Waldo's, and that of his as- 
 sistant." 
 
 " There were only two, I give you my word." 
 
 " Very well, wbat then .? I tell you I recognized yours. 
 You cannot deceive me as to that," 
 
344 
 
 THE SNOW MAN, 
 
 " Why, no ; my voice is my voice ; I do not deny that \ 
 but I must tell you — " 
 
 *' Listen ! listen ! " exclaimed Margaret ; " do you hear? 
 They are proclaiming the name of the victor. It is Chris- 
 tian Waldo, I think — yes, yes, I am sure of it. I hear 
 it distinctly, and I can plainly see the man in the mask, 
 standing up, in his little black sleigh. That is he ! He 
 is the real one. You are only a counterfeit Waldo. But 
 really, M. Goefle, you ought to take his place ; the best 
 things in the whole play, and the best delivered — and, 
 above all, the entire part of Alonzo — were yours ! Come 
 now, let me hear you venture to assert that I am mis- 
 taken ! " 
 
 ^' As to the part of Alonzo, I cannot deny that." 
 
 " Shall you play again to-morrow, M. Goefle ? '* 
 
 '' Certainly." 
 
 " That will be very kind of you ! For my part, 1 
 thank you ; but are you quite sure that no one will suspect 
 who you are ? You must keep yourself well hidden at 
 Stollborg. I am glad to see that you are so prudent, and 
 know so well how to disguise yourself. No one could 
 recognize you, dressed as you are now. But you must 
 go away, please ! They are all getting into their sleighs 
 to drive to the hogar and compliment the victor. My 
 aunt will certainly join me. No, she is going in the Rus- 
 sian ambassador's sleigh. She leaves me alone ! A 
 mother would not have done that, M. Christian. An 
 aunt, and so young and handsome — well, certainly, she 
 is not much like a mother ! Stay ; she will surely send 
 M. Stangstadius to keep me company ! " 
 
 "M. Stangstadius!" exclaimed Christian, "where is 
 he ? I do not see him — " 
 
 " He was simple enough to put on a mask, but nobody 
 can mistake him ; if he were anywhere within sight, you 
 would certainly recognize him. No, he is not coming, 
 and they are all setting off." 
 
 " Mademoiselle," said Margaret's driver, in Dalecar- 
 lian, to his young mistress, " her ladyship your aunt ia 
 making me a sign to follow." 
 
 " Do so, then," she said ; " but you are on foot, M. 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 345 
 
 Goefle ! Jump up on the driver's seat ; you cannot go 
 with us otherwise." 
 
 "What will your aunt say?" 
 
 Christian asked the question, but he jumped up on the 
 seat nevertheless, though not without regret that the con- 
 versation was ended. But Margaret closed the side win- 
 dow and opened the one in front, which was almost 
 even with his face. The sleigh flew noiselessly over 
 the snow, over which Peterson was driving just outside 
 the beaten track, for he had lost his place in the regular 
 array. The good fellow did not understand a single word 
 of French, and the conversation continued : 
 
 ''What is happening at the chateau?" asked Christian, 
 hoping to divert Margaret's attention from himself. " I 
 have not seen the baron here ; I should have thought he 
 Avould have been as easily recognized by his height, as 
 Staugstadius by his gait." 
 
 " He has shut himself up, under the pretence of press- 
 ing and unexpected business. That means that he is 
 worse ; no one is deceived by it. Everybody saw his 
 mouth drawn to one side, and his eye distorted. Don't 
 you think he is an extraordinary man, after all, to battle 
 so with death ? He meant to have raced to-night, with 
 the young men, and he would certainly have won the 
 prize, he has such splendid horses ! There is to be a bear- 
 hunt to-morrow, and either the baron will be at the hunt 
 and will kill his bear, or he will be buried before any one 
 has thought of countermanding the sport. One is just as 
 possible as the other. Does not that make the situation 
 here very singular for all of us ? It seems as if the Snow 
 Man took pleasure in seeing how few friends he has, since 
 we all go on amusing ourselves in his house, as if nothing 
 were the matter." 
 
 " But, Margaret, you admire his resolution, and he suc- 
 ceeds in producing, even upon you, the effect he desires." 
 
 "My dear confidant," said Margaret, gayly, " you must 
 know that my aversion for the baron has almost entirely 
 ceased. He has become quite indifferent to me ; he is 
 going to marry — but that is a secret that I discovered 
 accidentally, and have promised to keep. He is not going 
 
346 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 to marry me, at all events, and I shall have the happinest 
 
 of remaining free — and poor — " 
 
 " Poor ! I thought you were at least very well off." 
 
 " Well, it turns out that I have nothing. I have had a 
 quarrel with my aunt to-day — as usual, about the baron ; 
 and she has declared that she would give me no portion, 
 and that she should take possession of the little inher- 
 itance which my father left me ; she claims to have a 
 right to it on account of some loan that she made him, of 
 I don't know how many ducats. I did not understand 
 anything about it, except that I am ruined ! " 
 
 " Ah, Margaret ! " exclaimed Christian, involuntarily, 
 " why am I not rich and well born? Understand me," 
 he continued, taking her hand, for she started, and seemed 
 inclined to throw herself upon the further seat of the 
 sleigh, " this is not a declaration, I am not so audacious 
 as to address you in any such way. It would be an act 
 of madness in me, for I have nothing in the world, and 
 neither family nor position. But you have permitted me 
 to be your friend. May I not tell you that, if I were 
 rich and noble, I would divide with you as I would with 
 my sister ? " 
 
 " Thank you, Christian," answered Margaret, still 
 trembling, although reassured ; "• I see how good your 
 heart is, and I know how kindly you feel towards me. 
 But why do you say that you have no family, when your 
 uncle's reputation is so high — " 
 
 She paused, and added, with a forced laugh : 
 
 " You must not suppose I meant to say — what cer- 
 tainly I had no thought of. But no, you will not think 
 anything of the kind ; you have too much good sense. 
 You are straightforward and confiding, like me ; and you 
 will understand that, if I question you, it is because I am 
 interested about your future prosperity — no matter who 
 may share it with you. Tell me, then, why do you tor- 
 ment yourself about your birth, which many people would 
 envy ? " 
 
 "Ah, Margaret," said Christian, "you wish to 
 know, and it is my wish to tell you. Here we are at 
 the end of our ride, and I shall leave you, this time, 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 347 
 
 forever. I will not secure a place in your memory at 
 the price of a lie. To be despised and forgotten is all 
 I deserve from you, and I accept my fate — so much the 
 worse for me. Believe me, there is no such person as 
 Christian Goefle. M. Goefle never had either son or 
 nephew." 
 
 " That is not true ! " exclaimed Margaret. " He 
 said so to-day at the chateau ; and everybody was talk- 
 ing about it, but nobody believed him. You are his 
 son — by a secret marriage. He will acknowledge and 
 cherish you. He cannot help doing it." 
 
 "I swear to you, upon my honor, that I am absolutely 
 nothing to him ; and that yesterday morning he knew no 
 more of me than you know now !" 
 
 "Upon your honor! You swear upon your honor? 
 But if you are not Christian Goefle, I do not know you 
 at all ! Nor is there any reason why I should believe 
 you. If you are Christian Waldo, who, they say, can as- 
 sume any human voice — ah, I cannot understand it ! But 
 it distresses nie very much. Thank God ! I still doubt- — " 
 
 *' Doubt no longer, Margaret ! " said Christian, jump- 
 ing down from his seat as the sleigh, at that moment, 
 stopped. "Look at me, and know me for what I really 
 am : a man who has dedicated to you the profoundest re- 
 spect, the most absolute devotion of his heart, and who 
 swears to you, upon his honor, that he is the real 
 Christian Waldo!" 
 
 As he spoke. Christian lifted his silken mask from 
 his forehead, moved resolutely into the light of the lan- 
 tern, and showed his face plainly as he bent towards the 
 door. Margaret, recognizing her friend of the previous 
 evening, uttered a cry of grief, perhaps even too expres- 
 sive, and covered her face with her hands, while Chris- 
 tian, lowering his mask once more, disappeared in the 
 ciowd of servants and peasants who were assembled to 
 look at the sport. 
 
 He very soon approached M. Goefle, whom they were 
 talking of carrying in triumph ; not because he had 
 reached the goal first — he was, in fact, the last to arrive 
 —-but for performing a brilliant and unexpected feat. 
 
348 THE SNOW MAN, 
 
 He had caught with his whip, while going at full speedy 
 the wig of M. Stangstadius, who had deposited himself, 
 in spite of his opposition, upon Major Larrson's sleigh. 
 M. Goefle had not, of course, done this intentionally. 
 Tlie end of his whip-lash, as he was cracking it in the 
 air, had happened to entangle itself around the queue of 
 the wig, by one of those chances which we call improb- 
 able, because they happen say only once in a thousand 
 times. The learned man's hat, jerked off by M. Goefle's 
 efforts to free his whip, had flown off and settled down 
 like a great black bird in the snow ; the wig had held fast 
 to the queue, the queue had refused to part with the whip- 
 lash, and the whip, which M. Goefle could not stop to 
 adjust, thus ending in a mass of hair heavy with powder, 
 lost all its effect upon the sides of the spirited Loki. In 
 the first moments of his triumph, the victorious Larrson 
 had seen nothing of this ; but the outcries and com- 
 plaints of Stangstadius, who, with his head tied up in a 
 handkerchief, was demanding his wig from every one he 
 could see, soon attracted his attention. 
 
 "He's the man !" shouted the insulted geologist, point- 
 ing to M. Goefle in his mask. "That Italian buffoon, 
 in a silk mask. He did it on purpose, the rascal ! Here, 
 here, you scoundrel of a play-actor ! Til slap your face 
 a hundred times, to teach you to joke with a man like 
 me." 
 
 An immense burst of laughter greeted the wrath of 
 Stangstadius, and the whole assembly shouted with 
 applause the name of Christian Waldo ; but the scene 
 quickly changed. Stangstadius, irritated by the imper- 
 inent laughter of the young people, darted towards the 
 ravisher of his wig, who was standing erect upon his 
 sleigh, pitecusly exhibiting the cause of his defeat, 
 which looked not unlike a great fish at the end of a line. 
 M. Goefle, in an assumed voice, began to accuse Stang- 
 stadius, in a comic manner, of having played off this 
 trick on him, so as to prevent him from whipping his 
 horse and winning the race ; but the man of science, 
 who was as nimble as a monkey, in spite of his unequal 
 legs and crooked arms, scrambled up behind him, 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 349 
 
 suatched off his hat and his mask, and only paused in 
 his projects of vengeance, on recognizing with surprise 
 his friend Goefle, who was instantly saluted with unani- 
 mous applause. 
 
 Though M. Goefle was not known to all who were 
 present, his name was repeated by a number of persons, 
 and he was heartily greeted. The Swedes are very 
 proud of their eminent men, especially in any pursuit 
 that brings their native language into notice. Besides, 
 the honorable character of the doctor of laws, and his 
 reputation as a man of talent, secured him the respect 
 and affection of all young people. They insisted on 
 proclaiming him the victor in the race, and it was all he 
 could do to prevent the good-natured major from trans- 
 ferring the prize to him. This was a drinking-horn, 
 curiously carved and ornamented with Runic characters, 
 in silver ; a fac-simile of a precious relic of antiquity 
 belonging to the baron's collection, and discovered in the 
 course of excavations made in the hogar some years 
 before. 
 
 "No, my dear major," said M. Goefle, putting his 
 now useless mask into his pocket, while Stangstadius 
 replaced his wig upon his head, " I only ran for honor ; 
 and since my honor, or rather that of my horse, has not 
 been tarnished by the few seconds' delay caused by that 
 unlucky wig, I have nothing more to w^sh for. I am 
 proud of Loki, and satisfied with myself. I should be 
 si ill better contented," he added, as he stepped out of 
 the sleigh, "if I knew what had become of the poor 
 fellow's head-cover ; he will catch cold." 
 
 "Here it is," said Christian in a low voice, approach- 
 ing M. Goefle; "but since you have been recognized, 1 
 must take myself off at once, my dear uncle. It was well 
 enough for Christian Waldo to have a masked servant, 
 but in your case, it would be quite out of character." 
 
 " No, no. Christian, I will not part with you ! " said 
 M. Goefle. "We will take a look at the lake from the 
 top of the hogar, and then go back to Stollborg. Stay, 
 we'll give my horse to one of those peasants to hold, and 
 then make the ascent. Take this side-path, and keep 
 
350 
 
 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 out of the way of the curious. A black mask, just now, 
 is noticed by everybody ; and I see, unless we make our 
 escape, that we shall soon be surrounded and cross- 
 questioned." 
 
 XL 
 
 \^7'HILE Christian and M. Goefle adroitly escaped be- 
 ' ^ hind the mound, the main body of the company 
 returned to the new chateau ; the hogar was so steep, 
 and the cold so great, that they would not venture to as- 
 cend it. And yet, in an excavation half way up, a sort 
 of tent had been prepared, in which the revellers were 
 expected to take punch ; but the ladies had declined, and 
 most of the gentlemen followed them. In about half an 
 hour, when Christian and the lawyer were coming down 
 from the platform, where the statue, too much heated by 
 the flames of the resinous torches, was beginning to melt, 
 they had the curiosity to look into this grotto, which had 
 been hung and closed in with tarred cloths. They 
 found nobody there but Larrson and his lieutenant. All 
 the other young men, slaves either to their lady-loves, 
 who had returned to the chateau, or to their horses, who 
 were in danger of taking cold, had gone, or were about 
 going. Osmund Larrson was an amiable young man, 
 who tried with all his might to be a Frenchman in wit 
 and manners, but who, fortunately for himself, was at 
 heart devotedly patriotic. Lieutenant Erwin Osborn was 
 one of those good-natured, blunt, decided characters, 
 who are unable even to make an effort to produce any 
 modification in themselves. He had all the qualities of 
 an excellent officer and citizen, with the good-nature of 
 a man who is in perfect health, and who does not trouble 
 himself about what does not concern him. Larrson was 
 his friend, his leader, his idol. He followed him like 
 his shadow, and never so much as stirred a finger with- 
 out his advice. He had even consulted him in the selec- 
 tion of a sweetheart. 
 
 As soon as the two friends saw M. Goefle, they hast- 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 35 1 
 
 ened to lay hold of him, swearing that he should not 
 leave the liogar until he had done them the honor to 
 drink with them. The punch was ready, and only needed 
 to be set on fire 
 
 " I want to be able to say," cried Larrson, " that I 
 drank in the hogar of the lake on the nights of December 
 26th and 27th, with two men so celebrated in different 
 professions as M. Edmund Goefle and Christian Waldo." 
 
 " Christian Waldo ! " said M. Goefle, " where are you 
 going to find him ? " 
 
 " There ! behind you. He's disguised like a poor 
 devil, and masked ; but it's he, all the same. He has 
 lost one of his great ugly gloves, and I recognize his 
 white hand. I saw it at Stockholm, and observed it so 
 attentively that I should know it again amongst a thou- 
 sand ! See now, M. Christian Waldo, you have a very 
 handsome hand, but it has one peculiarity ; the little fin- 
 ger of your left hand is slightly curved under, and you 
 cannot quite straighten it, even when you hold your hand 
 wide open. Do you not remember at Stockholm an 
 officer who saw you rescue a little cabin-boy from three 
 furious drunken sailors ? It was down at the park ; you 
 had come out of your exhibition, and were still masked. 
 Your servant had run away. The child would have 
 been killed but for you. Do you remember it?" 
 
 "Yes, monsieur," replied Christian; "you were the 
 officer who passed. You drew your sword, and put the 
 drunken rascals to flight, and then insisted upon taking 
 me with you in your carriage. If it had not been for 
 you I might have been killed." 
 
 " Then there would have been one noble-hearted man 
 the less," said Larrson. "Won't you give me one more 
 shake of the hand, as you did then ? " 
 
 "With all my heart!" said Christian, grasping the 
 major's hand. 
 
 Then, removing his mask, he said to M. Goefle : 
 
 "It is not my custom to hide my face from persons 
 who inspire me with confidence and affection." 
 
 " What !" exclaimed the major and his lieutenant, 
 "Christian Goefle, our friend of last night?" 
 
352 THE SNOW MAN, 
 
 " No ; Christian "Waldo, who had stolen the name of 
 M. Goefle, and whom M. Goefle has been good enough 
 to pardon for a gi'eat impertinence. I recognized you 
 at once last evening, major." 
 
 "Ah, very good! You attended the ball in spite of 
 the prejudices of the baron, who, perhaps, had not had the 
 good taste to invite you?" 
 
 "But it is nowhere customary to receive as a guest a 
 person who is paid by the master of the house to enter- 
 tain his guests. I should really have had no reason to 
 complain if I had been put out of doors, and it was folly 
 in me to expose myself to such a danger. Still, I had 
 an excuse ; my object in travelling is to observe the coun- 
 tries through which I pass, so as to remember and de- 
 scribe them. I am a sort of note-taking scribbler and 
 observer ; by which I do not mean, however, a diplo- 
 matic spy. I study the fine arts and sciences even more 
 than manners and customs, but I am interested in all 
 sorts of things ; and as I have seen something of society 
 elsewhere, I took a fancy to behold it once more in all 
 its luxury — a strange anomaly — in the midst of the 
 mountains and lakes and ice of a country that is appar- 
 ently inaccessible. But my face seems greatly to have 
 displeased the baron, and accordingly I wore my mask at 
 his house to-day. You advised me last evening not to 
 return thither at all." 
 
 " And we should so advise you still, dear Christian," 
 said the major, " if the baron had remembered th^e inci- 
 dent of last night, but his illness appears to have made 
 him forget it. However, look out for his servants. Cover 
 your face again, and talk French, for here are some of 
 them now, bringing us the punch ; they may have seen 
 you at the ball." 
 
 A vast silver bowl, full of flaming punch, was now 
 placed upon the table of rough granite, and the major did 
 the honors with much spirit ; but M. Goefle, an instant 
 before so animated, had suddenly fallen into a brown 
 study, and, as in the morning, seemed to be divided be- 
 tween the desire of making merry and that of solving some 
 problem. 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 353 
 
 " What are you thinking about, my dear uncle ? " said 
 Christian, filling his glass. " Do you blame me for having 
 thrown aside my incognito before these good friends ? " 
 
 " By no means," answered the lawyer ; " and if you 
 permit, I will repeat your story succinctly to these gen- 
 tlemen, so as to convince them that they are right in ad- 
 mitting you to their friendship." 
 
 " Yes, yes ! the history of Christian Waldo ! " cried 
 the two officers. " It must be very curious ; and if it 
 ought to be kept secret, we swear upon our honor — '* 
 
 *' But it is too long," said Christian. " I am going 
 to stop here at least two days longer. Let us appoint 
 a rendezvous where it will be safer and warmer." 
 
 " Right," said M. Goefle. " Gentlemen, come and see 
 us at Stollborg to-morrow ; we will have dinner or supper 
 together." 
 
 *' But to-morrow," replied the major, " is the bear- 
 hunt. Will you not come, both of you?" 
 
 " Both? No ; I am no hunter, and I don't like bears. 
 And it is not in Christian's line, either. Suppose a bear 
 should bite off one of his hands ; he finds two none too 
 many to work his marionettes. Show me your hand. 
 Christian. That is a singular crook of your little finger. 
 I never noticed it. It is from a hurt, is it not? " 
 
 " No," said Christian ; " I was born so." 
 
 And holding out his left hand, he added : 
 
 " This is the most striking ; but still, both my hands 
 have the same defect in a slight degree. However, it 
 gives me no sort of inconvenience." 
 
 " Singular , very singular ! " repeated M. Goefle, scratch- 
 ing his chin, as he habitually did when he was puzzled. 
 
 " Not so very singular," said Christian ; "I have ob- 
 served this trifling deformity in other people. For instance, 
 I noticed it in the Baron de Waldemora, and much more 
 obvious than in me." 
 
 " Yes, by Jove ! precisely ! That is just what I was 
 thinking about. His two little fingers are quite closed 
 down. Had you observed it, gentlemen? " 
 
 " Very often," said Larrson ; •* and before Christian 
 Waldo, who gives almost all his earnings to the poor, it 
 23 
 
-^54 ^^^ SNOW MAN. 
 
 may be said, without any allusion being suspected, that 
 such closed fingers are reckoned a sign of avarice." 
 
 " And yet," said M. Goefle, " the baron is not close 
 about money. I know it might be said, in his case, that 
 his love of display is an additional reason for coveting 
 riches at any cost ; but his father was very disinterested, 
 and his brother generous to excess. So the shut fingers 
 prove nothing." 
 
 " Had the baron's father and brother this same peculi- 
 arity ? " asked Christian. 
 
 " Yes, and very marked, as I have understood. And 
 one day, as I was studying the family portraits, I was 
 quite surprised to find several of his ancestors with the 
 same crooked fingers. Is not that a very singular thing ? * 
 
 " Let us hope," observed Christian, " that I shall never 
 be like the baron in any other respect. But as to the 
 bear-hunt, even if I should lose both my deformed hands, 
 I am dying to be one of the party. I shall make a point 
 of going." 
 
 " Come with us ! " cried Larrson ; " I will call for you 
 in the morning." 
 
 "Early?" 
 
 " Why, certainly ; before daylight." 
 
 '' That is to say," said Christian, smiling, " a little 
 before noon." 
 
 "You calumniate our sun," said the lieutenant; "it 
 will rise in seven or eight hours from this time." 
 
 " Well, then, let's go to bed." ^ 
 
 "To bed ! " cried M. Goefle ; " already? The punch 
 wouldn't let you sleep, even then. I'm only beginning to 
 recover from my emotion over Stangstadius's wig. Let me 
 have time to breathe. Christian. I thought you were bet- 
 ter company. You are not at all merry to night, do you 
 know ? " 
 
 " I confess it ; lam as melancholy as an Englishman," 
 said Christian. 
 
 " Why so, nephew? for I shall insist upon it in private 
 that you are my nephew, though I so shamefully disowned 
 you in public. What makes you melancholy?" 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 355 
 
 " I don't know at all, my dear uncle, unless it is that I 
 am beginning to turn into a mountebank." 
 
 "Explain your aphorism." 
 
 " I have been travelling with my marionettes three 
 months ; it is too long. At another period of my life, 
 which I have described to you, I followed the same occu- 
 pation for about that time, and I felt — though in a less 
 degree, for I was younger — the same result as now. I 
 have moments of great excitement, but my spirits are cor- 
 respondingly low afterwards ; I think of my work with 
 disgust and indifference ; when actually performing, I am 
 carried away by a feverish play of fancy, a sort of over- 
 flow of gayety or emotion ; and as soon as I take off my 
 mask aud become an ordinary person again, I am over- 
 whelmed with despondency and self-contempt," 
 
 "Pshaw! all that is my own case, exactly; arguing 
 cases affects me in just that way. Every orator or actor, 
 every artist or professional man, who is obliged to be 
 hard at work for half his life in instructing, enlightening, 
 or amusing others, as soon as the curtain falls is weary 
 of the whole human race and of himself. If I am good- 
 humored and happy at present, it is only because I have 
 been idle for four or five days. You should see me in my 
 own home, on returning from court ! You should hear 
 me then, scolding at my housekeeper for not bringing the 
 tea promptly enough, at the clients who are besieging me, 
 at the doors of my house for creaking ! Everything irri- 
 tates me. Finally, I sit down in an arm-chair, take up 
 some book of history or philosophy, or a novel, and very 
 soon go happily to sleep in entire forgetfulness of my 
 cursed profession." 
 
 " You sleep happily, M. Goefle ; it is because, in spite 
 of the excitement of your nerves, you feel that you have 
 been doing something earnest and useful." 
 
 " Hm ! Hm ! Not always ! One cannot always argue 
 on the right side, and even in pleading the very best 
 cause, one cannot be always sure of using arguments that 
 are exactly just and true. Believe me. Christian, al- 
 though the saying is that no occupation is foolish, I say 
 that all occupations are so ; so it makes little differenca 
 
356 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 which of them you adopt. Do not despise your own, for 
 such as it is, it is a hundred times more moral than mine." 
 
 '' Oh ! oh ! M. Goefle, what a paradox that is ! Come, 
 let us hear you argue it ! You can use plenty of eloquence 
 there." 
 
 *' No eloquence, my children," said M. Goefle, as the 
 two officers and Christian urged him to give rein to his 
 imagination ; " there would be no use in sophisticating ; 
 and besides, I am taking a vacation. But I tell you in per- 
 fect good faith, that the art of story-telling is superior to all 
 others. It is incontestably the first in point of time, for 
 as soon as men could talk they invented mythologies, 
 composed poems, and recited histories ; and it is the first 
 in moral usefulness, too — I am ready to maintain it 
 against the whole university, and even Stangstadius him- 
 self, who believes nothing but what he can touch. Man 
 never learns by experience. You may teach him authentic 
 history as much as you please, and, in spite of it, he will 
 continually reenact^on a higher level, if you choose, 
 corresponding to his grade of civilization — the same 
 faults and follies as ever. Do we even learn by our own 
 experience ? I know well enough that I shall be ill to- 
 morrow for having played the young man to-night, and 
 you see how much I care for it. It is not reason which 
 controls man, it is imagination — fancy. That is, it is 
 art, poetry, music, painting, the drama. Wait, gentle- 
 men, let me empty my glass before I proceed to my second 
 head." 
 
 " Your health, M. Goefle !" cried the three friends. 
 
 " And yours, my children ! Well, to proceed : I do 
 not consider Christian Waldo as a showman of marion- 
 ettes ? What is a marionette } A bit of wood covered 
 with a rag. It is the intellect and the soul of Christian 
 which give interest and significance to his pieces. I look 
 on him as not merely an actor, for he has to do something 
 more than vary his accent and change his voice every mo- 
 ment, in order to move his audience ; that is a mere trick 
 of his trade. He is an author as well, for his plays are 
 little masterpieces. They remind one of those short, ex- 
 quisite musical pieces which illustrious composers of the 
 
THE SNOW MAN, 357 
 
 Italian and German schools have written for theatres like 
 his. ' Music for children/ they modestly call it, but it 
 has always been the delight of connoisseurs. Then, gen- 
 tlemen, let us render justice to Christian Waldo." 
 
 " Yes ! yes ! " cried the two officers, enthusiastic under 
 the influence of their punch ; "long live Christian Waldo ! 
 He is a man of genius ! " 
 
 " Not at all," said Christian, laughing, " but I see now 
 what makes my uncle despise the profession of law so 
 much. It enables him to maintain, and to make other 
 people believe, the most enormous misrepresentations." 
 
 " Hush, nephew ! It's not your turn to speak ! I say 
 — but. Christian, you are an ungrateful fellow ! You are 
 not a lawyer, and yet you complain ! You can investi- 
 gate the abstract truth embodied in all kinds of fictions, 
 and yet you grow tired of making men love it ! You pos- 
 sess intellect, a good heart, education, and knowledge of 
 the world, and here you are calling yourself a mounte- 
 bank, just to depreciate your work, and perhaps to aban- 
 don it ! Wretch ! is that your purpose ? " 
 
 " Yes, that is my intention," said Christian, " I have 
 had enough of it. I did suppose I could keep it up longer, 
 but I find that my constant incognito wearies me ; it 
 seems discreditable to a man of my real character. I 
 must find the means of travelling without begging. I have 
 already devoted much thought to this subject — it is a 
 great problem to a man without means. A person who 
 lives in one place can always find work ; he who desires 
 to move about, finds it difficult to do so, nowadays. In 
 ancient times, M. Goefle, to travel was to make conquest 
 of the earth for the good of humanity ; it was recogoized 
 as a high mission, as the vocation of superior minds. The 
 traveller, accordingly, was a sacred being in the eyes of 
 all people. They greeted his arrival with respect, and 
 resorted to him for news of other countries, and of the 
 , general progress of humanity. At present, if the traveller 
 has not sufficient means of his own, he must become 
 either a beggar, a thief, or a strolling player." 
 
 " Why do you use such a contemptuous term? " said 
 M. Goefle ; " the object of the actor (I should prefer to 
 
35« 
 
 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 call him interpreter, since his object is to interpret workj 
 of the imagination) is to lead men's minds away from the 
 merely practical ; and since the majority of our stupid race 
 are essentially prosaic, and absorbed in their material in- 
 terests, the tyrants who govern public opinion discourage 
 both poets and their interpreters. If they dared, they 
 would still more emphatically discourage preachers, who 
 speak to them of heaven, and religion, which wars against 
 selfish passions, and is, in fact, a system of idealism. No 
 one objects to idealism when presented as a revealed truth, 
 for no one dares. But it is promptly rejected when it 
 only says, ' I come to demonstrate to you the beautiful 
 and good, by means of symbols and fables.' " 
 
 " And yet," said Christian, " the sacred books are full 
 of apologues. It is the preaching suited to an age of 
 faith and simplicity. But it does not seem to me, M. 
 Goefle, that the cause of the prejudice is exactly where 
 you have placed it, or if it be, it is only in virtue of a fact 
 to which I would draw your attention. The actor has no 
 real connection with the rest of society. He does nothing 
 intrinsically useful as an actor, and men's valuations of 
 each other are based upon an exchange of services intrin- 
 sically useful. Remember, all the other professions are 
 intimately concerned with the destiny of every individual 
 in society, even that of the priest ; for even to infidels he 
 is still an official indispensable to their civic state. Other 
 professional persons are each, at one time or another, the 
 hope or support of every man. To the physician, he looks 
 for health ; the lawyer represents the gaining of his cause ; 
 the speculator is to give him a fortune ; the tradesman 
 provides him provisions ; the soldier protects him ; the 
 scientific man promotes the success of his business by 
 making discoveries ; the professor of any of the branches 
 of human knowledge is ready to instruct him for some 
 employment or other ; the actor alone discourses upon all 
 subjects, but supplies him with nothing — unless it be 
 good advice, which the audito** had to pay for at the door, 
 when he could have given il to himself gratis." 
 
 " Well, well! " cried M. Goefle, "what are you quib- 
 bling about, then ? We agree perfectly — you are cjnly 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 359 
 
 proving what I said. The vulgar always despise imag- 
 ination and sentiment." 
 
 "Not exactly that, M. Goefle. It is unfruitful senti- 
 ment — unproductive imagination — which they despise ! 
 There is a good deal of justice in the opinion of the bour- 
 geois, who might say to the actor, ' You discourse to me 
 about virtue, love, devotion, reason, courage, happiness ! 
 Yes, for that is your trade ; but since this is all you can 
 do, you must not object to being set down by me as an idle 
 babbler. If you are anything more, come down from your 
 platform, and help me to arrange my own affairs as well 
 as you arrange the plots of your plays. Cure my gout ; 
 gain my lawsuit ; enrich my firm ; marry my daughter to 
 the man she loves ; find a good position for my son-in- 
 law. If you can't do any of these things, make me a 
 pair of shoes, pave my court-yard. Do something or 
 other to earn the money I have paid you.' " 
 
 " And you conclude from this ? " said M. Goefle. 
 
 " I conclude that every one ought to have an employ- 
 ment in which he can be directly useful to others ; and 
 that the prejudice which prevails against actors will cease 
 at once, when theatres shall be free institutions, and when 
 all persons of ability and dramatic gifts shall be pre- 
 pared to do their part as actors for the love of art, 
 whenever they may be called upon, whatever may be 
 their usual occupation." 
 
 " Well, anyhow, that is a dream that goes far beyond 
 any of my paradoxes." 
 
 " I don't deny it ; but nobody believed in the exist- 
 ence of America two hundred years ago ; and it is my 
 opinion that in two hundred years more, we shall see 
 things far more extraordinary than we dream of now in 
 our wildest imaginings." 
 
 This conclusion reached, the friends drank the re- 
 mainder of the punch, and Christian would have taken 
 leave of M. Goefle, who seemed inclined to go and dance 
 a courante at the new chateau with the young officers. 
 However, the doctor of laws would not part, from his 
 young friend, who was really in need of rest ; and after 
 having agreed to meet next day, or rather the same day, 
 
360 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 for it was now two o'clock in the morning, the party went 
 in search of their respective vehicles. 
 
 " Well, Christian," said M. Goefle, when they were 
 seated side by side in the sleigh, on their way back to 
 Stollborg, "were you in earnest in what you said 
 about? — by the way, I notice that I have fallen into a 
 habit, I don't know how, of addressing you very famil- 
 iarly by your given name." 
 
 "Please to continue it, M. Goefle, it is very pleasant 
 to me." 
 
 "But I am not old enough to take liberties of that 
 kind — I am not sixty yet. Christian ; I don't want you 
 to consider me a patriarch." 
 
 " God forbid ! But I considered the liberty you speak 
 of as a mark of friendship." 
 
 "So it is, my son. Well, in that case I will let cer- 
 emony go ; tell me — " 
 
 Here M. Goefle paused so long that Christian thought 
 he was asleep ; but he aroused himself, and said sud- 
 denly : 
 
 "Tell me. Christian, if you were rich what would 
 you do with your money?" 
 
 "Do?" said the young man, surprised; "I should 
 try to make as many people as possible partakers in my 
 happiness." 
 
 "Then it would make you happy?" 
 
 "Yes. I would make a voyage round the world." 
 
 "And then?" 
 
 "Then? — I don't know — I would write an account 
 of my travels." 
 
 "And then?" 
 
 " I would marry, and have some children. I am very 
 fond of children." 
 
 "And would you leave Sweden?" 
 
 "Who knows? I have no ties to bind me anywhere. 
 The deuce take me if — don't think I am exaggerating, 
 for I am not intoxicated — but, M. Goefle, I feel a very 
 warm affection for you, and I'll be hanged if the pleas- 
 ure of living near you would not have a great deal to 
 do with forming ray resolution ! But what is the usa 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 3bl 
 
 of talking about it? I have no taste for building castles 
 in Spain, and have never anticipated being rich. In 
 two days I shall go, I don't know whither, and per- 
 haps shall never return." 
 
 When the two friends reached the bear-room, they 
 had so entirely forgotten about its being haunted, that 
 they went to bed and to sleep, without even remember- 
 ing to renew their consultation concerning the appa- 
 rition of the previous night. 
 
 They tried, for a while, to keep on talking after they 
 had gone to bed ; but, though M. Goefle was still some- 
 what excited, and though Christian answered his remarks 
 with all the good-nature in the world, sleep very soon 
 descended upon the young man like an avalanche of 
 feathers ; and the doctor, after scolding a little at Nils, 
 who was snoring loud enough to break the windows, 
 finally went to sleep himself. 
 
 It was at just about this time that the Baron de Wal- 
 iemora awoke, at the new chateau. Johan, on entering 
 the room according to order, found him sitting on the 
 bed, half dressed. 
 
 " It is three o'clock, your lordship," said the major- 
 domo ; " have you had any sleep? " 
 
 " I have slept, Johan, but very poorly ; I have been 
 dreaming about those puppets all night long." 
 
 " Well, my dear master, your dreams can't have been 
 very sad, then. Those puppets were very amusing." 
 
 "You thought so, did you? Oh, very well !" 
 
 "Why, you laughed at them yourself." 
 
 "Oh yes ; one must always laugh, of course. Life is 
 one long, perpetual laugh. A melancholy one, Johan ! " 
 
 "Ah, master, no black thoughts! What are your 
 orders ? " 
 
 " None. If I am to die to-day, who can hinder it ? " 
 
 "Die? What the devil put that into your head? You 
 are looking capitally this morning." 
 
 "But if I should be assassinated?" 
 
 "Who would think of any such thmg?" 
 
 "A good many people. And especially the unknown 
 
362 THE SNOW MAN, 
 
 who came to the ball ; he whose face and whose 
 threat — " 
 
 "That counterfeit nephew "of the advocate? I canH 
 imagine why that fellow's face should torment you so. 
 It was not in the least like — " 
 
 "Be still ! you never saw clearly in your life ; you are 
 near-sighted ! " 
 
 "No I am not, indeed." 
 
 "A man insolent enough to look me in the face and 
 defy me, in my own house, before everybody ! " 
 
 " You have been served so more than once before, and 
 have always laughed at it." 
 
 " And this time I fell, as if struck by a thunderbolt." 
 
 " It's that cursed anniversary. You know it makes 
 you ill every year ; and afterwards you forget all 
 about it." 
 
 "I don't reproach myself for anything, Johan." 
 
 "The devil! Did you think I was reproaching you 
 for anything?" 
 
 "But what can be the matter with this poor head 
 of mine, to make me have these visions?" 
 
 "Pshaw! It's the height of the cold season; every- 
 body sees them." 
 
 "Do you ever?" 
 
 "I? no, never. I eat a great deal ; but you — you eat 
 nothing at all. By the way, you ought to have some- 
 thing now ; some tea, at least." 
 
 " Not yet. What do you think of this Italian's story ? " 
 
 "That Tebaldo? You haven't told me the first word 
 of it." 
 
 "Very true. Well, I will not, either." 
 
 "Why?" 
 
 " It's too absurd. Still — do you believe Lawyer Goefle 
 is my enemy ? He may be." 
 
 "I can't see why." 
 
 "Nor I either. I have always paid him handsomely, 
 and his father was quite devoted to me." 
 
 "And besides, M. Goefle is a man of mind; a fine 
 speaker ; a man of the world, and without prejudices, 
 believe me." 
 
THE SNOW MAN, 363 
 
 *' You are mistaken. He will not bring suit against 
 Rosenstein. He says I am in the wrong; he opposed 
 me yesterday. I hate that*Goefle ! " 
 
 "Already? Pshaw! wait a little. Offer him an un- 
 commonly large fee, and he'll find out that you are in 
 the right, after all." 
 
 "I did; and got a very disagreeable answer. I tell 
 you I hate him ! '* 
 
 ''Very well, then — what do you choose to have /itip- 
 'pen to himf" 
 
 '' I don't know yet. We will see. But old Stenson?" 
 
 ' ' Old Stenson ? What about him ? " 
 
 " Do you believe he could have betrayed me?" 
 
 "When?" 
 
 "That is not what I asked you. Do you think him 
 capable of dissimulation?" 
 
 •" I think he's an idiot." 
 
 "You are an idiot yourself. He is shrewder than 
 you, or than I either, perhaps. Ah ! if that Italian's 
 story should be true ! " 
 
 "Then you don't mean that I shall know it? Very 
 well ; go OQ tormenting yourself. Make your own inves- 
 tigations, and let me go back to bed." 
 
 "Johan, you are scolding me ! " said the baron, with 
 extraordinary mildness. " Be satisfied ; you shall know 
 all." 
 
 "Oh yes ; when yoA want something of me ! " 
 
 "I shall want you immediately. This Italian must 
 be made to produce his proofs, if he has any. Was 
 nothing found on him ? " 
 
 "Nothing. I searched him myself." 
 
 "He told me that he did not have them with him. 
 And what could he have had? Do you remember that 
 Manasses?" 
 
 "I should think so ! That old fellow who used to sell 
 his merchandise here ; and at high prices, too ! " 
 
 "He is dead." 
 
 " All the same to me." 
 
 " This Italian killed him." 
 
 *' What a ridiculous idea ! For what?" 
 
364 ^^^ SNOW MAN. 
 
 "To rob him, probably, and to get a certain letter." 
 
 "From whom?" 
 
 " Stenson." 
 
 "An interesting one?" 
 
 "Why yes, most certainly, if it contains what this 
 rascal pretends it does." 
 
 " Well, tell me what it was, if you want me to under- 
 stand." 
 
 The baron and his confidant continued their conver- 
 sation, but in such low tones that the walls themselves 
 could not have overheard them. The baron was agi- 
 tated ; Johan slirugged his shoulders. 
 
 " Well," said the latter, when his master concluded, 
 " it's a story that would put you to sleep standing up. 
 This blackguard of a Tebaldo has forged it from the 
 reports that are circulating through the country, so as 
 to make money out of you." 
 
 " He says that he never put foot in Sweden before 
 yesterday, and that he came direct from Holland by way 
 of Dronthicm." 
 
 "Possibly; but what of that? He may have picked 
 up his information accidentally somewhere in the neigh- 
 borhood. So many stories are told about you ! And 
 perhaps, in some of his travels, he really did meet this 
 old Manasses, who knew all about them before." 
 
 "Well, what shall we do about it?" 
 
 " You must frighten M. Italian, and not allow yourself 
 to be black-mailed. You must promise him — " ^ 
 
 "How much?" 
 
 " Two or three hours in our chamber of roses." 
 
 "He will think it a mere threat. He has heard, no 
 doubt, that racks and wheels were abolished in Sweden, 
 under the old bishop." 
 
 "Do you suppose the captain of the great tower needs 
 any such old rubbish to help him find a tongue in a man 
 of flesh and bones ? " 
 
 "Thenyou think — " 
 
 " Cover him all up with roses until he confesses that 
 he has lied, or else tells where he has concealed his 
 evidence." 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 365 
 
 *' Impossible ! He will yell, and the castle is full of 
 people." 
 
 "But the hunt? You must go to it whether alive or 
 dead ; every one will follow you." 
 
 " Somebody always stays, if it be only some one's 
 servants. And then the old women — they will be 
 whispering about that I am exerting an authority which 
 the state has strictly reserved for itself." 
 
 " Oh, nonsense ! Don't trouble yourself about them. 
 Besides, I will arrange all that ; I will say it is a poor 
 devil whose leg has been crushed, and who is being 
 operated upon." 
 
 "And will you receive his information?" 
 
 " Certainly. Who else." 
 
 "I should prefer to be there myself." 
 
 " You know you are so soft-hearted that you can't 
 bear to see any one in pain." 
 
 "Very true ; it puts my stomach and bowels out of 
 order. Well, I'll be off at the hunt." 
 
 "Do so ; and in the meanwhile go to sleep again. 1 
 will see to everything." 
 
 "And will you find the unknown?" 
 
 " He must be a confederate of this fellow. We shall 
 only find him through Tebaldo's confessions." 
 
 "Right; it must be so, for he offered to deliver him 
 up to me — But it may not be the same man?" 
 
 " Well, I will confess him thoroughly on all points, so 
 sleep in peace." 
 
 " Have you kept your Italian fasting?" 
 
 " Why, of course ! " 
 
 " Go, then ; I will try to get a little more sleep. You 
 have done me a great deal of good, Johan. You always 
 have suggestions to make. For my part, I am failing. 
 Mon Dieu ! How fast I have grown old." 
 
 Johan now departed, directing Jacob to call his lord- 
 ship at eight. Jacob was a valet-de-chambre who al- 
 ways slept in a room next the baron's sleeping-room. 
 He was an honest fellow, to whom the baron had always 
 played the part of a good master ; for he knew how im- 
 portant it is to have some trustworthy people about one, 
 
366 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 if only for the sake of sleeping without fear, under their 
 guard. 
 
 Christian, in the meanwhile, who always slept well, 
 wherever or in whatever company he was, awoke after 
 about six hours' rest, and arose softly, to look out at the 
 sky. It was not yet daylight, but as the young man was 
 about to lie down again, he remembered the hunting- 
 party, which they were probably already beginning to 
 organize at the new chateau. Christian was no hunter, 
 except with reference to natural history. He was a cap- 
 ital shot, but had never had a passion for slaughtering 
 game merely to kill time and show his skill ; but a bear- 
 hunt was something new, picturesque, and also interest- 
 ing from a zoological point of view. At the thought of 
 it he was instantly wide awake, and fully intent upon 
 witnessing this novel spectacle, although he might pos- 
 sibly find it necessary to return before it was quite over, 
 in order to prepare for his evening's performance wilh 
 M. Goefle. 
 
 Before going to sleep, he had said something on tlic 
 subject to the doctor of laws, but he was opposed to his 
 going, since he did not care anything about the hunt 
 himself. Christian accordingly foresaw that his good 
 uncle would try to stop him, and, knowing his own com- 
 pliant disposition, he also foresaw that he should yield. 
 
 " Pijhaw ! " he said to himself; "I had better slip off 
 quietly, and leave a couple of words in pencil for him, to 
 keep him from being uneasy. He will, perhaps, be a little 
 annoyed, and he will not like breakfasting alone, but' he 
 has still some work to do ; he has to visit old Stenson 
 again, and I shall probably be back before he begins to 
 feel lonely." 
 
 So Christian stepped softly from the guard-room to the 
 bear-room, where he dressed himself. Then, after put- 
 ting on his mask under his hat, partly from habit and 
 partly as a precaution, he went out by way of the gaard, 
 now plunged in silence and darkness. Thence, passing 
 through the fruit-garden, standing in its wintry desola- 
 tion, he reached ^le lake, and finding that he was much 
 nearer the shore at this point than if he had descended 
 
THE SNOW MAN. ' 367 
 
 by the path on the northern side, he crossed the narrow 
 space of ice, and proceeded by land towards the new 
 chateau. 
 
 At this very moment, Johan was advancing across the 
 lake from the opposite direction ; without the least sus- 
 picion of the recent flight of his game, he was coming to 
 take up his post of observation at StoUborg. 
 
 XII. 
 
 /''CHRISTIAN did not expect to find the major at the new 
 ^^ cliateau. He knew that the young officer, after the 
 evening's entertainment at the chateau, went every night, 
 or rather every morning, to his bostoelle, which was only 
 a little way off. He had not thought to ask him in what 
 direction his country-house was, and he made no effort, 
 therefore, to find it. It was merely his intention to watch 
 the preparations for the hunt at a distance, and to mix. 
 among the peasants who were engaged in the general 
 battue. 
 
 He was still following the path along the shore of the 
 lake, when, by the glimmering light of the dawn which 
 was just beginning to appear, he saw a man coming to 
 meet him. He lowered his mask at once, but raised it 
 almost immediately, on recognizing Lieutenant Osburu. 
 
 "Upon my word," said the latter, as they shook hands, 
 *' I am delighted to find you here ; I was going in search 
 of yoi>, and we shall gain half an hour's time by this 
 meeting. Come, make haste ! the major is close at hand 
 waiting for us." 
 
 They proceeded in the direction from which Erwin 
 Osburn had just come ; he took the lead, and very soon 
 turned into a path leading up the left side of the moun- 
 tain. When Christian, who followed, had ascended this 
 path, which was quite steep, for a few minutes, he saw 
 two sleighs standing motionless in a narrow ravine be- 
 neath him. The major, who was in one of them, saw 
 
368 * THE SNOW MAN, 
 
 him at the same time, and ran forward with a pleased 
 expression. 
 
 "Bravo!" he cried; "you are punctual by inspira- 
 tion ! How the devil did you know that we were here ?*' 
 
 " I had no idea of such a thing," replied Christian ; "I 
 vvas going to the new chateau merely by chance." 
 
 "Then chance is for us the first thing in the morning ; 
 and that is a sign that we shall be fortunate in the hunt. 
 Really, you are capitally disguised, just as you were yes- 
 terday evening ; but you have neither the proper shoes 
 nor weapons for the present occasion. Luckily I foresaw 
 that it would be so, and we have brought all that you 
 will want. In the meanwhile, take this cloak as a pro- 
 tection against the cold, and let us start instantly. We 
 are going quite a distance, and the day will not be too 
 long for all we have to do." 
 
 Christian stepped, with Larrson, into one of the small 
 country sleighs, very light, with seats for two, and drawn 
 by a little mountain horse. The lieutenant and Corporal 
 Duff, a kind-hearted old man, a non-commissioned officer, 
 and a great expert in hunting, got into the second sleigh, 
 which was exactly like it. The major took the lead, and 
 they started at a rapid canter. 
 
 "You must know," the major said to Christian, "that 
 we are making all this haste so as to have a private hunt 
 of our own. The baron has plenty of game, and plenty 
 of skilful marksmen upon his domain, and he himself is 
 a very accomplished and very courageous hunter. ^ But 
 as he will be obliged to conduct or send a great many of 
 his guests to the battue to-day, who are more remarkable 
 for their boasting than their skill, it is much to be "feared 
 that they will make a great deal of noise, and do very lit- 
 tle execution. Besides, the battue with peasants has no 
 great interest, as you can see for yourself, when we re- 
 turn down that mountain that you see before you, after 
 having made our expedition. It is really a sort of cow- 
 ardly assassination. They surround the poor bear, who 
 is not always willing to leave his den ; they terrify him, 
 they harrass him, and when he comes out at last to fight 
 or fly, they shoot at him without the least danger, from be- 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 369 
 
 Jiind strong nets, where they are protected from his des- 
 perate attacks. Of course there can be nothing exciting, 
 nothing unexpected or startling in a hunt conducted in 
 this way ; and besides, it often happens that the impatient 
 and awkward members of the party make the whole 
 thing fail, and that the beast has packed off before they 
 can come up to it. We shall go to work in a very differ- 
 ent way, without trackers, without noise, and without 
 dogs. I will tell you what is to be done, when the right 
 time comes. And you may rest assured that a real hunt 
 is like all true pleasures ; it does not admit of a crowd. 
 It is a noble diversion, which you can only enjoy with 
 your friends, or persons of exceptional merit." 
 
 "I must thank you doubly, then," replied Christian, 
 " for wishing me to share with you this confidential pleas- 
 ure ; but pray explain to me how it is that you are at 
 liberty to kill the baron's game before him. I should have 
 thought he would be more jealous of his prerogatives af 
 a hunter, and of his rights as a proprietor." 
 
 " For that very reason it is not his game that we are 
 going to try and kill. His estates are considerable, but 
 the whole country does not belong to him, God be praised ! 
 Do you see those fine mountains directly in front of you ? 
 that is the Norwegian frontier, and on the outskirts of 
 those gigantic ramparts we shall find a group called 
 Blaahdal. There, in the midst of those sublime wilder- 
 nesses, and sometimes enveloped by clouds, for the sum- 
 mits of the mountains are not often so clear as they are 
 to-day, live a few free peasants, who are landowners. 
 From one of these dannemans (that is what they are 
 called) my friends and myself have purchased a bear, 
 whose retreat he has just discovered. This danneman, 
 whose familiarity with all such matters makes him a very 
 interesting man, lives in a magnificent site, which is al- 
 most inaccessible to a carriage, but, with the help of God 
 and these good little mountain-horses, we shall get there. 
 We will breakfast at his house, after which he himself 
 will be our guide to his lordship the bear, who — since he 
 has not been tracked beforehand by babblers and reckless 
 fools — will await us without mistrust, and receive ua 
 
370 
 
 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 — according to his mood at the moment. But look, 
 Christian, see what a beautiful spectacle ! Have you al- 
 ready beheld this phenomenon?" 
 
 "No, not yet," cried Christian, transported with joy ; 
 " and I am very glad to see it in your company. I have 
 heard of it, and that is all ; it is a magnificent parhelion ! " 
 
 In fact, five suns were rising above the horizon. The 
 true, the powerful star of day was accompanied to the 
 right and left, and on either side of its radiant disk, by 
 four luminous images, not so brilliant, and not so round 
 as the real sun, but surrounded by rainbow-hued halos 
 of marvellous beauty. As our hunters were riding 
 towards the west, they stopped for several moments to 
 enjoy this optical effect, which is produced by very much 
 the same causes as the rainbow, although it is scarcely 
 ever seen in Europe, except in the extreme north. 
 
 At first they drove along a broad highway, but this 
 soon dwindled into a narrow, uneven lane, leading through 
 private estates ; the lane turned into a path, and then 
 followed the open country, uncultivated and rugged, with 
 only a few scarcely perceptible tracks cut into the snow 
 along the hill-sides. After this, Larrson, who understood 
 perfectly both the country and the capabilities of the 
 sleigh he was driving, dashed forward into a really ter- 
 rific region, over the bare sides of the mountain ; on he 
 went, careering along the very edge of precipices, slipping 
 at full speed into the bottom of almost perpendicular 
 ravines, jumping ditches at a flying leap, shooting over 
 fallen trees and tottering rocks, without even condescend- 
 ing to avoid these fearful obstacles, which seemed every 
 moment as if they would shiver the fragile sleigh into 
 fragments. Christian did not know whether to admire 
 most the audacity of the major or the skill and courage 
 of the thin little horse, whose marvellous instinct was like 
 a sort of second sight, and which the driver accordingly 
 allowed to go its own way. Twice, however, the sleigh 
 was upset. It was not the fault of the horse, but of the 
 vehicle, which could not accommodate itself quickly 
 enough to his movements, in spite of its ingenious con- 
 struction. These overturns are sometimes serious ; but 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 371 
 
 they are so frequent that very few of them, ir> compar- 
 ison with the number that occur, amount to anything. 
 The lieutenant's sleigh, although he was warned by the 
 accidents befalling the party in advance, as they cut their 
 way through the ice, was also upset two or three times. 
 The young men rolled in the snow, shook themselves, 
 replaced the sleigh upon its runners, and started again, 
 without thinking anything more of the adventure than if 
 they had got out to lighten the load of the horse a little. 
 In other countries, an upset makes people laugh or trem- 
 ble ; here, it is accepted quietly, as one of the things that 
 are anticipated and inevitable. 
 
 Christian experienced a feeling of unspeakable content, 
 of inward peace, during this exciting race. 
 
 " I cannot express to you," he said to the good major, 
 who was really like a brother in his kindness and devo- 
 tion, "how happy I am to-day!" 
 
 " God be praised ! dear Christian, for last night you 
 were melancholy." 
 
 "It was the darkness that made me so: the lake, 
 whose beautiful covering of snow had been soiled by the 
 race, and which looked like a mass of lead under our 
 feet. It was the hogar, lighted by torches as gloomy as 
 funereal torches gleaming over a tomb. It was that 
 barbarous statue of Odin, which, with its threatening 
 hammer and its formless arm, seemed to be hurling 
 down some mysterious malediction upon the new world 
 — no longer subject to his power — and upon our profane 
 band ! The whole scene was beautiful, but yet terrible ; 
 my imagination is vivid, and then — " 
 
 "And then, confess," said the major; "something 
 was troubling you." 
 
 " Perhaps so ; a dream, a foolish fancy which the re- 
 turn of the sun has dissipated. Yes, major, the sun ex- 
 erts as ^beneficent an influence upon the spirit of man as 
 upon his body. It illumines the soul as well as the 
 natural world. This strangely beautiful and fantastic 
 gun of the north is still the same as the glowing sun of 
 Italy, and the mild sun of France. It does not give so 
 much heat, but I imagine that it gives even more light 
 
372 
 
 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 than elsewhere, in this country of silver and crystal! 
 All nature is its mirror, even the atmosphere, in these 
 regions of immaculate ice. Blessed be the sunshine ! 
 Don't you agree with me, major? And blessed be you, 
 also, for bringing me with you on this revivifying drive, 
 which inspires and strengthens me. Yes, yes, this is the 
 life that suits me ! — movement, air, warmth, cold, light ! 
 The world before you, a horse, a sleigh, a ship — pshaw \ 
 still less, legs, wings, liberty ! " 
 
 " You are a strange being. Christian ! For my part, 
 I should prefer, to all that, a woman whom I loved." 
 
 " Well," said Christian, " and I too, perhaps ! I am 
 not strange at all ; but you must be able to support your 
 family, or else remain a bachelor. What would you 
 have me do with nothing? Unable to dream of happi- 
 ness, I have at least the consolation of knowing how to 
 forget my deprivations, and of feeling a sincere enthu- 
 siasm for the austere joys that are within my reach. Do 
 not talk to me about a family, and the corner of a fire- 
 side. Let me dream of the free wind wafting you to- 
 wards unknown shores — I know, dear friend, that man 
 is made to love ! I feel it deeply at this very moment, by 
 the side of a person who has received me like a brother, 
 and whom I must leave to-morrow, perhaps forever ; 
 but, since it is my destiny to be unable to establish any 
 ties, in any place, since I have neither country, nor 
 family, nor position in this world, the whole secret of my 
 courage lies in the faculty I have acquired of enjoying 
 happiness on the wing, and of forgetting that the morrow 
 will inevitably sweep it away like a beautiful dream. 
 And besides, I have reflected a great deal since we drank 
 our punch in the grotto of the hogar." 
 
 "Poor fellow ! you must be in love, for you have not 
 slept." 
 
 "Whether in love or not, I slept the sleep of the inno- 
 cent; but one reflects quickly when he has not many 
 hours to lose in life. While dressing myself, and while 
 coming from Stollborg to join you, I was deeply im- 
 pressed by one plain and simple truth. This is that J 
 have made a mistake in trying to solve the problem of 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 373 
 
 the wandering artist's career. I have reasoned like a 
 spoiled child of civilization, and have been unwilling to 
 resign the enjoyments of the sybarite. But let me ex- 
 plain myself more clearly — " 
 
 Christian, now, without relating the material facts of 
 his life to the major, gave him a brief sketch of his iocli- 
 nations, desires, weaknesses, and the progress of his 
 moral and intellectual life, and explained to him how it 
 was that he had tried to become an artist, so that he 
 might continue to devote himself actively to the service 
 of science. 
 
 " Now, my dear Osmund," he added, " to be an artist, 
 you must be that and nothing else ; you must sacrifice 
 travels, scientific studies, and liberty to that end. In my 
 case, since I have not been willing to make these sacri- 
 fices, why should I not content myself with being simply 
 and plainly an artisan without an art, such as any man 
 in good health may become at any given moment of his 
 life ? I want to study the entrails of the earth ; cannot 
 I become a miner, for a month, in some mine ? I want 
 to study the flora of a given locality and zoology ; can I 
 not engage for a season as a pioneer or huntsman in that 
 region ? And the next season, can I not push on further, 
 living in poverty in the meanwhile, so as to use my arms 
 and legs for advancing my knowledge, instead of exhaust- 
 ing my mind in pasquinades, for the sake of obtaining 
 more quickly better food and finer clothes ? Have I not 
 sufficient moral courage to work with my hands, so as to 
 have my mind at liberty, and, in a modest way, produc- 
 tive ? I have thought a great deal about the life of your 
 great Linnaeus, which is a resume of the history of almost 
 all the scientific men of our period. Poverty, the actual 
 want of bread, has done all that it could with most of 
 them, to check their development, and compel them to 
 leave their works unknown or incomplete. In their youth 
 they have all been wanderers like myself, anxious about 
 the morrow, with no other hope than the chance of meet- 
 ing intelligent patrons. And even when they have received 
 some benefit — a bitter thing in itself — how often have 
 they been obliged to interrupt their pursuits, in order to 
 
74 
 
 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 occupy themselves with petty duties, which are conferrerl 
 upon them as a favor, but which consume their precious 
 time, and prevent, or delay, their discoveries. Very 
 well, why did they not do what I am proposing, and 
 what I intend to do ; take a hammer or a spade- over 
 their shoulders, and go and excavate the rock, or till the 
 soil? What do I want with books, or pen and ink? 
 Why should I be so eager to make known my existence 
 to the learned world, before having something new and 
 really interesting to communicate ? I know enough now 
 to begin to learn, that is, to observe and study Nature for 
 her own sake. We know well that sublime secrets have 
 been wrested from the very elements, as it were, by poor 
 illiterate workmen, in whom God had planted, like a 
 sacred spark, the genius of observation. And do you 
 suppose. Major Larrson, that a man loving nature pas- 
 sionately as I do, would lose his zeal and vigilance be- 
 cause obliged to eat black bread and sleep upon a bed of 
 straw ? In observing the structure of the rocks and the 
 nature of the soil, might he not sei/e some idea that 
 would prove useful in developing and improving — stay, 
 these porphyry rocks which surround us, or these uncul- 
 tivated fields which we are crossing? I am sure that 
 there are sources of wealth everywhere, that man will 
 gradually discover. To be useful to all, that is the glo- 
 rious ideal of the artisan, dear Osmund ; to be agreeable 
 to the rich, is the puerile destiny of the artist ; and I es- 
 cape from it with joy." 
 
 '' What ! " said the major, astonished ; " are you seri- 
 ous, Christian, in wishing to renounce the agreeable arts, 
 in which you excel, the refinements of life, which, with 
 your brilliant gifts, you could easily command, the charms 
 of society, where it only depends upon yourself to reappear 
 on the most advantageous and agreeable footing, by ac- 
 cepting employment, as a superintendent,, we will say, of 
 some court entertainment? You have only to desire it, 
 and you would quickly secure-powerful friends, who could 
 easily make you the manager of a theatre, or the director 
 of a museum. If you wish — my family is noble, and 
 has relations — " 
 
•IHE SNOW MAN. 
 
 375 
 
 " No, no, major ! Thanks ! That would have been 
 well enough yesterday morning ; I was still a child then, 
 seeking his road while playing truant from school ; I 
 should, perhaps, have accepted your proposition. The 
 ball had led me back to the old life, to the old worldly 
 vanities to which I have already too often yielded. To- 
 day I am a man, who sees where duty points him. I do 
 not know what ray has penetrated my soul with this morn- 
 ing sunshine — " 
 
 Christian sank into a revery. He asked himself what 
 association of ideas had led him to form resolutions so 
 simple and energetic ; but it was useless for him to ques- 
 tion himself, and attribute this new inspiration entirely 
 to the influence of a good night's sleep and a beautiful 
 morning ; one image constantly arose before him, that 
 of Margaret hiding her face in her hands at the name of 
 Christian Waldo. That stifled cry, breaking from her 
 woman's heart, had struck the proud breast of Christian 
 Gofli-edi. It had lingered in his ears, it had filled his 
 soul with a generous shame, with a sudden and inflexible 
 courage. 
 
 " And wliy, let me ask you," he replied to the major, 
 who reminded him how fatiguing and tiresome physical 
 labor is, " why must I have amusement and repose, and 
 be exempted from any sort of suffering? Since my birth 
 did not give me a place among the privileged classes, 
 what have I to depend upon, if I have not courage enough 
 to make an honorable position for myself? Those who 
 gave me birth ? If they were here before me they might 
 very well reply, that, having made me strong and healthy, 
 they had no idea of rendering me delicate and lazy, and 
 that, if fine carpets to walk on and delicacies to eat are 
 really indispensable to sustain my strength and keep me in 
 good-humor, it had been quite impossible for themj to fore- 
 see this strange and absurd contingency." 
 
 " You are laughing. Christian," said the major ; "for 
 life, without its superfluities, „ is not worth the trouble of 
 living. Should not man's aim be to build himself a nest 
 with care and foresight, of which the very birds set biiU 
 an example ? " 
 
37^ 
 
 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 " Yes, major, it should be the aim of such men as you, 
 whose future is linked in with his past. But there is noth- 
 ing edifying in my past life, and when I became an inter- 
 yreter^ as M. Goefle calls it, do you know what the real 
 motive was that influenced me ? Most assuredly, though 
 I did not know it myself, it was the fear of what is called 
 poverty. Now, such a fear in a man who has only him- 
 self to care for, is cowardly. Only think how absurd a 
 lamentation on that score would sound in the mouth of 
 a man so well formed and healthy as I am ! Stay ! 
 imagine one of my marionettes soliloquizing ; our friend 
 Stentarello, for instance, speaking in all artlessness : 
 ' Alas, miserable me ! three times unfortunate ! I can no 
 longer sleep in sheets of the finest linen ! Alas ! I can no 
 longer, when I am warm in Italy, take a glass of vanilla 
 ice cream ; or, when I am cold in Sweden, pour first-class 
 rum into my tea ! Alas ! I can no longer dance at balls 
 in lavender-colored silk ; no more lace sleeves to set off 
 my white hand. Miserable me ! I can no longer cover 
 my hair with powder scented with violet, and with pomade 
 scented with tuberose ! Oh, stars, behold my deplorable 
 destiny ! So pretty, so charming, so amiable as I am, and 
 yet I can have no more preserves served in china plates ; 
 no more moire ribbons to tie my queue ; no more gold 
 buckles to my shoes ! Blind fortune, cursed society ! you 
 certainly owe me as much as that, and to Christian Waldo 
 too, who makes his marionettes talk and gesticulate so 
 well.' " 
 
 Larrson could not help laughing at Christian's gayety. 
 
 " You are a droll fellow," he said ; " at some moments 
 you seem to me paradoxical, and then again I ask myself 
 whether you are not as great a sage as Diogenes, break- 
 ing his cup so as to drink at the fountain-head — in the 
 brook itself." 
 
 "Diogenes!" said Christian, "many thanks! That 
 cynic has always seemed to me a conceited fool. In 
 any event, if he was really a philosopher, and wished to 
 prove to the men of his time that it is possible to be 
 happy and free without material comforts, he forgot ^he 
 fundamental principle of his doctrine ; namely, that no 
 
THE SNO W MAN. 
 
 2,11 
 
 one cau be free and happy without some useful employ- 
 ment ; a truth that belongs to every age. To limit 
 yourself to the bare necessities of life, so as to devote 
 time and strength to a generous task, cannot be called a 
 sacrifice ; it is conquering your own self-respect, securing 
 the peace of your soul. But, without this aim, stoicism 
 is mere foolishness ; the doctrine that people should do 
 notliing but amuse themselves, is certainly much more 
 sensible and agreeable." 
 
 While talking thus, our hunters came in sight of the 
 rustic abode where they were expected. It fitted in so 
 well with the natural terraces of the mountain, that, but 
 for the smoke escaping from the chimney, it would have 
 been difiicult to distinguish it at any distance. 
 
 "You are about to see a very worthy man," said the 
 major to Christian, "a type of Dalecarlian simplicity 
 and pride. There is, however, a very disagreeable per- 
 son in his house, but perhaps we shall not see her 
 to-day." 
 
 "So much the worse!" answered Christian; "I am 
 curious about all the people, as well as about all the 
 things in this strange country. Who is this disagreeable 
 person ? " 
 
 "A sister of the danneman, an old woman, either an 
 idiot or crazy, who is said to have been beautiful in 
 former years, and about whom they tell all sorts of 
 queer stories. It is said that she had a child by Baron 
 Olaus, and that the baroness, his wife (the same whom 
 he now wears in a ring), out of retrospective jealousy, 
 had the child carried off and destroyed. This may be 
 the cause of the poor woman's unsettled mind. How- 
 ever, I can't guarantee the truth of the story, and I feel 
 very little interest in a creature who could allow herself 
 to be vanquished by the charms of the Snow Man. She 
 is sometimes very tiresome with her songs and sayings, 
 and then again she is either invisible or mute. I hope 
 this will be the case to-day. But here we are. Go in 
 quickly and warm yourself, while the corporal and lieu- 
 tenant unpack our provisions." 
 
 The danneman, Joe Boetsoi, was standing at his 
 
378 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 threshold. He was a fine man, of some forty-five years, 
 with hard features, contrasting strangely with his kindly 
 and straightforward expression. He was dressed with 
 great neatness, and he came forward rather slowly, with 
 his hat on his head, an air of simple dignity, and his 
 hand extended. 
 
 "Welcome ! " he said to the major ; "thy friends are 
 mine." The Dalecarlian peasant addresses every one, 
 even the king himself, in the second person. 
 
 He turned immediately to the other young men, and 
 shook hands with Christian, Osburn, and the corporal. 
 
 "I was expecting you," he said, " and yet you must 
 not expect to find much in my house in the way of food. 
 You know, Major Larrson, that the country is poor ; 
 but all that I have is at the disposition of yourself and 
 friends." 
 
 "Don't put yourself out at all, Danneman Boetsoi," 
 replied the major; "if I had come alone, I should 
 have asked for some of your gruel and bier ; but, since 
 I have brought three of my friends with me, I laid in a 
 stock of provisions beforehand, so as not to cause you 
 any inconvenience." 
 
 A discussion in Dalecarlian followed, between the 
 officer and the peasant ; Christian did not understand it, 
 but the lieutenant explained it to him as they opened the 
 baskets. 
 
 "We very wisely brought our own provisions," he 
 said, "so as to have a decent breakfast in this hut ;^ but 
 the worthy peasant, though excusing himself for having 
 nothing good to oflTer us, has really gone to some expense 
 for our entertainment, and it is easy to see, from his 
 long face, that he feels wounded by our precaution, 
 which seems to him to cast a doubt upon his hospitality." 
 
 "In that case," said Christian, "do not let us mor- 
 tify this honest man ; let us keep our provisions, and 
 eat what he has prepared for us. His house seems clean, 
 and here are his daughters, ugly enougli, it is true, but 
 very elegant, and all ready to wait upon the table." 
 
 "Suppose we make a compromise,*' replied the lieu 
 tenant. "We will have everything served in comraoa 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 379 
 
 and invite the family to accept our food, at the same 
 time that we take theirs. I will go and propose that to 
 the danneman — always if the major approves." 
 
 The lieutenant never formed any resolution whatever 
 without this restriction. 
 
 The major approved of the proposition, and made it 
 himself to the danneman, who accepted it, although he 
 still seemed a little dissatisfied. 
 
 "So," he said, with an uneasy smile, "it will be like 
 a wedding-feast, where each one brings his own dish." 
 
 At any rate, he accepted ; but, in spite of Christian's 
 hints, they did not even suggest inviting the women 
 to sit down. This was too much opposed to established 
 customs ; the young officers would have been afraid of 
 appearing ridiculous in proposing to the danneman such 
 a great infraction of his dignity as head of the family. 
 
 While they were unpacking on the one hand, and talk- 
 ing on the other. Christian examined the house within 
 and without. It was the same sort of building that he 
 liad already noticed in the gaard at Stollborg : the body 
 of the house was made of pine logs, well caulked with 
 moss, and painted, on the outside, of an iron-rust red ; 
 the roof was of birch-bark, overlaid with earth and turf. 
 As there was danger that the snow, which was very 
 plentiful in this mountainous region, would break down 
 the roof, it had been carefully swept oiF, and the danne- 
 man's goat, a third larger than the same animal in 
 southern countries, was uttering a plaintive bleating at 
 the sight of the fresh grass thus disclosed to view. 
 
 It was so warm within doors, that the young men 
 threw oflf their pelisses and hats, and went about in their 
 shirt-sleeves. Although substantial and spacious in 
 comparison with a great many habitations in the locality, 
 this house was, nevertheless, quite small ; but its form 
 was elegant, and the outside porch, over which the edge 
 of the roof projected, gave it the comfortable and pic- 
 turesque appearance of a Swiss chalet. One single 
 room, protected from the cold by a narrow vestibule, 
 proved sufiicient for the whole family, which consisted of 
 the danneman, who was a widower, his sister, a son fifteea 
 
380 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 years old, and two daughters somewhat older. The 
 stove was in the form of a cylinder, and was built of 
 Dutch bricks, four feet high ; the chimney was attached 
 to it, and the whole stood in the centre of the house. 
 The bare ground, instead of a carpet, was covered with 
 pine-boughs, that exhaled an agreeable and healthful 
 odor. 
 
 Christian wondered where all the family slept, for he 
 saw only two beds in recesses in the wall, like berths in 
 a ship. His friends explained to him that these were 
 the beds of the danneman and his sister. The children 
 slept on benches, with no other covering than fur cloaks. 
 
 " In other respects," said the major to Christian, who 
 inquired curiously about all their habits, "though they are 
 faithful to the rude customs of our mountaineers of pure 
 race, you will find, also, that they have luxuries of their 
 own, due to the labors of our host and the plentiful- 
 ness of game in these savage places. I told you that 
 Danneman Boetsoi was a skilful and experienced hunter ; 
 but you must know that he is skilful not only in track- 
 ing savage beasts, but also in killing them without dam- 
 aging their skins, and in preparing and preserving their 
 precious remains. We always apply to him when we 
 want a good and handsome article at a fair price : skins 
 of the sucking doe, for instance, which, for the summer, 
 make the coolest and most delicious bed in the world, 
 and which wash like linen ; skins of the long-haired 
 black bear, for lining sleighs ; and seal-skin cloaks, im- 
 previous to the rain, to the snow, and, above all, to 
 the interminable autumn fogs, which are exceedingly 
 penetrating and unhealthy. Still further, he has rarities 
 and even curiosities in the way of furs to dispose of, 
 for Joe Boetsoi has travelled a great deal in still colder 
 regions than this, and he is in communication with hunt- 
 ers, who send him the objects of his traffic by wandering 
 Laplanders and Norwegian traders ; northern caravans, 
 in which the camel is replaced by the reindeer, and whose 
 trade, for the most part, consists merely in an exchange 
 of commodities, after the manner of the ancients." 
 
 Christian was curious to see these furs. The danne- 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 381 
 
 man, thinking he wanted to purchase some of them, led 
 him and the major to a little shed, where the skins 
 were hanging up. He begged Larrson to dispose of one 
 or all of them to the satisfaction of his friend, and would 
 not consent to be informed of the price of sale agreed 
 upon, before receiving it. 
 
 "You understand the business as well as 1 do," he 
 said, " and you are master in my house." 
 
 Osmund translated these words to Christian, who ad- 
 mired the simple dignity of the Dalecarlian, and inquired 
 whether he would show equal confidence in any one who 
 might claim his hospitality. 
 
 ''He has usually a great deal X)f faith," replied the 
 major, " for the manners here are patriarchal. The Dale- 
 carlian, the Swiss of the north, has great and heroic virtues, 
 but the country he lives in is poor. Our mines draw vag- 
 abonds from all parts of the country ; and criminals, con- 
 cealed in this subterranean world, often avoid, for a long 
 time, the punishments pronounced against them in othei 
 provinces. The peasant, when he is neither a landowner 
 nor employed in the mines, is so wretchedly poor, that he 
 is sometimes obliged to beg or to steal. And yet the num- 
 ber of malefactors is infinitely small in comparison to that 
 of per'ions without means, whom the privileged classes 
 absolutely ignore. The rich peasant, therefore, cannot 
 confide in all chance comers, nor does he feel the slightest 
 faith in the nobility, who vote regularly in the Diet for 
 their own interests, in opposition to those of the other 
 classes ; but the soldier, above all the members of the 
 inddta, is the friend of the peasant. We are the most 
 independent power in the State, since the law secures us 
 a sufficient and honorable support in spite of every op- 
 posing influence. It is well known that we are generally 
 devoted to the king, when he sustains the people and pro- 
 te<5ts them against the abuses of the nobility. This is his 
 only course with us, and the peasant, who makes compion 
 cause with him, cannot be deceived. Have patience, Chris- 
 tian ; a time will come when the senate will be obliged to 
 settle accounts with the bourgeois and peasant! Our 
 king dares not. Our queen, Ulrica, is bold enough, but 
 
• ^^82 THE SNO W MAN. 
 
 would the sister of Frederick the Great pause on the road 
 if she could once succeed in subduing the pride and ambi- 
 tion of the iarls ? I doubt it. She would think only of 
 extending the royal power, without admitting that the 
 people also ought to be allowed more freedom. Our hope, 
 therefore, is in Henry, the prince royal. He is a man of 
 genius and a man of action ! Yes, yes ! A time will 
 come — . But pardon me ! I am forgetting that you 
 want to look at furs, and that you can scarcely feel any 
 interest in the politics of X)ur country ; however, you may 
 rest assured that the prince royal — " 
 
 " Yes, yes, the prince royal !" repeated the lieutenant, 
 who had followed the major and Christian under the shed. 
 
 He paused with a thoughtful expression, being, in fact, 
 busy in learning the memorable words, which his friend 
 had just uttered, by heart, so that he might form a definite 
 opinion about the situation of his country. He would 
 have been rather indifferent upon this subject if he had 
 consulted the apathetic philosophy that was natural to 
 him ; but the major had an opinion, and the lieutenant, 
 therefore, must have one too, and he could not, of course, 
 differ from his friend. Consequently he, also, felt un- 
 bounded hope and confidence in the genius of the prince 
 royal. Were both he and Larrson mistaken? Henry 
 (the future Gustavus HI.) had many remarkable and 
 most seductive qualities ; he was learned, eloquent, cour- 
 ageous, and certainly, in the beginning of his career, sincere, 
 and ambitious of doing good ; but he, like Charles XII., 
 and so many others, was destined to yield to the dominion 
 of his own passions, which warred against his desire to 
 promote the public weal. After saving Sweden from an 
 overbearing oligarchy, he did his best to ruin it by a 
 blind ostentation and the false calculations of a corrupt 
 policy. Still, he was a great man at a given moment of 
 his life, when, without shedding a drop of blood, he suc- 
 ceeded in freeing his people from the tyranny of a caste, 
 irresistibly tempted by its privileges to destroy the equilib- 
 rium of society. 
 
 Christian, from all that he had been able to gather as 
 to the situation of the country, and the presumed character 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 383 
 
 of the future heir of the throne, shared fully the major's 
 hopes and illusions ; but, nevertheless, he was still more 
 occupied for the moment, not in purchasing the lining for 
 a winter garment — he could not afford any such luxury — 
 but in examining the skins of animals piled up around 
 him in the danneman's little store. In regard to several 
 species this was a lesson for him in natural history ; and 
 Larrson, who was a thoroughly accomplished hunter, in- 
 formed him in what regions of the north these species 
 were indigenous. 
 
 " Since we shall set out immediately to hunt our bear," 
 he said, in conclusion, "you ought to know beforehand 
 what sort of animal we are to deal with. According to 
 Danneman Boetsoi it is a mongrel, but it is yet to be proved 
 that the different varieties of the bear can breed together. 
 There are three of them in Norway : the hress-diur, which 
 lives upon leaves and herbs, and which is very fond of 
 milk and honey ; the ildgiersdiur, which eats meat ; and 
 the rnyrebiorn, which feeds upon ants. As for the white 
 bear of the polar seas, which is a fourth, and still more 
 powerful family, I need not tell you that it is not found 
 among us." 
 
 '' And yet," said Christian, " here are two skins of 
 polar bears which seem to me as precious as any articles 
 in the danneman's collection. Has he been as far as the 
 Polar Sea on his hunting expeditions?" 
 
 "It is quite possible," replied the major ; "at any rate, 
 he has business relations, as I told you, with parties in 
 the extreme north. It is quite a customary thing for him 
 to travel two hundred leagues in his sleigh, in the middle 
 of winter, to trade and exchange commodities with hunt- 
 ers, who, upon their side, have come just as far on their 
 skates, or with their reindeers, to meet him at the appointed 
 place. He claims now that he is going to show us the 
 mongrel of a white and black bear, because the creature's 
 fur seemed to him mixed ; but as he only saw him at night, 
 by the light of the aurora borealis, which is very deceptive, 
 we can't be sure about it. The bear is so shy and dis- 
 trustful that very little is known about him, even in our 
 country, where he was found in great numbers a hundred 
 
384 ^^^ SNOW MAN. 
 
 years ago, and where he is still quite common. It is not 
 really known whether the parti-colored bear is a mongrel 
 or a distinct species. Some believe that the white fur 
 is produced by the cold of winter, and that the spotted 
 coat, therefore, is either the beginning or the termination 
 of an annual transformation, while others assert that the 
 white bear retains his color at all seasons ; but you. Chris- 
 tian, are probably more familiar than myself with all 
 these matters. You have read so many works that I only 
 know by name — " 
 
 " It is for that very reason that I am utterly unable to 
 solve your doubts. Buffon contradicts Wormsius flatly 
 about the bear ; and all our learned historians contradict 
 each other in all their statements, which does not prevent 
 them from contradicting themselves. It is not really their 
 fault, for most of the laws of nature are still unsolved 
 enigmas. When we know so little about animals living 
 upon the surface of the globe, only think what secrets 
 must be enclosed in the bowels of the earth itself ! That 
 is what made me say, a little while ago, that it is in the 
 power of any man, no matter how insignificant, to make 
 immense discoveries. But let us return to our bear, or 
 rather let us make haste with breakfast, so that we can 
 go and find him. I have only one fault to find with the 
 Swedes, dear friend, and that is that they have too many 
 meals, and spend too much time over them. I could un- 
 derstand it better if your days were twenty hours long ; 
 but when I see how small an arc of the circle the sun has 
 to pass even now, before again sinking beneath the hor- 
 izon, I cannot help wondering at what hour you propose 
 to hunt." 
 
 "Patience, dear Christian," replied the major, laugh- 
 ing ; " a bear-hunt does not last long. It is a single blow, 
 whether it succeeds or fails ; either you lodge two balls 
 in your enemy's head, or, with a stroke of his paw, he 
 disarms and overpowers you. But here is the danneman 
 coming to announce breakfast. Let us go in." 
 
 The repast brought by the officers was capital ; but 
 Christian saw plainly that the young girls, and the dan- 
 neman himself, were sadly mortified at the sight of all 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 385 
 
 this good food, and that after looking forward with delight 
 to offering them their rustic viands, they scarcely ventured 
 to place them on the table. Accordingly he made it a 
 point to eat of these, and to praise them ; and, indeed, his 
 politeness cost him little, for the danneman's smoked sal- 
 mon and fresh game were excellent, the butter made of 
 reindeer's milk was delicious, the turnips were tender and 
 sweet, and the sweetmeats — some northern berry pre- 
 served — aromatic and refreshing. Christian did not like 
 so well the beverage of sour milk, which was handed 
 round in pewter pitchers ; he preferred the light wine 
 made from a different sort of berry, which grows in the 
 greatest abundance throughout the country, and which 
 the people cook and preserve in a thousand ways. But 
 most of all, he admired the Christmas cake that was 
 brought on with the dessert, and which had been made ex- 
 pressly for the danneman's guests, so that they might be 
 able to cut it ; for custom required that the cake reserved 
 for the family should remain untouched until Twelfth 
 Night. The danneman thrust his knife resolutely into 
 this luxurious edifice, made of wheaten flour, and tumbled 
 down without mercy the little towers and clocks which 
 his daughters had so skilfully constructed. These young 
 persons, tall, large, and with dark complexions, were not 
 at all pretty, but their figures were good, and they were 
 very coquettishly dressed, making a great display of rib- 
 bons, jewels, and, above all, of white linen and black 
 braids. It was only after the cake was cut that they par- 
 took of anything. They were invited then to take a piece 
 of the cake, and to moisten their lips from their father's gob- 
 let, after he had filled it with strong beer. They remained 
 standing, and, before drinking, made a deep courtesy to 
 the guests, and wished them the compliments of the season. 
 Christian usually became very impatient at table when 
 he had satisfied his hunger, but he now sank into a 
 profound revery. His companions were quite noisy, al- 
 though they had abstained from wine and brandy, in the 
 fear of being overcome by intoxication when the time 
 came for starting on the hunt. The danneman, who was 
 at first reserved and rather haughty, became more demon* 
 
 35 
 
^86 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 strative, and seemed to have conceived a peculiar sym 
 pathy for the stranger ; but this man, who understood all 
 the Northland dialects, and even Finnish and the Russian 
 of Archangel, could speak Swedish, his native language, 
 only with extreme difficulty. Christian, with his curios- 
 ity and habitual facility, was already trying to understand 
 Diilecarlian ; but even with the help of the narrator's 
 pantomime, he could only follow vaguely the interesting 
 accounts of hunts and travels called for, and eagerly lis- 
 tened to, by the other guests. 
 
 Fatigued by the efforts he was obliged to make in lis- 
 tening, and by the excessive heat of the room. Christian 
 left the table and moved away from the stove. He went 
 to the window and gazed at the sublime scenery surround- 
 ing the chalet, which stood on the edge of a deep gran- 
 itic gorge, whose black precipitous sides, glittering with 
 frozen waterfalls, plunged steeply down to the bed of a 
 torrent. The uncultivated meadows above the abyss had 
 such a rapid slope in many places, that their shroud of 
 snow had been blown off by sudden gusts of wind, \yhich 
 had thus left exposed to the sun the green turf beneath, 
 lightly powdered with frost, and brilliant as a carpet of 
 pale emeralds. This remnant of tender verdure, victori- 
 ous over the frost, was the more striking because of its 
 contrast with the gloomy green, almost like black, of the 
 gigantic pines, which stood crowded together, erect as 
 monuments of the abyss, and hung with fringes of ice- 
 diamonds. Those growing in the crevices where the 
 snow had accumulated, were buried in it half way up 
 their trunks, and these trunks were sometimes a hundred 
 and sixty feet high. Their branches, too heavily laden 
 with ice, hung down ; and, stiff as the flying buttresses 
 of Gothic cathedrals, were welded into the snow beneath. 
 Upon the horizon arose the sharp peaks of Sevenberg, 
 their rosy crests, the abode of eternal snows, resting upon 
 a sky of amethyst. It was about eleven o'clock in the 
 morning, and the sun was already searching with his rays 
 the blue depths, which, when the party reached their des- 
 tination, had still been enveloped in the cold and gloomj^ 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 387 
 
 shadow of the night. Every instant Christian saw them 
 gleaming with changing hues, like those of an opal. 
 
 Every artist who has been a traveller, has always re- 
 marked the beauty of snow-landscapes in those regions 
 which are, as it were, their favorite haunts. In the 
 south, the snow is never seen in all its glory ; it is only 
 in exceptional localities, and on rare days, when it resists 
 the sunshine, that we can form any idea of the splendor 
 of its hues in other regions, and of the peculiar transpar- 
 ency of the shadows that float over its white masses. 
 Christian was seized with enthusiasm. While comparing 
 the relative comfort of the cottage (a comfort altogether 
 excessive as regards heat) with the solemn severity of the 
 spectacle without, he began to dream about the life of the 
 danneman, and to form a picture of it in nis imagination, 
 until it actually seemed to him his own life ; until he be- 
 gan to imagine that he vv^as in his own house, his own 
 country, his own family. 
 
 There is no one of us who, at one time or another, 
 when vividly impressed by some combination of outward 
 scenery or circumstance, has not fallen into one of those 
 strange reveries, in which our life seems double ; when we 
 behold the scene before us not only for what it is, but also — 
 like an object reflected in a mirror — as the reflection of 
 some picture already imprinted upon the mind. We 
 imagine that we have already trod the road we are pass- 
 ing ; that we have already known, in a previous phase of 
 our existence, the persons we are meeting ; that we have 
 fallen back into some scene of the past in which we have 
 already lived. This sort of hallucination of the memory 
 was so complete in Christian's case, that it seemed to him 
 that he must clearly have understood, at some former 
 period, this Dalecarlian language, which he had just 
 found so unintelligible. While listening mechanically to 
 the sweet and grave speech of the danneman, he began 
 unconsciously to finish his sentences before he had uttered 
 them, and to give them a meaning. Suddenly he started 
 up, as if waking from a trance, and laid his hand heavily 
 upon the major's shoulder. 
 
 *' I understand ! " he cried, extremely agitated ; '' it is 
 
388 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 very strange, but I understand. Did not the danneman 
 say just now that he bad a dozen cows, and that three of 
 them had become so wild last summer that he could not 
 bring them back to his house in the autumn ? that they 
 were lost, and that he had been obliged to shoot one of 
 the remaining ones, to keep it from running away like the 
 others ? " 
 
 " He did really say so," replied the major ; " but it did 
 not occur last summer. The danneman was saying that 
 all this happened twenty years ago." 
 
 '' No matter," replied Christian, " you see that I un- 
 derstood almost everything. How do you explain that, 
 Osmund?" 
 
 " I do not know. But I am not so much surprised as 
 you ; it is the result of your incredible facility in learning 
 all languages, in constructing them, and explaining them 
 in your own mind, according to analogies that exist be- 
 tween them." 
 
 "No, that was not the process through which my mind 
 passed ; it came to me like a reminiscence." 
 
 " That, again, is possible. You probably studied, in 
 your childhood, a quantity of things of which you 
 retain a confused recollection. Come, try it again ; 
 listen to what those young girls are saying: do you 
 understand?" 
 
 "No," said Christian, "it is over; the phenomenon 
 has ceased ; I cannot understand, now, a single word 
 they say." 
 
 He returned to the window to listen to his host, 
 and try to catch once more, in the same mysterious 
 way, the meaning of what was said ; but his efforts were 
 useless. His confused revery was dissipated, and, in 
 spite of himself, reason and real impressions resumed 
 their habitual empire over his mind. 
 
 Soon, however, he entered into another train of 
 thought. It was no longer a fantastic past that appeared 
 to him, but a dream of the future logically deduced from 
 the resolutions he had formed, and with which he had 
 entertained the major only an hour before. He saw 
 himself dressed like the danneman, in a blouse without 
 
THE SNOW MAN, 389 
 
 sleeves, worn over a vest with long and narrow sleeves, 
 in " two pairs of stockings, the inner ones of wool and 
 those outside of yellow leather, and with his hair cut 
 square on his forehead. He saw himself seated near his 
 comfortable stove, relating to some rare visitor stories of 
 his expeditions on fields of floating ice, or in the currents 
 of the terrible Maelstrom, and in the obscure recesses of 
 Syltfield. 
 
 In this peaceful and primitive scene, which he was 
 imagining as the frugal recompense of his travels and 
 labors, he naturally tried to form an idea of the com- 
 panion who would be associated with him in the rustic 
 occupations of his maturity. Christian looked atten- 
 tively at the daughters of the danneman, but these mas- 
 culine and severe creatures were not sufficiently beautiful 
 to make the idea of being the husband of one of them 
 very delightful. Unless he could sympathize intellec- 
 tually with the companion of his life, he would have 
 preferred to remain a bachelor. In spite of himself, the 
 phantom of Margaret fluttered into his dream in the 
 form of a blond little fee, disguised like a young moun- 
 taineer, and prettier in her white chemise and green 
 bodice than in her fine hooped skirt, and her satin 
 slippers. But this fantastic toilet was only a transient 
 masquerade : Margaret was a figure detached from 
 another frame ; she could only cross the threshold of the 
 chalet with a smile, and disappear in the blue and silver 
 sleigh, where Christian would never be allowed to seat 
 himself by her side. 
 
 "Go, Margaret!" he said. "What are you doing 
 here ? An abyss separates us, and for me you are only 
 a vision hovering in the moonlight. My wife will be a 
 dull reality — or rather, I shall have no wife ; I will be a 
 miner, a laborer, or a wandering merchant, like my 
 host ; and will work for twenty years, so as to be able at 
 last to build my nest upon the point of one of these rocks. 
 Very well, when I am fifty years old I will settle on 
 some magnificent site, and, living there like a hermit, 
 will bring up some abandoned child, who will love me 
 ds I loved Goffi:edi! Why not? And if, in the meaij* 
 
390 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 while, I have discovered something useful to my fellow 
 men, shall I not be happy?" 
 
 Thus did Christian ponder upon the problem of hia 
 destiny ; but however humble his dream of happiness, it 
 faded away before the idea of solitude. 
 
 " What is the meaning," he said to himself, "of this 
 longing for a serious love, by which I have been pos- 
 sessed for the last twenty-four hours ? Hitherto, I have 
 troubled myself but little about the morrow. Come, 
 can I not apply to these cravings, to these cries of my 
 heart, the good and sound philosophy which I opposed, 
 in talking to Osburne, to material luxuries and comforts? 
 If, in my project of reform, I can forget my physical 
 wants, subject myself to the rudest physical hardships, 
 can I not also impose silence upon my imagination, and 
 forbid it this flattering dream of happiness ? Why, how 
 now. Christian ! Since you have settled and decided 
 that you have no peculiar claims to happiness, can you 
 not accept your fate? can you not say to yourself: 
 'What I have to do is not to breathe the perfume of 
 roses ; it is to walk over thorns without looking behind 
 
 me 
 
 '?• 
 
 Christian's heart was torn as he tried to form this res- 
 olution, and his face was bathed with tears ; he hid it in 
 his hands, and bowed his head, as if asleep. 
 
 "What, Christian!" cried the major, rising from the 
 table; "is this the moment for falling asleep, and for 
 you, too, the most eager of us all for the hunt? Gome 
 and drink the stirrup cup, and let us start." 
 
 Christian started up, crying hravo. His eyes were 
 wet, but his smile was so gay that no one dreamed he had 
 been weeping. 
 
 "We have now to decide," resumed the major, 
 " which of us shall have the honor of making the first 
 attack upon his furred majesty." 
 
 "Don't you draw lots, and leave it for chance lo 
 decide?" said Christian. "I thought that was the cus- 
 tom." 
 
 "So it is; but you entertained and interested us so 
 much last evening, that we have been asking eacli 
 
THE SNO W MAN. 
 
 39^ 
 
 other what we could do for you in return, and this is 
 the conclusion to which the lieutenant and myself have 
 arrived, with the consent of the corporal, whose vote is 
 worth just as much as ours : we will draw lots, and 
 the lucky one will have the pleasure of offering you the 
 long straw." 
 
 "Upon my word ! " said Christian, " I am really very 
 grateful for your kindness. I thank you all from the 
 bottom of my heart, my excellent friends ; but it is quite 
 possible that you are sacrificing a pleasure that I am not 
 worthy to appreciate. I have not claimed to be an 
 ardent and skilful hunter. I am only a curious — " 
 
 "Do you feel any timidity ? " rejoined the major. "If 
 that is the case — " 
 
 "I cannot feel any timidity," replied Christian, "since 
 I don't know anything about the dangers of this hunt, 
 and I do not consider myself such a coward as to be un- 
 willing to go where danger of any kind is to be encoun- 
 tered. I repeat that I have no sort of vanity in the 
 matter ; I have never performed any exploit which gives 
 me a ri^ht to monopolize a triumph. Can you not give 
 me a place which will make all our chances equal ? " 
 
 "That is impossible. We have equal chances when 
 we draw lots ; but the one who wins must take the lead." 
 
 "Very well," said Christian, "I will take the lead, I 
 will start the game ; but, I assure you, if there is any 
 one here indifferent to killing him with his own hand, 
 it is myself; in fact, I should much prefer having time 
 to examine the action and walk of the animal while he 
 is alive." 
 
 "But suppose he should fly, and make his escape before 
 you can examine him ? No one can foresee what his caprice 
 will be. The bear is usually timid, and, for the most 
 part, in case of assault, he thinks only of flight, except 
 when he is wounded. Be advised by me, Christian ; and 
 if you really care to see anything interesting, undertake 
 the attack : otherwise, you will perhaps only see the 
 dead animal after the combat ; for it seems that he is 
 intrenched in a narrow space, behind some thick bram- 
 bles." 
 
392 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 *'Well then, I accept your offer," said Christian, 
 *' and I promise to show you a bear-hunt this evening, 
 on my stage, into which I will try and introduce some- 
 thing entertaining. Yes, really, I will be as amusing as 
 possible, in proof of my gratitude. And now, major, 
 tell me what I must do, and what is the best method for 
 killing a bear properly, without making it suffer too 
 much ; for I am a sentimental hunter, and must acknowl- 
 edge that I am not in the slightest degree ferocious." 
 
 "What!" rejoined the major, "have you never seen 
 a bear killed ? " 
 
 " Never ! " 
 
 " Oh ! then, that is different ; we withdraw our prop- 
 osition. No one here wants to see you disabled, dear 
 Christian ! Isn't that so, comrades ? And what would 
 Countess Margaret say, if we should carry back her part- 
 ner minus a leg ? " 
 
 The lieutenant and corporal agreed with the major, 
 that it would not do to expose a novice to a serious en- 
 gagement with this ferocious beast ; but Margaret's name, 
 which, to Christian's great regret, had been pronounced 
 as associated with him, had set his heart beating. From 
 that moment he claimed the favor that had been granted 
 him, with as much ardor as he had before shown modesty 
 or indifference in avoiding it. 
 
 " If I should happen to be successful in killing this 
 bear in good style," he thought, " this barbarian princess 
 will not blush so deeply, perhaps, at our defunct friend- 
 ship ; and if the bear kills me in a tragic manner, she 
 may, possibly, shed in secret a tear of pity over the fate 
 of the poor actor." 
 
 When the major saw that Christian was really annoyed 
 at being obliged to draw lots, he persuaded his companions 
 to give him the first chance, as a favor, as they had in- 
 tended. But, in the meanwhile, he went up to the dan- 
 no man, and said to him, in his own language : 
 
 " Friend, since in your character of guide you are to go 
 in advance with our dear Christian, keep close to him, I 
 implore you. It is his first trial." 
 
 The Dalecarlian was greatly surprised, and could not 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 393 
 
 understand, at first, what the major meant ; he made him 
 repeat the warning, and then, looking at Christian at- 
 tentively, shook his head. 
 
 " He is a handsome young man," he said, " and he has 
 a good heart, I am sure ! He ate my kahebroe as if 
 he had never done anything else all his life ; he has Dal- 
 ecarlian teeth, and yet, it seems, he is a stranger ! He 
 pleases me. I am sorry that he cannot talk Dalecarlian 
 with me, and still more sorry that he is going where those 
 more skilful than either he or myself have remained." 
 
 The kakebroe, to which the danneman referred, was 
 neither more nor less than the ordinary bread of the 
 country, which was made of rye, oats, and pounded bark. 
 The pulverized birch-bark, which was one of its ingre- 
 dients, made it very hard, even when fresh ; and as no one 
 cooks in this country more than twice a year at the most, 
 it becomes, when dry and stale, a sort of flat stone, which 
 strangers find very difficult to masticate. The saying 
 of the Danish bishop who marched against the Dalecar- 
 lians in the time of Gustavus Wasa, is historical : " The 
 devil himself cannot get the better of people who eat 
 wood ! " 
 
 As the danneman, in spite of his enthusiasm for the 
 heroic mastication of his stranger guest, did not seem able 
 to answer for his safety, Larrson's anxiety was renewed, 
 and he again attempted to dissuade Christian. The dan- 
 neman interrupted him by begging every one to go out, 
 except the stranger. They guessed his intention, and 
 Larrsou explained it to Christian. 
 
 " You will have to go through some cabalistic initia- 
 tion," he said ; " I told you that our peasants believe in 
 all sorts of influences and mysterious divinities ; I sec that 
 the danneman will not guide you to his bear with t.ny con- 
 fidence, until he has rendered you invulnerable by a for- 
 mula or talisman of some sort. Will you consent ? " 
 
 " To be sure I will I " cried Christian ; " whatever in- 
 forms me of the peculiarities of the manners and customs 
 of a people, I welcome with all my heart. Leave me 
 alone with the danneman, dear major, and, if he shows 
 me the devil, I promise to describe him to you exactly," 
 
394 
 
 THE SNO W MAN. 
 
 When the danaeman was tete-a-tete with his guest, h6 
 took his hand, and said in Swedish : 
 
 "Don't be afraid!" 
 
 Then he conducted him to one of the two beds thaf 
 stood in a transverse niche at the end of the room, and 
 called three times : " Karine, Karine, Karine ! " after which 
 he drew aside an old stained leather curtain, and disclosed 
 to view an angular form, and a face of alarming pallor. 
 
 It was an aged and feeble woman, who seemed to have 
 great difficulty in waking, and who, with the danneman's 
 assistance, raised herself in the bed, so that she might 
 look at Christian. At the same time, the danneman re- 
 peated his warning : 
 
 " Don't be afraid ! " 
 
 " It is my sister," he added, "whom you may have 
 heard spoken of ; a famous seeress, a vala of the old times." 
 
 The old woman, whose profound slumber had not been 
 disturbed by tlie noise of the breakfast and conversation, 
 seemed trying to collect her ideas. Her livid face was 
 calm and gentle. She held out her hand, and the danne- 
 man placed that of Christian in it ; but she withdrew 
 hers instantly with a sort of terror, and said in Swedish : 
 
 ^''Mon Dieu! what is the matter? Is it you. Monsieur 
 Baron ? Pardon me for not rising. I have had so much 
 fatigue in my poor life ! " 
 
 " You are mistaken, my good woman," replied Chris- 
 tian, "you do not know me ; I am not the baron." 
 
 The danneman addressed his sister in Dalecarlian, and 
 probably to the same effect, for she replied in Swedish : 
 
 " I know that you are deceiving me ; that is the great 
 iarl ! What does he want in our house ? Will he not 
 let her sleep who has watched so long ? " 
 
 " Do not pay any attention to her," said the danneman, 
 addressing Christian ; " her mind is still asleep, and 
 she continues her dream. Soon, she will speak sensibly." 
 
 He added, in Dalecarlian, for his sister's benefit : 
 
 " Come, Karine, look at this young man, and tell him 
 whether he must go with me to hunt the wicked one ? " 
 
 So it is that the Dalecarlian peasant calls the bear, 
 whose name he is extremely reluctant to pronounce. 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 395 
 
 Karine hid her eyes with her hand, and spoke to her 
 brother with great vivacity. 
 
 " Speak in Swedish, since you know Swedish," said 
 Christian, who wanted to understand the practices of the 
 seeress. "I beg you, good mother, to tell me what I 
 am to do." 
 
 The seeress closed her eyes with a sort of obstinacy, 
 and said : 
 
 "You are not he I was dreaming about, or else you 
 have forgotten the language of your cradle. Leave me, 
 both of you, you and your shadow ; I will not speak ; 
 I have sworn never to tell what 1 know." 
 
 " Have patience," said the danneman to Christian. 
 " She is always so at first. Beg her mildly, and she will 
 tell your fortune." 
 
 Christian renewed his petition, and the seeress, still 
 concealing her eyes with her pale hands, and assuming 
 a poetic style which seemed learned by heart, at last 
 replied : 
 
 " The ravenous one howls on the heath, his supports 
 fail him ; he rushes forth ! — he rushes towards the east, 
 through a valley full of poisons, of peat, and of mud." 
 
 "Does that mean that he will escape us?" said the 
 danneman, who listened religiously to his sister. 
 
 "I see them walking through noisome torrents," she 
 resumed, " the perjurers and the murderers ! Do you 
 understand that? Do you know what I mean to say?" 
 
 " No, I don't understand it at all," replied Christian, 
 who recognized a refrain of the ancient Scandinavian 
 songs of the Voluspa, and who thought that he also rec- 
 ognized the voice heard among the boulders of Stollborg. 
 
 " Do not interrupt her," said the danneman. " Go 
 on, Karine ; we are listening." 
 
 "I saw the fire burning in the hall of the rich, but be- 
 fore the door stood death." 
 
 "Do you mean that for this young man?" inquired 
 the danneman. 
 
 Without seeming to hear him, she continued : 
 
 " One day, in a field, I gave my garments to two 
 
39^ 
 
 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 wooden men ; when they were clothed they resembled 
 heroes : the naked man is timid." 
 
 " There, you see !" cried Boetsoi, looking at Christian 
 with an air of simple triumph ; " now, I hope, she is 
 speaking clearly." 
 
 '' Do you think so ? " 
 
 " Of course I think so. She recommends you to be 
 well clothed and well armed." 
 
 " That is certainly good advice, but is that all?" 
 
 " Listen, listen ! she is going to speak again," said the 
 dauneman. 
 
 The seeress resumed : 
 
 " The fool thinks he will live forever if he avoids the 
 combat ; but even age will not give him peace : the 
 destroyer comes with his spear. Do you understand f Do 
 you know ivhat I mean to say f " 
 
 " Yes, yes, Karine ! " cried the danneman, now quite 
 satisfied. '' You have spoken well, and now you can go 
 to sleep again ; the children will watch over you, and 
 you shall not be troubled again." 
 
 " Leave me then," said Karine ; '* now, the vala falls 
 into the night.'' 
 
 She hid her face in the bedding, and her thin body 
 seemed to sink and disappear in her mattress of eider- 
 down, a rich present which had been made her by the 
 danneman, who regarded her with the utmost veneration. 
 
 " I hope you are contented," he said to Christian, as 
 he took a long cord from a corner of the room ; '' the 
 prediction is good." 
 
 " Yes, very good," replied Christian. "This time, I 
 understood. Prudent people gain nothing by hiding 
 themselves ; the best way is to march straight on the 
 enemy. Well then, forward, my dear host ! But what 
 are you doing with that cord ? " 
 
 '' Give me your arm," replied the danneman. 
 
 He began to roll the cord carefully around Christian's 
 left arm. 
 
 " That will be enough to amuse the wicked one^' he 
 said ; " while he has this arm in his claws, with your 
 other hand you will rip open his belly with this spear 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 397 
 
 But I will explain what you must do as we go along. 
 You are ready ; let us start." 
 
 " Well,'* cried the officers, who were awaiting Christian 
 in the vestibule ; ",shall we have good luck?" 
 
 ••'For my part," said Christian, "it seems that I am 
 invulnerable ; but I am afraid the bear won't be so well 
 off. The seeress said that he would fly to the east." 
 
 "" No, no," replied the danneman, whose serious and 
 confident manner forbade any joking; "it was said that 
 the ravenous one would rush towards the east, but not 
 that he would not be killed. Forward ! " 
 
 Before following Christian to the hunt, we will return, 
 for some moments, to the chateau de Waldemora, whence 
 the baron had started with all his able-bodied male guests, 
 and two or three hundred trackers, immediately after 
 sunrise. 
 
 The place towards which this seignorial battue pro- 
 ceeded, was much lower down on the mountain than the 
 danneman's cottage. It was quite accessible to the 
 ladies, who all went, some with the resolution of seeing 
 the bear-hunt as near as possible, and others, less cour- 
 ageous, promising themselves that they would not venture 
 further than to the edge of the wood. Olga, who was 
 eager to show the baron that she was interested in his 
 prowess, was among the former. Margaret, who did 
 not care at all for the baron's prowess, and Mademoiselle 
 Martina Akerstrom, the daughter of the minister of the 
 parish, and the fiancee of Lieutenant Osburn — an excellent 
 young girl, rather too high colored for beauty, but agree- 
 fible, affectionate, and sincere, whom Margaret preferred 
 to any of her other new acquaintances — were among the 
 latter. AVe may as well state, in passing, that Minister 
 Mickelson, of whom mention was made in relating the 
 story of Baroness Hilda, had died long ago, after rashly 
 quarrelling, it was asserted, with Baron Olaus. His 
 successor was a very respectable man, and although his 
 living was in the gift of the chatelain, as was the right 
 of certain fiefs, he showed great dignity and independence 
 in his relations with the Snow Man. Perhaps the baron 
 had found out that it was more to his advantage to be on 
 
39» 
 
 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 good terms with a good man, than to have to cater to 
 the bad passions of a dangerous friend. He treated him 
 with great respect, and the pastor often appealed to him 
 in behalf of the feeble and poor, without irritating him by 
 his frankness. 
 
 On the whole, there was a lack of excitement in the 
 baron's hunt. No one believed that they would find any 
 bears so near the chateau, especially after several days 
 of revelry and feasting. The bear is naturally shy and 
 sulky. He has no liking either for orchestral music or 
 the play of fireworks ; and the whisper passed around 
 from one to the other, that if they should happen to find 
 one, it would surely be a tame bear and a capital dancer, 
 who would come of his own accord to give his paw to 
 the chatelain. The weather, however, was magnificent ; 
 the roads through the forest were practicable, and no one 
 failed to be upon the spot, even the old people, who 
 drove to a very comfortable rustic pavilion, where break- 
 fast and dinner were to be served, whether the hunters 
 killed bears or hares. 
 
 When the chateau was about deserted, Johan, after 
 sending off on various pretences the servants of whom he 
 did not feel sure, proceeded to exercise the duties of tlio 
 inquisitor, which he had boasted he would carry through 
 successfully. We subjoin an account of his day, as he 
 noted down all that occurred, hour by hour, with the 
 greatest precision : 
 
 '"''Nine o'clock. — ThQ Italian yelling with hunger and 
 thirst. Had him silenced — that was easily managed. 
 
 "No one At Stollborg but Stenson, the lawyer, and 
 his little valet — Ulph, the drunkard, is not worth men- 
 tioning. Christian Waldo has disappeared, unless he is 
 ill, and in bed. The lawyer, who shares his room with 
 him, won't admit any one ; I begin to have my doubts 
 about him. 
 
 ''''Ten 0* clock. — The captain sends to inquire if it is 
 not time to act. Not yet. The Italian has still too 
 much strength. Christian Waldo is decidedly absent. 
 I went into the famous bear-room, and found the lawyer 
 at work. He says that he don't know where the man 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 399 
 
 with the marionettes has gone. I saw the baggage of 
 the latter. He is not far. 
 
 '"'' Eleven d'cloch. — I have unearthed Christian Waldo's 
 valet in the stables of the new chateau, and have made 
 him talk. He knows his master's real name : Dulac. 
 He must be French, then, and not Italian. A more in- 
 teresting discovery due to this Puffo is, that there are 
 two Waldos here instead of one. PufFo did not work 
 the marionettes last evening, and the Waldo who talked 
 to me (the man with the wine-colored birth-mark) told 
 me a dozen lies. Puffo does not know who his assistant 
 could have been. For his part, he was drunk and asleep. 
 He cannot imagine, he says, who could have replaced 
 him. I had some idea of sending him to the captain, 
 but felt pretty well satisfied that what he said was true. 
 I shall not lose sight of him. He may be useful. 
 
 "This second Waldo must be the fuhe Goefle. So, 
 if we don't let them know that they are suspected, we 
 can seize them both to-night. I thought old Stenson 
 seemed rather anxious, and told him that he would be 
 left undisturbed. In any event, he must be reassured, 
 so that he may not escape us. 
 
 '''Noon. — I have it all: the secret proof which I send 
 you, and the disclosures of the Italian, which are as 
 follows : (He did not make the least resistance ; the 
 mere sight of our chamber of roses rendered him demon- 
 strative.) 
 
 " Christian Waldo is really he whom you are seeking. 
 He is handsome and well-made ; his description corre- 
 sponds exactly with the appearance of the false Christian 
 Waldo. The Italian does not know anything about the 
 man with the birth-mark. 
 
 "Tlie famous proof, which I procure you gratis, was 
 hidden between two stones, behind the hogar, in a very 
 well-chosen place, which I will show you. I went to get 
 it myself, and I send it to you without knowing what its 
 value may be. You can judge about that. I have sent 
 M. Italian some breakfast ; his real name is Guide 
 Massarelli. 
 
 " Do not be in any haste to leave the chase, and show 
 
^OO THE SNOW MAN, 
 
 no impatience, even if the papers I send should really be 
 of importance. These mountebanks are undoubtedly in 
 league with Guido, but as they have not been able to 
 communicate with him since yesterday, we have them all 
 in our power. Guido offers to turn against them, but I 
 do not trust him. If the whole thing is merely a mys- 
 tification to get money out of you, we will pay in another 
 manner than they expect, and will pay dear ! " 
 
 Having closed his bulletin, Johan tied it to the port- 
 folio which Guido had been forced to deliver up, and 
 sent it, carefully sealed, and by the surest of his messen- 
 gers, to the baron's address at the rendezvous of the hunt. 
 
 XIII. 
 
 "VITHILE this despatch is speeding after the baron, we 
 ^^ shall take the liberty of proceeding ourselves to 
 Bcetsoi's chalet, where the brave danneman wanted to 
 carry Christian off with him with no other arms than a 
 cord and an iron-shod stick. 
 
 "Wait!" cried the major; "our friend must be 
 equipped and armed. Your boar-spear is not to be des- 
 pised, Master Joe, but a good Norwegian cutlass will do 
 more execution, and a good gun will not be superfluous.' 
 
 Yielding to the entreaties of the major and the lieuten- 
 ant. Christian put on a reindeer skin coat and felt boots, 
 ihe latter without either soles or seams, and having the 
 advantage of never slipping on the ice, and of being im- 
 penetrable to the cold. Then, after arming and supplying 
 him with powder and balls. Christian's friends put a fur 
 cap on his head, and proceeded to draw lots for their 
 places in the hunt. 
 
 " I have number 1 ! " cried the major, in great exulta- 
 tion ; " so it is I who am to yield my place to Christian, 
 and to take my stand a hundred steps behind him ; the 
 lieutenant will be on my left, and the corporal on my 
 right, at a distance, also, of a hundred steps ou each side. 
 Now then, start, and count your steps ; when you have 
 counted a hundred, make us a sign, and we will follow." 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 401 
 
   Everything being thus regulated, the danneman and 
 Christian began the march, and the others followed, ob- 
 serving the distances agreed upon. Christian was aston- 
 ished to see them adopt this order of battle from the very- 
 moment of departure. 
 
 " Is the bear so near," he asked of his guide, " that we 
 should not have time enough ten times over to take our 
 proper positions on approaching his den ? " 
 
 " The wicked one is very near," replied the danneman. 
 " No one of them has ever taken up his winter quarters 
 before, so near my house. I was so far from suspecting 
 his presence, that I have passed a dozen times almost 
 over his hole, without supposing that I had such a hand- 
 some neighbor." 
 
 '' Our bear is handsome, then? " 
 
 " He is one of the largest I have ever seen. But begin 
 and talk low ; he has very good ears, and, in less than a 
 quarter of an hour, he will hear every word we say." 
 
 " Were not your daughters alarmed at having such a 
 neighbor?" said Christian, approaching the danneman, 
 and lowering his voice to please him, though his appre- 
 hensions seemed to him exaggerated. 
 
 At this question, Joe Boetsoi drew himself up stiffly, 
 straightened his large head between his shoulders, and 
 looked at Christian askance. 
 
 "5err Christian, my daughters are honest girls," he 
 said, dryly. 
 
 "Pray have I intimated anything to the contrary, 
 Herr Boetsoi?" said Christian, feeling very much sur- 
 prised. 
 
 " Don't you know," replied the danneman, making an 
 effort to pronounce the name which he disliked so much, 
 " don't you know that the hear can do no harm to a vir- 
 gin, and that consequently an honest girl can go and 
 snatch her kid or her lamb from his very claws, without 
 any danger ? " 
 
 "Pardon, Monsieur Danneman, I did not know it; 
 I am a stranger, and I see that we can learn something 
 new every day. But are you quite sure that the beai 
 26 
 
402 THE SNOW MAN, 
 
 has such a respect for chastity ? Would you allow one 
 of your daughters to accompany you at this moment ? " 
 
 "No ! women can't keep their tongues from wagging, 
 and their chattering gives notice to the game. That is 
 why neither girls nor women should ever go to a hunt." 
 
 "And if you should happen to see the bear pursuing 
 your daughters would you not be alarmed ? Would yoLi 
 not shoot it ? " 
 
 " I would shoot it for the sake of getting its skin, but 
 I should not be uneasy about my daughters. I tell you 
 I am sure of their conduct." 
 
 " But your sister, the sibyl,- she, without doubt, has 
 been married?" 
 
 "Married?" said the danneman, throwing back his 
 head disdainfully. 
 
 He resumed, with a sigh : 
 
 "Whether married or not, Karine is not afraid of 
 wicked tongues." 
 
 "Do wicked tongues come to torment you even here, 
 Master Joe? I should have thought, in this wilder- 
 ness — ■'' 
 
 The danneman shrugged his shoulders, and looked dis- 
 contented, but did not reply. 
 
 "Havel displeased you again without knowing it?" 
 asked Christian, after a few seconds. 
 
 "Yes," replied the danneman, "and, as it is not 
 well to go together where we are going with something 
 on your heart, I will speak out. Why did you ask me 
 whether Karine was afraid of the bear? I will not take 
 another step until I know whether you are thinking any- 
 thing evil either of her or of me." 
 
 Christian found it difficult to reply to this direct appeal 
 to his sincerity, made, as it was, with a sort of grand 
 simplicity, recalling the manners of early ages. The 
 feeling of curiosity which had led him to question Boetsoi 
 about Karine had its origin in mysterious causes in his 
 own heart, which it was impossible for him to explain. 
 He thought to make matters right by correcting Bcetsoi'a 
 error as to the facts of the case. 
 
 "Master Joe," he said, "I did not ask whethei 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 403 
 
 •your sister was afraid of the bear, but whether she had 
 been mar.ried, and I do not see anything offensive in my 
 question." 
 
 The peasant looked at him again, and with such a 
 keen, searching glance, that he felt quite confused. 
 
 "Your question does not offend me," he said, "if 
 you can swear that you did not listen to any wicked 
 gossip about my family before coming to my house." 
 
 Christian^ remembering what the major had said, 
 hesitated to reply, and Boetsoi resumed : 
 
 "' Come, come ! why should you lie? You have no 
 reasons for being my enemy, and you can tell me freely 
 all you have heard about the child of the lake." 
 
 "The child of the lake?" cried Christian. "Who 
 is the child of the lake?" 
 
 " If you do not know, I have nothing t<o tell you." 
 
 "Yes, yes!" Christian rejoined; "I know — I think 
 I know. Speak to me as to a friend, Master Joe. Is 
 the child of the lake Karine's son?" 
 
 " No," replied the danneman, his face lighting up 
 with a singular expression of enthusiasm ; "it belonged 
 to her, indeed, but it was not conceived and born like 
 other children. Karine was unfortunate, as happens 
 to girls who learn things above their condition, and who 
 read in the books of a religion that we ought no longer 
 to understand ; but she was not wicked, as people say. 
 I was deceived about it myself as well as the rest, I who 
 am speaking to you! There was a time — I was still 
 very young in those days — when I wanted to put a 
 bullet through the head of a man of whom Karine 
 talked too much in her dreams ; but she swore to our 
 mother and to me that she hated that man. She swore 
 it on the Bible, and we could not doubt her word afler 
 that. The child was suckled on the mountain by a tame 
 doe, that followed Karine like a kid. She lived alone 
 with him for more than a year, in a different house from 
 ours, much higher than the one you have seen. When 
 the child was weaned we took him into our house, and 
 loved liim. lie was growing up, he talked, and he was 
 beautiiul; but, one day, he departed as he had come, 
 
^04 ^^^ SNOW MAN. 
 
 and Karine wept so much that her mind flew away aftef 
 him, and never returned. There is a great mystery in all 
 this. Don't every one know that there are women who 
 bring children into the world merely by uttering some 
 form of speech, just as they conceive them by breath- 
 ing the air of the lakes when the trolls have set it in 
 motion ? Karine lived too much down yonder, and every 
 one knows that there are wicked spirits in the lake of 
 Waldemora. Enough said. It is the secret^ of God and 
 of the waters. No one must think evil of Karine. She 
 does no work, she renders no service that is seen or 
 is useful in a house ; but she is one of those who, 
 by their learning and their songs, bring happiness to 
 families. She sees what others do not see, and what she 
 announces happens in one way or another. That is 
 enough, I tell ^ou, for here we are close to the wicked 
 one*s den, and now we must think of nothing but him. 
 Listen to what I say, and then not a word more, not a 
 single one, for your life." 
 
 "Even if it should cost me my life," said Christian, 
 agitated and struck by the mysterious narrative of the 
 danneman, "you must tell me more about that child 
 which was brought up in your house. Did he not have 
 something peculiar about his fingers?" 
 
 The danneman's face turned a fiery red, in spite of the 
 cold. 
 
 " I have told you," he replied, in an irritated tone, " all 
 that I intend to. If it is to insult me, and to defame 
 the honor of my family, that you have come to eat my 
 bread and kill my game, look out for yourself, or give 
 up going to the hunt, Herr Christian ; for, as true as my 
 name is Boetsoi, I will leave you alone with the wicked 
 one." 
 
 " Master Boetsoi," replied Christian, calmly, " I am not 
 so much alarmed by your threat, as grieved at the idea 
 of having wounded you. You can leave me alone with 
 the wicked one, if you choose. I will try to be more 
 wicked than he ; but do not, I implore you, carry away 
 a bad opinion of me. We will resume this conversation, 
 I hope, and you will acknowledge then, that the thought 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 405 
 
 of outraging the honor of your family could never have 
 entered my mind." 
 
 " Very good," replied the danneman, "let us talk, then, 
 of the wicked one. Either he will fly with all speed 
 before we have reached his den, and in that case you 
 must fire upon him, or he will make up his mind to fight, 
 and will rise on his hind legs. You know where the place 
 is for the heart ; and, if you do not reach it with this good 
 knife, it can only be because your hand trembles. There 
 is only one thing to be careful about : do not let him 
 disarm your right hand before seizing your left arm, for 
 he can see weapons plainly enough, and he has more 
 sense than you suppose. Go up to him, then, coolly and 
 quietly, without being in any hurry. As long as the 
 wicked one is not wounded, he is not insolent, and he don't 
 well know what he wants to do. For my part, I usually 
 talk to him, and promise that I will not do him any harm ; 
 to lie to a beast is not to lie. I advise you, then, to talk 
 to him pleasantly. He has sense enough to see that he 
 is being flattered, but not enough to see that he is being 
 deceived. And now, wait until I see whether those gen- 
 tlemen have posted themselves as they ought around the 
 den, for, if the beast escapes us, he must not escape them,, 
 I will return in five minutes." 
 
 Christian remained alone in a strange scene. Since 
 leaving the chalet, he had come with his guide through 
 the depths of a magnificent forest, covering with its 
 great green waves the flanks of the mountain. The 
 profusion of fine trees in these regions, and the difiiculty 
 of transporting them elsewhere for manufacturing pur- 
 poses, have occasioned the contemptuous, and one might 
 almost say impious, prodigality with which the inhab^ 
 itants of the country treat these noble children of the 
 wilderness. To make the smallest tool, the most insig- 
 nificant plaything (the Dalecarlian herdsman, like the 
 Swiss, is very skilful in cutting and carving resinous 
 wood), they sacrifice without regret a giant of verdure, 
 and often, to save themselves the trouble of felling it, 
 set fire to the roots ; so much the worse for them, if the 
 flames spread and devour whole forests ! In many 
 
4o6 THE SNO W MAN. 
 
 places battalions of black monsters can be seen rising 
 over the snow, or, in summer, over plain? of cinders. 
 These are the charred trunks that no longer afford a 
 refuge to any animal, and which are the abode of silence 
 and of the immobility of death.* Hunters in Russia are 
 shocked to find, in the splendid forests of that country, the 
 same recklessness and the same profanations. 
 
 The forest in which Christian now was, had neither 
 been burned nor felled, and it was not so painful, there- 
 fore, to mark its decay. What you beheld was a grand 
 desolation, a sublime destruction, due exclusively to 
 natural causes : the old age of the trees, the sinking of 
 the ground, the passage of storms. It was like some 
 primeval forest caught between the wandering ice-fields 
 of polar seas. Great pines, shattered and withered, 
 rested upon their neighbors, still green and erect, but 
 whose tops or principal branches they had broken by 
 their fall. Enormous rocks had rolled over declivities, 
 dragging with them innumerable plants, that had either 
 continued to live, broken and twisted as they were, or 
 had been replaced by a new growth springing up over 
 the ruin beneath. Several years must have elapsed since 
 this catastrophe, the result of some deluge, for young 
 birch-trees were growing upon heights which were noth- 
 ing more than masses of debris and land-slips. With 
 the slightest breath of wind, these trees, which were 
 already beautiful, balanced to and fro the icicles sus- 
 pended from their light and pendant branches, wHth a 
 quick, clicking sound, like that of water flowing over 
 pebbles. 
 
 This savage region was sublime. A thousand feet 
 tjeneath him. Christian beheld the torrent of the abyss 
 (the elf^ or stroem^ as all streams of water are called), 
 and was astonished to find that it had precisely the same 
 colors and the same undulations as if it had not been 
 frozen. At this distance it would have been impossible 
 for a deaf man to know that it was not dashing forward, 
 roaring and tumultuous ; the eye was completely deceived 
 
 * It is only very lately that the government in Sweden has 
 taken measures — too late, perhaps — to check theee devastations^ 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 407 
 
 by its dark metallic tint, covered with enormous eddies, 
 that looked like foam. But for Christian, whose ear 
 would have caught the slightest sound ascending from 
 the ravine, nothing could have seemed stranger than the 
 contrast between the apparent agitation of this impetu- 
 ous torrent and its absolute silence. Nothing in the 
 world resembles death so much as a world thus petrified 
 by winter. Hence, the slightest sign of life in this mo- 
 tionlass picture, a footprint upon the snow, the short 
 and stealthy flight of a little bird, is greeted with sur- 
 prise, and this surprise becomes almost terror when an 
 elk or doe flees before you, with rapid, resounding 
 steps, suddenly awakening the sleeping echoes of the 
 solitude. 
 
 However, Christian was thinking just now, not of ad- 
 miring nature, but of preparing for his fight with the 
 wicked one. His soul was oppressed by a most sad and 
 terrible thought. The danneman's strange narrative, 
 which he had found almost incomprehensible at first, 
 thanks to his incorrect language and superstitious ideas, 
 was beginning to acquire a painful significance. This 
 rustic sibyl, seduced by the troll of the lake, this myste- 
 rious child brought up in the danneman's chalet, and 
 which had disappeared when three or four years old, 
 those inexplicable intuitions that had come to him dur- 
 ing the morning meal, and which, perhaps, Avere merely 
 reminiscences suddenly awakened — 
 
 "Yes," he said, "now again, the recollection, or the 
 delusion, returns to me. The three lost cows — twenty 
 years ago — the gun-shot that stopped the fourth. It 
 seems to me that I can hear now that fatal shot ; it seems 
 to me that I can see the poor beast fall, and that I feel 
 again the sensation of grief and regret which I then ex- 
 perienced, and which was perhaps my first emotion, the 
 awakening within me of the life of sentiment. Great 
 God! I feel as if a whole forgotten world were rean- 
 imated, and rising before me. Was it not yonder, at the 
 turn of that rock, at the edge of that red-colored preci- 
 pice, that the scene passed? It must have been there. 
 Has my soul visited this place in some anterior existence, 
 
4o8 
 
 THE SNOW MAN, 
 
 or have I myself been here? And, in the latter case, 
 who can my father be? Who is that man, whom the 
 danneman came near killing before his suspicions had 
 been lulled to sleep by superstition ? Why did the sibyl 
 — my mother, perhaps — why did she shudder when she 
 touched my fingers ? She was in a sort of trance, she 
 had not looked into my face ; but she said I was the 
 baron ! And just now, when I asked the danneman if 
 the child had not some peculiar mark about his hands, 
 did not his anger and grief prove that he had observed and 
 understood this hereditary sign, more apparent, probably, 
 in the child than it now is in the man? 
 
 " Besides, even if he had noticed it in me to-day, he 
 would have been far. enough from drawing any com- 
 parison. The idea of trying to recognize me did not 
 even occur to him. In his eyes, I was merely a curious 
 and jeering stranger, questioning him about the secret 
 of his family, and that secret is his shame. He prefers 
 to turn it into a legend, a fairy story. He is offended if 
 you doubt the marvels he describes ; he gets angry if 
 you suggest that the child's fingers were like those of 
 Baron Olaus. It is only the truth, they say, that offends, 
 and that truth I have divined. Poor Kariue, how ter- 
 rified she was when she took me for her seducer ! 
 
 "Her seducer! who knows? This man, hated and 
 despised by all, may have done her violence. She would 
 naturally have concealed her misfortune, she would have 
 made the most of the belief of her family in evil spirits, 
 to prevent her young brother, the danneman, from ex- 
 posing himself to danger, by seeking to revenge her upon 
 a too powerful enemy. Poor woman ! Yes, certainly, 
 she hates him, she fears him still ! She has become a 
 seeress since her disaster — that is, mad ! She must have 
 received a sort of education, since she knows by heart the 
 ancient poems of her country, and in her exaltation she 
 draws from her confused recollection of these tragic songs, 
 gloomy threats and words of hatred. At any rate, whether 
 I am deceiving myself, or am drawing a logical deduction 
 from facts, I believe it is the hand of God that has led 
 me back to the hut from which I was carried off — why, 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 409 
 
 and by whom? Was it the danneman, the intrepid trav- 
 eller, who bore me far away, to remove from his sister's 
 eyes the living image of her remorse, or from his family 
 the sign of their shame ? Or should I rather believe in 
 the jealousy of the wife of Olaus, according to the major's 
 theory?" 
 
 All these thoughts rushed through Christian's mind, 
 overwhelming him with grief and agony. The idea of 
 being the son of Baron Olaus only redoubled his aversion 
 for him. Under such circumstances he could only regard 
 him as the enemy of his mother's honor and repose. 
 
 " Or again," he continued, " who knows if it was not 
 he himself who had me kidnapped, to avoid fulfilling some 
 promise made to his victim, some engagement contracted 
 towards her ? Ah ! if it were so, I should remain in 
 this country. Without seeking to make myself known, I 
 would go into service with the danneman ; by my industry, 
 my devotion, I would certainly gain his respect, and per- 
 haps the love of this family to wliich I belong, and then 
 I could try and bring back this poor seeress, if not to her 
 right mind, at least to a state of tranquillity, as I suc- 
 ceeded formerly in calming the frenzy of my dear Sophia 
 Goffredi. What a strange destiny is mine ! To be thus 
 condemned to have two mothers driven mad by despair ! 
 No matter ; undeserved as this punishment is, it gives me 
 a duty to perform, and, in fulfilling it, I may be led to 
 some mysterious recompense. I accept the obligation im- 
 posed upon me. Karine Boetsoi may not remember 
 that she has lost her child, but she shall receive, from this 
 time, the care and protection of a son." 
 
 At this moment Christian thought he heard some one 
 call. He looked around, and on every side, but saw no 
 one. The danneman had told him to wait ; he was to 
 return for him : Christian hesitated, but, after a second, 
 a cry of distress made him start up, seize his weapons, 
 and rush forward in the direction of the voice. 
 
 Scaling with wonderful agility the overthrown trees 
 and fragments of debris hardened by the ice and inter- 
 locked by enormous roots. Christian, without knowing it, 
 came out at twenty steps from the bear's den. The ter* 
 
^lO THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 rible animal was on the ground between him and this 
 cave, licking up the blood which stained the snow around 
 her bleeding flanks. The danneman was at the opening 
 of the den, pale, his hair blown by the wind and as it 
 were standing on end, and without any weapon at all in 
 his hands. His boar-spear, broken in the side of the bear, 
 was lying near the animal, and, instead of thinking of 
 taking his gun from his shoulder-belt to finish his work, 
 Bojtsoi seemed fascinated by some mysterious terror, or 
 enchained by some inexplicable prudence. 
 
 As soon as he saw Christian he made signs to him, 
 which the latter did not comprehend ; he guessed, how- 
 ever, that he was not to speak, and took aim at the bear. 
 Luckily, before pulling the trigger, he looked again at 
 Joe Boetsoi, who ordered him, with a despairing gesture, to 
 stop. Christian, imitating his pantomime, asked whether 
 he was to cut the creature's throat, in silence ; and, on 
 receiving a sign in the affirmative, he marched straight 
 up to the bear, who, upon her side, arose erect and growl- 
 ing, to receive him. 
 
 "Quick ! quick ! or we are lost ! " cried the danneman, 
 who had taken the gun, and seemed to be watching some 
 invisible object at the bottom of the den. 
 
 Christian did not wait to be told twice. Presenting his 
 left arm, wrapped in a cord, to the rather feeble embrace 
 of the wounded bear, he ripped her open in proper style, but 
 without thinking that she might fall forward, and that he 
 ought to jump quickly aside, to give her room. Luckily, 
 the bear fell to one side, dragging Christian with her to the 
 ground ; but her formidable claws, contracted in the death 
 agony, could do nothing now but clutch at the skirt of his 
 coat. Buried in the snow, and nailed down, as it were, 
 by the weight and claws of the wicked one., laid upon and 
 thrust into the edge of his garment. Christian had some 
 difficulty in getting free, and he left behind him a con- 
 siderable portion of the major's reindeer-skin coat, but he 
 scarcely thought of that now. The danneman was strug- 
 gling with other enemies. He had just fired into the dark 
 cave, and another bear, black, and of quite a good size, 
 although young, had come forward to meet him, with a 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 411 
 
 ihreatening air ; while two cubs, about the size of two strong 
 whelps, threw themselves between his legs, with no other 
 intention, it is true, than that of flying, but in such a way 
 as to make it difficult for him to maintain his equilibrium. 
 The danneman, resolved to perish rather than make room 
 for his triple prey to pass, supported himself against the 
 trees, whose trunks formed a sort of naturally arched 
 entrance to the cave, and awaited the attack of the young 
 bear, who had been wounded by his shot ; but, shaken 
 in spite of hjmself by the young ones, he had just fallen, 
 and the wounded and furious animal was throwing him- 
 self upon him, when Christian, sure of his eye and his 
 coolness, put a ball into the animal's head, at a foot above 
 that of the man. 
 
 " Very well done ! " said the danneman, springing up 
 with agility. 
 
 In the meanwhile the cubs had run over his body, and, 
 for the moment, his only thought was to prevent them 
 from escaping. 
 
 " Stay ! stay ! " said Christian, following the two fugi- 
 tives with his eye ; "see what they are about ! " 
 
 In fact the two cubs had rushed up to their dead mother, 
 and had glided, cowering, under her bleeding sides. 
 
 " It is only fair," said the danneman, rubbing his arm, 
 which the black bear had bruised through the cord, " it is 
 not our place to kill them. We have each of us secured 
 a prize. Call your comrades ; for my part, I am too 
 much blown, and then I have had a fine fright, I confess. 
 That was a narrow escape ; and without you — . But 
 call them, I say. I will talk about t,hat another time." 
 
 Christian shouted with all the strength of his lungs ; and 
 the danneman, still trembling a little, but as attentive as 
 ever, reloaded his gun quickly, so as to have it in readi- 
 ness in case the cubs should abandon their mother's body, 
 and attempt to fly before the arrival of the other hunters. 
 
 The tiring had already notified the latter of the com- 
 bat, and they soon appeared, coming from three direc- 
 tions. Larrson, who was first, shouted victory when he 
 saw the enormous bear lying at Christian's feet. 
 
 " Look out ! stop ! " cried Christian. " Our bear was 
 
412 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 a mother ; she had two fine young ones. I intercede for 
 these poor orphans. Take them living." 
 
 " Certainly," replied Larrson. " To the rescue, com- 
 rades ! here are some pupils for us to bring up." 
 
 They surrounded the corpse of the she-bear, and raised 
 it cautiously ; for even when this animal seems to be 
 dead it is necessary to be on your guard, lest it should be 
 feigning. They had some difficulty in capturing the cubs, 
 who already showed their claws and teeth, but they were 
 secured, at last, and carefully bound and muzzled. This 
 accomplished, they had leisure to admire the ample booty 
 which the den had concealed, and regrets were half ex- 
 pressed, which the danneman hastened to anticipate. 
 
 "You must pardon me for what I have done," he said 
 to the two young officers. "I had strong suspicions that 
 that great spotted creature was a mother ; did I tell you 
 she was spotted ? Oh, I saw her plainly, but I could not 
 get a good look at the young ones, and, as for the /Wewc?, 
 I had not seen him at all. I have often been told that 
 the mother brings into her winter's refuge a young wicked 
 one^ who is neither the father of her little ones, nor even 
 a relative of the family, to defend and bring up her 
 children, in case she should be killed. Never having 
 seen this, I hadn't much faith in it ; now, having seen 
 it, I believe it. If I had known as much before, I should 
 have brought two of you, so that each might have killed 
 a fine animal ; but who could have expected such a thing ? 
 Not thinking to shoot, I only took my gun by way of 
 precaution, in case the Herr I was going with should miss 
 fire, and find himself in danger. As for the iron-shod 
 boar-spear, I had so little idea of using it, that I did not 
 even look to see whether the one I took was in good con- 
 dition. Well then," continued the danneman, addressing 
 Christian, " this is what happened. I told you that I 
 would return for you as soon as I had posted the others, 
 and as soon as this was done I intended to go straight 
 back where I had left you. But some beast must have 
 disturbed the marks I made last night ; for, without get- 
 ting lost exactly, I passed directly before the den, and 
 did not recognize where I was, until it was too late to 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 413 
 
 ^raw back. Th\^ wiclced one heard me, and she came 
 against me, because she had young ones. I tried to 
 frighten her by waving my arm, so as, to make her return 
 to her house, but she would not be frightened, she rose on 
 her hind legs. I ripped her open ; I had to do it, and 
 at the same time I called twice. At the sound of my 
 voice the friend came to the door of the house, and, to 
 keep him from escaping, I ran and stood before it, with- 
 out remembering that my boar-spear was lying broken 
 by the mother. I thought she was dead, but after I was 
 standing there she rose up, fell down, and rose up again, 
 twice. Then, Herr Christian, the time seemed very long 
 to me before you arrived ; for, on the one side I had the 
 mother, who, at any moment, might recover strength 
 enough to throw herself upon me, and, on the other, the 
 friend^ who was only waiting for this reinforcement to 
 begin a quarrel with me himself, without counting the 
 two young ones, who I knew very well would be between 
 my legs as soon as the fight should be begun. Against 
 all that I had only one   gun-shot, and that was not 
 enough ! I did not even dare take aim ; for, at the sight of 
 a weapon aimed, the wicked ones come to the point more 
 quickly. I was frightened ; I can acknowledge it now 
 without shame, since I did not stir a foot, and since the 
 four creatures are in our hands. I waited for you — it 
 seemed to me that I waited a year — and yet I believe you 
 came very quickly, Herr Christian, since all has turned 
 out so well — yes, very well indeed, I declare, and you 
 are a brave man ! I am sorry there should have been 
 any angry words between us beforehand. But it is all 
 forgotten ; it is not my life only that I owe you, but my 
 heart, just as much. Come and embrace me, and remem- 
 ber that I look upon you as my son." 
 
 C hristian embraced the Dalecarlian with deep emotion, 
 and the latter related to the rest of the party how, after 
 quickly despatching the she-bear, body to body, the young 
 man had killed the friend very opportunely, by lodging a 
 ball in his head, at only two inches from his, Boctsoi's, 
 face. Christian objected modestly to the danneman's 
 exaggeration upon this latter point ; but as Boetsoi, ia 
 
^14 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 his enthusiasm, would not abate a jot from his statement, 
 and as there were no means of proving the facts, the ex- 
 ploit of the young adventurer assumed colossal propor- 
 tions in the imagination of Larrson and his friends. 
 Their esteem for him increased accordingly, and this is 
 not at all surprising. Presence of mind is the highest 
 faculty of true courage. We pity those who fail, but 
 we admire those who succeed. Without being betrayed 
 into self-admiration, Christian felt a deep satisfaction at 
 having acquired a claim to the friendship of the danne- 
 man, whom he persisted henceforth in regarding as his 
 near relative ; but he was very careful not to return to 
 his imprudent questions. He resolved to seek the truth 
 elsewhere, even if it should require a great deal of time 
 and patience to arrive at it. 
 
 The weight of the two dead bears, especially that of the 
 female, was enormous ; together, they weighed more than 
 four hundred pounds. To drag them over that rough 
 country, where it was with difficulty that you could make 
 your own way, seemed impossible. Even horses could 
 not have accomplished it. As the day had reached its 
 meridian, and as the young officers wanted to join the 
 baron's hunt, they found themselves embarrassed with 
 too much riches. Even the cubs, who refused to walk, 
 were very much in the way. 
 
 "Gro along with you," said the danueman ; "with my 
 children I will soon fell two or three young trees, and 
 build a hurdle ; we will put the bears on that, and slide 
 it along * : oy house. From there, I will send them to 
 you by my sleigh and horse ; they shall be at your 
 bostoelie in two hours, so that you can show them to 
 your friends." 
 
 "And we will return the dead animals to you to- 
 morrow," said Larrson, "for we would not trust any 
 one else to skin and prepare them. Is not that your wish, 
 Christian?" 
 
 "Whatever pleases you is agreeable to me," replied 
 Christian. 
 
 "Not at all !" the major rejoined ; "the bear we pur- 
 chased from the danneman is the one you have just killed, 
 
THE SNOW MAN, 
 
 415 
 
 It beloDgs to you, as the one he shot belongs to him, un- 
 less he is willing to sell it." 
 
 " He killed them both," said Christian ; "I did nothing 
 but finish his work ; I have no right to anything." 
 
 An animated discussion followed, in which the danne- 
 raau vied with his guests in delicacy, and showed that he 
 was as scrupulously honest as themselves. At last Chris- 
 tian was obliged to yield, and to accept the she-bear as his 
 prize. The two cubs were purchased from the danne- 
 man at the price of one bear, and he was obliged to ac- 
 cept, as exclusively his own, the friend of Madame Bear. 
 Matters being thus arranged, the major and his friends 
 wanted to carry Christian away with them, but he 
 declined. 
 
 "I have no wish to go to the baron's hunt," he said ; 
 " you yourselves told me that it is not at all interesting in 
 comparison with this one, and, besides, I have no time. 
 Remember that for two days more I am bound by con- 
 tract to keep on with my present business. I will remain 
 here and help the danneman carry away the wicked ones^ 
 after which I will avail myself of his sleigh, to return as 
 far as the lake. Do not forget that you have promised 
 M. Goefle and myself to come and see us at Stollborg." 
 ''We will go after supper, when the comedy is over," 
 replied the major ; "you can rely upon us." 
 
 "And I," said the danneman to Christian, "will guar- 
 antee that you shall reach the lake before night." 
 
 They had not much time to lose. The officers returned 
 to their country sleighs, and the danneman, assisted by 
 Christian, and also by his son Olof, and his eldest 
 daughter, who now joined them, proceeded, with great 
 skill and quickness, to the building of his hand-sledge. 
 When completed, and loaded with the game, they slid it 
 along without difficulty, some drawing, and the others 
 pushing or holding it back, until they reached the chalet. 
 As soon as they arrived. Christian looked for the seer- 
 ess. The curtain of the bed was drawn and motionless. 
 Was she still there ? He longed to see this mysterious 
 woman again, and to try and talk to her, but he dared 
 not approach her bed. He imagined that the danneman 
 
41 6 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 kept his eye upon him, and that he would have been 
 greatly displeased by any appearance of curiosity. 
 
 The youngest of the danneman's daughters brought 
 some brandy, made in the house ; that famous corn- 
 brandy, whose manufacture Gustavus III. afterwards 
 made a state monopoly, thus burdening his subjects with a 
 heavy and vexatious tax, that robbed him of all his pop- 
 ularity, and reduced to their former poverty the very 
 people whom he had freed from the tyranny of the nobles. 
 Is the frequent use of brandy really a necessity in these 
 rigorous climates ? Christian thought not, and his opin- 
 ion was strengthened by the fact that this special bever- 
 age, which the danneman had made with his own hands, 
 and of which he was very proud, was so strong as liter- 
 ally to take the skin off the throat. The worthy man 
 urged his guest to drink copiously ;^ he could not under- 
 stand that he should not feel the necessity of getting a 
 little intoxicated, after killing two bears. But Christian 
 could not carry his good-nature so far as that. He would 
 have been very well pleased to have had strength and 
 coolness enough to get Boetsoi drunk, without losing his 
 own head ; but, as it was, he confined himself to drink- 
 ing some tea, left for him by the major, and served hot, 
 in a wooden cup, very tastefully cut and carved by the 
 youthful Olof. 
 
 The young man was a little mortified at having enjoyed 
 the royal pleasure of killing a bear at the expense of his 
 friends ; for, in a word, this bear was the property of the 
 danneman, as all game belongs, without question, to the 
 person who finds it on his lands. They had made Chris- 
 tian a present of his prize ; that is, they had purchased it 
 for him. He learned with pleasure from the danneman 
 that it was not yet paid for. The major and his friends, 
 not foreseeing that the hunt would be so successful, had 
 not brought money enough. Christian inquired the 
 price of the animal. 
 
 " That depends upon circumstances," said the danne- 
 man, proudly ; " if you leave me the beast, as is some- 
 times done, it is simply a ' thank you,' which I owe the 
 person who helped me slay him ; but, no doubt, Herl 
 
7'HE SNOW MAN. 417 
 
 Christian, you will want the skin, the claws, the fat, and 
 the legs." 
 
 " I don't want any of them at all," said Christian, 
 laughing. "Good heavens ! what should I do with them ? 
 I beg you to keep the whole animal, Herr Boetsoi, and, 
 as I presume you have the right to sell rather dearer to 
 those who have enjoyed the privilege of hunting on your 
 land than you would do to customers purchasing plainly 
 and simply a commodity, I beg you to accept thirty da- 
 lers that I have about me — " 
 
 Christian finished his sentence mentally : 
 
 " And which is all that I possess." 
 
 "Thirty dalers!" cried the danneman, "that is a 
 great deal. You are very rich, then?" 
 
 " I am rich enough to beg you to accept them." 
 
 The danneman took the money, looked at it, and then 
 looked at Christian's hands, but without noticing any- 
 thing but their whiteness. 
 
 " Your gold is good," he said, " and your hand is 
 white. You are not a laborer, and yet you eat kukebroe 
 like a Dalecarlian. Your face belongs to this country, 
 and your speech does not, — the clothes you had on 
 when you came here, were no better than mine. I can 
 see one thing, anyhow, and that is that you are proud ; 
 you don't wish your friends, who gave up, for your sake, 
 the pleasure of killing the bear, to spend their money 
 for you." 
 
 " Precisely, Herr Boetsoi, you are right." 
 
 "Have no fear. Joe Boetsoi is an honest man; he 
 will not take anything from your friends, since you leave 
 him the game. As to accepting a reward from you — 
 that depends. Can you swear to me, on your honor, that 
 you are a rich young man, the child of a noble family ? " 
 
 "What difference does it make? " said Christian. 
 
 " No, no," resumed the danneman, "you have saved 
 my life ; I don't say much about that, for I would have 
 done as much for you ; but you are a skilful marksman, 
 and still more, you are a man who can listen to another. 
 When I made you a sign over yonder, if you had not 
 been willing to do what I wished, we should both of u« 
 
 a7 
 
4t8 
 
 TH]^ SNOW MAN. 
 
 have been in a bad way — and I especially, without my 
 boar-spear, and with my arm not well wrapped up. I 
 am very much pleased with you, and I only wish that 
 my son was like you in looks and character, for you are 
 both brave and gentle. So, if you are not rich, don't 
 pretend to me that you are. Why should you ? I am 
 not poor myself. In my plain house, such as it is, I 
 want for nothing ; and if you are in any need you can 
 apply to Joe Boetsoi. He would have no trouble at all 
 in finding thirty dalers, or even a hundred, to render a 
 service to a friend." 
 
 "I am sure of it, Herr Boetsoi," said Christian, " and 
 I may possibly return to you (and if I do it will be with 
 entire confidence), not to ask you for a hundred or for 
 thirty dalers, but to beg you to give me employment. 
 I don't say this is certain, but it may happen, and in that 
 case I should come to you with much more pleasure if 
 1 pay you now what I owe you, and what a rich man 
 would pay you. I did not come here in the character of 
 a poor man ; you do not owe me anything." 
 
 " I don't want any payment," said the danneman ; 
 " take back your money, and come to me when you 
 choose. What can you do ? " 
 
 "Whatever you will teach me, I will do quickly." 
 
 The danneman smiled. 
 
 "That is to say," he said, "that you don't know how 
 to do anything." 
 
 "I can kill bears, at any rate." 
 
 " Yes, and very well too. You know how to handle an 
 axe also, and to cut wood ; I saw that. But would you 
 be able to travel ? " 
 
 " That is what I can do best of all." 
 
 "Can you sleep on a bench?" 
 
 " Yes, or on a stone.'* 
 
 "Can you speak Laplandish, Samoiede, Russian?'* 
 
 "No, I can speak Italian, Spanish, French, German 
 and English." 
 
 " That would do me no good, but it shows me that 
 you can learn to speak in various tongues. Very well, 
 come when you choose, before the end of the month of 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 419 
 
 T'kor (January), and, if you would like to go to Dront- 
 heim. or even farther, I shall be very glad not to travel 
 alone ; or, if I should take Olof with me, for he is tor- 
 menting me to let him begin to travel, you can look after 
 my house. My two daughters are betrothed, I give you 
 fair warning. Avoid giving their lovers any occasion 
 for jealousy ; it would be at your own risk. Take care 
 of Aunt Karine ; she is gentle, but she must not be con- 
 tradicted : I have forbidden it once for all." 
 
 " I will care for her as if she were my mother," re- 
 plied Christian, deeply moved ; " but tell me, is she ill 
 or infirm? Why? — " 
 
 ''They will tell you that, if you come to the house. 
 What wages do you want?" 
 
 " Nothing." 
 
 " How, nothing?" 
 
 "Bread and shelter ; is not that enough?" 
 
 "Herr Christian," said the danneman, frowning, "you 
 are then either lazy or a bad fellow, since you do not 
 think of the future." 
 
 Christian saw, that by being too disinterested, he had 
 caused the dauneman to distrust him. 
 
 "Do you know M. Goefle?" he said. 
 
 "The lawyer? Yes, very well; it was I who sold 
 him his horse. He is a good horse, and the lawyer is an 
 honest man ! " 
 
 "Very good; he will answer for me. Will that be 
 satisfactory?" 
 
 "Yes, it is settled. Take back your money." 
 
 " Suppose I should ask you to keep it for me?" 
 
 "Why so, is it stolen money?" cried the danneman, 
 ])ecoming suspicious again. 
 
 Christian began to laugh, and was obliged to confess 
 that he was a very poor diplomat. 
 
 "Believe me," he said to the danneman, "I am 
 straightforward and sincere. Every one gives me the 
 credit of having an honest face, and I am not accus- 
 tomed, therefore, to having my word doubted. If you 
 don't take my thirty dalers to-day, ihe major will give 
 them to you to-morrow, and that would annoy me." 
 
420 
 
 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 ''The major will not give me anything, for I wiU not 
 accept anything," replied the danneman, with energy, 
 "It is you, now, who are doubting me." 
 
 Christian was obliged to resign the satisfaction of 
 leaving his small fortune in this house, which was per- 
 haps his mother*s refuge. The discussion, though hon- 
 orable in itself, might have degenerated into a quarrel, 
 for the danneman was feeding his ingenuous pride as a 
 free peasant with rather too plentiful potations of brandy. 
 Besides, the sleigh was ready, and Christian had to 
 start. Nothing would have induced him to fail in either 
 of his two performances, for which he was to receive a 
 hundred dalers ; a sum that would enable him to begin 
 the new life he was dreamiug about, without being 
 indebted to anybody. 
 
 He thought the danneman intended to accompany him ; 
 but, instead of getting into the sleigh, he gave the reins 
 to his son, enjoining him at the same time to drive care- 
 fully, and to return early. 
 
 " I hoped to have the pleasure of your company as far 
 as Waldemora," said Christian to the danneman. 
 
 ''No!" replied the latter, "I never go to Walde- 
 mora, for my part. I should have to be carried there 
 by force. Farewell, until we meet again." 
 
 There was so much haughtiness and disdain in the 
 danneman's tone when he spoke of Waldemora, that 
 Christian, as he shook hands with him, felt afraid that 
 he would notice the conformation of his fingers, and 
 that their resemblance to the baron's, whether accidental 
 or inherited, would destroy all their friendship ; but the 
 deformity was so slight that the danneman, with his 
 rough hand, did not notice it at all, and several times, 
 as his guest was driving away, he sent after him a 
 cordial farewell. 
 
 In spite of his father's recommendations, Olof drove 
 his little horse to the bottom of the valley at a full 
 gallop, while he himself stood up op the front seat of the 
 vehicle with the reins twisted round his arms, at the 
 risk of being hurled to a distance in case of an upset, 
 and of having his wrists dislocated, at the very least. 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 42I 
 
 XIV. 
 
 'T^HE danneman's sleigh was not so light as the one 
 ■*■ in which the major had brought Christian to the 
 chalet, but fortunately it was more solid, for the young 
 Dalecarlian did not condescend to avoid either rock or 
 hole. Instead of allowing the horse — the more intel- 
 ligent of the two — to go as his instinct should direct, he 
 made the drive, dangerous under any circumstances, 
 blunderingly foolhardy, by whipping and opposing him 
 at every point. Christian, who was lying in the midst 
 of the four bears, two of them dead and two living, 
 said to himself that he would fall softly, unless they 
 should be flung to one side and he to the other. 
 At last, irritated at seeing the danneman's horse mal- 
 treated without any advantage to ai^y one, he took the 
 reins and the whip abruptly, saying |b the young lad, in 
 a tone indicating his displeasure, thH he preferred driv- 
 ing himself. 
 
 Olof was good-natured and gentle ; he only put on 
 his terrible airs out of vanity, so as to appear like a 
 man. He began singing a Swedish song, both to amuse 
 himself and to show his companion that he pronounced 
 the mother-tongue more purely than the other members 
 of the family. Remarking this. Christian determined to 
 have a talk with him. 
 
 "Why," said he, "did you not come with us when 
 we went to the hunt ? Have you never yet seen a bear 
 erect?" 
 
 "Aunt would never let me," replied the young lad, 
 with a sigh. 
 
 "AuntKarine?" 
 
 " There is no other at our house." 
 
 '* And you have to do everything she says?" 
 
 "Everything." 
 
 " Has she predicted that you would have bad luck ? " 
 
 " She says that I am too young." 
 
 " She is right, perhaps," 
 
422 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 "It must be so, since she says so." 
 
 "She is a woman, it seems, who knows more than 
 others?" 
 
 "She knows everything, since she talks with — " 
 
 ""With whom does she talk?" 
 
 "I must not speak about that; my father will not 
 allow it?" 
 
 "Because he is afraid that people will laugh at his 
 sister ; but he has no fear of that with me, for he told 
 me to ask her what luck I should have in the hunt." 
 
 "And did she tell you?" 
 
 "She did. Where did she learn her science?" 
 
 " She learned it where she still learns it : in the water- 
 falls where girls who have died for love weep, and on 
 the lakes where the men of past times return." 
 
 " She is still able to walk, then?" 
 
 " She is not old ; she is only fifty." 
 
 "But I thought she was infirm?" 
 
 " She can walk quicker and farther than you." 
 
 "Then she is ill just at present, since she remained 
 in bed while we were at breakfast ? " 
 
 " She is not ill. She is often tired like that, when she 
 has been standing up a long time." 
 
 " I thought she did not work?" 
 
 " She does not work ; she talks, or she walks ; she 
 sings, or she prays ; and, whether by night or day, she 
 watches until she drops with fatigue. Then she sleeps 
 so long, that you would think she was dead ; but isome- 
 times you are very much surprised, in the morning, 
 when you go to her bed, to find that she is neither there, 
 aor in the house, nor on the mountains, nor anywhere, 
 where any one else can go." 
 
 "And where do you suppose she is, when she disap- 
 pears in this way ? " 
 
 " Some say that she goes to Blakulla ; but you must not 
 believe them ! " 
 
 "What is Blakulla? The rendezvous of witches?" 
 
 "Yes, the black mountain where those wicked women 
 take the little children whom they steal while they are 
 asleep, and whom they carry to Satan on the horse 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 423 
 
 Skjults, who looks like a flying cow. Then Satan takes 
 and marks them by biting them, either on the forehead or 
 the little fingers, and they keep that mark all their lives. 
 But I know very well why they say that of my aunt 
 Karine." 
 
 "And why?" 
 
 "Because a long time ago, before I was born, it seems 
 that she brought a little child to the house, whose fingers 
 had been bitten by the devil. My father would not look 
 at him at first, l3ut in a little while he began to love 
 him, and he says that my aunt is a good Christian, and 
 that all people say of her is false. The pastor finds noth- 
 ing to blame in her, and he says, since she needs to run 
 about in her sleep, she must be allowed to do so. Be- 
 sides, she has declared herself, that she would die, and 
 that great misfortunes would happen, if she should be 
 shut up. That is why she goes where she wishes ; and 
 my father says it is better not to know where she goes, 
 because she has secrets that she could not help, perhaps, 
 disclosing, if she should be followed and watched." 
 
 " And did no accident ever happen to her while she is 
 walking thus sound asleep ? " 
 
 " Never ; and perhaps she is not really asleep when she 
 walks, — how does any one know ? It is certain, anyhow, 
 that we are sometimes three days and three nights with- 
 out knowing whether she will return, but she always 
 comes back, some time or other ; and then, when she has 
 slept and dreamed, she is no longer ill, and she prophe- 
 sies things that always happen. Stay, this morning — 
 But my father forbade me to repeat it ! " 
 
 " If you tell me, Olof, it is as if you told these stones." 
 
 " Do you swear on the Bible not to repeat it?" 
 
 "I swear on whatever you choose." 
 
 "Well," replied Olof, who so seldom found any one to 
 talk to in the solitude of his mountain home, that he was 
 quite delighted at securing the attention of the handsome 
 stranger, " this is what she said when she woke up at 
 day-break. ' The great iarl is going forth to the hunt. 
 To the hunt the iarl and his suite are departing.* The 
 iarl, you know, is the Baron de Waldemora ! " 
 
424 
 
 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 "Ah, ah! He has really gone hunting. But youi 
 aunt may have heard that." 
 
 " Yes, but the rest, you will see : 'The iarl will leave 
 his soul at the house ; at the house he will leave his soul' 
 — wait, wait until I think of the rest ; — she sang it — 
 I know the air, the air will remind me of the words." 
 
 And Olof began to sing the oracle to an air that might 
 have brought the devil, in person, to the spot. 
 
 " ' And when the iarl shall return to the house, when he 
 returns to the house to rejoin his soul, the soul of the iarl 
 will no longer be there.' " 
 
 Just as the young Dalecarlian had finished these mys- 
 terious words, a sleigh, advancing at great speed, began 
 rapidly to gain upon them, and the resounding voice of 
 the coachman cried imperiously, " Room ! room ! " At 
   the same time he whipped savagely his four horses, who 
 had been terrified, while still at a distance, by the odor 
 of the bears brought by Christian. They had left the 
 mountain, and were on a narrow road running along the 
 edge of a gorge, and which led to the lake. Christian, 
 fearing that they would be upset unless he should get 
 out of the way, and seeing no means of accomplishing 
 this unless by pitching headlong into the stream at 
 the bottom of the gorge, whipped the danneman's horse 
 so as to get forward and reach a place where there would 
 be room for the other vehifcle to pass ; but, just as he 
 had succeeded in drawing a little to the right, the .brutal 
 coachman of the advancing sleigh urged forward his 
 fiery horses, the two vehicles grazed, and were upset si- 
 multaneously, j^' 
 
 Christian found himself on the earth with Olof and his 
 four bears, and so» effectually buried in the snow piled up 
 along the edge ot th^ t"oad, that it took him some time to 
 discover whereabouts, ^nd in what company, he had been 
 interred in this fashion. The first voice that struck upon 
 his ear, the first face that rejoiced his sight, were the face 
 and voice of Jhe illustrious Professor Stangstadius. The 
 learned man had'^npt been at all injured ; but he was 
 furious, and, making^ his first attack upon Christian, who 
 was not masked, and with whom, as he arose, he found 
 
THE SNOW MAA. 
 
 425 
 
 himself face to face, he overwhelmed him with insults, 
 and threatened him with divine vengeance and the mal- 
 edictions of the universe. 
 
 "There, there, gently, gently!" replied Christian, 
 helping him to get up upon his unequal legs once more ; 
 " you have no bones broken. Monsieur Professor, God be 
 praised ! I call the universe and heaven to witness how 
 glad I am ! But, if it is you who drive your equipage so 
 crazil}^, I must say that you are not very considerate of 
 people whose horses are not as good as yours. There 
 now, leave me alone," he added, quietly pushing away 
 the geologist, who was attempting to seize him by the 
 collar, "or else, the first time I meet you on the lake, I 
 will leave you to freeze there, instead of bruising my 
 shoulders by carrying you." 
 
 The professor, without seeking to recognize Christian, 
 continued declaiming, to prove to him that it was his 
 fault that the accident had happened, when Christian, 
 who was only thinking of picking up his game and Olof, 
 noticed, in the midst of the four bears, a man of lofty 
 stature, stretched out and motionless, with his face to the 
 earth. At the same time, a young man, dressed in black, 
 and pale with terror, came from the opposite bank, where 
 he had been thrown, and running forward, cried : 
 
 " The baron ! Where is the baron ? " 
 
 "What baron?" said Christian, who had just lifted up 
 the swooning man, and was supporting him in his arms. 
 
 At this moment the son of the danneman pushed Chris- 
 tian with his shoulder, and whispered : 
 
 "Theiarl! look at the iarl ! " . 
 
 The baron's young physician hastened to remove his 
 fur cap, which had got pulled down over the invalid's 
 face, so that he was in danger of suffocating ; and Chris- 
 tian came very near opening his strong arms and letting him 
 fall back into the snow, on recognizing, with an insur- 
 mountable horror, in the dying man whom he was trying 
 to succor, the Baron Olaus de Waldemora. 
 
 They stretched him out on the pile of bears ; it was 
 the best bed possible under the circumstances, and the 
 terrified physician implored Stangstadius, who had for* 
 
^26 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 merly taken a degree as a physician, to assist him with 
 his advice and experience, in a case which seemed to 
 him extremely grave. Stangstadius, who was making 
 ready to try all his joints, to satisfy himself that he was 
 not more damaged than usual, consented, at last, to pay 
 some attention to the only person whom the overturn 
 seemed to have seriously endangered. 
 
 "ParSZew/" he said, looking at the baron, and touch- 
 ing him ;' " it is perfectly plain : the pulse inert, the face 
 purple, the lips swollen, a death rattle, and, notwithstand- 
 ing, no injury — It is as clear as day ; it is a fit of apo- 
 plexy. He must be bled — bled quickly, and abundantly.' 
 
 The young physician looked for his case of surgical 
 instruments, and could not find it. Christian and Olof 
 assisted him in his search, but with no better fortune. 
 The baron's fiery horses had run away with his sleigh, 
 and, by this time, it was almost out of sight. The 
 coachman, thinking that his master would have him 
 beaten to death for his awkwardness, was running after 
 it, half crazy, and startling the desolate silence with his 
 imprecations. 
 
 As the danneman's docile horse had stopped short, 
 they talked of putting the invalid in the peasant's sleigh, 
 and removing him to the chateau as quickly as possible. 
 Stangstadius protested that he would be dead before they 
 could arrive. The doctor, out of his senses, proposed 
 running after the runaway horses, so as to look for his 
 case in the baron's sleigh. At last he found it in his 
 pocket, where, thanks to his agitation, he had touched it 
 a dozen times without feeling it ; but his hand trembled 
 so, when the moment came to open the vein, that Stang- 
 stadius, who was perfectly indifferent to anything outside 
 himself, and who, besides, was very well pleased at being 
 able to prove his superiority in all respects, was obliged 
 to take the lancet and do his work for him. 
 
 Christian, who was standing near by, contemplated, 
 with deep inward emotion, this strange and gloomy pic- 
 ture, lighted by the pale gleams of the setting sun : this 
 man, with his powerful frame and terrible countenance, 
 tossing convulsively on his strange couch, — a confused 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 427 
 
 pile of corpses of ferocious beasts ; his large, white 
 arm, from which a stream of black blood, congealing 
 upon the snow as it fell, was slowly flowing ; the young 
 physician, with his mild, pusillanimous face, upon his 
 knees by his terrible patient, and seemingly divided be- 
 tween the fear of seeing him die under his hands, and 
 a childish terror at the growling of the still living bears 
 by his side ; the overturned sleigh, the scattered weapons ; 
 the startled look of the young danneman, through which 
 — strangely blending with his terror — flashed a gleam 
 of malignant satisfaction ; the thin horse smoking after 
 his rapid race, as he indifferently ate the snow ; and, 
 above all, the fantastic face of Stangstadius, lighted up 
 by a smile of triumph which had become his habitual 
 expression, and his sharp voice, haranguing about all that 
 had happened, in a self-satisfied and pedantic tone. It 
 was a scene never to be forgotten : a group at the same 
 time laughable and tragic ; at a first glance, perhaps, in- 
 comprehensible. 
 
 '^My poor doctor," said Stangstadius, "there is no use 
 in hiding it, if your invalid escapes he will be lucky ! 
 But don't imagine it is the upset that has brought on this 
 fit ; it has been threatening for the last twenty-four hours. 
 How is it that you did not foresee it ? " 
 
 " I foresaw it plainly," said the young doctor rather 
 spitefully, ''and told you so an hour ago, Monsieur 
 Stangstadius, when he received that letter at the hunting 
 pavilion, that disturbed him so ; as he read it, his very 
 features grew distorted. It is not my fault if you have 
 forgotten what I said. I did everything in my power to 
 prevent his lordship from going to the hunt. He would 
 not listen to anything ; the most he would consent to, 
 was to allow me to accompany him in his sleigh." 
 
 " By heavens ! a valuable assistant you are ! If I 
 had not offered to return with the two of you, when I 
 saw that he was not in a condition to hunt, he would 
 probably have stifled here. You would not have had 
 presence of mind enough — " 
 
 "You are very hard upon you^ig people. Monsieur Pro- 
 fessor," replied the physician, more and more offended ; 
 
428 
 
 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 "there is some excuse for losing your presence of mind 
 when yon have just been thrown ten feet out of a sleigh, 
 and are no sooner up again than you are called upon to 
 judge, at the first glance, of what is perhaps a hopeless 
 case." 
 
 "A fine matter, truly, a fall in the snow!" said M. 
 Stangstadius, shrugging the one shoulder which was obe- 
 dient to his will. *'If you had fallen, as I did, into the 
 bottom of the shaft of a well ! A fall of fifty feet, seven 
 inches, and five lines, a swoon lasting six hours, fifty- 
 three — " 
 
 " Goodness gracious ! Monsieur Professor, it is the 
 swoon of my patient that I am troubled about, and not 
 yours ! "What is past is past. Will you be so good ap 
 to hold his arm, while I look for a ligature?" 
 
 " No, not at all ; the fact is that there are some people 
 who complain about everything," continued Stangstadius, 
 coming and going, without listening to the doctor. 
 
 Then, forgetting that he had just been in a terrible 
 rage against Christian, the quick-tempered, but really 
 good-natured worthy, turned gayly to him. 
 
 " Did I so much as turn pale," he said, " when 1 
 found myself under those four animals — without count- 
 ing tlie two others, you and your comrade ? Two awk- 
 ward clowns, be it said in passing ! But what matter a 
 few bruises more or less, after all ? I did not even think 
 of myself! I was all ready to give an opinion abput the 
 invalid, and to bleed him. My eye rapid and sure, my 
 hand firm! — How now — where the devil have I seen 
 you?" he continued, still addressing Christian, and for- 
 getting all about the sick man. "Did you kill all these 
 beasts? There is a fine prize, to be sure, a bear of the 
 large kind, the brown species with blue eyes ! When 
 one thinks that that imbecile of a Buffbn — But where 
 did you meet with it? It is rare in this country ! " 
 
 "You must excuse me from replying, at present," 
 said Christian ; " the doctor requires my help." 
 
 "Let him alone — let the blood flow ;" remarked the 
 geologist, quietly. 
 
 •^'No, no, he has lost enough!" cried the physician; 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 439 
 
 '^ the bleeding has had a good effect. Come and see, 
 Monsieur Professor ; but we must not abuse the remedy ; 
 it is as dangerous now, as the evil it is to counteract." 
 
 Christian, not without a shudder of mortal and inex- 
 plicable repugnance, held the baron's cold, heavy arm, 
 while the physician closed the vein. The sick man 
 opened his eyes, and soon tried to make out where he 
 was. His first glance was for the strange bed where he 
 was lying, the second for his blood-stained arm, and the 
 third for his trembling physician. 
 
 "•Ah ! " he exclaimed, in a feeble voice, and in a scorn- 
 ful tone, "you have been bleeding me ! I forbade it." 
 
 "It was necessary, your lordship ; you are much bet- 
 ter, thank heaven ! " replied the doctor. 
 
 The baron was too weak to argue. He tried to look 
 around him with his faded eyes, in which appeared an 
 expression of gloomy anxiety ; but, when he saw Chris- 
 tian's face, his eyes dilated, and fastened upon him with 
 a stupefied stare. At that moment. Christian was bend- 
 ing forward to help the physician to lift him up; he 
 repulsed him with a convulsive gesture ; and the faint 
 semblance of a lifelike hue, that was beginning to return 
 to his face, was succeeded by a livid pallor. 
 
 "Open the vein again," cried Stangstadius to the doc- 
 tor; "I knew you were closing it too soon. Did I not 
 tell you so? Open it, and afterwards leave him quiet 
 for at least five minutes." 
 
 "But the cold. Monsieur Professor," said the physi- 
 cian, obeying Stangstadius mechanically ; " are you not 
 afraid that the cold will be fatal, under such circum- 
 stances?" 
 
 "Bah! the cold!" replied Stangstadius; "I laugh 
 at the cold of the atmosphere ! The cold of death is 
 much worse ! Let him bleed, I tell you, and then let 
 him rest. You must follow the prescription, come what 
 may." 
 
 Turning to Christian, he added : 
 
 "The tall baron is in a bad scrape. I would not like 
 to be in his skin just now. There now — where the 
 devil havo I seen you?" 
 
430 THE SNOW MAN, 
 
 Just then lie picked up something on the snow, which 
 set him running on a new tack. 
 
 "What is that piece of red stone doing here?" he 
 cried; "a fragment of porphyry, in a region of gneiss. 
 and basalt? You must have brought it from up yon- 
 der," he added, pointing to the peaks rising to the west. 
 *'It was in your pocket. Ah! you see it is not very 
 easy to deceive me ! I know the character and form of 
 all the rocks at ten leagues distance ! " 
 
 The baron's sleigh finally returned, and a few mo- 
 ments afterwards, as he began to seem a little better 
 again, they were able to close the vein, and place the 
 sick man in his equipage, which proceeded slowly to the 
 chateau, while Christian started, in advance, with the son 
 of the danneman. 
 
 "Well," said the young lad, when they had left the 
 gloomy vehicle behind them, "what was I telling you 
 when it happened? What did my aunt Karine say?" 
 
 "I did not understand the song very well," said 
 Christian, absorbed in his thoughts; "it was not very 
 cheerful, I remember." 
 
 "'He left his soul at the house,*" repeated Olof; 
 "'and when he shall come to rejoin it, he will no longer 
 find it.' Is not that perfectly plain, Herr Christian? 
 The iarl was ill ; he wanted to shake oif his malady ; 
 but his soul did not want to go to the hunt, and with 
 good reason, perhaps, for it is bound now on a villanous 
 journey ! " 
 
 "You hate the iarl!" said Christian. "You think 
 his soul is going to hell ! " 
 
 "As to that, God knows! But as to hating him, I 
 don't hate him any more than every one does. You don't 
 love him yourself, do you?" 
 
 "I — I do not know," replied Christian, shuddering 
 inwardly at the consciousness of the hate which filled 
 his heart, more intense, perhaps, than was felt by any 
 other person. 
 
 "Well, if he gets well," resumed the lad, "you will 
 hear about it ! He will soon find out who upset him, 
 and, if you are wise, you will quit the country." 
 
FHE SNOW MAN. 
 
 431 
 
 . "So, then, everyone believes that it will not do to 
 offend him?" 
 
 "Good gracious ! He poisoned his father, he stabbed 
 his brother with a dagger, and he starved his sister-in- 
 law ; and he has killed ever so many other people be- 
 sides that my aunt Karine knows about, and that e^'ery 
 one would know about, if she would speak ; but she 
 will not ! " 
 
 "And don't you feel afraid that the baron's aager will 
 be directed against you, wdien he shall learn that it is 
 your fatlier's sleigh that upset him?" 
 
 "It is not the fault of the sleigh, and mine still less. 
 You would drive ! If I had been driving it would not 
 have happened, perhaps ; but what is to happen, hap- 
 pens ; and when harm befalls wicked men, it is because 
 it is the Avill of God ! " 
 
 But Christian, constantly haunted by the dreadful idea 
 that had taken possession of him, shuddered at the 
 thought that destiny had perhaps chosen him as the 
 parricidal instrument for accomplishing the baron's de- 
 struction. 
 
 "No, no!" he cried, in answer to his own thoughts, 
 rather than to the son of the danneman ; "I did not 
 cause his fit. The physicians said that he had been 
 doomed for twenty-four hours." 
 
 "And my aunt Karine said so too!" rejoined Olof; 
 " so you can rest easy, he will not recover." 
 
 Thereupon, Olof began humming the sad refrain 
 which reminded Christian more and more of the melan- 
 choly air which he had heard the previous evening 
 among the boulders. 
 
 "Does not your aunt Karine sometimes go to Stoll- 
 borg?" he asked of Olof. 
 
 "To Stollborg?" said the lad. "I should only be- 
 lieve it if I saw it." 
 
 "Why?" 
 
 "Because she does not like that place; she will not 
 even allow it to be named where she is." 
 
 "Why so?" 
 
 "Who can tell? And yet, in former years, when the 
 
/^32 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 Baroness Hilda was alive, she lived there ; but I cannol 
 tell you anything more about it, because I have told you 
 now all that I know ; we never speak, at our house, 
 either of Stollborg or of Waldemora ! " 
 
 Christian felt that there would be something indel- 
 icate in questioning the young danneman about the rela- 
 tions that may have existed between his aunt and the 
 baron ; besides, he had become so gloomy and depressed, 
 that he had not the heart, for the moment, to make 
 any further inquiries. 
 
 The sudden change in the atmosphere contributed not 
 a little to his melancholy. The sun, whether beneath 
 the horizon or not, had entirely disappeared in one of 
 those thick fogs which very frequently, in the short 
 winter days, suddenly envelop earth and sky, espe- 
 cially towards sunset, or in the morning at sunrise. It 
 was a heavy, melancholy veil, of a dull, leaden gray, 
 which grew thicker every instant, and which soon left 
 nothing visible but the bottom of the gorge, into which 
 it had not yet fully penetrated. In proportion as it 
 approached this goal, it seemed to sweep forward in 
 dense waves, but it did not mingle at all with the black 
 smoke rising from great fires kindled in the depths of the 
 valley, to preserve harvests or keep open small streams 
 of water. 
 
 Christian did not even ask Olof the object of these 
 fires ; he gave himself up to the dreary amusement of 
 watching their red and spectral forms, glimmering like 
 rayless, fluctuating meteors on the banks of the stream, 
 and in following with his eye the persistent and fan- 
 tastic struggle of their gloomy flames and clouds of 
 smoke, with the fog, which, through the contrast, seemed 
 even whiter than it was. The frozen torrent was still 
 visible ; but, by some strange optical delusion, it some- 
 times appeared so near the road that Christian imag- 
 ined he could touch it with the end of his whip, and 
 sometimes seemed buried in immeasurable depths, while 
 in reality it was infinitely less distant, and infinitely less 
 near, than the deceptive undulations of the fog caused it 
 to appear. 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 433 
 
 . Night followed, with the long northeni twilight. At 
 this hour there is usually a delicate greenish tint in the 
 atmosphere, but this evening it was colorless and livid. 
 Not a living being was visible on the face of the globe ; 
 whatever had life was concealed, motionless, silent. 
 Christian felt oppressed at this universal gloom of nature, 
 and then he accepted it with a sort of apathetic resig- 
 nation. Olof jumped out to lead the hor^e, for the road, 
 as it now descended to the shore of the lake, spreading 
 like a vague ocean of vapor beneath them, was almost 
 perpendicular. Christian imagined that he was descend- 
 ing the sharp declivity of the globe itself, and about to 
 plunge off into the void abysms of space. Two or three 
 times the horse slipped until he was thrown back upon 
 his haunches, and Olof came very near letting go the 
 bridle and leaving him to his fate, together with the 
 sleigh and the traveller. The latter was overwhelmed 
 by a mortal indifference. The baron's son ! These three 
 words, written, as it were, in black letters upon his brain, 
 seemed to have killed within him hope in the future, and 
 love of life. It was not despair that he felt, but a 
 profound disgust for all that life can offer; and, in this 
 mood, the only thing he noticed was the one immediate 
 fact that he felt overwhelmed with sleep, and that he 
 would have been quite willing to fall asleep forever by 
 rolling, without a sound, to the bottom of the lake. He 
 did really lose himself, and so completely, that he had 
 entirely forgotten where he was, when a voice as faint as 
 the twilight, as veiled as the sky and the lake, sang close 
 to him these words, to which he listened unconsciously, 
 and gradually comprehended : 
 
 "Behold, the sun is rising! Beautiful and clear it 
 shines on the meadow enamelled with flowers. I see the 
 fairies all in white, crowned with garlands of willow- 
 boughs and lilacs ; the fairies who dance in the valley, 
 on the moss glittering with dew. The child is in the 
 midst of them, the child of the lake, more beautiful than 
 the morning. 
 
 " Behold, the sun climbs to the zenith ! The birds are 
 silent ; the little flies buzz in the beams of dusty gold. 
 28 
 
434 ^^^ SNOW MAN, 
 
 The fairies haVe entered a grove of azaleas, to seek the 
 cool, refreshing shade on the shore of the stream. The 
 child is asleep on their knees — the child of the lake, more 
 beautiful than the day. 
 
 "Behold, the sun is setting! The nightingale sings 
 to the diamond star that mirrors itself in the waters 
 The fairies are seated at the foot of the sky, on the stair- 
 case of rosy crystal ; they sing a lullaby to the child, who 
 smiles in his downy nest ; the child of the lake, more 
 beautiful than the star of the evening ! " 
 
 Once again it was the voice heard among the boulders 
 that struck upon Christian's ear, but it seemed, as it now 
 chanted poetic words set to an agreeable and melodious 
 air, far sweeter than before. The words were, per- 
 haps, a modern song which the sibyl had understood and 
 remembered exactly. However, it was in vain that 
 Christian tried to catch the faintest glimpse of a human 
 form. He could not even see the horse that was con- 
 ducting him, or rather, to speak more correctly, which 
 was no longer conducting him, for the sleigh was stand- 
 ing still, and Olof was not there. Far from feeling un- 
 easy about his situation, Christian listened until the three 
 verses were completed. The first had seemed to him to 
 be sung a few steps behind him, the second nearer, and 
 the third farther on ; gradually the voice died away in 
 advance of him. 
 
 The young man came very near jumping out of the 
 sleigh, to try and seize the invisible singer as she passed ; 
 but, as he put out his foot, he became aware that there 
 was a void under him instead of solid ground ; and, as 
 the tender words of the song had revived within him the 
 instinct of self-preservation, he stretched out his hand, 
 to find out where he was. He felt the reeking rump 
 of the horse, and called Olof several times, without re- 
 ceiving any reply. Then, as the singer's voice began 
 chanting again, still farther away, he called her also, 
 by the name "of Void Karina ; but she either did not 
 hear him, or would not answer. He resolved then to get 
 out on the other side of the sleigh, and he found himself 
 on a steep road, which he explored for about twenty 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 435 
 
 •gteps, still calling Olof with the greatest anxiety. Could 
 tlie child have rolled over a precipice during Christian's 
 brief slumber ? At last he saw, gleaming through the fog, 
 an imperceptible point of light, which came towards him, 
 and soon he recognized Olof carrying a lighted lantern. 
 
 "Is it you, Herr Christian?" said the lad, who had 
 not heard him approach, and who was terrified at meet- 
 ing him thus suddenly face to face. " It was wrong of 
 you to get out of the sleigh when you could not see well ; 
 this is a very dangerous place, and I told you not to budge 
 while I went to light my lantern, at the mill close by. 
 Didn't you hear me ? " 
 
 "Not at all ; but you, did not you hear some one sing- 
 ing?" 
 
 "Yes, but I did not listen. You often hear voices on 
 the shore of the lake, and it is not good to understand 
 what they sing, for then they will lead you into places 
 from which you never return." 
 
 "Very well, for my part, I listened," said Christian, 
 " and I recognized the voice of your aunt Karine. She 
 must be close by — Let us look for her, since you have a 
 light, or call her ; she will, perhaps, answer you." 
 
 "No no!" cried the boy; "leave her alone. If she 
 is in her dream, and we wake her up, she will kill 
 herself!" 
 
 "But she is in just as much danger of killing herself 
 if we leave her walking on the edge of this ravine, where 
 you can't see your hand before you ! " 
 
 "Where we cannot see, she can ; be quiet, unless you 
 wish to bring some misfortune upon her, and to prevent 
 her from returning to the house, where I am very sure I 
 shall find her as usual." 
 
 Christian was obliged to give up the idea of seeking 
 the seeress, especially as the light of the lantern was 
 scarcely sufficient to show them where to plant their feet, 
 the fog was so impenetrable. Christian helped Olof to 
 guide the horse cautiously to the shore of the lake, and 
 there the lad, who did not seem at all alarmed by their 
 adventures, asked him whether he would get into the sleigh 
 again, and go on to the major's bostoelle. 
 
436 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 "No, no," said Christian, "I must go to StoUborg 
 Must I not turn to the right ? " 
 
 "No," said Olof, "try to walk forward in a straight 
 line, while you count three hundred steps. If you take 
 two steps more and don't come to the rock, you have 
 gone wrong." 
 
 "And what must I do then?" 
 
 "Look and see from what direction the whiffs of the 
 fog come. The wind is from the south, and it is quite 
 mild. If the fog passes to your left, you must turn to 
 your right. As for the rest, there is no danger on the 
 lake, the ice is firm everywhere." 
 
 "But you, my child, will you be able to get along 
 all alone ? " 
 
 "Able to go to the bostoelle? I promise you. The 
 horse knows the road now ; don't you see how impatient 
 he is?" 
 
 "But you will not return to your father's house this 
 evening ? " 
 
 " Yes, indeed ! The fog will lift, perhaps ; and besides, 
 the moon will rise soon, and, as it is full, I can see to 
 drive." 
 
 Christian shook hands with the young danneman, gave 
 him a daler, and, following his instructions, reached 
 StoUborg without missing his road, and without meeting 
 a living soul. 
 
 XV. 
 
 IVT GOEFLE'S fourth meal had just been served, and 
 ^^^ he was seriously occupied in giving Master Nils a 
 lesson in deportment, while the child, standing before him 
 with a napkin on his arm, seemed in quite a teachable 
 mood. 
 
 "Bravo, Christian, you have come precisely at the 
 right time ! " cried the doctor of laws ; "I was on the 
 point of taking my coffee all alone. I made it myself, 
 for both of us ; I can guarantee that it is excellent, and 
 you must want something to warm your stomach." 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 437 
 
   " I will join you in a moment, my dear doctor," re- 
 plied Christian, taking off his torn vest and preparing to 
 wash his hands, which were covered with blood. 
 
 " Good gracious ! " resumed M. Goefle, " are you 
 wounded, or have you by chance cut the throats of all 
 the bears of Sevenberg?" 
 
 " There has been a little of that," replied Christian, 
 " but I think it is human blood that is on my hands now, 
 Oh, M. Goefle, I have such a story to tell you ! " 
 
 " You are pale ! " cried the lawyer ; " you have some- 
 thing more serious to tell me about than a hunting exploit. 
 What has happened — a quarrel — a misfortune? Speak 
 quickly — you take away my appetite." 
 
 " Nothing has happened to me that ought to have that 
 effect upon you, M. Goefle. Go on with your supper. I 
 will try to keep you company, and I will speak French, 
 because of — " 
 
 " Yes, yes," replied M. Goefle, in French ; " because of 
 the red ears of this little imbecile. Go on, I liear you." 
 
 While Christian was giving M. Goefle all the partic- 
 ulars of his adventures, and confiding to him also his con- 
 jectures and his emotions, they heard from afar the 
 sound of the noisy fanfares. The baron had left the 
 forest as he so frequently disappeared from his saloons. 
 The cold, the fatigue of the expedition, and, above all, 
 his impatience to attend to the business treated of in 
 Johan's missive, were more than he could endure, and ac- 
 cordingly, after killing a deer, he had stepped into his 
 sleigh under the pretence of going farther on, while the 
 other hunters were requested to pay no attention to his 
 movements, but to continue their sports in any way they 
 chose. Soon after, Larrson and the lieutenant had joined 
 this hunt, where, agreeably to the universal anticipation, 
 no trace of any bears had been seen, but where some few 
 white deer had been killed, and a great number of very 
 large hares. 
 
 When the fog lame on, the prudent people hastened to 
 drive back to the chateau ; but some of the young folks, 
 escorted by all the peasants of the neighborhood, who had 
 been employed as trackers, delayed too long in descend- 
 
438 
 
 THE SNO W MAN. 
 
 ing the mountain, and were obliged to stop at the foot 
 of the hogar, where Larrson advised that they should 
 wait until the moon arose, or until the vapors hanging 
 over the lake should be lifted by the sudden gust of wind 
 by which the rising of the moon is often preceded. Some 
 of the party had the lanterns of their sleighs lighted, and 
 preferred to return at once, but about a dozen remained. 
 Plenty of brandy was distributed to the peasants, who 
 dispersed to their various homes. The servants and 
 marksmen blew trumpets, and lighted a large fire on the 
 hogar, close to the formless fragments of the statue of 
 snow, and the merry company assembled in the grotto, 
 before which the game was piled up in the form of a pyr- 
 amid, and gayly chatted there at their leisure, relating 
 their adventures, and discussing the various episodes of 
 the hunt. 
 
 But the major's stories so far exceeded what any of 
 his companions had to relate, that soon every one was 
 silent, to Hsten to him. Among his audience, which in- 
 cluded both sexes, were Olga, Martina, and Margaret, 
 who had been allowed by her aunt to remain on the hogar 
 with Mademoiselle Potin and the minister's daughter. 
 
 " So, gentlemen," said Olga to the major and the lieuten- 
 ant, " you have been slyly performing dangerous exploits, 
 the proof of which you promise to show us to-morrow, if 
 we will consent to take a walk to your house." 
 
 " Say the proofs /" replied the major ; " an enormous 
 creature, a spotted bear with blue eyes, quite a large 
 black bear, and two cubs, which we intend to bring up, 
 so as to have the pleasure of letting them loose and hunt- 
 ing them when they are grown." 
 
 " But who wa*" so fortunate as to kill or capture them 
 all?" inquired Martina Akerstrom, the blond fiancee of 
 the lieutenant. 
 
 " The lieutenant captured a cub," replied the major, 
 turning with an expressive smile to his friend ; " the cor- 
 poral and myself caught another ; the peasant who was 
 guiding us wounded the large she-bear, and attacked the 
 black bear ; but these two furious beasts would infallibly 
 have torn him into pieces, if another of my friends, who 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 439 
 
 reached the spot all alone, had not ripped open the first, 
 and broken the head of the other with a ball, at half an 
 inch from the poor devil's face." 
 
 If Christian's exploit had been related a third time, it 
 is quite evident that the distance between his ball and 
 the dauneman's head would have been inappreciable. 
 The major certainly did not intend to exaggerate : how- 
 ever, his auditors cried out in amazement ; but the 
 lieutenant struck his fist upon the table, and took an 
 energetic oath that the distance, if anything, was less, 
 rather than greater, than what the major had said. The 
 lieutenant did not intend to exaggerate, either ; how 
 could his dear Osmund be mistaken ? 
 
 "Well, at any rate," said Margaret, "the slayer of 
 the monsters you have described must be very cour- 
 ageous, and have great presence of mind, and I should 
 like to oJBTer him my sincere congratulations. Does he 
 remain anonymous out of modesty, or is he not here ? " 
 
 "He is not here," replied the baron. 
 
 "Is it really true?" rejoined Martina Akerstrom, 
 looking artlessly at her betrothed. 
 
 "It is only too true," answered the lieutenant, heaving 
 a heartfelt and equally ingenuous sigh. 
 
 "But did he make you promise," said Margaret, 
 " not to reveal his name ? " 
 
 "We would not have consented to make any such 
 promise," replied the major, "we love him too well for 
 that ; but, when one has a secret which, by good luck, 
 excites the curiosity of the ladies, he likes to make his 
 importance felt, and so we will not tell you anything 
 more — will we lieutenant? — until you have done your 
 very best to guess the name of our hero." 
 
 "Perhaps it was Monsieur Stangstadius," said Mad- 
 emoiselle Potin, laughing. 
 
 "No," replied some one, "the professor was at our 
 hunt, and he left with the Baron de Waldemora." 
 
 "Well," said Olga, "it may have been precisely to 
 join these gentlemen that they went. Who knowa 
 whether it was not the baron?" 
 
 "Such exploits are not suited to his age," said a 
 
440 
 
 THE SNOW MAN, 
 
 young man, who would have been very glad to pay court 
 to Olga, in an affected tone. 
 
 "Why not?" she rejoined. 
 
 "Idonotsay," observed Larrson, " that he is too old 
 for such exploits, but it is my opinion that he has never 
 had a taste for them. The baron has never, I believe, 
 hunted in the new style ; that is, without being intrenched 
 behind a net of strong and well-stretched cords." 
 
 "What!" cried Margaret, "did you hunt without 
 nets?" 
 
 " In the same way as the peasants of the mountain," 
 rejoined the major ; "it is the best way." 
 
 "But it must be very dangerous ! " 
 
 " It was our friend alone who found it so to-day. We 
 will show you to-morrow his coat of reindeer skin. 
 The way in which the claws of the bear have turned 
 this excellent shield into a kind of lace, will show you 
 that he was in very close quarters with the enemy." 
 
 "But it is madness to expose yourself so," cried Mar- 
 garet. " Nothing in the world would induce me to wit- 
 ness such a spectacle ! " 
 
 "And what is the name of this Meleager?" inquired 
 Olga ; " will you not satisfy our curiosity.?" 
 
 "Confess," said the major, "that you have not tried 
 very hard to guess it." 
 
 "Yes, indeed; but the best hunters at the chateau — 
 all I should have thought capable of such feats — are 
 here, and you say that your hero is not present?" 
 
 "You have forgotten some one who was at the cha- 
 teau only last evening," rejoined the lieutenant. 
 
 "I have tried in vain to think," replied Olga ; "I give 
 it up, unless, indeed, it should be the black mask, the 
 man of mystery, the learned buffoon. Christian Wal- 
 do—" 
 
 "Well, and why not?" said the major, glancing 
 stealthily at Margaret, who had blushed deeply. 
 
 "Was it he?" she cried, with unaffected eagerness. 
 
 " Mon Dieu I " said the young Russian, but more 
 through thoughtlessness than malice, for she was not 
 
THE SNO W MAN. 4^1 
 
 bad-hearted. **One would say, my dear child, that you 
 are very much interested in knowing — " 
 
 "You know," observed good Mademoiselle Potin, 
 opportunely, "that Countess Margaret is afraid of Chris- 
 tian Waldo." 
 
 "Afraid of him?" said the major, in surprise. 
 
 "Why, certainly," replied the governness, "and I 
 confess that I am a little in the same case. A mask 
 always frightens me." 
 
 "But you have never even seen Christian's mask." 
 
 "Oh, that only makes it -the more alarming," she 
 answered, laughing. "We are only really afraid of 
 what we have never seen. All the stories that are told 
 of this witty comedian are so strange ! And his death's 
 head, that they talk about! We have heard enough 
 about him to make one dream all night, and tremble at 
 hearing his name ! " 
 
 "Well," said the major, "do not tremble anymore, 
 ladies; we have seen the face of Christian Waldo all 
 day long, and in spite of what the baron said last night, 
 his pretended death's head is the head of a young Anti- 
 nous. Isn't it true, lieutenant, that he is the handsomest 
 jroung man you ever saw ? " 
 
 "As handsome as he is amiable, educated, and brave,'* 
 replied the lieutenant. 
 
 And even Corporal Duff, who was outside smoking his 
 pipe, and listening to the conversation, now raised his 
 voice as if in spite of himself, to praise the cordiality, 
 nobility, and modesty of Christian Waldo. 
 
 Margaret asked no questions, and did not even ven- 
 ture to make any mental comments upon what she had 
 heard ; but while apparently fully occupied in fastening 
 her pelisse, for they had risen to go, she did not lose a 
 word of the praises bestowed upon her friend of the pre- 
 vious evening. 
 
 "How is it?" said Olga, who was also preparing for 
 their departure, "that an educated and distinguished man 
 can consent to follow a calling, I will not say disgrace- 
 ful, but certainly frivolous, and which, after all, will 
 not be likely to make him rich ? " 
 
442 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 "He don't make a business of his present occupa* 
 tion," replied the major, eagerly ; "he follows it merely 
 as an amusement." 
 
 "Oh, excuse me, he is paid for his entertainments." 
 
 "Well, and so are we soldiers paid for serving the 
 state. Are not our estates and revenues the salary we 
 receive for our services ? " 
 
 "There is a difference between a salary and wages," 
 said Margaret, with gentle melancholy ; "but it begins to 
 be cold : shall we not go ? I don't think it will be danger- 
 gerous now on the lake." 
 
 The major saw, or thought he saw, that Margaret was 
 anxious to have a talk with him ; he offered her his arm, 
 therefore, to her sleigh, and begged Mademoiselle Potin 
 to allow him to have a seat with them in returning to the 
 chateau. With a few brief words he gave the lieutenant 
 to understand that he would like to have Olga return in 
 another sleigh with himself and Martina Akerstrom ; 
 and the good lieutenant, without troubling himself about* 
 the reason of the major's request, which he obeyed as 
 if it had been a military order, offered his services to his 
 fiancee and the young Russian. 
 
 Thanks to this arrangement, Osmund was at full lib- 
 erty to espouse Christian Waldo's cause warmly, and to 
 try and change the bad opinion which Margaret and 
 Mademoiselle Potin, her discreet confidante, seemed to 
 have formed of him. To succeed in this, he had only 
 to repeat his conversation with Waldo, and inform them 
 of his generous and eccentric determination to endure the 
 greatest poverty and suffering, rather than continue his 
 adventurous career, of which he himself disapproved. 
 Margaret listened with apparent tranquillity, as if she 
 had been called upon to express her approbation of some 
 case in which she had no personal interest. However, 
 she was not a skilful actress, and the major, who had 
 sufficient delicacy to adopt the same tone as herself, was 
 not deceived as to the interest with which she really 
 regarded his friend in her secret soul. 
 
 In the meanwhile Baron Olaus had been laid upon hia 
 bed, where he appeared calm. The physician, as usual, 
 
THE SNO W MAN. 
 
 443 
 
 eluded the questions of his heirs. They all soon knew 
 that their dear and respectable uncle had returned from 
 the hunt so feeble that his people had been obliged to 
 carry him in, undress him, and put him to bed, like a 
 child ; but, according to the physician, he was suffering 
 merely from one of his customary accidental and tempo- 
 rary attacks. Johan gave orders that the amusements 
 and games should continue. The comedy of marionettes 
 was announced for eight o'clock. And as for Doctor 
 Stangstadius, who might have revealed how ill he reall}'- 
 was, he had returned from the hunt only to ascend into the 
 observatory of the chateau, to study at his leisure the 
 phenomenon of the dry fog, which he attributed, and 
 perhaps correctly, to volcanic exhalations proceeding 
 from Lake Wetter. 
 
 The only person who was really anxious was Johan. 
 As soon as he was left alone with his master, though the 
 physician, who had retired to change his dress and take 
 some food, had implored him to keep the baron from 
 being disturbed, he resolved to find out what he was to 
 think of his mental condition. 
 
 '' Come, my master," he said, with his customary 
 familiarity, a privilege granted to him alone, which he 
 was never afraid of abusing, and for very sufficient rea- 
 sons ; "are we really dead this time? Haven't you a 
 single smile for your old Johan ? one of those sweet little 
 smiles that mean, ' I bid defiance to disease, and I mean 
 to bury all the fools who would like to see me go to the 
 devil'?" 
 
 The baron tried in vain to gratify him ; the victorious 
 smile which he attempted to summon to his countenance 
 proved a melancholy grimace, accompanied by a deep 
 sigh. 
 
 " Anyhow, you understand me ? " resumed Johan ; 
 " that is something." 
 
 " Yes," replied the baron, in a feeble voice ; " but I 
 am very ill this time ! That ass of a doctor — " 
 
 And he tried to show his arm. 
 
 " He bled you ? " said Johan. " He says that it saved 
 your life ; let us hope so : but you must exert your will ; 
 
444 
 
 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 you know perfectly well that that it is your only remedy. 
 Your will performs miracles ! " 
 
 " I have none left." 
 
 " No will ? Nonsense ! When you say that, it always 
 means that you are very determined indeed about some- 
 thing ; and I can tell you what you want now — that these 
 two or three Italians — " 
 
 " Yes, yes, all of them," rejoined the baron, with a 
 gleam of energy. 
 
 " There, now ! " resumed Johan, " I knew I could 
 bring you round ! Did you see the proof? — " 
 
 " It is unanswerable." 
 
 " Stenson's writing?" 
 
 " And his signature — all the details ! It is strange — 
 strange ! but it is true." 
 
 " But where have you put it, in the name of heaven? " 
 
 " In the pocket of my hunting-dress." 
 
 " I cannot find it." 
 
 "You have not looked carefully. It is there. No 
 matter ! Listen : I am overcome with fatigue — Stenson 
 in the tower ! " 
 
 "At once?" 
 
 " No, during the comedy." 
 
 "And the others?" 
 
 " Afterwards." 
 
 " In the tower also ? " 
 
 " Yes ; some excuse." 
 
 "That is easy. A silver plate slipped into the bag- 
 gage of these jugglers. They will have stolen it." 
 
 " Good ! " 
 
 " But if their suspicions are awakened ? If the true and 
 false Christian do not come?" 
 
 " Where are they ? " 
 
 " Who can find out in this fog? I have given orders ; 
 but an hour ago no one had returned to StoUborg, which 
 is watched and surrounded on all sides." 
 
 " In that case, what will you do?" 
 
 "The proof — that is the portfolio — destroyed, and 
 the man who gave it up to you dead, his secret is dead 
 
THE SNOW MAN, 445 
 
 too, since Christian Waldo does not know anything about 
 it." 
 
 "Is that quite certain?" 
 
 " When we get hold of him we will make him confess." 
 
 " But he is not in our hands yet." 
 
 " Perhaps, by this time — I will go myself to StoUborg, 
 and find out." 
 
 " Go quickly ! — But if he should refuse to come to the 
 chateau this evening?" 
 
 " Then Captain Chimere will go over there with — " 
 
 " Very good ! and the lawyer? — " 
 
 "I will tell him beforehand that you send for him. 
 However — we must be ready for anything ; if he refuses 
 to obey? — " 
 
 " That will be the proof— " 
 
 " That he has an understanding with your enemies. 
 And then?— " 
 
 " So much the worse for him." 
 
 " That is serious — such a well-known man I " 
 
 " Do not harm him ; keep him out of it." 
 
 " Yes, if possible. No matter, I will try. I will go 
 at once to Stollborg and slip your gold goblet into the 
 pack-saddle of the ass. That will be the excuse for 
 seizing the jugglers, even if we have to go there to catch 
 them. But there may be some disturbance. Christian 
 is a fighting man, and Stollborg is very near." 
 
 " So much the better ; they will silence him the sooner." 
 
 " The major and the lieutenant have taken a great 
 liking to this mountebank. We must be careful, and 
 choose the right moment. I have ordered all the brass 
 instruments in the chateau to be kept playing, and out- 
 side they are sending off rockets and fireworks every mo- 
 ment." 
 
 "Well thought of!" 
 
 •' How do you feel now? " 
 
 " Better ; I think I can even recall — wait, Johan — 
 that face — I dreamed about it again to-day. When 
 was it? Wait, I say ! Was it a dream? Destruction ! 
 I cannot, Johan, my head refuses — ray brain is con« 
 fused, as it was yesterday." 
 
446 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 "Well then, don*t torment yourself; I will find out 
 all about it myself ; it is my affair. Come, be quiet ! yoa 
 will come out victorious, as you always do. I will send 
 Jacob to you." 
 
 Johan went out. The baron, exhausted by the effort 
 he had made, fainted in Jacob's arms, and the physician, 
 hastily recalled, had a great deal of difficulty in bringing 
 him to his senses. Then the patient recovered a feverish 
 energy. 
 
 " Off with you, doctor ! " he cried ; "I am tired of 
 your face ! You are ugly ! every one is ugly ! He is 
 beautiful — heautiful^ if they speak the truth ; but that 
 will not help him any. When one is dead he soon be- 
 comes hideous, does he not ? Still, if I should die before 
 him, I should like to leave him my fortune — that would 
 be droll ! But if I live, he must die ; nothing shall save 
 him. Say, then, doctor, do you think I am crazy? " 
 
 The baron, after raving in this way for a few moments, 
 fell into a restless, feverish sleep. It was then six o'clock 
 in the evening, and the company at the chateau were just 
 sitting down to the aftonward^ the light repast which pre- 
 cedes supper. 
 
 We are really grieved at being obliged to try the read- 
 er's patience with so many meals, but we should not be 
 true to facts if we should suppress a single one of them. 
 We are forced to remind him that it is the custom of the 
 country to eat every two hours, and that a century^ ago 
 no one thought of deviating from it, especially in the 
 country, and in winter. Pretty women lost nothing 
 of their poetry in the eyes of their admirers by having 
 an excellent appetite. It was not the fashion to be pale 
 and hollow-eyed. The fresh and brilliant complexions 
 of the beautiful Swedes did not rob them of their empire 
 over heart and imagination, and though not at all senti- 
 mental, the young people of both sexes were really very 
 romantic. The little Margaret, accordingly, and the tall 
 Olga, the blonde Martina, and several other nymphs of 
 these frozen lakes, after having taken coffee in the grotto 
 of the hogar, ate their cream and cheese in the great 
 gilded saloon of the chateau, each dreaming about love 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 447 
 
 m . her own way, and all of them happily unconscious 
 that fasting could be considered a necessary condition of 
 sentiment. 
 
 There were no longer so many guests at the new cha- 
 teau as there had been during the first few days of the 
 Christmas holidays. Several motliers had carried away 
 their daughters, when they found that Baron Olaus 
 paid them no attention. The diplomats of both sexes, 
 who had an interest in keeping up their relations with 
 him, and his presumptive heirs — whom the baron was in 
 the habit of calling, when he joked about them in French, 
 his presumptuous heirs — remained, in spite of the gloom 
 that he shed around him. Countess Elveda was very much 
 irritated at not being able to come to any understanding 
 with her mysterious host ; but she consoled herself by 
 flirting with the Russian ambassador. The mornings 
 and afternoons were occupied by the elderly ladies. 
 in making and receiving visits in their respective apart- 
 ments, with a great deal of ceremony and solemnity. On 
 such occasions, they always conversed about the same 
 subjects : the beautiful winter weather, the magnificent 
 hospitality of their host, his remarkable wit — perhaps a 
 little severe — his indisposition, and the wonderful courage 
 with which he bore it, so as not to interfere with the en- 
 joyment of his guests ; and, as they conversed thus, they 
 stifled Homeric yawns. And then they talked politics, 
 and argued with great bitterness, which did not prevent 
 them from discoursing about religious topics in an edify- 
 ing manner. For the most part they entertained the per- 
 sons who had just come in, by saying all the evil possible 
 of those who had just gone out. 
 
 The young people were the only ones who contrived to 
 throw off the moral coldness and gloom which seemed to 
 permeate the very atmosphere. There were about a 
 score of them, of both sexes, who, with or without the 
 consent of their families, had formed attachments among 
 themselves, of a more or less tender character, and who, 
 meeting freely, as they did every hour of the day, acted 
 as each other's chaperons and confidantes. With this 
 happy group were associated some few persons who, 
 
448 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 though older, were nevertheless benevolent and cheerful ; 
 governesses, of whom Mademoiselle Potin was one, the 
 pastor*s family, who were always very highly consid- 
 ered, and courted in all country festivities, several old 
 country gentlemen, plain and simple-hearted, the baron's 
 young physician, when he could escape from the claws of 
 his tyrannical and cunning patient ; and, best of all, the 
 illustrious Stangstadius, whenever they could get hold of 
 him, and contrive to keep him with them by paying him — 
 for their own amusement — the most extravagant compli- 
 ments, the sincerity of which he never doubted,, even 
 when they referred to the charms of his person. 
 
 The collation of the aftonward was as gay to-day as 
 ever, even although the geologist did not make his ap- 
 pearance. The young folks — as the matrons called 
 them — did not even notice the anxious and agitated faces 
 of the servants, who were not quite so blind to the real 
 state of their master's health, as they would have liked to 
 persuade those among them whose business it was to act 
 as spies upon the others. 
 
 After the collation, they declared that they had heard 
 enough about the feats of the hunters, and Martina pro- 
 posed that they should play hide-and-seek, a game that 
 they had enjoyed very much the evening before, partly, 
 perhaps, because they had to go to a different part of the 
 chateau to play it. Instinctively, they avoided a certain 
 isolated pavilion occupied by the master of the house, 
 and perhaps, without openly admitting it, they weVe not 
 sorry to have an excuse — that of not disturbing the host — 
 for avoiding as well the stately apartments occupied 
 by their parents and relatives. In the upper story of the 
 outer circle of buildings, which was connected by numer- 
 ous passages with the lower rooms — the latter were used 
 for various domestic purposes, as wine-cellars, bleaching- 
 rooms, etc. — there were a number of long, gloomy, and 
 almost deserted galleries, where they had plenty of room 
 to look for each other, and plenty of dark corners to hide 
 in. They drew lots for the different parties, and Mar- 
 garet found herself with Martina and her liancee, the lieu* 
 tenant. 
 
THE SNOW MAN, 
 
 WJ 
 
 XVL 
 
 V^THILE the young people at the new chateau were 
 ' ' enjoying their innocent games, M. Goefle and Chris- 
 tian were making all sorts of comments upon the discov- 
 eries relative to his birth which the latter thought he had 
 made. M. Goefle did not agree with his young friend. 
 His ideas, he said, were altogether fanciful, and more in- 
 genious than logical. For his own part, he seemed more 
 than ever tormented by some idea which he at the same 
 time wished and feared to explain. 
 
 "Christian, Christian!" he said, shaking his head, 
 " do not torment yourself by dwelling on this nightmare. 
 No, no ; you are not the son of Baron Glaus ! I would 
 stake putting my hand in the fire on that." 
 
 "And yet," replied Cliristian, "is it not true that there 
 is a certain resemblance between his features and mine ? 
 When he had fainted, and while his blood was dropping 
 on the snow, his cruel and sardonic face assumed the 
 expression of supreme repose which is given by death, 
 and I gazed upon him in terror. No man, it is true (or 
 so it seems to me), at least unless he has passed all his life 
 before a mirror, or is a portrait-painter, can have a very 
 exact idea of his own appearance ; but still his face 
 seemed familiar to me in a vague sort of way, and grad- 
 ually it began to appear like my own. I had the same 
 feeling when I saw him for the first time. I did not say 
 to myself, ' I have seen him somewhere ; ' I said, ' I 
 know him, I have always known him. ' " 
 
 " Well, well," said M. Goefle, " and I too, by heavens ! 
 when I saw you the first time, noticed the same thing. 
 And now again, at this very moment, when your face is 
 serious and abstracted, I recognize, if not a resemblance, 
 at least a similarity of outline that is striking — extraor- 
 dinary. But it is precisely that, my dear friend, which 
 makes me tell you : ' No, you are not his son ! ' " 
 
 " Really, M. Goefle, I do not understand you at 
 alL" 
 
 29 
 
450 
 
 THE SNO W MAN. 
 
 " Oh ! that is not your case alone ! I don't understand 
 myself. And yet I have an idea, a fixed idea ! — If 
 that obstinate Stenson would only speak ! But it was all 
 in vain that I tormented him again to-day for two hours ; 
 he told me nothing of the slightest importance. Either he 
 begins to wander at moments, or he pretends resolutely to 
 be deaf and abstracted, when he does not wish to answer. 
 If I had heard of this Karine, and had known that she 
 was mixed up in our affairs, I might, perhaps, have drawn 
 something out of him, at least in regard to her. You 
 say that the danneman's son pretends that she could tell 
 a great many secrets if she chose. Unluckily, she also 
 is crazy, it seems, or else so intimidated and enfeebled that 
 she is afraid to confess ! However, it is absolutely nec- 
 essary that we succeed in clearing up our doubts, for 
 either I am a fool. Christian, or you are now in your own 
 country, and perhaps are upon the point of discovering 
 who you are. Come, then ! think, help me ! that is, 
 listen to me. Your appearance at the new chateau has 
 caused a great deal of trouble and anxiety there, and you 
 must know — " 
 
 At this moment some one knocked at the door, after 
 having tried in vain to open it without knocking. M. 
 Goefle, unobserved by Christian, had cautiously drawn 
 the bolt. Christian was going to open the door, when 
 M. Goefle stopped him. 
 
 " Go under the staircase," he said, " and leave me to 
 manage this business." 
 
 Christian, who was exceedingly preoccupied, obeyed 
 mechanically, and M. Goefle went to open the door, but 
 without allowing the unexpected visitor to enter. It was 
 Johan. 
 
 "You again!" he said curtly, and in a severe tone. 
 "What do you want, Monsieur Johan?" 
 
 " Excuse me. Monsieur Goefle, I want to speak to 
 Christian Waldo." 
 
 " He is not here." 
 
 " He has, however, returned here ; I know it, Mon- 
 sieur Goefle." 
 
 " Look for him, but not in my apartment. I am at 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 451 
 
 work, and wish to be quiet. This is the third time that 
 you have disturbed me." 
 
 " I ask a thousand pardons, monsieur, but since you 
 share your room with him, I thought I might come again 
 to convey his lordship's orders to this comedian." 
 
 " His orders — what orders ? " 
 
 "In the first place, to get ready his entertainment; 
 then to be at the new chateau at eight precisely, as yes- 
 terday ; and, in conclusion, to play something very gay." 
 
 " You repeat yourself, my good fellow ; you have al- 
 ready told me the same thing twice, and in precisely the 
 same terms — But are you sure that you know what you 
 are saying? Is not the baron seriously ill this evening? 
 While you are prowling round the old chateau like a 
 shadow, are you aware of what is occurring at the new 
 chateau?" 
 
 " I have just seen his lordship this very moment," re- 
 plied Johan, with his eternal smile of impertinent humil- 
 ity. " His lordship is quite well ; and it is because he 
 sent me here that I am forced, to my great regret, to 
 be excessively importunate. Notwithstanding, I must 
 add that his lordship is very desirous of conversing with 
 the honorable M. Goefle during the comedy of marion- 
 ettes." 
 
 " Very good ; I will attend to it. I wish you good- 
 evening." 
 
 Thereupon M. Goefle shut the door in the face of the 
 disappointed Johan. 
 
 " Why all these precautions?" said Christian, coming 
 from his retreat, where he had listened to this dialogue. 
 
 " Because something is going on here — I was about to 
 tell you so when we were interrupted — that I do not 
 understand. All day long, this Johan — the most detest- 
 able wretch alive, if I can judge from his appearance, 
 and from Stenson's opinion — has done nothing but prowl 
 around Stollborg, and you are the object of his curiosity. 
 In the first place he questioned Stenson about you, who 
 does not know you at all, and who only learned to-day 
 (precisely from this Johan) that you and I were both of 
 us stopping here. Then he had a long talk in the stable 
 
452 
 
 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 with your servant Puffo, and another in the kitchen of 
 the gaard, with Ulphilas. He would have made Nila 
 talk if I had not kept him close by me the whole day. I 
 really believe this spy tried to make your ass confess." 
 
 " Luckily, my honest Jean is discretion itself," sai<l 
 Christian. "But I do not see why the efforts of this 
 lackey to see my face should make you uneasy. Since I 
 have worn a mask, I have been accustomed to excite just 
 such curiosity ; but I intend to have done forever with 
 tliis puerile mystery and with these childish persecutions. 
 As I am obliged to return to the chateau this evening, I 
 will go with my face uncovered." 
 
 "No, Christian, you must not do that; I forbid it. 
 You must be patient for a few days longer ! An impor* 
 tant secret is challenging our investigation ; it is our busi- 
 ness to discover it, and I will discover it, or lose my 
 reputation ; but you must not show your face. You must 
 not even let Ulph see you again. You are certainly threat- 
 ened by some danger. Johan, with his stealthy, sidelong 
 glance, is not the only person I have seen gliding about 
 the passages of StoUborg. Either I am very much mis- 
 taken, or I noticed a thorough blackguard walking 
 around the donjon on the ice, at just about nightfall — a 
 certain fellow who has been honored by the baron his 
 master with the fantastic name of Captain Chimere. 
 With our comedy last evening, we may have put fire to 
 powder. The baron unquestionably is suspicious about 
 you, for some cause or other ; and if you will take my 
 advice, you will pretend to be ill, and not go to the new 
 chateau at all." 
 
 " Oh, as to that. Monsieur Goefle, I beg your pardon, 
 but the baron cannot frighten me, no matter what he 
 may do. If I am so fortunate as not to be related to him, 
 I am in precisely the mood to defy him, and to squeeze 
 vigorously any hand that ventures so much as to touch 
 the tapestry of my theatre, if I choose to remain incog- 
 nito. Bemember that I have killed two bears to-day, 
 and consequently that my nerves are a little excited. 
 Come, come, pardon me, my dear uncle, but it is getting 
 late, and I have only two hours to prepare for my exhi« 
 
THE SNOW MAN, 453 
 
 bition. I am going to look for a play in my library ; that 
 is to say, in the bottom of my box, and you must be so 
 good as to play it with me, somehow or other." 
 
 " Christian, I don't feel like it to-day. I am no longer 
 an actor, but a lawyer ; that is to say, a seeker of ac- 
 tual facts, to the very marrow of the bones. Your servant 
 Puffo did not seem to me to be very drunk when I saw 
 him, and he is here, no doubt, in the gaard. Stay, I am 
 going out, and I will call him as I pass, and send him to 
 help you, since you insist upon performing. It will do 
 no harm, perhaps — it will keep you busy, and may avert 
 suspicions. Puffb is devoted to you, is he not?" 
 
 *' I don't know, I am sure." 
 
 " But if they should try to fasten a quarrel upon you, 
 he would not leave you in the lurch ? He is not a cow- 
 ard?" 
 
 "I don't think so : but feel no anxiety upon that point, 
 Monsieur Goefle. This good Norwegian knife, which my 
 friends lent me for the hunt, is still by my side, and I 
 answer for it that I will make myself respected without 
 the help of any one." 
 
 "Beware of a surprise. That is the only thing I am 
 afraid of for you. For my part, I cannot remain quiet for 
 two minutes. Since you have told me about a child 
 brought up secretly at the danneman*s house, a child with 
 fingers like yours — " 
 
 " Oh, nonsense ! " said Christian, '' I only dreamed the 
 whole story, perhaps ; and, at any rate, I must not think 
 about it now. I see at the bottom of this box my poor 
 little marionettes, whom I am now going to exhibit for 
 the last time, or the time before the last ; for this, M. 
 Goefle, is the only real and sensible conclusion to which 
 I have been led by all my reflections. I will give up the 
 fool's cap, and take the hammer of the miner, the axe of 
 the wood-cutter, or the whip of the travelling peasant ! 
 And for the rest, I laugh at it ! What difference does it 
 make, whether I am the son of an amiable fairy or a 
 wicked iarl? I will be the son of my works ; and one 
 need not rack one's brains to come to a conclusion so sim- 
 ple and so logical." 
 
^54 ^^^ SNOW MAN. 
 
 "That is right, Christian, that is right!" cried M. 
 Goefle. " I love to hear you talk so ; but still, for all 
 that, I have ray idea — I hold on to it, I dig into it, I feed 
 it, and now I am going to give it an airing. It may be 
 absurd, but still it is possible ! I feel a constant anxiety 
 to see Stenson ; I will tear his secret from him ! I know, 
 at present, how to set to work. I will return in an hour 
 at the most, and we will go together to the chateau. I 
 will call on the baron to find out what he wants with me, 
 and will observe him carefully. He thinks himself 
 shrewd, but I will be shrewder than he. Yes, that's the 
 idea — courage! Au revoir, Christian! Come, Nils, 
 light me. — Ah, stay, Christian ! here, it seems to me, is 
 Master Puffo ! " 
 
 In fact, M. Goefle passed PufFo as he went out. 
 
 "So, here you are ! " said Christian to his servant. 
 " Are you doing bettor to-day?" 
 
 " I am doing capitally, master," replied the Livornese, 
 in an even ruder tone than usual. 
 
 " Well then, my lad, to work ! we have not a moment 
 to lose. We shall play The Marriage of Folly ^ the piece 
 that you know best : you know it by heart, and will not 
 need a rehearsal." 
 
 " No, if you don't put in too many of your new gags." 
 
 " ril do as I choose about that ; but I will not fail to 
 give you your cues, so don't be alarmed. Go at once to 
 the new chateau with the ass and baggage ; put up the the- 
 atre, arrange the scenery. Stay — since we have selected 
 the piece, you may as well take the manuscript. For my 
 part, I will dress the actors, and follow you. If you 
 must absolutely run through the scenes, we shall have 
 time enough over there. The audience, you know, 
 always takes a quarter of an hour to find seats and gel 
 quiet." 
 
 Puffb started to go out ; but, after taking a few steps, 
 paused and hesitated. Jolian, while keeping him a pris- 
 oner at Stollborg without his knowing it, had aroused 
 him against his master by his insinuations, and Puffo 
 was impatient to get into a quarrel with him. Still, he 
 knew him to be agile and determined, and perhaps also a 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 455 
 
 feeling of involuntary affection for Christian had glided, 
 unperceived, into some hidden corner of his brutal and 
 corrupt soul. He took courage, however. 
 
 " That is not all, Master Christian," he said ; " I want 
 to know who the rascal was who exhibited the marion- 
 ettes with you last evening?" 
 
 " Oh, ho ! " replied Christian, " you are beginning to 
 be uneasy, are you ? What makes you suspect that there 
 was any performance last evening ? " 
 
 "I know there was one, and that I took no part in it." 
 
 " Are you quite sure? " 
 
 " I was a little drunk," said Puffo, raising his voice, 
 " I confess ; but I have heard the truth to-day, and I 
 know all about it." 
 
 "The truth," said Christian, laughing; "would not 
 one say that I had concealed it from your excellency ? 
 I have not seen you to-day, Signor Puffo, and even if I 
 had, I am not aware that I owe you an account — " 
 
 " I want to know who took the liberty of touching my 
 marionettes ? " 
 
 " Your marionettes, which belong to me, though you 
 seem to forget it, will tell you, perhaps ; ask them." 
 
 " I don't need to question them to know that some one 
 or other took the liberty of replacing me, and, apparently, 
 of earning my wages." 
 
 "Suppose it were so? were you in condition to say 
 a single word last evening ? " 
 
 " You ought, at least, to have tried me, or else to have 
 given me warning." 
 
 " I must confess that I did not show you that consid- 
 eration," replied Christian, impatiently ; " but I omitted 
 to do so on purpose, so as to avoid the temptation of pun- 
 ishing you, as you deserved, for your drunkenness." 
 
 "Punishing me!" cried Puffo, advancing upon him 
 in a threatening manner. " Try it a little ! Come on 1 " 
 
 At the same time he caught up a marionette, and 
 brandished it over his master's head like a club. The 
 weapon, though comical, was none the less dangerous, 
 tor the head of the hurattino is necessarily made of very 
 hard wood, so as to prevent it from being broken in the 
 
456 
 
 THE SNO W MAN. 
 
 stage fights. Holding the little figure by its leathern skirt, 
 and hurling it like a flail, Puffo might have broken his 
 adversary's head, and, perhaps, wished to do so. Chris- 
 tian seized the marionette as it came, and, with the other 
 hand, caught Puffb by the throat, and threw him at his 
 feet. 
 
 " Cursed drunkard ! " he said, putting his knee on his 
 breast, " you deserve a sound beating, but I scorn to 
 strike you. Off with you ! I discharge you on the spot, 
 and never want to hear of you again. I have paid you 
 your week's wages, and owe you nothing ; but as you 
 may have spent it all for drink, I will give you enough 
 to return to Stockholm. Get up, and don't try any more 
 of your deviltries, or I will strangle you ! " 
 
 Puffo, who was a good deal bruised, got up in silence. 
 Though brutal, he was not naturally an assassin, and 
 he was humiliated and cowed. Perhaps he felt that he 
 was in the wrong ; but his first and great anxiety was to 
 pick up a dozen pieces of gold that had slipped from his 
 belt, and rolled over the floor. 
 
 "What is that?" cried Christian, noticing what 
 he was about, and seizing him by the arm. " Stolen 
 money ? " 
 
 " No ! " cried the Livornese, lifting his hand with an 
 heroic gesture, which was sufficiently absurd ; "I have 
 not stolen anything here. That money is mine. They 
 gave it to me." 
 
 " What for? Come, speak — I insist upon it ! " ^ 
 
 " They g£|,ve it to me because they wanted to. It is 
 nobody's business." 
 
 " Who gave it to you ? Was it not ? — " 
 
 Christian paused, fearing to betray suspicions which it 
 was more prudent to conceal. 
 
 " Out of my sight ! " he said, " and go quickly ; for 
 if I discover that you are something worse than a drunk- 
 ard, I will kill you on the spot ! Go, and woe to you if 
 you ever let me see you again ! " 
 
 Puffo retreated in a great fright. Christian, to keep 
 him at a distance, had laid his hand, purposely, on the 
 major's large Norwegian knife, and the sight of this 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 437 
 
 terrible weapon was quite sufficient to alarm the Bohe- 
 mian, whose great fear was that Christian would take his 
 money from him, and insist upon knowing how he had 
 obtained this unexplained wealth. 
 
 The Livornese left the donjon in a very undecided 
 state of mind. Johan, who sometimes took the liberty 
 of exceeding the baron's secret instructions, had not 
 given him this money with a precise understanding that 
 he was to undertake what the trembling Puffo, in the 
 language of the road, called a had job ; but to persuade 
 him to remain quiet in case his master should be pro- 
 voked, and drawn into some unequal scuffle. Johan had 
 got everything out of him that he knew ; he had learned, 
 through him, that Christian was fiery and intrepid. 
 "Without compromising the baron, he had given him to 
 understand that his master had offended some very pow- 
 erful person at the chateau, and that they had discovered 
 him to be a French spy, and a very mysterious and dan- 
 gerous person. The lie, although glaring, was not suf- 
 ficiently gross to have much effect upon Puffo, for he did 
 not know or care anything about politics ; but what he 
 did understand was, the sum of money slipped into his 
 pocket. He was intelligent enough to follow out the fol- 
 lowing course of reasoning : " If they pay me for stand- 
 ing by, they will pay me more for acting ! " Accordingly, 
 he resolved to get the start of any one else. He attacked 
 Christian, supposing that he would be without weapons, 
 or means of defence ; but he lost courage, and, perhaps, 
 also faltered a little in his wicked purpose. Christian 
 was so good, that the scoundrel's hand trembled, in spite 
 of himself. Now that he was defeated and humiliated, 
 what should he do? 
 
 While Puffo was reflecting to the best of his v^ry lim- 
 ited ability, Christian, more depressed and fatigued in 
 mind than in body, sat down to his coffee, and sank into 
 a melancholy revery. 
 
 " What a sad life ! " he said to himself, gazing mechan- 
 ically upon the marionette lying upon the floor, which had 
 come so near cutting his head open. " What poor company 
 men without education are ! And yet I shall have to bfl 
 
/^^S THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 with them now more than ever ! If I return to the drega 
 of the people, whence I probably emerged, after trying in 
 vain to elevate my condition, I shall often be obliged, I 
 suppose, to put down, by the force of my fist, brutal 
 wretches like this Puffo, who cannot be influenced by 
 kindness and affection. Oh, Jean Jacques ! was it such 
 a life as this that you dreamed of for your Emile ? And 
 yet you yourself were stoned in your humble chalet, and 
 were forced to abandon the rustic life you loved, because 
 you could not make yo.urself feared by those who were 
 incapable of comprehending you ! 
 
 " Come, let me see you ! Which of you was it who 
 came so near killing me just now?" he continued, raising 
 his voice to revive his spirits, and picking up the marion- 
 ette, which was lying with its face to the floor. " O 
 Jupiter ! you, my poor little Stentarello ! you, my favor- 
 ite, my protege, my best servant ! you, the oldest of my 
 troupe, lost at Paris and found again so miraculously in 
 the forests of Bohemia ! No, it is impossible ! you would 
 not have harmed me ; you would rather have turned 
 against the assassin. You are worth much more than 
 a host of gigantic marionettes I know of; stupid and 
 wicked marionettes, who claim to belong to the human 
 race, and whose hearts are as hard as their heads. Come, 
 my little friend, put on a white collar, and let me brush 
 your coat, which is covered with dust. I swear that I 
 will never again abandon you ! You shall travel with 
 me, though it must be in secret, since otherwise serious 
 people would laugh at us. But still you shall go, and 
 when you feel sad and lonely, because you miss the blaze 
 of the footlights, we two will talk together and console 
 each other. I will confide my sorrows to you, and your 
 sweet smile and bright eyes will recall to my mind the 
 follies of the past ; the dreams of love born and vanished 
 within the gloomy walls of Stollborg ! " 
 
 A child's laugh made Christian start and turn round. 
 It was Master Nils, who had come in on tip-toe, and who 
 was jumping with joy and clapping his hands at the sight 
 of the animated, and, as it were, living marionette, mov* 
 ing and gesticulating on Christian's nimble fingers. 
 
THE SNO W MAN. 
 
 459 
 
 " Oh ! give me that pretty little boy,*' cried the delighted 
 child ; " lend him to me a moment, so that I can play 
 with him I " 
 
 " No, no ! " said Christian, who was in a hurry to ar- 
 range Stentarello's toilet ; " my little boy plays with nc 
 one but myself; and besides, there is no time. Is not M. 
 Goefle coming back ? " 
 
 "• Oh ! let me see all that ! " resumed the enraptured 
 Nils, casting a dazzled glance into the box that Christian 
 had just opened, and where glittered, pell-mell, the laced 
 hats, swords, plumed turbans, and pearl coronets of his 
 miniature company. Christian tried to get rid of Nils by 
 gentle means ; but the child was so crazy to see and 
 touch all these wonders, that he was obliged to speak in a 
 loud voice, and roll his eyes fiercely, to keep him from 
 running away with his actors and their wardrobe. Tlien 
 he began to pout, and, going to the other side of the table, 
 said he would complain to M. Goefle that no one would 
 amuse him. His aunt Gertrude had told him that he 
 would be amused when he went travelling, and he wasn't 
 amused at all. 
 
 " But I don't care for you, you great wretch ! " he said, 
 making a face at Christian ; " I am going to make some 
 pretty paper boats, and I won't let you see any of them." 
 
 " All right, all right ! " replied Christian, who kept at 
 work arransinij the costumes of the marionettes under 
 the supposition that he could rely on M. Goefle's assist- 
 ance ; "make your boats, my child ; make a great many 
 of them, and leave me in peace." 
 
 While pinning hats and cloaks to the heads and around 
 the necks of his little people. Christian glanced every mo- 
 ment at the clock, and grew impatient for M. Goefle's re- 
 turn. He wanted to send Nils to the gaard to beg him 
 to make haste, but Nils pouted, and pretended not to 
 hear. 
 
 " Provided," said Christian to himself, "we have time 
 to read over the play once, it will be sufficient ; without 
 that, I shall be lucky if I can recall it myself, I have had 
 so much on my mind to-day. Ah,! I promised the major 
 a hunting-scene ; where shall I introduce it ? No matter 
 
460 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 where ! An interlude, stolen from the scene of Moron 
 with the bears, in the Princesse d* Elide, Stentarello fihall 
 be brave, charming ; he shall laugh at people who kill 
 bears through a net — like the baron, for instance. But, 
 good heavens ! I hope PufFo has not carried away the 
 manuscript ; I put it in his hands." 
 
 Christian began to search everywhere for his man- 
 uscript. To write another would have required half an 
 hour's work, and the clock was striking seven. He 
 rurrimaged in his box, which contained the whole of his 
 little repertory. Pie upset and turned over everything ; 
 he was in a fever. The idea of not going to the new 
 chateau at the appointed hour ; of appearing afraid to 
 encounter the baron's hatred (for to this motive his ab- 
 sence miglit be attributed), was insupportable to him. 
 He was seized with a sudden rage against his enemy, to 
 which his love, perhaps, added intensity. He was burn- 
 ing to defy the Snow Man openly in Margaret's presence, 
 to show him that an actor was more courageous than 
 many of the noble guests of his chateau. 
 
 Just then he looked at Nils ; he was very quiet and 
 serious, being busily occupied in making what he was 
 pleased to call his little boats. Around him there was 
 a pile of papers, which he was cutting up for the purpose. 
 He would take a slip of paper, fold it, refold it, and, if 
 the boat did not succeed according to his liking, tear it, 
 rumple it up, and throw it to the floor. 
 
 " Ah, bad boy ! " cried Christian, snatching from him 
 a handful of torn fragments ; " you are cutting up my 
 manuscript into boats ! " 
 
 Nils began to cry and scream, declaring that the papers 
 were not Christian's, and trying to fight with him to get 
 them back. 
 
 Suddenly Christian, who was hastily unfolding the 
 boats to try and collect the pages of his comedy, became 
 serious, and remained motionless. These papers, in fact, 
 were not his, the writing was not his ; and yet his name, 
 or rather one of his names, traced by an unknown hand, 
 had, as it were, riveted his gaze. The first sentence ho 
 read aroused his curiosity to the utmost ; and this sen- 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 461 
 
 tence, written in Italian, was as follows : " Christian del 
 Lago is fifteen years old to-day." 
 
 " Stay ! " he said to the child, who kept on teasing, and 
 demanding his paper, as he called it ; " play with the 
 marionettes, and leave me alone." 
 
 Nils, seeing a handful of little men on the table, rushed 
 up to tliem with delight, and found enough to do in look- 
 ing at them and touching them, while Christian, taking 
 the chair that the child had just left, and placing the 
 candle by his side, began to decipher the papers before 
 him, consisting, apparently, of a file of old letters. The 
 writing was detestable, and the Italian, style and orthog- 
 raphy, all of a piece, but every word which he read, or 
 guessed, seemed to him more and more extraordinary, 
 and caused him the liveliest amazement. 
 
 ''Where did you get these papers?" he said to the 
 child, while continuing to collect the torn and rumpled 
 fragments. 
 
 ''Ah, monsieur, how handsome you are with your 
 great moustache ! " cried Nils, gazing in ecstasy upon the 
 marionette. 
 
 "Answer, will you?" cried Christian; "where did 
 you find these papers ? Do they belong to M. Goefle ? " 
 
 " No, no," replied Nils, at last, after making him re- 
 peat the question several times. " I did not take them 
 from M. Goefle ; he threw them away, and the papers 
 he throws away are mine. They are for making boats ; 
 M. Goefle said so this morning." 
 
 "You are telling a story! M. Goefle did not throw 
 these papers away. These are letters ; people do not 
 throw letters away, they keep them, or they bum them. 
 You took them out of the drawers of this table." 
 
 " No." 
 
 " From the room, then, where he sleeps?" 
 
 " No, no ! " 
 
 " Tell the truth, at once 1" 
 
 "No!" 
 
 " I will pull your ears." 
 
 " No you won't ; I'll run awajr." 
 
462 THE SNO W MAN. 
 
 Christian stopped Nils, who tried to make his escape 
 ■with the marionettes. 
 
 " If you tell me the truth," he said, " I will give you 
 a pretty little horse with a red and gold saddle-cloth." 
 
 " Let me see it." 
 
 " Now," said Christian, handing him the plaything, 
 which was one of his properties, " speak, brat ! " 
 
 " Well," said the child, " this is how it was : I went 
 just now, to light M. Goefle to M. Stenson's house — 
 you know who I mean, the old man, who, they say, 
 cannot hear anything, who lives in the other court." 
 
 " Yes, I know ; go on quickly, and tell the truth, or I 
 will take back my horse." 
 
 " Well, I stayed there to wait for M. Goefle ; I was in 
 M. Stenson's room, where there w^as a fire, and M. Goefle 
 was in the oflfice next to it, talking loud to M. Stenson." 
 
 " What were they saying? " 
 
 "I don't know, I did not listen ; I was playing mak- 
 ing a fire in the chimney. And then, all at once, some 
 men came into the oflace, and they said : ' Monsieur Sten- 
 son, his lordship has been waiting for you for an hour. 
 Why do you not come ? You must come at once ! ' 
 And then they quarrelled about it, and M. Goefle said : 
 ' M. Stenson cannot go ; he has no time.' And M. 
 Stenson said : ' I must go — I am not afraid of anything — 
 I will go at once.' And then M. Goefle said ; * I will go 
 with you.' Then I went into the office because I was 
 afraid they were going to hurt M. Goefle, and there I 
 saw three — or six men, dressed in very nice livery." 
 
 "Three — or six?" 
 
 " Or four — I could not count ; I was afraid. But M. 
 Goefle cried out, ' Go away with you ! ' and he pushed 
 me on to the staircase, and threw this bundle of papers 
 after me without any one seeing him. Perhaps he did not 
 want them to know that he gave it to me so, and then I 
 picked it up, and ran away, and that is all ! " 
 
 "And you did not tell me, idiot! What if M. 
 Geofle — " 
 
 Christian paused, knowing that it was useless to com- 
 plain, and, gathering up the papers as quickly as possible, 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 463 
 
 he shut them up in his box, took the key, and hastened 
 out. The events thickening around him were becoming 
 more and more incomprehensible, and he felt very anxious 
 about the lawyer's situation. 
 
 Nils had already burst into a roar at being left alone 
 with the marionettes, which frightened him a little, fas- 
 cinating as they were, when M. Goefle met Christian in 
 the passage, and brought him back into the bear-room. 
 He was pale and agitated. 
 
 '* Yes, yes," he said to Christian, who assailed him 
 with questions, "fasten the doors. Something serious is 
 going on here. Where is Nils? Ah, there you are, little 
 one ! Where did you put the bundle of papers ? " 
 
 " He was cutting them up into boats," said Christian ; 
 " here they are, all torn, but nothing is wanting. I picked 
 up every scrap. But what are these strange letters about 
 me. Monsieur Goefle ? " 
 
 "They are about you, are they? Are you sure of 
 it ! " 
 
 " Perfectly sure." 
 
 " Have you read them ? " 
 
 " I have not had time. Master Nils made it a diffi- 
 cult task, and then the writing is villanous ; but I am 
 going to read them. M. Goefle, the secret of my life is 
 there." 
 
 "In truth? Yes, I suspected, I was sure. Christian, 
 that you were the person they treated of! But I gave 
 my word to Stenson, on receiving this deposit, not tc> 
 read the letters before his death or the baron's." 
 
 " But I, for my part, have made no promise, M 
 Goefle. Chance has placed these papers in my hand : I 
 have saved them from destruction ; they are mine." 
 
 " Indeed? " said M. Goefle smiling. " Well, now that 
 I think about it, I had not finished my oath, after all, 
 when we were interrupted — No, no, I swore solemnly 
 yesterday, in regard to another deposit ; but, as to this 
 one, I remember now that I had not completed ray oath. 
 Besides, Stenson was about to confide in me fully. I 
 had begun writing my questions, so as not to have to raise 
 my voice to the poor deaf old man. I was speaking of 
 
464 
 
 THE SNOW MAN, 
 
 you, of my suspicions, and I felt that there were spies 
 about us. You must have seen some of my writing in 
 pencil, on the loose sheets?" 
 
 " Yes, I did, and thought that must have been the way 
 of it. Read the letters, then." 
 
 "Letters, are they letters? Give them to me — But 
 no, we ought rather to hide them. We are surrounded, 
 watched. Christian. At this very moment I am sure 
 they are rummaging and robbing Stenson's office. They 
 have carried off Ulphilas. Who knows whether they 
 will not attack us ? " 
 
 " Attack us? But, in fact, it is quite possible ! Puffo 
 tried just now to take me by surprise, in the German 
 fashion. He raised his hand upon me, and he had gold 
 in his pockets. I was obliged to kick the clown out of 
 doors." 
 
 " And you were wrong. You should have tied him, 
 and shut him up here. He is now perhaps with the 
 baron's cutthroats. Come, Christian, we must find a 
 hiding-place for these papers before attending to any- 
 thing else ! " 
 
 " Pshaw ! A hiding-place is never of any use." 
 
 " Yes, indeed ! " 
 
 " Very well then, you find one. Monsieur Goefle, while 
 I make ready my weapons ; that is the surest way. 
 Where are these cutthroats ? " 
 
 "Who knows? I saw Johan and his band go^ out 
 with Stenson, and I locked the door of the court after 
 them. But they may come from the other side, for the 
 lake is a solid plain now ; they may have come already. 
 Do you hear anything?" 
 
 " Nothing. And why, in Heaven's name, should they 
 come and attack us here ? Say, Monsieur Goefle, let us 
 reason a little about our situation, and not be alarmed 
 without any cause." 
 
 " You cannot reason about it. Christian, for you have 
 no knowledge to go upon! As for me, I know — or I 
 think I know — that the baroij has fully resolved to dis- 
 cover who you are, and, when he is satisfied, who can 
 8tiy what course he will pursue? Possibly they will 
 
THE SNOW MAN, 405 
 
 keep us prisoners here, until he arrives at some decision. 
 They have just arrested Stenson — yes, arrested, that is the 
 word. At first, that scoundrel of a Johan came in and 
 invited him politely enough ; but when the terrified old 
 man hesitated, and when I sought to detain him, the 
 other servants showed themselves, and if he had resisted, 
 would have carried him off by force. It was my inten- 
 tion to follow him. I am satisfied that they would not 
 dare injure him before me, and I proposed to go with 
 him into the baron's presence, and, if necessary, to stir 
 up the latter's guests against him. In fact I actually 
 did start in advance of them all, but, under cover of the 
 fog, returned, for, on the other hand, to leave you alone — 
 I could not make up my mind what to do ! If the baron 
 wants to extort some secret from Stenson, he will begin 
 by wheedling him, and we shall have time enough to go 
 to his rescue — that thought decided me. And now, 
 Christian, let us go — Yet stay ! — It is absolutely neces- 
 sary that we should solve this mystery — that we should 
 know the real facts of the case before acting ! Stand 
 jseutinel, then, guard the door, they will not dare break it 
 open — the devil ! I am at home here ; you are right. 
 Tiiey will not venture to drag me, as they did that poor 
 old overseer, before their master. What excuse could 
 they offer?" 
 
 "None, most surely ; so be tranquil, M. Goefle. This 
 great door is solid, that of the bed-room is no less so, 
 and I can answer for the door of the secret chamber ; I 
 will guard them. Read, and read quickly. We, at 
 least, have always an excuse for going to the new cha- 
 teau, since they have not countermanded the comedy of 
 marionettes." 
 
 *' Yes, yes, certainly, we must know where we stand, 
 and wlio we are I" cried M. Goefle, exalted by the spirit 
 of investigation, which is the soul, the inspiration of the 
 lawyer's profession. " I shall get through with it sooner 
 than you would. Christian, for arranging these fragments, 
 and making out these hieroglyphs, is in the regular course 
 of my business. Five minutes* patience, I ask no mor« 
 
 30 
 
466 
 
 THE SNOW MAN, 
 
 tlian that. As for you, Master Nils, talk low with youi 
 marionettes." 
 
 As he spoke, M. Goefle, with remarkable promptness, 
 began arranging the letters according to their dates, read- 
 ing them as he went on, and completing the sense, where 
 it was wanting, with a veritable eagle's glance. Every 
 trace, every line of this mysterious package of papers he 
 examined carefully, sometimes questioning Christian, and 
 sometimes himself, as if to recall certain facts. 
 
 " ' The young man is very happy in his home with the 
 GofFredis — he is much beloved.' That refers to you, 
 I should rather think. And yet, in certain places, he 
 says : 'My nephew,' and it is still you he is speaking of. 
 * My nephew has gone into the country, to Lake Perugia, 
 with the Goffredis. The young man is fifteen years 
 old to-day — He is tall and strong, and resembles his 
 father — ' Oh, yes, certainly, Christian, you resemble 
 him." 
 
 "My father? Who, then, is my father.? " cried Chris- 
 tian. ' ' Do you know ? " 
 
 ''Stay," said M. Goefle, "handing him a medallion, 
 which he drew from his pocket, with much emotion. 
 Look at that. Stenson just confided it to me. It is a 
 portrait closely resembling the original — authentic ! — 
 Might it not have been taken for you ? " 
 
 " Heavens ! " said Christian, gazing at the beautiful 
 miniature almost with a feeling of terror; "I don't 
 know, I am sure ! It is a young man, richly dressed ; is 
 it not Baron Olaus in his youth ? " 
 
 " No, no, God be praised, it is not he ! But do not 
 say a word. Christian, I must read on ; I am beginning 
 to understand ! In another letter, you are designated as 
 'your nephew,' and no longer 'my nephew'; and in 
 still another, ' your nephew.' It is quite evident that it 
 is a precaution to turn aside suspicions in case the letters 
 are intercepted, for you are not related either to the man 
 who wrote these letters, or to Stenson, to whom they are 
 addressed." 
 
 " Stenson ! Is it to him, then, that some one has sent 
 this accurate account of my health, my progress, and 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 467 
 
 my travels? for I saw enough to understand that this 
 had been done, in turning over the leaves. Here is a 
 letter in which they speak of my duel ; see, it is dated 
 at Rome, one thousand seven hundred — " 
 
 "Wait! — oh, yes, I see it. There is a letter every 
 year. ' He has had the misfortune to kill Marco Melfi, 
 who was' — then follow reflections. 'The cardinal has 
 no wish to be revenged. I hope to discover what has 
 become of our poor child.' Ah, here is a letter from 
 Paris : ' It is impossible to find him. I might deceive 
 you, but I do not wish to. I am afraid that he may 
 have been arrested in Italy. While I am looking for 
 him here, he perhaps is a prisoner in the castle of Saint 
 Angelo ! ' Stay, Christian ! — don't be impatient. Here 
 is a letter which must be more recent. It is dated the 
 sixth of last August, Troppau, Moravia : ' I was really 
 upon the right track this time — He took the name of 
 Dulac in Paris, as I supposed, but he started on a jour- 
 ney, and, most unhappily, has perished quite recently. I 
 have just been dining at an inn with a young man named 
 Guido Massarelli, whom I knew in Rome, and who was 
 well acquainted with him, and he informed me that he 
 had been assassinated in the forest of — illegible ! ' I 
 shall give up, therefore, any further search for him, and 
 as my little commercial transactions require me to go to 
 Italy, I shall start to-morrow before daybreak. Do not 
 send me any more money to help me on in my travels. 
 You are not rich, for you have always been honest. 
 That is the case, too, with your servant and friend. 
 Ma — Mancini — Manucci. ' " 
 
 "I know no such person !" said Christian. 
 
 "Manasses!" cried M. Goefle ; "the person whom 
 M. Guido mentioned yesterday, the little Jew who took 
 such an inexplicable interest in you." 
 
 "That was not his name," rejoined Christian. 
 
 " No matter, it was the same person, I am sure of it," 
 said M. Goefle. " His name was Taddeo Manasses. 
 Stenson told me so yesterday. This is the only time, in 
 the course of the correspondence, that he signed either of 
 his names in full, and it was perhaps the last time that 
 
,^68 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 the poor wretch ever dipped his pen into ink ; for, 
 according to Massarelli, he is dead, and I will stake my 
 life upon it that Massarelli assassinated him. Stay, 
 don't speak, Christian ! On informing Stenson of hia 
 death, Massarelli claimed to be in possession of a terrible 
 secret, which he wanted to sell him, and threatened, if he 
 would not come to terms, to carry it to the baron — the 
 proof, no doubt. Was this poor Jew addicted to drinking ? " 
 
 ''No, not that I know of." 
 
 " Well, then, Guido must have assassinated him, for 
 the sake of the little money he had in his possession. 
 He found, no doubt, some letter from Stenson on his per- 
 son, and learning from that of his whereabouts, came 
 here at once to turn the adventure to account — Besides, 
 this Massarelli may have given the Jew some narcotic 
 when they dined together at the inn. But no, since it 
 was after that that the Jew wrote — but in the evening, 
 or the next day." 
 
 "Alas! what does it matter. Monsieur Goefle? It is 
 quite plain that Massarelli discovered the secret, what- 
 ever it may be, and has revealed it to the baron ; 
 but, as for me, I have not discovered anything as yet 
 about myself, except that M. Stenson is interested in 
 me, and that Manasses, or Taddeo, was his confidant, 
 aud has faithfully transmitted to him news about me, 
 and finally, that my existence is very disagreeable to 
 Baron Olaus. Who am I then, in the name of Heaven ? 
 Do not make me languish any longer. Monsieur Goefle." 
 
 "Ah, patience, patience, my friend 1 " replied the law- 
 yer, as he sought a hiding-place for his precious letters ; 
 " I cannot tell you yet. I have been certain of the truth 
 for the last twenty-four hours, as far as instinct and 
 reason can make me so ; but I must have proofs, and 
 these are not enough. I must get hold of them- — where ? 
 how? Let me reflect — if I can! for there is enough 
 here to drive one crazy. Papers to hide — Stenson in 
 danger — and we too, perhaps! However — oh, yes! 
 this is the point. Christian : I want to be certain that it 
 is you they have designs against, for then I shall kno^v 
 positively who you are." 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 469 
 
 *' It is easy to find out whether the baron's intentions 
 are what you suppose. I will go over to the chateau to 
 give my performance as if nothing were the matter, and 
 if I am attacked, as I am so well armed to-day, I will try 
 and make my adversaries confess." 
 
 "I really believe," said M. Goefle, who had finally 
 succeeded in hiding the letters, "that it would be pref- 
 erable to run the risk of a fight on the open lake than 
 to wait here until they run us down in this gloomy old 
 den. It is already nine o'clock, and we were to have 
 been at the chateau at eight. Yet they have not sent to 
 know why we are so late. That is singular ! Stay, 
 Christian ! Is your gun loaded ? Take it ; for my part, 
 I will take my sword. I am neither a Hercules nor a 
 bully ; but I understood fencing in my youth, like all 
 students, and if we are waylaid and attacked by rufRans, I 
 don't intend to let them slaughter nie like a calf. Prom- 
 ise me, swear to me, to be prudent. That is all I ask." 
 
 "I give you my word that I will," replied Christian. 
 "Come!" 
 
 "But that troublesome brat, who has fallen asleep 
 playing, what shall we do with him?" 
 
 "Put him to bed. Monsieur Goefle; I don't suppose 
 they have any designs on him." 
 
 "But those cutthroats will kill a child to stop it from 
 crying, and that young one will yell with all his might ; 
 I can answer for that, if he wakes up and sees strange 
 people about him." 
 
 "Well, the devil take him! I suppose we shall have 
 to carry him with us. Nothing would be easier, if we 
 don't meet badly disposed people ; but, if there is any 
 fighting to be done, he will be very much in our way, and 
 may be injured himself." 
 
 "You are right, Christian ; it would be more sensible 
 to leave him in his bed. If there are spies around, 
 they will soon know that we have gone out, and they 
 will have no reason for coming in here. Keep your eye 
 on the door. This time I shall not be very long in put 
 ting Master Nils to bed ; he can sleep in his clothes." 
 
^yo THE SNO W max: 
 
 XVII. 
 
 IV/r GOEFLE had scarcely had time to lay his valet. 
 
 •^'-*-* de-chambre on his bed, when he called Christian. 
 
 " Listen ! " he said to him ; " it is through this room that 
 they are coming. They are knocking at the door." 
 
 "Who goes there?" said Christian, loading his gun and 
 taking his stand before the door of the guard-room, which 
 opened, the reader will remember, on the gallery that 
 surrounded the court. 
 
 "Open, open — it is we!" replied a rough voice, in 
 Dalecarlian. 
 
 "Who?" saidM. Goefle. 
 
 There was no reply, and Christian added : 
 
 " Are you afraid to give your names?" 
 
 " Is it you, Monsieur Waldo?" said a sweet and trem- 
 bling voice in reply. 
 
 " Margaret ! " cried Christian, and throwing open the 
 door, he perceived the young countess, and another young 
 lady whom he had seen at the ball, but whose name he 
 had forgotten, escorted by the faithful Peterson. 
 
 " Where are they ? " asked Margaret, falling breathless, 
 and almost fainting, upon a chair. 
 
 " Who? Of whom are you speaking?" he asked, ter- 
 rified at her paleness and emotion. 
 
 "Major Larrson, the lieutenant, and the other officers," 
 replied the other young girl, who was quite as much out of 
 breath, and not less agitated than Margaret. " Have they 
 not come?" 
 
 " No — were they to have come here? " 
 
 " They started from the chateau more than two hours 
 ago." 
 
 " And — you are afraid some accident has happened 
 to them?" 
 
 "Yes," replied Martina Akerstrom, for it was she; 
 "we are afraid — I don't know what we were afraid of 
 for them, since they started altogether ; but — " 
 
 "But for whom then were you afraid?" said M. Goefle. 
 
 " For you, M. Goefle, for you ! " replied Margaret, 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 47 1 
 
 eagerly. " We have discovered that you are in great 
 danger here. Did you not suspect it? Yes, yes, for I 
 see that you are armed. Have they come ? Have you 
 been attacked ? " 
 
 "Not yet," replied M. Goefle. "Is it certain, then, 
 that we are to be attacked." 
 
 " Oh ! we are only too sure of it !" 
 
 "What! they threaten me also — me?" replied M. 
 Goefle, with the most perfect simplicity and good faith. 
 " Speak, dear young lady — are you quite sure ? This is 
 really very strange ! " 
 
 " I am not sure as to the latter point," 5aid Margaret, 
 whose paleness was suddenly dissipated by a vivid blush, 
 but who avoided meeting Christian's eyes. 
 
 " Then," said M. Goefle, without seeming to observe 
 the young girl's embarrassment, "it is he — he alone 
 that they have designs against?" 
 
 And he pointed to Christian, whom Margaret persisted 
 in refusing to see or to name, which did not prevent her 
 irom replying : 
 
 "Yes, yes, it is he. Monsieur Goefle ; they want to kiU 
 him." 
 
 " And the major and his friends know this also? How 
 is it that they have not come ? " 
 
 "They are perfectly sure of it," said Martina, "and 
 if they have not arrived, it is because they have had the 
 same luck that we had ; they have got lost in the fog, 
 which is constantly increasing." 
 
 "You have been lost in the fog?" said Christian, 
 deeply moved by Margaret's generous solicitude. 
 
 " Oh, only for a little while," she answered. " Peter- 
 son belongs to the country, and he soon found the road ; 
 but the gentlemen must have mistaken one shore of the 
 lake for the other." 
 
 "Place a light in the window of the bear-room," said 
 M. Goefle ; " it will serve to guide them." 
 
 " No, no," said Peterson, " they will not see it any 
 more than they see the stars." 
 
 "No matter, try it, at any rate," said Martina. 
 
 " No, my dear friend," replied Margaret ; " the assaa* 
 
472 
 
 THE SNOW MAN, 
 
 sins are probably lost also, since they have not come. We 
 will not help them to find their way before the officers — " 
 
 " We shall be very glad to welcome the officers, most 
 surely," rejoined M. Goefle ; '.' but at present there are 
 three of us, and all well armed ; I know Peterson, he is 
 a strong ally — and then, my dear young ladies, is it not 
 possible that there is some error here? Have you not 
 mistaken mere inquisitive rogues for assassins? Where 
 did you see them?" 
 
 " Tell them, Martina, tell them what we heard ! " said 
 Margaret. 
 
 " Yes, yes, Monsieur Goefle, listen," resumed Mar- 
 tina, assuming, artlessly, a pretty little air of importance. 
 '^ Two hours ago — or two hours and a half, perhaps — we 
 young folks, as they call us over at the chateau, were 
 playing hide-and-seek in the outer buildings of the new 
 chateau, I was with Margaret and the lieutenant. We 
 had drawn lots for the different parties, and then we 
 should have been afraid, we two young girls, to go all 
 alone into gloomy galleries and dark rooms where Ave 
 had never been ; we were obliged to have a cavalier to 
 accompany us ! The lieutenant did not know much more 
 about this part of the chateau than we did ourselves ; it 
 is so large ! Well, we crossed a long, deserted gallery, 
 and went down a little staircase, that was nearly dark. 
 The lieutenant was leading the way, and as there were 
 no corners or passages anywhere around that would be 
 good for hiding, we went straight on, until we could scarcely 
 see at all, and began to be afraid we should fall down 
 some precipice, and then, at last, he stopped. 
 
 "'I begin to recognize the locality now,* he said; 
 'we have come to the gi-eat tower, which is used as a 
 prison. There can be no prisoners in it, for the door is 
 open. If we go down into the cells below, I answer for 
 it that they will have some trouble in finding us there.' 
 
 " With that he was going down, but the idea of bury- 
 ing ourselves in those subterranean dungeons, which are 
 said to be so gloomy and terrible, frightened Margaret, 
 and she begged him to stop. 
 
 '• ' No, no,' she said ; ' don't go any further ; stay al 
 
THE SNOW MAN, 
 
 473 
 
 the entrance. Here is a recess in the wall, almost built 
 up ; let us go in there, and don't talk, for you know there 
 are spies in this game, whose duty it is to wander about 
 and listen, so as to tell the others where we are.* 
 
 '* We did as Margaret wished ; but scarcely were we 
 in our hiding-place when we heard some one coming ; 
 and, thinking they were already on our track, we re- 
 pressed our laughter, and scarcely even ventured to 
 breathe. Then we heard the very words that I am going to 
 repeat to you. They were spoken by two men who came 
 out of the tower, and went through the long gallery that 
 had brought us there. They were talking low, but they 
 stopped for a few moments at the door of the tower, to 
 have an explanation, and this is what they said : 
 
 " ' Are you going to put me with the party detailed to 
 guard the Italian again ? I am tired of that sort of ser- 
 vice.* 
 
 " 'No, you are to come with us to the old chateau. 
 The Italian is one of ourselves, at present ! * 
 
 " ' So ; and what is to be done over there? * 
 
 " I cannot tell you what the other said, for we did not 
 understand it. It was slang talk, it seems, such as rob- 
 bers use ; but they repeated the name of Christian Waldo 
 several times, and they spoke, also, of the lawyer. 
 
 " ' The lawyer,* one said, 'oh, he will be of no ac- 
 count. A lawyer always runs avs^ay.* ** 
 
 " That remains to be seen ! ** cried M. Goefle. " And 
 what then?*' 
 
 "And then they said something about an ass, and a 
 gold goblet, and a quarrel they were to engage in ; it was 
 all more and more incomprehensible. Finally, the two 
 men, who had stopped just before us, as I told you, con- 
 cluded their arrangements, and went away. 
 
 " ' The rendezvous is at eight o'clock, on the lake,' 
 said one, just as they started. 
 
 " ' But suppose he does not come? ' said the other. 
 
 " ' In that case we will go on to Stollborg. We shall 
 receive orders.' 
 
 " As soon as the two rascals had gone, the lieutenant 
 
474 
 
 THE SNOW MAN, 
 
 made us come out of our hiding-place, and said, in a 
 whisper : 
 
 " ' Not a word here ! * 
 
 " He led us back cautiously to the great hunting-gal- 
 lery, and then said : 
 
 " ' Allow me to leave you, and to go in search of the 
 major.' 
 
 " The lieutenant had understood the slang of these 
 brigands ; they were to accuse M. Christian Waldo of 
 having stolen something, and to attack him, to carry him 
 to the tower, and to kill him if he should defend himself; 
 and they had added : 
 
 " ' And that would be the best of all ! V 
 
 " The lieutenant was indignant. He sard, when he left 
 us: 
 
 " ' The real mover in this business is perhaps of higher 
 rank than we suppose. Politics is at the bottom of it. 
 Christian Waldo must have some state secret.* " 
 
 " I give you my word that I have not," replied Chria^ 
 tian, who could not help smiling at the lieutenant's sim- 
 plicity. 
 
 " I do not ask you, Monsieur Christian," replied the 
 good and ingenuous Martina ; " but I know that the lieu- 
 tenant, the major, and Corporal Duff, swore that they 
 would do their duty, and protect you, even if this should 
 prove a signal offence to his lordship the baron. How- 
 ever, they thought the greatest prudence would be nec- 
 essary, and they urged us to keep the whole matter a 
 profound secret. They started on foot, well armed, and 
 as quietly as possible, for they wanted to take the assas- 
 sins by surprise, and get possession of their secret. 
 
 '' ' Go on with the game,' they said, ' and try and 
 prevent the others from observing our absence.' 
 
 " In fact, Margaret and I pretended to keep on play- 
 ing, until the time came to separate and go and make 
 our toilets for the evening ; but, instead of thinking of 
 dressing ourselves, we could think of nothing but of look- 
 ing out of the window of my room, so as to try and see 
 what was passing on the lake. But the fog was so thick 
 that it was quite impossible. We could not even dis- 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 471; 
 
 tinguish where StoUborg was. And then we listened 
 with all our ears, for sometimes in these thick fogs you 
 can hear the slightest sounds with perfect distinctness. 
 But they were making such a tumult in the chateau, and 
 outside the moat, with their fanfares and fireworks, that 
 it seemed as if they were doing it on purpose, so as to pre- 
 vent the noise of a quarrel or fight from being heard. 
 And so the time passed ; and then suddenly Margaret 
 began to be frightened — " 
 
 " And you also, dear Martina," said Margaret, in some 
 confusion. 
 
 " It was you, dear friend, who made me so," said the 
 fiancee of the lieutenant, frankly. " At last, like two 
 mad creatures, we started off with Peterson, persuaded 
 that we should meet the major and his friends, and that 
 they would restore our courage. We thought, too, as 
 Peterson knows the country perfectly, and scarcely ever 
 makes a mistake, that we should be able to guide them 
 to the old chateau, if they had lost their way. We came 
 on foot, and did not go much astray, except that we ar- 
 rived at the side of the gaard^ instead of succeeding in 
 coming straight to the court. But Peterson said : 
 
 " ' It is the same thing ; we can go in this way just as 
 well.' 
 
 "And, in fact, here we are, without well knowing how 
 we got here. But in all this time we have not met a sin- 
 gle person ; and now that we are a little more tranquil 
 about you, I think we have reason to feel seriously un- 
 easy about the major, and the other officers.*' 
 
 " Ah, Margaret ! " said Christian, in a low voice, to 
 the young countess, wliile M. Goefle, Martina, and Peter- 
 son consulted together to see what had best be done, 
 " you came thus — " 
 
 " Ought I," she replied, " to have allowed such a man 
 as M. Goefle to be assassinated without trying to bring 
 him assistance?" 
 
 '* No, certainly," replied Christian, who was too deeply 
 and sincerely grateful to offend her delicacy, even by ex- 
 pressing his gratitude too warmly : " far otherwise ; but 
 your courage was none the less sublime. You might 
 
476 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 have met these bandits. Very few women would have 
 carried their devotion, their humanity, so far as to have 
 come themselves — " 
 
 '* Martina came with me," rejoined Margaret, eagerly. 
 
 " Martina is engaged to the lieutenant," said Christian ; 
 " she would not, perhaps, have been willing to do so out 
 of consideration • — for M. Goefle." 
 
 " I ask your pardon. Monsieur Christian, she would 
 have come to help any one, no matter who, the moment 
 that the life of a human being was at stake. But do not 
 think of that now ; can't you learn whether these gentle- 
 men are coming? for, when all is said, I cannot see that 
 the danger is over." 
 
 " No, in fact," said Christian, collecting Ijis ideas, " we 
 are actually in danger. It is worth thinking about, now 
 that you are here. My God ! why did you come ? " 
 
 And the young man, torn by conflicting emotions, was 
 at the same time delighted because she had come, and 
 tormented by the thought that she would, perhaps, be ex- 
 posed to some terrible scene. Besides, would not the 
 presence of these two young girls in Stollborg aggravate 
 the difficulties of their situation in another respect? 
 Might it not serve as the exact pretext that was wanting 
 for an open invasion ? Although Countess Elveda was a 
 careless and heartless guardian, it was quite possible that 
 she would notice her niece's absence, if she had not al- 
 ready done so ; that she would have her sought for, fol- 
 lowed. Who could say? 
 
 "One thing is certain," said Christian, "and that is 
 that she must not be seen here." 
 
 He thought of conducting her and her companion to 
 Stenson's gaard^ where no one would have thought of 
 looking for them ; but the enemy, perhaps, were using 
 Stenson's dwelling, at this very moment, as a post of ob- 
 servation. In the midst of all these perplexities. Chris- 
 tian, who replied in a very distracted manner to M. 
 Goefle's agitated questions, formed a resolution that he 
 did not impart to any one ; this was to quit the apart- 
 ment, and face the dangers by which he alone was threat- 
 ened, either in the passages of the old chateau, or on the 
 
THE SNOW MAN, 477 
 
 lake. For this purpose he provided himself with a lan- 
 tern, so as to make as much show as possible in the fog, 
 and went out without a word. He hoped that M. Goefle 
 would not notice his absence immediately ; but he had 
 scarcely crossed the threshold of the door when Marga- 
 ret started up, crying : 
 
 " Where are you going?" 
 
 "Yes, where are you going, Christian?" cried M 
 Goefle, hurrying after him. " Do not go out alone ! " 
 
 " I am not going out," answered Christian, slipping 
 rapidly out of the bear-room ; " I am going to see whether 
 the second door, that opening on the court, is fastened." 
 
 "What is he doing?" said Margaret to M. Goefle; 
 " are you not afraid? — " 
 
 " No, no," answered the lawyer ; " he promised to be 
 prudent." 
 
 " But I hear him drawing the bolts of the second door ; 
 he is opening them ! " 
 
 "He is opening them? Oh, then, our friends have 
 come ! " 
 
 " No, no ! he is going out. I am certain of it ! " 
 
 And Margaret started up involuntarily, as if to follow 
 Christian. M. Goefle stopped her, and, making a sign 
 to Peterson not to leave the women, he tried to pursue 
 him himself. But Christian had already fastened the 
 outer door, so as to prevent this very thing, and was run- 
 ning towards the main entrance of the court, calling 
 Larrson in a loud voice, and holding himself on guard, 
 in case he should be attacked by the assassins. Sud- 
 denly a ball, aimed at him, struck the lantern he was 
 holding out of his hand, and left him enveloped in the 
 white darkness, which the light of the moon could not 
 penetrate, and which was clingiug like a shroud to the 
 earth. 
 
 At the sound of the pistol-shot a terrible oath escaped 
 M. Goefle, who was excessively alarmed about his young 
 friend : Martina uttered a cry ; Margaret sank into a 
 chair, and Peterson ran up to the lawyer. By their 
 united efforts they might have succeeded in opening the 
 door, but they did not understand each other. Peterson, 
 
478 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 who was devoted to his young mistress, was thinking 
 only of preventing the malefactors from entering, and did 
 Tio\ suspect that M. Goefle, on the contrary, wanted it 
 thrown open, so as to fly to Christian's assistance. 
 
 During the delay caused by this misunderstanding, the 
 good lawyer swore roundly, while Christian, delighted at 
 being free to act at last, rushed upon one of the brigands, 
 the first he found in his path. The latter fled — de- 
 ceived by the fog, he had not supposed him so near, and 
 Christian pursued him, with shouts of insult and defi- 
 ance, while he, in his turn, was followed, swiftly and 
 silently, by another of the party. He heard the assas- 
 sin's steps, plainly audible on the crisp, hard snow, be- 
 hind him ; and, through the ringing in his ears — for he 
 was in a great rage, and the blood was coursing through 
 his veins at a tremendous rate — it seemed to him that 
 he could hear other steps and other voices approaching 
 from the right and left. He could not doubt that he was 
 surrounded, and, without losing his presence of mind, he 
 rushed after his first assailant with more fary than ever, 
 with the idea that it would not do to turn until he had 
 disposed of him, since he might attack him from behind, 
 while he was facing the others. Besides, he did not lose 
 sight of his resolution to remove the struggle as far as 
 possible from StoUborg. 
 
 He descended in this way the steep declivity leading to 
 the lake, whose rapid descent, alone, indicated to him the 
 direction in which he was going, for he could see noth- 
 ing. But, just as he stepped upon the smooth, hard ice 
 of the lake, there were several reports behind him, balls 
 whistled close to his ear, and the man he was pursuing 
 fell at two steps before him. Either the fugitive had 
 been mistaken for him by his accomplices, or the latter 
 had fired upon them both at random, thinking, perhaps, 
 that their companion deserved to be shot, for having 
 taken flight. 
 
 The man who had just been struck was Massarelli ; 
 at the moment that Christian strode over him he was 
 uttering a last groan of agony, and he recognized his 
 voice. He ran on, so as to gain time and make the 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 479 
 
 most of his position, while the assassins collected about 
 Massarelli, or, at least, stopped to look at him, so as to 
 see who they had killed. Pausing to listen, he heard 
 these words : 
 
 " Let him lie ; that is all right ! " 
 
 What did that mean? Had the assassins mistaken 
 Massarelli for their proposed victim, and were they go- 
 ing to withdraw ? or had they recognized their mistake, 
 and would they continue to pursue him? By making 
 rapid zigzags in the ice, he hoped to get rid of them, 
 one by one, and he tried to make out, from their steps 
 and voices, how many he had to contend with. He had, 
 without thinking, kept on the soleless and seamless felt 
 boots which had been lent him in the morning for the 
 hunt, and this afforded him an immense advantage. 
 Perfectly supple, he could move about in them as freely 
 as if his feet were bare ; and, besides, they made scarcely 
 any sound upon the ice, while he could hear every step 
 of his companions, who were not so well shod for the 
 occasion. 
 
 He listened once more. They were approaching him, 
 but they did not see him, and seemed uncertain. Not 
 ten steps off he heard these brief words : 
 
 '' H6 ! It is I." 
 
 Since they were meeting, unexpectedly, in the fog, 
 they must have got separated. From that moment, noth- 
 ing would have been easier than to escape them. Chris- 
 tian did not even think of such a thing. He was furious ; 
 and he wanted, moreover, to prevent the scoundrels from 
 returning to seek him at Stollborg. He called to them 
 in a loud voice, naming himself, and defying them, 
 drawing back scarcely at all, but tacking about, so as to 
 irritate and draw them asunder. His hope was to come 
 up with one of them without allowing himself to be sur- 
 rounded by all, and he had his wits about him so com- 
 pletely that he succeeded, before long, in counting them. 
 There were three of them still ; Massarelli had made the 
 fourth. 
 
 In spite of his astonishing self-possession. Christian 
 was tremendously excited, and, mingling with his other 
 
480 THE SNO W MAN. 
 
 emotions, he was conscious of a wild, fierce delight, like 
 the intoxication of gratified vengeance. So strong was 
 this feeling, that he felt almost disappointed when he 
 heard still other steps behind him, steps* as soft as his 
 own, which he at once recognized as those of his com- 
 panions, who were shod, like himself, in felt boots. He 
 was afraid that the bandits would make their escape with- 
 out fighting. He ran to meet his friends, and whispered, 
 quickly : 
 
 " There they are, three of them ; we must take them 
 prisoners ! Follow me, and silence ! " 
 
 Turning instantly, he advanced in a straight line upon 
 the enemy, and stopping near where he supposed them to 
 be, shouted out his name again, and mocked and jeered 
 at them for their awkwardness and cowardice. Just 
 then one of the bandits wounded him in the arm with a 
 dagger, and fell at his feet, stunned and suffocated by a 
 blow which Christian gave him full in the breast, with the 
 handle of his Norwegian knife. Christian was only 
 slightly wounded, thanks to his reindeer-skin coat ; and 
 he thanked heaven for having enabled him to resist his 
 desire of serving the bandit as he had done the bear on 
 the mountain. It was very important to capture one, at 
 least, of the baron's bravos, living. The two others, 
 concluding that all was lost with the loss of their chief, 
 ran up to each other, but only to exchange a slang con- 
 fession of defeat and flight — a despairing &auve qui 
 pent; but they did not take into account the major 
 and the lieutenant, who were watching them, and who 
 seized one, while only the third escaped. 
 
 "For the love of Heaven ! are you wounded, Waldo?" 
 said the major, while Christian assisted him to disarm 
 the bandits. 
 
 "No, no !" replied Christian, who would not have felt 
 his wound at all, but for the warmth of the blood that 
 filled his sleeve. "Have you any cords?" 
 
 "Yes, certainly; enough to hang them all, if we had 
 the right. We had fully resolved to make these fine 
 gentlemen prisoners. But if you are not too much out 
 of breath, Christian, give a blast on this trumpet, Co try 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 481 
 
 and bring up our other friends, whom we have been 
 waiting for and seeking for the last hour. Stay, here is 
 the instrument." 
 
 *' We had better fire off our guns," said Christian. 
 
 "No, no, there has been plenty of firing already. 
 Blow the trumpet, I tell you ! " 
 
 Christian did as he was requested, but the corporal 
 was the only person who joined them. 
 
 "You see," said the major to Christian, "our prom- 
 enade must have the appearance of a chance excursion, 
 during which we have been lost, and have been looking 
 for each other." 
 
 " I do not understand you." 
 
 "It must be so, I tell you, for a few hourSj so that the 
 baron'may not suspect the issue of the affair too soon, 
 and send against you the other rogues, whom, no doubt, 
 he has in reserve. As for him," he added, in a low 
 voice, " his turn will come, do not fear ! " 
 
 "His turn has already come," replied Christian; "I 
 will take charge of that." 
 
 " Softly, softly, my dear friend ! You have no authority 
 to act in this matter. That is my business ; and now that 
 we have a certainty, now that we have proofs, I am fully 
 resolved to take rigorous measures. However, we can- 
 not proceed against a noble, and a member of the Diet, 
 without orders from higher quarters ; but do not doubt 
 that we will obtain them. What you have to do for the 
 moment, my dear friend, is to obey me ; for I call upon 
 you in the name of the laws, and in the name of honor, 
 to lend me such assistance as I may require, according 
 to the orders that I may give you." 
 
 M. Goefle now ran forward, with his head bare, a 
 torch in one hand and a sword in the other. He had 
 got out through the door of the guard-room, after per- 
 suading the two young girls — but not without difficulty, 
 for they were both of them alike fearless for themselves, 
 and solicitous about the absent — to remain shut up in the 
 bear-room under Peterson's protection. 
 
 "Christian! Christian!" he cried, "is this the way 
 that you keep your word?" 
 
 31 
 
482 
 
 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 "I forgot everything, Monsieur Goefle," replied Chris* 
 tian, in a low voice ; "it was too strong for me. How 
 could I wait there until they came to break down the 
 doors and fire upon the women? But no matter, we are 
 victorious ; return to Margaret, and reassure her." 
 
 "Yes, I will go at once," replied the lawyer, sneezing, 
 "especially as I am catching a frightful cold; I hope," 
 he added aloud, "that these gentlemen are coming to 
 see us." 
 
 "Yes, certainly, that was the agreement," replied the 
 major ; "but we must first attend to our duties." 
 
 M. Goefle went to reassure the ladies, and the other 
 men proceeded to have Massarelli's corpse removed. 
 They obliged the two prisoners to carry it to one of the 
 cellars of the gaard^ keeping them within range of their 
 pistols, in case they should show any disposition to take 
 flight. The prisoners were then firmly bound, and con- 
 ducted to Stenson's kitchen, where the lieutenant and 
 corporal made a fire, and installed themselves, to keep 
 them in sight, while the major prepared to examine 
 them in Christian's presence. 
 
 Christian lost all patience at seeing them proceeding so 
 regularly in an alFair which the major seemed to under- 
 stand better than he did himself. However, the major 
 explained to him that with such an adversary as the baron, 
 it was not so easy as he thought to prove even an obvi- 
 ous and recognized fact. 
 
 "And then," he added, "I regret to see that We are 
 somewhat deficient in witnesses. M. Goefle only saw 
 the conclusion of the aflair. We find here neither M. 
 Stenson, nor his nephew, nor your servant. I hoped 
 that we should be in greater force to defend you, and to 
 prove the facts de visu. The adjutant and the four 
 soldiers whom I have sent for, have not yet appeared. 
 Though our bostoelles and the torps of the soldiers are 
 very near, the fog is so thick that several hours may 
 pass before we have eight men here under arms." 
 
 "But what need of eight men to guard two?" 
 
 " Do you suppose, Christian, that the baron is going 
 to remain quiet, when, for the first time, one of his dia* 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 483 
 
 boKcal combinations has failed? I do not know what 
 he will resolve upon, but you may be very sure that he 
 will make an attempt of some kind, even if he should try 
 to burn down Stollborg. That is why I have resolved to 
 pass the night here, so as to be in position, with the help 
 of my soldiers, to seize the other bandits, who will prob- 
 ably arrive before long, either with offers of service, or 
 otherwise. The greater number of the baron's foreign foot- 
 men are nothing more than a band of thieves and assassins, 
 and we must try and seize them all in some flagrant mis- 
 demeanor. Then I can guarantee that the magistracy 
 will venture to pursue rigorously this powerful noble, 
 and that he will be left without resources, since his peas- 
 ants hate him too much to offer him any assistance. If 
 we proceed in any other way, you may be sure that we 
 should be the losing party. The baron would deny 
 having had any responsibility in the matter, or would 
 find means to effect the escape of our prisoners. You 
 would pass for an assassin, and we should pass for vis- 
 ionaries, or at least for young officers without experience, 
 taking the part of a guilty man and arresting honest 
 people ; for you can rely upon it that these two bravos 
 are well trained. I am going to examine them, and you 
 will see that they know how to tell their story. I wager 
 that they have learned their lesson, and know it by heart." 
 
 In fact, the two bandits replied impudently that they 
 had come by order of the baron to conduct the man with 
 the marionettes, who was late with his performance, to the 
 chateau ; that the latter seeing among them one of his 
 old comrades, against whom he had a grudge, rushed in 
 pursuit of him, and killed him. He had then insulted 
 and challenged the others, and the one who had wounded 
 Christian declared that he had done so by mistake, while 
 trying to seize a furious madman. "So furious," he 
 added, "that he has broken my breast-bone, and that I 
 am spitting blood." 
 
 " You see," said Christian to the major, " that I failed 
 in my duty towards these gentlemen, in not allowing my- 
 self to be assassinated." 
 
 *' And you will see," replied Larrson, " that the assassins 
 
484 
 
 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 will escape the gallows I According to our laws, capital 
 punishment can only be inflicted upon criminals who con- 
 fess. These fellows know this well, and however absurd 
 their defence may be, they will stick to it. Your cause, 
 perhaps, will not be as good as theirs. This makes it 
 necessary for us to be doubly on our guard, for do not 
 doubt. Christian, that we shall remain with you, and 
 stand by you through it all." 
 
 "Oh, Christian has a very good cause!" said M. 
 Goefle, who had come to listen to the examination, and 
 who, now that it was concluded, was conducting his guests 
 to his apartment, which he called his bear-manor. ' ' We 
 should have plenty of weapons against the baron if we 
 could succeed in freeing old Stenson, who has been car- 
 ried, whether he would or not, to the chateau. You must 
 help us, gentlemen, to accomplish it." 
 
 "That would be quite out of my power, M. Goefle," 
 said the major. " The chatelain is judge on his own 
 domain, and* consequently in his own house. I do not 
 know what M. Stenson's case can have in common with 
 Christian's, but my advice is not to complicate this affair 
 with any other. Above all things, I should like to know 
 whether Christian has chanced to find a gold goblet in 
 his ass's pack-saddle, which the baron — like Joseph of 
 old, wishing to try his brothers, but, I presume, with 
 much less pacific intentions — ordered to be placed there." 
 
 "Upon my word," said Christian, "I don't know any- 
 thing about it ; let us go and see." 
 
 They went to the stable, where they found Puffb, pale 
 and trembling, in a corner. They searched him, and 
 found the goblet about him. He begged for mercy, and 
 confessed after his fashion. An hour before he had seen 
 Master Johan, he said, bring this precious object there, 
 and had guessed what his design was. Not supposing 
 that he was watched, he had resolved to take it, so as to 
 carry it back to the chateau and prevent his master from 
 being accused of a theft of which he was innocent ; but 
 when he tried to go out, he found that the stable-door 
 was fastened, and in spite of all his efforts he had been 
 unable to open it ; which was the reason that he had not 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 485 
 
 gone to his master's assistance during the combat. In 
 consequence of these very suspicious statements, the ma- 
 jor ordered Puffo to be bound like the rest, and conducted 
 to the gaard^ where Peterson, summoned to lend assist- 
 ance, had taken the place of the officers in watching the 
 three prisoners. The gold goblet was taken in triumph 
 by M. Goefle, and placed upon the table of the bear-room. 
 
 Meanwhile, Martina Akerstrom ran to meet her be- 
 trothed, without the slightest fear of what people would 
 say, and without being the least embarrassed by the pres- 
 ence of the major and the corporal. The good and sim- 
 ple-hearted child, who was making tea for "those poor 
 gentlemen, who must be so cold," had now only two causes 
 of anxiety : the uneasiness that her absence might be 
 occasioning her parents, and the want of sugar for lier tea. 
 She requested to have some one sent to the new chateau 
 to reassure the authors of her being, and to bring back 
 some sugar. 
 
 Nils, who had been waked up by the noise around him, 
 and who was very much delighted at beholding so much fine 
 company, was able to gratify good Martina as to the latter 
 point, for the child had an excellent reason for knowing 
 where the sugar was to be found which Ulphilas had 
 brought in the morning ; hut it was not so easy to comply 
 with her first request. They had no messengers, and the 
 major, besides, was anxious'to take down forthwith Mar- 
 tina's deposition, together with that of the lieutenant, in 
 regard to the conversation between the bandits, which they 
 had overheard two hours before at the entrance to the 
 tower of the new chateau. As this was the all-important 
 point in the afiair, he required them to repeat the whole 
 conversation with the utmost accuracy ; and, as he wrote 
 down their statement, he expressed his regret that the 
 third witness. Countess Margaret, was not present, to add 
 on her signature. 
 
 Margaret was in the guard-room, where Christian, who 
 had hurried on in advance for the purpose, had begged 
 her to go, so that she need not be seen by the young 
 officers, in whose eyes there would not have been the 
 same excuse for her presence as for Martina's : the plans- 
 
486 
 
 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 ible, and, in Sweden, sacred excuse of having come oal 
 of anxiety for the safety of her betrothed. But the 
 young countess, who was standing close to the door, 
 heard that her assistance was required, and knowing 
 well that she need have no fear of being slandered or 
 misjudged by any of the persons present, all of whom 
 were known to her, threw the door open and came in. 
 She was eager to swear, as well as the others, that the 
 accusation of theft which the infamous baron had in- 
 tended to bring against Christian, was a conspiracy that 
 had been announced, beforehand, in her presence ; and 
 to sign her name to the statement to this effect. 
 
 On seeing her, the major and the lieutenant could not 
 repress an exclamation of surprise, but M. Goefle, with 
 his usual presence of mind, undertook to explain every- 
 thing. 
 
 Mademoiselle Akerstrom could not have come alone, 
 he said. She had no one to accompany her, and the 
 officers had charged her so strictly to keep perfectly silent 
 as to the affair, that she could not venture to take any 
 other escort than the servant of Countess Margaret, 
 who was in the secret as well as herself. Naturally, 
 Countess Margaret had wished to accompany her friend, 
 whom Peterson otherwise might have objected to escort- 
 ing, on account of the bad weather. M. Goefle, once 
 launched, brought forward a number of good reasons of 
 a similar character, to prove how natural it was that she 
 should have come. Martina, with her primitive simplic- 
 ity, might, perhaps, have said that he did not understand 
 what had really happened, and so far was she from sus- 
 pecting Margaret's predilection for Christian, that she 
 would infallibly have done so, if she had not been ab- 
 sorbed in the all-important duty of serving tea, and even 
 porridge, with the assistance of Nils ; who, 'moreover, 
 had discovered in the gaard the dishes intended by the 
 absent Ulphilas for his uncle's supper, and that of the 
 guests of Stollborg. The gloomy bear-room, therefore, 
 presented, for the moment, a tranquil scene, which formed 
 a wonderful contrast to its previous aspect ; one of those 
 eternal contrasts which nature and destiny are constantly 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 487 
 
 presenting in every life : now agonies, struggles, dangers ; 
 and the very next moment, a home circle, a repast, con- 
 versation. However, M. Geofle and Martina were the 
 only two of the company who sat down to their supper. 
 The others swallowed a few mouthfuls standing, and in 
 great haste, while impatiently awaiting either for new 
 events to occur, or for a reinforcement which would enable 
 them to form new resolutions. 
 
 It is certain that every person in this singular gather- 
 ing had cause for great anxiety. Margaret asked her- 
 self whether she would not be missed and sought after 
 by her aunt, in consequence of the necessary change in 
 the programme of the evening's entertainment at the new 
 chateau, occasioned by the absence of the burattini; and 
 whether Mademoiselle Potin herself would not share her 
 surprise and alarm, on learning of the continued absence 
 of Martina, with whom she had left her. Martina did 
 not take the anxiety of her family so much to heart. 
 Thoroughly practical and unimaginative, she said to her- 
 self that the chateau was very large, that her mother 
 trusted her implicitly, and being herself very fond of 
 cards, was not in the habit of looking after her when she 
 went hither and thither, from hall to hall, with her young 
 companions ; and lastly, that the soldiers might arrive 
 at any moment, when she would be once more at liberty. 
 But when she thought how small a number of defenders 
 StoUborg had, she felt for the moment very anxious about 
 her lover, and thought the reinforcement very slow in 
 arriving. 
 
 Christian, in his anxiety for Margaret, scarcely thought 
 about his own perils. The major was uneasy both for 
 Christian and for himself. He continually repeated aside 
 to the lieutenant that he did not consider the affair at all 
 in a proper shape to be brought before a court. The lieu- 
 tenant was troubled because the major was so ; and as 
 for M. Goefle, he was greatly alarmed about old Stenson, 
 and his apprehensions about him led him back to hia 
 inward cogitations about Christian's birth and destiny. 
 
 The situation, in short, was not reassuring for any of 
 them, when at last they heard a knocking and ring* 
 
488 THE SNO W MAN. 
 
 ing at the door of the court. The officer and soldiers 
 they were waiting for had perhaps arrived, but there was 
 an equal chance that it was a second band of bravos, 
 despatched by the baron to assist or deliver the first. 
 The major and the lieutenant loaded their pistols, and 
 rushed out, ordering Christian, with the legal authority 
 with which they were clothed by their position, to remain 
 behind them, and make no movement until at their com- 
 mand. Then Lafrson, at the risk of being struck 
 down by the scoundrels whom he wished to arrest, res- 
 olutely opened the door of the court himself, and, on doing 
 so, recognized with joy his friend the adjutant, and the 
 four soldiers who lived nearest to his cantonment. From 
 that moment he was safe. The baron was of course 
 impatient to learn the issue of his scheme, and on receiv- 
 ing no intelligence in regard to it, he would not fail to 
 send a new band of his foreign footmen to discover 
 what had happened, but they would now be prepared to 
 receive them. 
 
 The adjutant made his report, which was brief. He 
 had got lost with his men, and had only discovered Stoll- 
 borg by accident at last, after wandering for a long time 
 in the fog. As far as he could judge, he had not met any 
 one during the whole time ; if this had happened, it had 
 been without his knowledge. 
 
 " However," he added, " the fog is beginning to lift 
 about the shores of the lake, and in less than a quarter 
 of an hour it will be quite possible to make a I'ound. 
 Moreover, as the noise of the fanfares and fireworks has 
 entirely ceased at the chateau, we can distinguish, now, 
 the slightest sounds from without." 
 
 " It will be all the easier to make a round, " replied the 
 major, " since we have with us a man of the country, a 
 certain Peterson, who has the divining instinct of the 
 peasants, and who, even now, could lead you anywhere ; 
 but wait awhile longer. Stand sentinel at the two outer 
 gates, in profound silence, and keep well concealed. 
 Close the doors of the pavilion of the gaard. See that 
 the prisoners are well guarded, and threaten them 
 with death if they speak a word, but let this be merely 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 489 
 
 a threat. The one dead man on our hands is one too 
 many; we may be held responsible for his death our- 
 selves." 
 
 XVIII. 
 
 T^HE brave and prudent major had just made these 
 ■'- arrangements, when a shadow passed close to him 
 just as he was groping his way back to the bear-room to 
 continue his examination, for he had yet to receive M. 
 Goefle's opinion — a most important one — about all that 
 had happened in relation to Christian. This shadow 
 moved with an uncertain step, and the major resolved to 
 follow it, and did so, until, on encountering the wall of the 
 donjon, it began to swear in rather a mild voice, which 
 Christian recognized as that of Olof Boetsoi, the son of 
 the danneman. 
 
 " Whom do you want to see, my child ? " he said, taking 
 him by the arm. "And how is it that you have come 
 here, instead of returning to your house ? " 
 
 As he spoke, they all three entered the bear-room to- 
 gether. 
 
 " Faith, if you had not been there," said Olof to Chris- 
 tian, '^ I should have been a long time looking for the 
 door. I know the outside of Stollborg well, I could 
 come to it with my eyes shut, but I don't know anything 
 about the inside ! I have never been here in my life 
 before. You can suppose that I could not return to the 
 mountain right off, in this cursed weather. At last it 
 began to brighten a little, and, after passing two hours at 
 the major's bostoelle, I set out on foot, lest my father 
 should be uneasy ; but, first of all, I wanted to bring 
 back a portfolio which you left in the sleigh, Herr Chris- 
 tian. Here it is. I have not opened it. Whatever was 
 in it you will find as you left it. I did not wish to 
 intrust it to any one, for my father has often told me that 
 papers are sometimes more precious than money." 
 
 And Olof, in concluding, handed Christian a portfolio 
 of black morocco, which he did not recognize at all 
 
490 
 
 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 " It is yours, perhaps," he said to the major. " It 
 may have been in the coat that you lent me." 
 
 " No, I never saw it before," replied Larrson. 
 
 " Then possibly it belongs to the lieutenant ? " 
 
 " Oh, no indeed ! " cried Martina; "he has no port^ 
 folios, except those that I embroider for him." 
 
 " It is easy to find out, at any rate," said the major ; 
 " he is close by, in the gaard." 
 
 " Wait a moment ! " cried M. Goefle, who was always 
 on the breach with his fixed idea. " Did you not tell 
 me. Christian, that you had upset the baron this evening, 
 on returning from the hunt ? " 
 
 "I told you that the baron had overturned me, and 
 was upset himself in consequence," replied Christian. 
 
 "It is all the same thing," rejoined the lawyer; 
 " whatever was in the two sleighs must have rolled pell- 
 mell together on the road ; and this — " 
 
 " It belongs to the physician, I wager ! " said Christian. 
 " Leave it here, Olof ; we will send it to him." 
 
 " Give it to me ! " resumed M. Goefle, in a brief, au- 
 thoritative tone. " The only way of finding out to whom 
 an anonymous portfolio belongs, is to open it, and that 
 shall be my duty." 
 
 "You assume the responsibility, Monsieur Goefle?" 
 said the scrupulous major. 
 
 " Yes, monsieur," replied M. Goefle, opening the port- 
 folio, " and I call upon you to witness what I do. You 
 are here to examine the facts of a lawsuit, which it will 
 perhaps be my mission to plead. Here is a letter from 
 M. Johan to his master. I know his writing, and at the 
 first glance, I see in it : ' The man with the marionettes — 
 Guido Massarelli — The chamber of roses ! ' — Ah, in- 
 deed ! the baron, like the senate, assumes the privilege 
 of having his own ! Major, this document is very impor- 
 tant, and the other, perhaps — for there are two — is still 
 more so. Your commission requires you to acquaint 
 yourself with them." 
 
 " May I go?" said the young danneman, who, like the 
 peasants of all countries, was terribly afraid of the law, 
 and who accordingly, as soon as he began vaguely to 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 491 
 
 understand that the examination for a suit was going on, 
 wanted to ifiake his escape, lest he should be involved in 
 it by having to give his testimony. 
 
 " No," replied the major, '^ you must remain and 
 listen." 
 
 He turned to Margaret and Martina, who were whis- 
 pering together about the possibility of returning to the 
 new chateau, and laid the same injunction upon them. 
 
 '• I beg and require you," he said, " to remain also, 
 and listen. Our opponent is very powerful, and we may 
 be accused of having forged false proofs. In this case 
 documents have been placed in our hands in your pres- 
 ence, and you must learn their contents at the same time 
 with ourselves." 
 
 '' No no ! " cried Christian ; " these ladies must not be 
 mixed up in a lawsuit." 
 
 '' I am grieved that it must be so, Christian," replied 
 the major ; " but the laws are stronger than we, and I 
 shall do what they require me to do, rigorously. A man 
 has been killed this evening whom it would certainly be 
 more to our advantage to hold alive. I know that you 
 had nothing to do with this, and that you yourself were 
 wounded in the scuffle in which he perished. You are 
 passionate — you are brave and generous — but you are 
 not prudent in what concerns yourself. As for me, I 
 tell you that this affair may lead you to the scaffold, 
 because you acknowledge honestly having given prov- 
 ocation to your enemies, while the rogues deny insolently 
 their part in the transaction. Let us read, then, and neg- 
 lect no means of making the truth triumph." 
 
 " Yes, yes, major, read, I am listening ! " cried Mar- 
 garet, who had turned pale as she looked at Christian 3 
 bloody sleeve ; "I will testify, no matter at what cost ! " 
 
 Christian would have refused to take advantage of the 
 devotion of this noble girl, and he could ill endure the 
 authority which the major assumed over her. The ma- 
 jor, however, was right, and Christian felt this, since in 
 this affair the honor of the officer was at stake no less 
 than his own. He seated himself brusquely, and covered 
 his face with his hands to conceal and repress the vehe- 
 
^92 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 ment emotions by which he was agitated, while the ma- 
 jor read in a loud voice the journal of Master Johan, 
 written by himself, and sent to the baron during the hunt. 
 
 '' This seems to me a very mysterious document," he 
 said, on concluding it ; ''it proves a deep-laid plot 
 against Christian, but — " 
 
 " But you cannot understand," said M. Goefle, who, 
 while the major was reading, had rapidly glanced through 
 the second paper contained in the portfolio, " such hatred 
 against an unknown, without name, without family, and 
 without fortune, on the part of the high and mighty seig- 
 neur the Baron de Waldemora. Well, for my part, I 
 understand it perfectly, and, since we see the effect, it is 
 time to know the cause ; here it is — Lift up your head, 
 Christian de Waldemora !" added M. Goefle, striking the 
 table with energy ; " for Heaven has led you here, and 
 old Stenson was right in saying, ' The wealth of the sin- 
 ner is laid up for the just.' " 
 
 During the silence that followed — for all were struck 
 dumb with amazement — M. Goefle read aloud what fol- 
 lows : 
 
 " Declaration intrusted hy me, Adam Stenson, to Taddeo 
 Manasses, Merchant, born in Perugia: To be deliv- 
 ered up to Christian on the day when the circumstances 
 herein mentioned shall permit : 
 
 *'Adelstan Christian de Waldemora, son of the 
 B*>ble Seigneur Christian Adelstan, Baron de Waldemora, 
 and the' noble lady Hilda de Blixen, born the fifteenth of 
 September, 1746, in the castle of Stoilborg, in the cham- 
 ber called that of the bear, on the domain of Waldemora, 
 province of Dalecarlia ; 
 
 " Secretly confided to the care of Anna Boetsoi, wife 
 of the danneman Karl Boetsoi, by me, the undersigned, 
 Adam Stenson, and by Karine Boetsoi, daughter of the 
 above-named, and confidential waiting woman of the de- 
 ceased Baroness Hilda de Waldemora, nee de Blixen ; 
 
 '' The said infant suckled by ^ tame doe, and brought 
 up in the house of the said danneman Karl Boetsoi, ou 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 493 
 
 the mountain of Blaakdal, until the age of four years, 
 where he passed for the son of Karine Boetsoi, who, out 
 of devotion for her deceased mistress, consented to be 
 thought bewitched, and in communication with evil 
 spirits, and who thus preserved the child, of whom she 
 called herself the mother, from the pursuit of his enemies ; 
 
 " The said child, carried away by me, Adam Stenson, 
 to withdraw it from suspicions, by which his safety was 
 beginning to be compromised, in spite of the precautions 
 hitherto taken, 
 
 "Was taken by me, the undersigned, to Austria, where 
 I have a married sister, who can testify to having seen 
 me arrive at her house with a child named Christian, 
 speaking the Dalecarlian language ; 
 
 "And, by the advice of my very faithful friend and 
 confidant, Taddeo Manasses, of the religion of the 
 Old Testament, and formerly well known in Sweden, 
 under the name of Manasses, and very highly esteemed 
 by his lordship the late Baron Adelstan de Waldemora, 
 as a man of his word, and of discretion and honesty in 
 his business, the trading in objects of art, of which the 
 said baron was a great amateur ; 
 
 "I, the undersigned, went to the city of Perugia, in 
 Italy, where then resided the above-mentioned Ma- 
 nasses, and where, during the carnival, I presented myself, 
 being masked, to the very honorable couple, Silvio Gof- 
 fredi, Professor of Ancient History in the University of 
 Perugia, and Sophia Negrisoli, his legitimate wife, of the 
 family of the illustrious physician of that name ; 
 
 " And to them surrendered, confided, and, as it might be 
 said, gave the said Christian de Waldemora, without 
 making known to them his family name, his country, or 
 the special reasons which had made me resolve to sep- 
 arate from him ; 
 
 " In giving this well-belove(f child to the above-men- 
 tioned Gofiredis, I believed that I Vas fulfilling the wish 
 of the deceased Baroness Hilda, who desired that he should 
 be brought up far from his enemies^ by learned and vir- 
 tuous people, who, without any selfish motive, would love 
 him like their own son, and make him what he should be, 
 
494 "^^^ SNOW MAN. 
 
 in order to sustain worthily, some day, the name he is to 
 bear, and the rank he is to recover, after the death of 
 Ms enemies^ the which death, according to the order of 
 nature, ought greatly to precede his own ; 
 
 "And, in case the death of the undersigned should oc- 
 cur before that of the &aid enemies, the undersigned has 
 charged Taddeo Manasses to make such inquiries as 
 may be necessary, so that, at the death of his enemies, 
 Christian de Waldemora should be warned, and put into 
 possession of the present declaration : in faith of which 
 — after . having made a contract with my good friend 
 Taddeo Manasses, who is never to lose sight of the said 
 Christian de Waldemora, who is to reside where he shall 
 reside, and to come to his assistance if other protection 
 shall fail him ; who, in case of serious illness, threatening 
 him with death, is to put another person sure as himself 
 in his place, to fulfil the same duties ; and finally, who is 
 to give once a year news of his welfare to the under- 
 signed — the undersigned, wishing to keep his place in 
 the chateau de Waldemora, so as not to arouse sus- 
 picions, and to earn money to provide against coming 
 emergencies, the probable removals, and journeys of 
 Taddeo, and the eventual needs of the said child, quitted, 
 not without grief, the city of Perugia, to return to Swe- 
 den, the sixteenth of March, 1750, believing and hoping 
 to have done what was best to preserve from all danger, 
 and to place in a happy and honorable situation, the son 
 of his deceased master and mistress. "^ 
 
 "Adam Stenson. 
 " Witness : 
 
 "Taddeo Manasses, 
 ** Sworn keeper of the paintings in the Exchange^ at Perugia.** 
 
 • 
 
 " Speak, Christian ! " said M. Goefle to his yoimg frien<Jt 
 who remained silent and stupefied. " Everything must 
 be verified. Was this Manasses really an honest man ? " 
 
 " I have no reason to doubt it," replied Christian. 
 
 "Did he not offer you assistance, at one time, on the 
 part of your family?" 
 
 "Yes; I refused it." 
 
THE SNO W MAN, 
 
 495 
 
 . "Do you know his signature?" 
 
 " Perfectly. He had several business transactions with 
 M. Goffredi." 
 
 "Look at this : is it his writing?" 
 
 "It is his writing." 
 
 "For my part," said M. Goefle, "I recognize perfectly, 
 in the body of the document, the hand and style of Adam 
 Stenson, Will you be so good as to open this portfolio, 
 major, and verify the similitude? These are the ac- 
 counts of his affairs, prepared and signed by the old stew- 
 ard at nearly the same period ; that is to say, in 1751 and 
 1752. Besides, his writing has not changed, and his hand 
 is still firm. Here is the proof of it : these three verses 
 of the Bible written yesterday, and whose application, as 
 interpreted by him, is quite evident, and will be useful in 
 evidence." 
 
 The major made the verification, but the whole affair, 
 if not utterly enigmatical, still seemed to him very ob 
 scure. Had the baron forged false documents to estab- 
 lish that his sister-in-law had left no heirs to contest his 
 rights ? He was quite capable of this, but M. Goefle 
 had seen these documents. They were actually in his 
 possession, having been confided to him by his father, 
 whom he had succeeded. 
 
 " I have these documents at my house in Gevala, in 
 fact," replied M. Goefle. " They have been verified by 
 experts, and are authentic ; but has it not been fully 
 proved, at present, that they were extorted from the 
 Baroness Hilda by constraint or fear ? Be calm. Chris- 
 tian, all will be explained. Stay, major, here is another 
 piece of evidence, discovered yesterday, in a dress, which 
 I will show you ; a letter from Baron Adelstan to his 
 wife : read it, and calculate the dates. The hope of 
 maternity was confirmed on the fifth of March, perhaps 
 after two or three months of uncertainty. The child 
 was born on the fifteenth of September ; the baroness 
 took refuge here during the first few days of the said 
 month. She was probably kept a prisoner here, and she 
 died on the twenty-eighth of December, of the same 
 year. Here is another proof: look at this miniature! 
 
496 THE SNOW MAN, 
 
 Look at it, Margaret Elveda ! It is Count Adelstan^ 
 who certainly did not have it painted for the emergencies 
 of a suit ; the painter is celebrated, and he has dated and 
 signed his work. And yet it is the portrait of Christian 
 Waldo ! The resemblance is striking. Lastly, look at 
 this life-size portrait of the count. The resemblance is 
 quite as remarkable. This is not the work of such a 
 skilful artist, but he has rendered the hands faithfully, 
 and you can see the bent fingers : show yours, Chris- 
 tian ! " 
 
 "Ah!" cried Christian, who was walking up and 
 down the room in a state of extreme excitement, and 
 who allowed M. Goefle to seize his trembling hands, "if 
 Baron Olaus has made my mother suffer martyrdom, woe 
 to him ! These hooked fingers shall- tear his heart from 
 his breast." 
 
 "Let him give vent to his Italian passion," said M. 
 Goefle, who had risen, fearing that Christian was going 
 to rush out. " He is a generous nature ; I know him — I 
 know his whole life. He must give voice to his grief 
 and his indignation ; do not you understand ? But have 
 patience. Christian ! the baron, perhaps, has not been so 
 criminal in the past as we suppose. We must learn all the 
 particulars — we must see Stenson again. It is absolutely 
 necessary, major, that Stenson should be delivered and 
 brought back here, and yet you will not consent to do it." 
 
 " You know perfectly well that I cannot ! " cried the 
 major, very much agitated and excited. " I have no rights 
 over the authority of the seigneur, above all in the punish- 
 ment of a domestic, and if the baron wants to make this 
 old man suffer, he will not want for pretexts — " 
 
 Here the major was interrupted by Christian, who 
 could no longer restrain his impetuosity. 
 
 " What ! " he cried, " do you not see that they shrink 
 from nothing in that den ? I understand, too well, what 
 they mean by their chamber of roses, as they call it in 
 bitter and horrible mockery. And that poor old man, 
 who has nothing left but his breath, that faithful servant, 
 who saved me from my enemies, as he says in his declar- 
 ation, and who, after that long and fatiguing journey, 
 
THE SNO W MAN. 497 
 
 has devoted to me a whole life of privation and labor si- 
 lently endured, shall I leave him now to perish for me, 
 at this very hour, in torments ? No, it is impossible ; you 
 shall not hold me back, major ! I do not recognize your 
 authority over me, and, even if I must cut my way out 
 from here, sword in hand — well, so much the worse, you 
 would have it so." 
 
 " Silence ! " cried M. Goefle, snatching from Christian's 
 hands the sword which the young man had just seized 
 from the table. " Silence ! Listen ! some one is walking 
 over our heads in the walled-up room." 
 
 " How can that be possible," said the major, " if it is 
 really walled up? Besides, I do not hear anything." 
 
 '' Nor do I hear any footsteps," replied M. Goefle, 
 " but be quiet, and look at the chandelier." 
 
 They looked without speaking, and not only did they see 
 the chandelier tremble, but heard also the faint jingling 
 of the brass ornaments striking together, as they were 
 shaken by some movement in the upper story. 
 
 *' It must be Stenson ! " cried Christian. " No one else 
 can know the outside passages." 
 
 " But are there any?" said the major. 
 
 "Who knows?" replied Christian. "For my part, I 
 think so, though I was not able to satisfy myself fully. I 
 noticed a breach in the wall as high as to the second story, 
 but that did not seem to me practicable. But hush ! — 
 do you hear anything more ? " 
 
 They listened, and heard, or thought they heard, a door 
 open, and then followed a faint knocking or scratching on 
 the walled-up door of the bear-room. Had Stenson es- 
 caped from the hands of his enemies, and not daring to 
 return to the gaard by the court, which he would suppose 
 to be in their hands, had he entered the donjon by a pas- 
 sage known to himself alone ? Was he calling his friends 
 to his assistance, or giving them a mysterious warning, 
 that they might expect a new attack? The major consid- 
 ered these conjectures chimerical ; but, before ,they could 
 make any investigations, they were interrupted by the 
 lieutenant, who entered with Danneman Bcetsoi. 
 
 " Here is one of our friends," he said, " who has coma 
 
 33 
 
498 
 
 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 from our bostoelles, where he has been looking for hia 
 son. Is he not here?" 
 
 " Yes, yes, my father ! " replied Olof, who was very 
 much alarmed at all that he had heard, and was quite 
 pleased to see the danneman arrive. " Were you uneasy 
 about me ? " 
 
 " Uneasy, no ! " replied the danneman, who had just 
 descended a dangerous mountaiu-road in this frightful 
 weather to look for his child, but who considered it derog- 
 atory to his paternal dignity to acknowledge his solicitude. 
 " I knew that our friends would not let you start alone ; 
 but, because of the horse, which might have been lamed — " 
 
 While the danneman was explaining his anxiety after 
 this fashion, the lieutenant made a communication to the 
 major, by which the latter seemed very much struck. 
 
 '* What is the matter?" asked M. Goefle. 
 
 " The matter is," replied Larrson, " that we have, one 
 and all of us, given ourselves up to gloomy ideas that are 
 making us very ridiculous. The lieutenant, while making 
 his round, heard what seemed to be the lamentation of a 
 human voice sweeping through the air, and the soldiers 
 are so frightened at all that they have heard 'of the Gray 
 Lady of Stollborg, that, but for their excellent discipline, 
 they would already have decamped. It is time to have 
 done with these dreams, and since there is no way of pen- 
 etrating into this walled-up room from within, we must 
 examine the outside of the building carefully, and see 
 whether the brigands of the new chateau are not making 
 use of this phantasmagoria at this very moment, to entrap 
 us in some way. Come with us. Christian, since you are 
 convinced, you say, that there must be some means of 
 climbing up there." 
 
 " No no ! " replied Christian ; " it would take too long to 
 look, and perhaps we should not find a practicable ascent 
 after all. It will be surer and quicker to break down 
 this wall. It is only to knock out the first brick." 
 
 Even while talking, Christian had torn the great map 
 of Sweden from its rings, and, armed with the hammer 
 that he used in his scientific excursions, he attacked the 
 partition under it with desperate vigor, sometimes strib 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 499 
 
 ing the resounding brick surface with the square end 
 of the instrument, and sometimes thrusting the sharp 
 edge into the holes he had succeeded in making, pulling 
 down violently great masses of the wall, welded together 
 with mortar, and which fell with a hollow sound upon the 
 sonorous staircase. It would have been useless to oppose 
 him. He was possessed, driven on by a sort of fury, that 
 compelled him to escape from the inactivity to which 
 he had been condemned. The strange suspicions he 
 had already conceived that some person was imprisoned 
 in this ruin, returned to him like a nightmare. He was 
 under such excitement that he was even ready to admit 
 the truth of the superstitious ideas to which M. Goefle 
 had yielded belief in this very place, and to suppose that 
 he had been summoned by a supernatural warning to 
 discover the infernal secret which had enveloped his 
 mother's dying moments with gloom and mystery. 
 
 " Stand out of the way ! stand out of the way ! " he 
 cried to M. Goefle, who', impelled by a similar anxiety, 
 mingled with curiosity, was hurrying up every instant to 
 the foot of the staircase ; ''if the wall should crumble 
 and fall suddenly, I could not prevent it." 
 
 In fact, the superadded partition, which extended over 
 quite a large surface, was completely undermined by 
 Christian's furious onslaught ; it was giving way, totter- 
 ing, falling in every direction. The intrepid 'assailant 
 was covered with dust, and seemed protected only by a 
 miracle in the midst of a rain of bricks and cement. 
 His friends dared not speak any longer ; they scarcely 
 dared to breathe; every instant they thought to see him 
 buried under the falling fragments, or struck by some 
 flying brick. A cloud enveloped him, when he cried : 
 
 "Victory! here is the continuation of the staircase. 
 Bring a light. Monsieur Goefle ! — " 
 
 And, without waiting, he rushed into the darkness. 
 But in the few seconds that elapsed, while he was grop- 
 ing for the door, which he found half-open before him, 
 the major had time to join him. 
 
 " Christian," lie said, holding him back, " if you have 
 any friendship for me, any deference for my rank, you 
 
500 
 
 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 will let me go first. M. Goefle believes that we shall 
 find here decisive proofs of your rights, and you cannot 
 testify in your own cause. Besides, beware ! These 
 proofs may be of a character to make you shrink back 
 with horror." 
 
 " I will support the sight of them," replied Christian, 
 made desperate by this thought, which was already his 
 own. " I wish to know the truth, even if it should crush 
 me. Go first, Osmund, it is your right ; but I follow you ; 
 it is my duty." 
 
 " No ! " cried M. Goefle, who, together with the dan- 
 neman and the lieutenant, had rapidly ascended the stair- 
 case behind the major, and who threw himself resolutely 
 before the door. " You shall not pass, Christian ! You 
 shall not enter without my permission. You are violent, 
 but I am obstinate. Will you lay your hand upon me ? " 
 
 Christian drew back, vanquished. The major entered 
 with M. Goefle ; the lieutenant and the danneman re- 
 mained on the threshold, between them and Christian. 
 
 The major took a few steps into this mysterious cham- 
 ber, which was scarcely lighted at all by the glimmering 
 of the candle brought by M. Goefle. It was a large 
 room, finished with heavy wood-work, like the bear-room, 
 but entirely empty, dilapidated, and a hundred times more 
 lugubrious than that apartment. S uddenly the maj or drew 
 back and lowered his voice, so as not to be heard by Chris- 
 tian, who was standing so near the entrance. 
 
 " Look ! " he said to M. Goefle ; '^ look there, oii the 
 floor ! " 
 
 " It is true, then," replied M. Goefle, in the same tone ; 
 " this, indeed, is horrible ! Go on, major ! courage ! We 
 must know all." 
 
 They approached a human form, which was lying at 
 the end of the room, the body bent forward and appar- 
 ently kneeling, the head leaning against the wainscot, as 
 far as they could judge ; for it was almost entirely con- 
 cealed by the black and dusty veil with which the whole 
 form was enveloped. 
 
 "It is she ! it is the phantom I beheld ! " said M. 
 Goefle, recognizing under this veil the gray robe, with 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 501 
 
 its soiled and trailing ribbons. " It is the Baroness 
 Hilda, dead, or a prisoner." 
 
 "• It is a living person," said the major, as he raised 
 the veil with a hand trembling with emotion ; " but it is 
 not the Baroness Hilda. This is a woman whom I know. 
 Come here, Joe Boetsoi ! Come in. Christian. There is 
 nothing here that you need fear to behold. It is only poor 
 Karine, swooning or asleep." 
 
 " No, no," said the danneman, approaching his sister 
 softly ; " she is not asleep, she is not fainting ; she is say- 
 ing her prayers, and her soul is in heaven. Do not touch 
 her, do not speak to her until she rises." 
 
 " But how did she get here? " said M. Goefle. 
 
 " Oh, as to that," replied the danneman, " it is a gift 
 she has to go wherever she wishes, and to enter, like the 
 bird of the night, through the cracks of old walls. She 
 goes, without a thought, into places where I have some- 
 times followed her, recommending my soul to God. For 
 that reason, I am never uneasy when she disappears from 
 the house ; I know that there is a virtue in her, and that 
 she cannot fall. But see, she has finished praying within 
 herself ! she rises ; she is going towards the door. She 
 takes her keys from her belt. Those are keys which 
 she has always kept like relics, and we did not know 
 where they came from — " 
 
 "Watch her," said M. Goefle, "since she does not 
 seem either to see or hear us. What is she doing now?" 
 
 "Oh," said the danneman, "that is a habit that she 
 has, of trying to find a door when she comes up to cer- 
 tain walls. See, she rests the key upon it, and turns it, 
 then she sees that she is mistaken, and goes further on." 
 
 "Ah," said M. Goefle, "that accounts for the little 
 circles traced on the wall in the bear-room." 
 
 "Can I speak to her?" said Christian, who had ap- 
 proached Karine. 
 
 "You can," replied the danneman ; "she will answer 
 you, if your voice pleases her." 
 
 "Karine Boetsoi," said Christian, ".what are you 
 looking for here ? " 
 
 " Do not call me Karine Boetsoi," she replied; "Ka« 
 
502 
 
 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 rine is dead. I am the vala of ancient days, — she who 
 must not be named ! " 
 
 "Where do you wish to go?" 
 
 " To the bear-room. Have they walled up the door 
 already ? " 
 
 "No," said Christian, "I will lead you there. Will 
 you give me your hand ? " 
 
 "Go on," said Karine, "I will follow you." 
 
 "Do you see me, then?" 
 
 "What should prevent me from seeing you? Are we 
 not in the land of the dead? Are not you poor Baron 
 Adelstan ? You have come to ask me for the mother of 
 your child. I have just been praying for her and for 
 him. And now — come, come, I will tell you all ! " 
 
 And Karine, who seemed suddenly to recognize where 
 she was, passed through the door, and went down the 
 staircase into the bear-room, where Margaret and Mar- 
 tina were terribly frightened by her appearance, although 
 young Olof, who had gone up to the door, and heard all 
 that was going on, had assured them that they had noth- 
 ing to fear from the poor seeress. 
 
 "Do not be afraid of her," said Christian, who was 
 following Karine a little in advance of the two officers, 
 M. GoejSe, and the danneman, and who paused, w^en she 
 did, near the young ladies : " watch all her movements ; 
 and try, as I am doing, to guess what she is dreaming 
 about. Does she not seem to be rendering the last 
 duties to a person who has just died? " 
 
 "Yes," replied Margaret, "she closes their eyes, she 
 kisses their hands, and crosses them upon their breast. 
 And now she weaves an imaginary crown, and places it 
 upon their head. Stay, she is looking for some one — " 
 
 "Are you looking for me, Karine?" said Christian to 
 the seeress. 
 
 "Are you Adelstan, the good iarl?" replied Karine. 
 " Ah well, listen, and behold : you see that your well be- 
 loved has ceased to suffer ! She has gone to the land of 
 the elfs. The wicked iarl said : ' She shall die here,* and 
 she is dead ; but he said also : ' If a son is born to her, it 
 shall die first.* But he counted without Karine. Karina 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 503 
 
 was there ; she received the child, she saved it, she gave 
 it to the fairies of the lake, and the Snow Man never 
 knew that it was born. And Karine has never told her 
 secret, even in fever and in grief! She speaks now, be- 
 cause the belfry of the chateau is ringing for the dead. 
 Do you not hear it?" 
 
 "Can it be true?" cried the major, opening the win- 
 dow in all haste : "no, I do not hear anything. She is 
 dreaming." 
 
 " If it is not ringing, it will not delay long," replied 
 the danneman. " Already, this morning, she heard it, 
 from our mountain. We knew that it could not be ; but 
 we knew also that she hears in advance, as she sees in 
 advance, the things that are to be." 
 
 Karine, feeling the air from the window, approached. 
 
 "It was here," she said, "it was to this window that 
 Karine Boetsoi brought the child, so that it should fly 
 away." 
 
 And she began to sing the refrain of the ballad that 
 Christian had heard in the fog. 
 
 "The child of the lake, more beautiful than the star 
 of the evening — " 
 
 " Is that a song that your mistress taught you?" asked 
 M. Goefle. 
 
 But Karine did not seem to hear any voice but Chris- 
 tian's. 
 
 Martina Akerstrom replied for her : 
 
 "Yes, yes," she said, " I know that ballad perfectly 
 well : it was composed by the Baroness Hilda. My 
 father found it among the papers that were seized at 
 StoUborg, and left at our house by his predecessor. There 
 were also several Scandinavian poems, which the poor 
 lady had translated into verse and set to music, for she 
 was a very skilful musician ; a real artist, indeed. 
 That was one of the things they brought against her to 
 prove that she worshipped pagan gods. My father 
 blamed the former minister very much for his conduct, 
 and he has carefully preserved these precious man- 
 uscripts." 
 
 " Now, Karine," said M. Goefle to the seeress, who 
 
504 THE SNOW MAN, 
 
 had fallen into a sort of quiet ecstasy, " have you noth* 
 ing more to say ? " 
 
 "Xeave me," answered Karine, who had entered 
 into another phase of her trance ; " leave me ! I must go 
 to the hogar, to meet him who is to return." 
 
 '' Who told you so?" inquired Christian. 
 
 "The stork who perches on the roof-top, and who 
 bears to mothers, seated under the chimney-corner, news 
 of their absent sons. That is why I put on the dress 
 that my well-beloved gave me, so that he might at least 
 see something of his mother. For three days I have 
 been waiting for him, I have been singing to him to 
 draw him hither ; but at last he has come, — I feel him 
 near me. Bring bluebells, bring violets, and call old 
 Stenson, so that he may rejoice before he dies. Poor 
 Stenson ! " 
 
 "Why do you say ^oor Stenson?" cried Christian, 
 terrified. " Do you see him in your vision?" 
 
 " Leave me," replied Karine ; " I have said, — now the 
 vala sinks again into the night." 
 
 Karine closed her eyes and tottered. 
 
 "That means that she wishes to sleep now," said the 
 danneman, receiving her in his arms. " I will seat her 
 here, for she must sleep wherever she may be." 
 
 "No, no," said Margaret, "we will lead her into the 
 other room, where there is a large sofa. Poor woman, 
 she is burning with fever and exhausted with fatigue. 
 Come ! " 
 
 " But what was she doing overhead? " said M. Goefle, 
 returning to the staircase and addressing the major, 
 while the two young girls conducted the family of the 
 danneman into the guard-room. "Nothing will get it 
 out of ray head that we shall find in this room, walled 
 up by Stenson with so much care, some secret even more 
 important, some proof even more unanswerable than the 
 memories of Karine, and the declaration of Stenson. 
 Come, Christian, we must absolutely — but where are 
 you then ? " 
 
 "Christian?" cried Margaret, returning hastily from 
 the guard-room ; " he is not with us. Where is he } " 
 
THE SNOW MAN, 505 
 
 "He has already gone up above," said the major, 
 nmning up the wooden staircase. 
 
 " Damnation ! " cried M. Goefle, who ascended with 
 Osmund into the walled-up room ; "he has gone ! He 
 has slipped through this crack like an adder. Is not that 
 he running along the wall? Christian ! — " 
 
 " Not a word," said the major. " He is running along 
 the edge of an abyss ! Do not startle him. Now — I can 
 no longer see him ; he is lost in the fog. I should like 
 to follow him, but I am larger than he. I could never 
 pass through there." 
 
 " Listen ! " rejoined M. Goefle. " He has jumped 
 down ! — He is speaking ! — Listen ! — " 
 
 Christian's voice was distinctly audible in the silence 
 of the night ; he was saying to the soldiers : 
 
 " It is I ! It is I ! The major sends me to the 
 chateau." 
 
 " Ah ! the foolhardy, the brave boy ! " cried M. Goefle. 
 " He takes counsel only with his own heart. He has gone 
 all alone to face his enemies, and deliver Stenson." 
 
 In fact, Christian had flown away, to use the danneman's 
 expression, like the bird of the night, through the crack of 
 an old wall. The name of Stenson, pronounced by Ka- 
 rine, had pierced his heart. 
 
 " That he may rejoice before he dies ! " she had said, 
 as her prophetic vision passed away. 
 
 And would he indeed be doomed to die under the 
 blows of his executioners? Were those heart-rending 
 words one of the cruel, mocking delusions with which 
 hope inspires us? 
 
 Christian was imprisoned, and his efforts paralyzed by 
 the prudence of the major. A quarrel between them on 
 this subject was imminent, and although he knew the 
 danger of attempting to escape through the crumbling wall 
 of the old tower, he preferred running this risk to meas- 
 uring his strength with one of the excellent friends that 
 Providence had sent him. When he had before seen this 
 acccidental opening in the wall, he was too far away, and 
 too much preoccupied, to observe it closely. The fog 
 
5o6 THE SNO W MAN. 
 
 was slowly dissipating, but the light was still vague and 
 dim. However, Karine had passed through it. 
 
 " My God ! ** he said, " let my devotion inspire me 
 with the supernatural faculties which we sometimes see 
 exerted in delirium." 
 
 Knowing well that skill and caution would be of no 
 use now, since he could not see two steps before him, the 
 child of the lake, trusting to the continual miracle of his 
 destiny, ran swiftly down a path by which he had not 
 ventured to ascend during the day. 
 
 XIX. 
 
 /'CHRISTIAN reached the manor of "Waldemora before 
 ^-^ the major, who set out at once to join him, but who 
 had to put himself at the head of his little troop, and to 
 give them orders, had succeeded in making more .than 
 half the distance. He found the doors of the courts open, 
 and the whole place brilliantly illuminated, as usual dur- 
 ing the festivities. There was a great deal of bustle and 
 confusion on the staircase, but of an unusual kind. No 
 more beautiful ladies elegantly dressed, no more hand- 
 some gentlemen with powdered hair, were now to be seen, 
 moving gayly to and fro to the sound of Rameau's music, 
 and exchanging, as they met, stately bows or gracious 
 smiles. In their place were busy servants carrying 
 trunks, and making all haste to load sleighs. Almost all 
 the visitors at the chateau were preparing to depart. 
 Some were whispering in low voices in the corridors, 
 while others had shut themselves up in their rooms to take 
 a few hours' repose, after giving orders for the journey. 
 
 What was occurring ? Every one was so agitated, that 
 Christian, booted, with his head bare, his coat torn and 
 stained with blood, and his hunting-knife in his belt, was 
 scarcely noticed. The servants made way for him in- 
 stinctively, without asking themselves who was this 
 belated hunter, taking them by storm in this way, and 
 seeming resolved to knock them all down rather thao 
 be kept waiting a single second. 
 
THE SNO W MAN. 507 
 
 •Christian accordinglycrossed the hunting-gallery, where 
 a number of persons, with faces strangely agitated, were 
 wandering restlessly about. Among them he recognized 
 several who had been pointed out to him at the ball as the 
 baron's presumptuous heirs. They seemed very much 
 excited, were whispering together, and anxiously watch- 
 ing a certain door, as if expecting every instant to see it 
 thrown open by the bearer of some important intelligence. 
 
 "Without giving them time to observe him closely, or to 
 understand what he was doing. Christian crossed this door, 
 which he concluded would lead to the baron's apartments ; 
 but, as he was passing through quite a long corridor, he 
 heard horrible groans. He hurried on in the direction 
 from which they came, and, entering an open door, found 
 himself in the presence of Stangstadius, who w^as sitting 
 quietly reading a paper by a little lamp with a shade, 
 and who did not seem in the least disturbed by the fear- 
 ful lamentations which could be heard in this room even 
 more distinctly than in the corridor. 
 
 "What is that?" said Christian, seizing him by the 
 arm. " Is it here that they torture people?" 
 
 Christian's appearance was certainly rather formidable, 
 especially as he had laid his hand upon his knife. The 
 illustrious geologist started up in great terror, crying : 
 
 " What is the matter? Whom do you want? Whom 
 are you speaking of? " 
 
 "The baron's apartment?" said the young man lacon- 
 ically, and with such a tone of authority that even Stang- 
 stadius did not venture to discuss the matter further. 
 
 "That way!" he said, pointing to the left. Having 
 thus replied, he returned to his reading, very glad to see 
 Christian withdraw, and saying to himself that the 
 baron had strange bandits in his service, and that you met 
 people in his rooms whom you would not care to en- 
 counter in the middle of a wood. 
 
 Christian crossed another room, and came to a door 
 that was fastened. He forced it open with one violent 
 thrust. He felt, at that moment, as if he could have brokec 
 down the gates of hell. 
 
 A gloomy spectacle was presented to his view. The 
 
5oS THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 baron, in frightful convulsions, was struggling in the 
 agony of death ; around him stood Johan, Jacob, the phy- 
 sician, and Pastor Akerstrom, and it was all these four 
 persons could do to keep him from throwing himself out 
 of his bed, and rolling on the floor. They were so en- 
 tirely absorbed by the patient, who was in a terrible crisis 
 of pain, that they did not hear Christian come in, not- 
 withstanding the noise he made, and did not know of his 
 presence until the dying man, whose face was turned 
 towards him, cried, with an accent of anguish and terror 
 impossible to describe : 
 
 " There he is — there he is — there — my brother ! " 
 
 At the same instant his mouth contracted, his teeth. 
 clenched, cutting his tongue, from which the blood spurted. 
 He threw himself back so suddenly and violently, that 
 he escaped from the hands that were trying to hold him, 
 and, with his head thrown back, fell with a terrible crash 
 against the wall of his alcove. He was dead ! 
 
 While the minister, the physician, and honest Jacob, 
 all of them pale with terror, exchanged the solemn words, 
 '"'Allis over!" Johan, who, during the whole scene, had 
 preserved the most astonishing presence of mind, looked 
 at Christian and recognized him. For the last hour he 
 had been impatiently waiting to learn the result of the 
 attempt at StoUborg, but had not been able to quit the 
 dying man for a single instant. Christian's presence 
 showed him that it had failed. Johan felt that he was 
 lost. His only safety was in flight, even if he should re- 
 turn at a later day to submit to the new master of Wal- 
 demora, or to try and make away with him, with the 
 assistance of the accomplices upon whom he could still 
 rely. Whatever he might determine hereafter, he only 
 thought now of escaping, but this was no longer possible. 
 Christian was pressing too hard upon him; at the 
 threshold of the door he seized him by the collar, and 
 with such a vigorous grasp, that the wretch, pale and suf- 
 focated, fell upon his knees, imploring pardon. 
 
 " Stenson ! " said Christian. " What have you done with 
 Stenson ? " 
 
 "Who are you, monsieur, and what are you doing?" 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 509 
 
 ci:ied the minister, in a severe tone. " Is this a time, at 
 this solemn moment, and in the presence of a man whose 
 soul is even now appearing before the supreme tribunal, 
 to commit deeds of violence?" 
 
 While the minister was speaking, Jacob was trying to 
 disengage Johan from Christian's grasp ; but the young 
 man's fearful excitement had increased his strength ten- 
 fold, and it would have required more than the combined 
 strength of the three persons present to force him to 
 release his prize. 
 
 At the sound of the tumult Stangstadius rushed in, 
 leaving the passage free to the heirs, resolved to be sat- 
 isfied as to the baron's real condition, and to the servants, 
 who had been on the watch, and who hurried in, to hear 
 the dying man's last groan. 
 
 "Who are you, monsieur?" repeated the minister, by 
 whom Christian had allowed himself voluntarily to be 
 disarmed, but without releasing his prey. 
 
 "I am Christian Goefle," he replied, as well from com- 
 passion for the poor heirs, as because he felt the necessity 
 of being prudent in their company ; "I come on the part 
 of M. Goefle, my relative and my friend, to demand old 
 Adam Stenson, whom this wretch has perhaps assassi- 
 nated." 
 
 "Assassinated?" cried the minister, shrinking back in 
 terror. 
 
 "Oh, he is quite capable of it !" cried the heirs, who 
 were crowding in, and who hated Johan. 
 
 Without paying any further attention to the incident, 
 they crowded around the dear deceased^ stifling the poor 
 physician with their numbers, assailing him with eager 
 (juestions, and feasting their eyes upon the spectacle of 
 the baron's hideously disfigured face, which still terrified 
 them, in spite of their joy. • 
 
 However, they moved aside with some deference to 
 admit the impassible Stangstadius, who came with a glass 
 to make the final test, while declaring right and left that 
 the doctor was an ass, who could not tell whether a man 
 was dead or not. If Christian had not been so busy with 
 bis own affairs, he would have heard several voices ex* 
 
^lO THE SNOW MAiV. 
 
 claim, " Is there no hope ? " in a tone that signified clearly 
 enough, "Heaven grant that he is really dead!" But 
 Christian had no thought to bestow upon his inheritance ; 
 he wanted to see Stenson, and he demanded that Johan 
 should produce him immediately, or should conduct him 
 himself into the old man*s presence. 
 
 "Let the man go," said the minister; "you are 
 strangling him. He is not in a condition to answer 
 you." 
 
 " I am not strangling him at all," replied Christian, 
 who, in fact, had taken great pains not to to endanger the 
 fellow's life, since he was in possession of important 
 secrets which he wished to discover. 
 
 Meanwhile, the cunning Johan took advantage of M. 
 Akerstrom's kindness. Unwilling to reply, he pretended 
 to faint. The minister blamed Christian for his brutality ; 
 and the servants, who one and all felt very uneasy about 
 their own fate if the redressers of wrongs should begin 
 their office, seemed much more inclined to defend their 
 comrade than to submit to the authority of an unknown. 
 
 When a sufficient number of Johan's adherents had 
 gathered around him to enable him to resume his audac- 
 ity, he quickly recovered his consciousness, and cried out 
 in a resounding voice, that was heard above the tumult 
 of the apartment : 
 
 " Monsieur Minister, I denounce an intriguant and an 
 impostor, who has come here with an infernal forged ro- 
 mance to pass himself off as the only heir of the barony. 
 You hate me!" he added, addressing the heirs; "very 
 good ! give me up to his vengeance ; and now that the 
 master is dead, you will no longer have any one to baffle 
 the infamous machinations of M. Goefle ; for he it is who 
 has brought forward this chevalier d^industrie, and who 
 boasts that he will make his Yights prevail over all of 
 yours." 
 
 If a thunderbolt had fallen upon them it could not 
 have produced greater terror and consternation in the 
 persons present, than Johan's words ; but, as he had 
 anticipated, this first stupor was followed by a sudden 
 reaction. Christian tried to speak — for the physiciao 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 5TI 
 
 called upon him to justify or to explain himself — but hia 
 voice was drowned in a chorus of insults and maledictions. 
 
 "Drive him out ! drive him out ignominiously !" cried 
 the cousins and nephews of the deceased. 
 
 "No no !" cried Johan, supported by his accomplices, 
 who understood perfectly well that the day of revelations 
 had come, and that it was necessary to reduce the 
 avengers to silence. "Make him a prisoner! To the 
 tower with him ! To the tower ! " 
 
 " Yes, yes, to the tower with him ! " bellowed the Baron 
 de Lindenwald, who was perhaps the keenest in the hunt, 
 and the most rapacious of all the heirs. 
 
 "No, kill him I" cried Johan, venturing everything to 
 gain his end. 
 
 "Yes, kill him! throw him out of the window!" 
 echoed the infuriated group, frenzied by their diabolical 
 passions. 
 
 The chamber of the dead man had become the theatre 
 of a tumultuous and scandalous scene. The servants 
 rushed upon Christian, who could not defend himself, 
 since the minister, with the best intentions in the world, 
 had thrown himself before him, declaring that he would 
 lose his own life rather than see a murder accomplished 
 in his presence. 
 
 The physician, Jacob, and two of the heirs, an old 
 man and his young son, placed themselves also by Chris- 
 tian's side, out of respect for the minister, and from their 
 n,atural honor and good feeling. Stangstadius, hoping to 
 calm the passions of the incensed assailants by the au- 
 thority of his name and his eloquence, threw himself be- 
 tween them and this little group ; but they took no notice 
 of him, and crowded against Christian with such force 
 that the young man, more impeded than assisted by his 
 feeble champions, was pushed steadily, step by step, 
 towards the window, which Johan had just thrown open. 
 This wretch, with his eye on fire and mouth foaming 
 with rage, never stopped for a single instant vociferating 
 threats and denunciations, so as to prevent the terror and 
 madness of his party from growing cold. 
 
 As they looked upon this frightful man, who threw off, 
 
512 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 at last, his mask of hypocritical mildness, and showed the 
 tiger beneath, with all his bloodthirsty instincts, the 
 minister and physician were struck with terror. Faint 
 and trembling, they recoiled, or rather fell back upon 
 Christian, while two of the most determined blackguards 
 among the servants seized him adroitly by the legs, for 
 the purpose of lifting him up and throwing him out back- 
 wards. All would have been over with him in another 
 moment, when Major Larrson, the lieutenant, tlie corporal, 
 M. Goefle, and the four soldiers, rushed into the room. 
 
 *' Obey the law ! " cried the major, going up to Johan. 
 " In the name of the king, I arrest you." 
 
 Handing him over to Corporal Duff, he added, address- 
 ing the lieutenant : 
 
 " Allow no one to leave the room ! " 
 
 No one ventured to dispute the authority of an officer 
 of the indelta, and amid the silence that follow^ed, occa- 
 sioned both by fear and respect, Larrson gazed around 
 him, and saw the baron, motionless, upon his bed. He 
 approached, looked at him attentively, and took off his 
 hat, saying : 
 
 " Death is the messenger of God ! " 
 
 Then he replaced it upon his head, as he added : 
 
 " May God pardon the Baron de Waldemora ! " 
 
 Several voices were now raised to implore the major's 
 assistance in putting down intriguants and impostors ; 
 but he ordered all to be silent, declaring that the first ex- 
 planation of the strange scene he had discovered on enter- 
 ing, must be made by the minister. 
 
 " Would it not be more suitable," rejoined the minister, 
 "to listen to this explanation in another apartment?" 
 
 " Yes," said the major, '' out of respect to the dead, 
 we will go into the baron's cabinet. Corporal, see that 
 the persons present pass out in single file, and that no 
 one remains, or leaves the room by any other door. Mon- 
 sieur Minister, will you be so good as to pass first, with 
 Doctor Stangstadius and the baron's physician ? " 
 
 Christian pointed out the old Count de Nora and his 
 son, who had tried so loyally to defend him, and the 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 513 
 
 major allowed them to pass freely, and, when questioning 
 them in their turn, showed them the greatest respect. 
 
 The examination of facts was very minute ; but, as 
 soon as it was completed, the major lost no time in com- 
 plying with the wish of the impatient Christian, and of 
 M. Goefle. He ordered, at once, that old Stenson should 
 be delivered from the tower, where Jacob declared that 
 he had been grieved to see him conducted an hour before. 
 Christian would have gone to him immediately, but the 
 major forbade this, and, without giving any explanation 
 of his conduct, ordered that Stenson should be immedi- 
 ately taken back to Stollborg, and reinstated in his res- 
 idence with all possible respect, but without being allowed 
 to communicate with any human being. Whoever should 
 violate these instructions was threatened with the severest 
 penalties. He then ordered Johan and four lackeys, 
 who, the minister declared, had attempted Christian's 
 life, to be taken to prison in Stenson's place. Those who 
 had been contented with insulting him, and who hastened 
 to deny the fact, were reprimanded, and threatened with 
 being handed over to justice in case the offence should be 
 repeated. 
 
 There was no danger of that. In spite of the small 
 number of men with the major at this moment, every one 
 felt that he had the law and right upon his side, as well 
 as courage and determination. They took it for granted, 
 also, from his bearing, that he had sent word to his com- 
 pany, and that at any moment the indelta might be rep- 
 resented in force at the chateau. 
 
 In the absence of any other magistrate, for the de- 
 ceased chatelain, in virtue of his privileges, had assumed 
 entire control in the canton, and, for the present, was 
 left without a successor, the major called upon the minis- 
 ter of the parish, and M. Goefle, to assist him : the one as 
 possessing both civil authority and moral influence, and 
 the other as a legal adviser. He had all the keys 
 brought, and intrusted them to Jacob, whom he appointed 
 major-domo and guardian of the chateau, assigning to him 
 the special assistance of two soldiers, so that he might 
 oblige the other servants to respect his authority in case of 
 
 33 
 
5H 
 
 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 necessity. He intrusted the care of superintending the 
 baron's obsequies to the physician, and declared that he 
 would now immediately proceed, with the minister, M. 
 Goefle, the lieutenant, and four witnesses to be appointed 
 by the heirs, to look for a will, although Johan had de- 
 clared that the baron had made no will. 
 
 The heirs, who were very much alarmed and irritated 
 at first, became more tranquil when they saw that neither 
 the major, nor M. Goefle, nor Christian, referred to a 
 new competitor. There were about a dozen of them, all 
 very badly disposed towards each other, although they had 
 necessarily been very closely associated, since they had 
 been equally eager to pay court to the baron, and exert a 
 strict surveillance over the common prey. The old Count 
 de Nora, the poorest of them all, was the only one who 
 had preserved his dignity with his relatives, and his in- 
 tegrity in his relations with the baron. 
 
 No will which the baron could have made would have 
 afi'ected Christian's rights. M. Goefle's expressive looks, 
 and a few whispered words, gave Christian to under- 
 stand that they were instituting this searcn merely to 
 quiet the rapacious band of heirs, and gain time until 
 they were ready to act openly. Christian comprehended 
 also, from the expressive silence of his friends about him, 
 that the time had not come to make himself known, and 
 that, for the moment, his rightful claims, and the accusa- 
 tions brought against him by Johan, were to be equally 
 ignored. 
 
 The heirs, as may be supposed, had accepted this situa- 
 tion joyfully. Their fears were quite allayed by M. 
 Goefle's apparent indifference — which they regarded as 
 a practical denial of Johan's assertions — and by the air 
 of perfect security which Christian very naturally assumed 
 from the moment that he was satisfied as to Stenson's 
 fate. Christian seconded still further the wishes of his 
 friends by declining to accompany them in their search 
 for the will ; and as his presence was no longer required 
 in the cabinet, the examination being over, he went into 
 the hunting-gallery, and soon forgot everything except 
 his anxiety to find out what had happened to Margaret^ 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 515 
 
 Suddenly he saw Countess Elveda coming into the gal- 
 lery. 
 
 She recognized him while still at a distance, and came 
 to meet him. 
 
 " Ah, ah ! " she said gayly ; " you have not gone, then, 
 or you have returned, Monsieur Phantom ? And in what 
 a costume, to be sure ! Have you just come from hunt- 
 ing in the middle of the night?" 
 
 " Exactly, madame," replied Christian, who saw, from 
 the cheerfulness of Margaret's aunt, how little she knew 
 or cared about her niece's escapade. " I have been hunt- 
 ing bears a long way off, and have returned only to hear 
 of the event — " 
 
 "Oh yes! the baron's death!" said the countess, 
 lightly. "It is all over, I trust, and one can ventu«> to 
 breathe again. I have been very unfortunate, for my part I 
 From my rooms, you could hear all his dying groans. 
 I was obliged to take refuge with Olga, and that young 
 person entertained me with a different sort of music. 
 That poor girl is very nervous, and when I informed her 
 that instead of seeing the marionettes we should be 
 obliged either to start for our homes in the fog, or to re- 
 main in the house of a dying man until he would be 
 good enough to give up the ghost, she fell into frightful 
 convulsions. Those Russians are so superstitious I At 
 last we are quiet again, but I am going to take my de- 
 parture at once, notwithstanding, for I hear they are 
 going to ring a great bell, which is only rung at the 
 death or birth of the seigneurs of the domain. I shall 
 make my escape, therefore, for it will be impossible to 
 sleep, and that bell tolling for the dead would make me 
 desperately gloomy. Isn't that it now ? " 
 
 " I think it is," replied Christian ; " but don't you in- 
 tend to take the countess with you — your niece ? " 
 
 He added, with the most perfect apparent frankness and 
 simplicity : 
 
 "I am really very stupid to be unable to recall her 
 name." 
 
 " You are very artful ! " replied the countess, laugh- 
 ing. "You must have been courting her the other ev©« 
 
5l6 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 ning, since you challenged "he baron for her sake. Ah 
 well, I am not at all shocked ! such things belong to your 
 age ; and, after all, I was by no means displeased by 
 your boldness in defying the baron, who was a very 
 wicked man. You have good qualities — I am a judge — 
 and I see now how unsuited to your character were tne 
 lessons in diplomacy and prudence that I gave you at our 
 first meeting. You are in a different road ; for there 
 are two ways that lead to success — skill and courage. 
 Good ! you perhaps have chosen the shortest, that of 
 the wrong-headed and audacious. You must go to 
 Russia, my dear. You are handsome and bold. I have 
 spoken to the ambassador about you, and he has plans 
 for you. Do you understand me ? " 
 
 " Not the least in the world, madame." 
 
 " Oh, it is plain enough ! Orloff cannot remain in favor 
 forever, and there are certain interests that may come 
 into conflict with his — you understand now ? So, then, 
 don't think of my niece, for you can aspire to a more 
 brilliant fortune ; and as, for the moment, you are nothing, 
 not even M. Goefle's nephew, for he refuses to acknovvledge 
 you even for an illegitimate child, I warn you that I will 
 have the door shut in your face if you come to my house 
 with the foolish notion of pleasing Margaret. On the 
 other hand, I shall expect to see you in Stockholm so as 
 to present you to the ambassador, who will take you into 
 his service. Au revoir, then! — or stay — I will take 
 you with me ! " 
 
 "Really?" 
 
 " Certainly I will. I can do so without the least in- 
 convenience, since I am going to leave my niece here. 
 Frightened by the groans of the dying man, she has gone 
 to pass the night at the parsonage, with her friend Mad- 
 emoiselle Akerstrom ; or at least that is what her gov- 
 erness pretends. It doesn't matter ; wherever the little 
 coward has taken refuge, Mademoiselle Potin is to take 
 her back to Dalby to-morrow, under the charge of Peter- 
 son, an old family servant. M. Stangstadius has promised 
 me, also, to accompany them. The child will be heart- 
 broken, for she flatters herself that she is coming with 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 517 
 
 nje to Stockholm ; but she is still too young : she will do 
 nothing but commit blunders in society. Her debut is 
 put off until next year." 
 
 " So," said Christian, " she must pass still another 
 year all alone in her old manor ? " 
 
 " Ah, I see that she has been confiding her sorrows to 
 you. It is a very touching story, and it is to save you 
 from being afflicted with it that I shall carry you off in 
 my sleigh. Stay, I will give you an hour to get ready, 
 and will come for you in this gallery. Is it agreed ? " 
 
 "I am not at all sure," replied Christian, boldly. " 1 
 warn you that I am very much in love with your niece." 
 
 " Well, so much the better, if it lasts ! " resumed the 
 countess. " When you have passed several years in 
 Russia, and have won sufficient roubles, and peasants, 
 and estates, I will not say no, if you persist." 
 
 Tlie countess withdrew, persuaded that Christian would 
 be punctual at the rendezvous. 
 
 She had no sooner disappeared than Mademoiselle 
 Potin, who had been watching them, slipped up to Chris- 
 tian to remonstrate with him severely. She had been 
 very anxious about Margaret, and had sought her every- 
 where. 
 
 " Luckily," added the governess, " she has just come 
 in with her friend Martina, whose mother, supposing her 
 detained in our apartment, was not uneasy about her ; but 
 it troubles me to have to tell so many falsehoods to conceal 
 Margaret's imprudences, and I declare to you that I will 
 reveal everything to the countess, unless you give me 
 your word of honor that you will leave the chateau and 
 the country immediately." 
 
 Christian comforted good Mademoiselle Potin by as- 
 suring her that she should have no further cause of dis- 
 pleasure ; and, well knowing how impossible it would be 
 to comply with her wishes, he waited what was next to 
 occur. 
 
 At one o'clock in the morning the major's company 
 arrived, silently, and with despatch. Information of the 
 fact was given to him, and he declared the search for the 
 will at an end. They had found nothing, to the great 
 
5iS THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 satisfaction of most of the heirs, who preferred trusting 
 to their legal claims rather than to the doubtful benev- 
 olence of the deceased. 
 
 " Now, gentlemen," said the major, " I must beg you 
 to follow me to StoUborg, where I have reason to believe 
 that a will has been confided to M. Stenson." 
 
 They all rushed eagerly to the door of the room, but 
 he detained them. 
 
 " Permit me," he said ; " under the present circum 
 stances, a very grave responsibility rests upon the min- 
 ister, upon M. Goefle, and myself, and I must proceed 
 with great rigor, according to the duties of my office, to 
 call together as large a number of responsible witnesses 
 as can be found, and to see that all things are conducted 
 in an orderly and satisfactory manner. Be so good as to 
 accompany me to the hunting-gallery, where the other 
 witnesses ought by this time to be assembled." 
 
 In fact, in accordance with the major's orders, all the 
 guests at the new chateau had been requested to adjourn 
 to the hunting-gallery. This virtual command was very 
 annoying to many of them, who were already all pre- 
 pared for their departure, but the indelta spoke in the 
 name of the law, and they submitted. 
 
 Countess Elveda, eager to get off, and always very ac- 
 tive, was the first to appear. She found Christian asleep 
 on the sofa. 
 
 " What ! " she cried, " is that your way of making 
 ready for a journey ! — And what are you doing here ? " 
 she added, addressing Margaret, who came in with her 
 governess. 
 
 " I am sure I don't know," replied Margaret, " I am 
 obeying a general order." 
 
 Soon after 0\^^ arrived, and then followed the minis- 
 ter's family. M. Stangstadius, the ambassador and his 
 suite, in a word, all the guests assembled at Waldemora, 
 and most of them in very ill-humor at having been de- 
 tained at the very moment of starting, or else at having 
 been aroused from their sleep. They grumbled bitterly, 
 and railed against the gloomy bell, which might have 
 been let alone, they said, until every one had gone. 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 519 
 
 "But what is the matter? What do they want with 
 us?" cried the dowagers. "Has the baron given orders 
 that we are to keep on dancing here after his death, or 
 are we condemned to see him laid out on his bed of state ? 
 For my part, I had rather be excused. How do you 
 feel?" 
 
 "Who is that young man who has just gone out?" 
 said the ambassador to Countess Elveda. "Is it not our 
 young adventurer ? " 
 
 "Yes, that is our adventurer," she answered ; "some 
 one just handed him a note. It seems that the order by 
 which we are detained does not apply to him." 
 
 In fact. Christian had received a few lines from M. 
 Goefle to the following effect : 
 
 "Return to Stollborg, and dress yourself quickly in 
 the costume that you wore at the ball last evening. 
 Wait for us in the bear-room. Clear up the rubbish on 
 the staircase, and conceal the breach in the wall with 
 the maps." 
 
 Tea and coffee were served to the company in the 
 hunting-gallery, and, in about a quarter of an hour, all 
 the persons designated by the major and the minister, 
 together with the baron's heirs, and a large number of 
 the servants and principal vassals of the domain, pro- 
 ceeded to Stollborg, where Christian, suitably attired, 
 did the honors of the bear-room, with the help of Nils, 
 the danuemans, father and son, and Ulphilas, who had 
 been set at liberty after a few hours' imprisonment. Wo 
 may as well say, in passing, that Ulphilas never knew 
 why this punishment had been inflicted upon him by M. 
 Johan ; he never understood, either before, or during, or 
 after the occurrence of the events we have narrated, the 
 drama enacted in Stollborg. 
 
 XX. 
 
 \T7HEN the company was assembled, the major laid 
 
 ' '^ before them all the particulars of the scheme for 
 
 Christian's assassination. The prisoners were summoned 
 
^20 THE SNOW MAN, 
 
 to appear, and comprehending that their cause Avas lost, 
 in consequence of Johan's imprisonment and the baron's 
 death, they defended themselves so poorly, that their de- 
 nials were equivalent to a confession. Puffo acknowl- 
 edged frankly that he had been commissioned to put the 
 gold goblet in his master's baggage, and that M. Johan 
 had paid him to do it. 
 
 " At present," said the avaricious and haughty Baron 
 de Lindehwald, who was the nearest cousin of the de- 
 ceased, " we are quite willing to sign a formal report, 
 declaring the truth of the accusations brought against M. 
 Johan ; but on condition that we are excused from judg- 
 ing the conduct and intentions of the baron, his master. 
 There is something barbarous and impious in making 
 these investigations for the purpose of bringing a suit 
 against a man who has not yet been laid in the tomb, 
 and who, stretched upon his death-bed, cannot reply to 
 «,ny accusations. In my opinion, gentlemen, it is too 
 late, or too soon, for such measures, and we ought to re- 
 fuse to hear anything more. What, to us, is the individ- 
 ual who is taking all these precautions to satisfy his 
 vengeance against servants, for whom nobody cares, and 
 the memory of a man of whom we can each of us enter- 
 tain his own opinion, without, I trust, being called upon 
 to revile him in public? We were told about a will, of 
 which nothing more is said ; and as it is easy to see that 
 we have been intentionally deceived in this matter, I, for 
 one, am resolved to withdraw, and no longer to submit 
 to the authority usurped by a petty officer of the indelta. 
 I am not the only one here whose privileges are disre- 
 garded at the present moment ; and when such things 
 happen, you know as well as I do, gentlemen, what is the 
 right thing to do." 
 
 While speaking, the Baron de Lindenwald laid his 
 hand upon the hilt of his sword ; and as the other heirs 
 followed his example, a fight seemed inevitable, when the 
 minister, with much vigor of speech and ecclesiastical 
 dignity, interposed, calling earnestly upon all disinterested 
 and honest persons to lend him their support. Almost 
 every one present responded to his appeal, and by theii 
 
THE SNOW MAN, 
 
 521 
 
 bearing and remarks condemned the baron's attempt so 
 unequivocally, that the refractory were obliged to submit, 
 and the major was spared the painful duty of using harsh 
 measures against them. 
 
 It was perfectly evident to him, and to all the witnesses 
 of this scene, that the heirs were unwilling to inquire into 
 the causes of the baron's hatred against Christian, because 
 they felt a presentiment of the truth. M. Goefle had 
 placed him designedly under his father's portrait, and 
 every one had instantly remarked the striking resem- 
 blance. But there were no words in the Swedish lan- 
 guage bitter and sarcastic enough to express the aversion 
 with which the presumptuous were beginning to regard 
 this juggler, whom Johan had denounced, and whom M. 
 Goefle (whose natural son he was) wished to establish as 
 the baron's heir, by means of an improbable romance and 
 forged proofs. 
 
 M. Goefle remained impassible and smiling. Christian 
 found it difficult to contain himself; but Margaret's ten- 
 der and supplicating glance enabled him to accomplish 
 this miracle. 
 
 '*Now," said the minister, when silence was restored, 
 "introduce M.Adam Stenson, who has been kept se- 
 cluded in his apartment since he was released from 
 prison." 
 
 Adam Stenson appeared. He was dressed with care, 
 and his sweet and noble face, worn with fatigue, but still 
 dignified and serene, produced a most favorable impres- 
 sion. M. Goefle begged him to sit dovm, and proceeded 
 to read the declaration written by his hand, and confided 
 to Manasses, at Perugia. This document, which had not 
 yet been brought forward, was listened to by some of the 
 company with the greatest surprise and interest, and by 
 others in sullen and gloomy silence. 
 
 The Russian ambassador, who had no such views for 
 Christian as the Countess Elveda pretended, perhaps be- 
 cause she was trying to put them into his head, but who 
 felt a genuine interest in the young man, on account of his 
 handsome face and determined manner, began to express 
 bis approbation of the way in which this investigation 
 
j2a THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 was conducted, so as to do away with the necessity of a 
 lawsuit, or, if there should be a suit, so as to throw all 
 possible light upon the subject. It ought to be mentioned 
 that Christian's friends had persuaded this dignitary to be 
 present, by urgent solicitations. The respect that M. 
 Goefle took pains to show him, in spite of his prejudices 
 against his policy, flattered the ambassador, who liked to 
 be mixed up in the affairs of private individuals, as well 
 as in public matters, in Sweden. 
 
 When the document had been read, the minister turned 
 to Stenson, and asked him whether he could hear the 
 questions that were addressed to him. 
 
 "Yes, Monsieur Minister," replied Stenson; "I am 
 very deaf, it is true, but sometimes I recover my hearing 
 almost entirely, and I often hear things to which I do not 
 wish to reply." 
 
 "Will you answer to-day?" 
 
 "Yes, monsieur, I wish to do so." 
 
 "Do you recognize your writing in this document?" 
 
 "Yes, monsieur, perfectly." 
 
 "The reasons of your long silence are indicated in it," 
 resumed the minister; "but before being accepted as 
 true, they must be more clearly explained. The manner 
 in which the baron has treated you up to the present time 
 does not seem compatible either with the fear with which 
 you have regarded him, or with the terrible designs upon 
 other persons attributed to him in this declaration." 
 
 Stenson's only answer was to lift up the sleeve of his 
 coat. Every one could see, upon his thin and trembling 
 arms, the marks of the cords that had been tied so tightly 
 about his wrists as to draw blood. 
 
 "See," he said, "with what sort of sport the baron 
 was amusing himself, when the agony of death closed his 
 eyes, and terminated my torture ; but I did not acknowl- 
 edge anything. They might have broken my old bones ! 
 I would not have said a word. What is it to die at my 
 age?" 
 
 "You shall not die yet, Stenson!" cried M. Goefle; 
 "you shall live to experience a great joy. You can speak 
 freely now ; Baron Olaus is no more." 
 
THE i^NOW MAN. 523 
 
 ^'•I know it, monsieur," said Stenson, "since I am 
 here ; but there is no more happiness for me in this world, 
 for he whom I saved has perished ! " 
 
 "Are you quite sure of that, Stenson?" said Monsieur 
 Goefle. 
 
 Stenson looked through the room, which was very 
 brilliantly lighted. He fixed his eyes upon Christian, 
 who repressed every sign of emotion, so as to avoid at- 
 tracting his attention in any way, and who even pretended 
 not to see him, although he was burning to throw him- 
 self into his arms. 
 
 "Well ! " said M. Goefle to the old man, " what is the 
 matter, Stenson ? Why do you weep ? " 
 
 "Because I fear that I am dreaming," said Stenson, 
 "because I believed I was dreaming two days ago, when 
 I saw him here ; because I do not know him any longer, 
 and yet I recognize him." 
 
 "Remain where you are, M. Stenson," said the min- 
 ister to the old man, who wanted to go up to Christian ; 
 "a resemblance, however striking, is not a sure indi- 
 cation, for it may be the result of chance. The facts 
 advanced by you in the document that has just been read 
 must be established." 
 
 " That can easily be done^" said Stenson. " M. Goefle 
 has only to read the paper which I confided to him yes- 
 terday. The identity between Christian Goffredi and 
 Christian de Waldemora can then be established by 
 means of the letters from Manasses, which I also placed 
 in his hands this very day." 
 
 "I took a solemn oath," said M. Goefle, "not to open 
 this paper until after the baron's death. I opened it two 
 hours ago, and these are the few words that it contains ; 
 
 "'Examine the wall behind the portrait of Baroness 
 Hilda, at StoUborg, to the right of the window of the 
 bear-room.' 
 
 " Ah ! ah ! " whispered the major to M. Goefle, while 
 the minister caused the portrait to be taken down, and 
 proceeded, under Stenson's direction, to open the secret 
 aperture behind it ; "I had supposed that the proof would 
 be found in the walled-up room." 
 
524 ^^^ SNOW MAN. 
 
 "No, God be praised ! " replied the lawyer, in the same 
 tone ; "for it would have been seen, in that case, that we 
 had been there beforehand, and we might have been ac- 
 cused of having placed false proofs there ourselves. Now, 
 thanks to the great maps that have been put back into 
 their places, no one here has heeded or remarked the 
 breach in the wall. It was because I looked into Sten- 
 son's mysterious warning at the new chateau, that I ad- 
 vised you to bring a great many witnesses here without 
 fear." 
 
 When the hiding-place had been opened, the minister 
 took out, with his own hands, a metal casket, in which 
 was found a decisive document, which he read aloud. 
 
 This document had been written by the Baroness Hilda, 
 and was a clear and detailed aecount of the sad days that 
 she had passed at Stollborg in the custody of the odious 
 Johan, and of the persecutions that she had undergone, 
 together with her faithful friends and servants, Adam 
 Stenson and Karine Boetsoi. 
 
 The unhappy widow declared, and took her oath " upon 
 her eternal salvation, and upon the soul of her husband 
 and of her first child, both of them assassinated by the 
 order of a man whom she did not wish to name, -but 
 whose crimes would some day be known," that she had 
 given birth to a second son, fruit of her legitimate union 
 with the Baron Adelstan de Waldemora, on the eighteenth 
 of September, 1746, at two o'clock in the morning, dn the 
 bear-room, at Stollborg. She related, in a manner at the 
 same time modest and dramatic, with what courage she 
 had repressed her cries, so that the suspicions of the jail- 
 ers, who were installed close by her in the chamber called 
 the guard-room, should not be aroused. Karine had as- 
 sisted her in her time of trial, and had sung constantly, 
 to keep the feeble wailing of the new-born infant from 
 being heard. Stenson did not quit the room during the 
 birth of the child, and immediately afterwards he had 
 tried to carry it off by the secret door, but the existence 
 of this door had become known to the jailers, and, to his 
 dismay, he had found it fastened on the outside, and 
 guarded. On the failure of his first attempt, Stenson 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 S'^S 
 
 made some excuse for going out — it was not thought 
 necessary to keep him a prisoner, but he was always 
 strictly searched whenever he left the tower — and went 
 in search of a boat, which, under cover of the darkness, 
 he succeeded in introducing into the passages between the 
 rocks and boulders of the lake, when Karine, who had 
 prepared a basket and cord for the purpose, let down the 
 child to him from the window. All this took some time, 
 and day was beginning to appear. The window of the 
 guard-room opened at the very moment when Stenson re- 
 ceived the child into his trembling hands. Fortunately 
 he was protected by the vault of overhanging rocks, and 
 had been able to keep hidden until the men above with- 
 drew, whereupon, with many prayers to God, he had 
 crossed the short space between the lake and the shore 
 behind the gaard. 
 
 The romance that Christian had imagined, on explor- 
 ing this strange site, had therefore reproduced, in some 
 respects, the facts of his own history. 
 
 The child had been confided to Anna Boetsoi, the mother 
 of Karine and Danneman Joe. It had been suckled by a 
 tame doe in one of the chalets of Blaakdal, and every 
 now and then the imprisoned baroness received informa- 
 tion about it by means of signal fires lighted on the 
 mountains. 
 
 Reassured as to the fate of her child, the baroness hoped 
 to join him and fly into Denmark ; but the baron refused 
 to restore her to liberty, unless she would consent to sign 
 a declaration that her pregnancy had been simulated. 
 This she refused to do, saying that she was willing to ad- 
 mit having fallen into an error, but not to accuse herself 
 of imposture ; whereupon he began to seem strangely sus- 
 picious of the event which she had it so much at heart to 
 conceal. Then, trembling lest the birth and retreat of 
 her child should be discovered, and he destroyed, she had 
 signed the document drawn up by Pastor Mickelson. 
 
 "But, before God and man," she said, in this new dec- 
 laration, " I protest here against my own signature, and 
 take my oath that it was extorted from me by violence 
 and terror. If, under these circumstances, I denied the 
 
526 
 
 THE SptOW man. 
 
 truth for the first time in my life, all mothers will under* 
 stand my fault, and God will pardon me." 
 
 Once in possession of this terrible declaration, the baron, 
 fearing, perhaps, a recantation, or the exposure of his crimes, 
 formally refused to restore his victim to freedom, declar- 
 ing that she was mad, and doing his best to make her so, 
 by a system of harsh captivity, privations, insults and in- 
 timidations. Some peasants who were courageous enough 
 to express a sympathy for her, and to try and set her free, 
 he had beaten after the Russian fashion, in the guard-room, 
 where she could hear their cries. Stenson and Karine he 
 threatened with the same treatment if they continued to 
 urge that the baroness should be set at liberty, and these 
 faithful friends had been obliged to feign compliance with 
 his wishes, so as not to be separated from their unfortu- 
 nate mistress. 
 
 At last, suffering and grief did their work upon the poor 
 victim. She sank into a rapid decline, and, feeling that 
 she was soon to die, she wrote out for her son this account 
 of her sorrows ; wherein, however, she implored him never 
 to seek revenge, in case circumstances impossible to fore- 
 see should make him acquainted with the mystery of his 
 birth before the baron^s death. She was convinced that 
 this implacable, rich, and powerful man would pursue her 
 son, if he knew of his existence, in whatever corner of 
 the earth he might be hidden. She prayed, therefore, 
 that he might live a long time " in a humble station, in 
 ignorance of his rights, and that he might rather lov6 the 
 arts or sciences than be ambitious of wealth and power, 
 source of so many evils, and of such cruel passions, on the 
 earth." The poor mother added, notwithstanding, in an- 
 ticipation of a future discovery, that her son, to whom she 
 had given the name Adelstan-Christian, had, at his birth, 
 black hair, and *' fingers made like those of his father and 
 his ancestors." Finally she gave him her supreme ben- 
 ediction, and enjoined upon him to believe implicitly, and 
 to regard as sacred, all the statements of Stenson and 
 Karine — the witnesses of the sufferings of her captivity, 
 find of the constant and unalterable lucidity of her mind 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 527 
 
 in spite of the calumnious reports that had been spread 
 abroad as to her pretended state of madness and fury. 
 
 *' My soul is calm," she said, at the approach of death. 
 " I am prepared to depart, full of resignation, of hope, and 
 confidence, to a better world. I pardon my executioners, 
 and I have only one regret in leaving this sad life — that 
 of abandoning my son ; but the unexpected success of 
 his flight has taught me to rely upon Providence, and the 
 devoted friendship of those vs^ho have saved him." 
 
 The signature was large and firm, as if a last effort of 
 life had warmed the heart of the poor dying woman at 
 this supreme hour. It was dated, " This 15th of Decem- 
 ber, 1746." 
 
 Besides the declaration of the baroness, the casket con- 
 tained a sort of formal report, drawn up by Stenson, of the 
 last moments and death of his unfortunate mistress. This 
 report, which the minister also read, was dated the twenty- 
 eighth of December of the same year, and was as follows : 
 
 " They deprived her of sleep up to her last hour. 
 Johan and his gang, who occupied the guard-room, kept 
 on night and day swearing, yelling, and blaspheming in 
 her very ears, and the baron, her brother-in-law, came 
 every day, under the pretence of seeing that she was well- 
 treated, to tell her that she was mad, and overwhelm her 
 with insults and reproaches, because of the pretended 
 plot which he had defeated. The only plot — and with 
 the help of God it succeeded ! — was, by patience and 
 silence, to persuade this persecutor that madame had 
 really been mistaken about her condition, and that he had 
 nothing to fear in the future. 
 
 " Upon his side. Pastor Mickelson, not less cruel and 
 importunate, came even to madame*s death-bed to tell 
 her that, having lived in a land of papists, she was im- 
 bued with false doctrines, and to threaten her a hundred 
 times with hell, instead of giving her the consolations 
 and hopes to which every Christian soul has a right. 
 
 " At last he went out, only an hour before she breathed 
 her last, and she expired in our arms, on the fourth day 
 of the Christmas holidays, at four o'clock in the mornmg, 
 with these words upon her lips : 
 
528 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 *' * My God ! bestow a mother upon my son ! *" 
 
 "We testify that she died like a saint, without having 
 had a single moment of anger, of delirium, or even of 
 religious doubt. 
 
 "After closing her eyes, we stopped the clock, and blew 
 out the Christmas candle which was burning in the chan- 
 delier, with the prayer to God that we might see this 
 clock set in motion, and the candle lighted, by the hand of 
 our future young master. 
 
 " After which, we have drawn up this writing which 
 we are going to hide and seal up, together with that of 
 our well-beloved mistress, in the wall of her chamber, in 
 the place which she herself indicated, all things being 
 prepared to that end. 
 
 " And, with many tears, we both of us sign our names* 
 swearing that we have certified only to the exact truth. 
 
 "Adam Stenson, 
 "Karine B(ETS0I." 
 
 The pastor read these simple pages with so much feel- 
 ing and pathos, that the women wept, and the men, 
 touched and convinced, gave three cheers for Christian 
 de Waldemora, and crowded around him, eager to shake 
 hands with him and to offer him their congratulations. 
 The heirs, however (from this malignant set the old Count 
 de Nora and his son must always be excepted) , declared 
 that they should require the appearance of Karine Bjoetsoi ; 
 having gathered, probably, from the reports in circulation 
 about her, that this woman was still alive, and was mad. 
 They hoped that they could object to her as a witness ; 
 and the major also dreaded exceedingly the effect of her 
 appearance, and hastened to say that she was ill, and lived 
 at a considerable distance. He was interrupted by a rough, 
 although kindly voice ; that of Danneman Joe Boetsoi. 
 
 " Why do you say what is not so, Monsieur Major? " 
 cried the honest man. " Karine Boetsoi is neither so ill 
 nor so far away as you suppose. She has had her sleep 
 here, and now that she has rested, her mind is as clear as 
 your own. Do not be afraid to call Karine Boetsoi. It \% 
 true that the poor soul has suffered, above all since the day 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 529 
 
 when she had to be separated from the child, and that she 
 says things that cannot be understood ; but, for all that, 
 her head is good and her will firm. What proves it is, 
 that nobody has been able to find out her secret, not even 
 myself, who knew the child, and who have just learned 
 his name and history for the first time in my life. Now, 
 a woman who can keep a secret is not like an ordinary 
 woman, and what she says ought to be believed." 
 
 Rising, he went to the door of the guard-room, and 
 threw it open. 
 
 " Come, my sister ! " he said to the seeress ; " you are 
 wanted here." 
 
 Every one bent forward with eager curiosity as Karine 
 entered. Her pallor, her precocious old age, her look of 
 amazement, and uncertain, faltering step, caused, at first, 
 more pity than sympathy. However, in the sight of 
 them all, she drew herself up erect, and stood firm. Her 
 face assumed an expression of enthusiasm and energy. 
 She had taken off the poor gray dress, that precious rag 
 in which she never allowed herself to sleep, from over 
 her peasant's dress, and her hair, white as snow, was 
 drawn from her face and tied with red woollen cords, giv- 
 ing her somewhat the appearance of an ancient sibyl. 
 
 She went up to the pastor, and without waiting to be 
 questioned, said : 
 
 " Father and friend of the afflicted, you know Karine 
 Boetsoi ; you know that her soul is neither guilty nor de- 
 ceitful. She asks you why the belfry-bell of the new 
 chateau is tolling ; what you say she will believe." 
 
 " The , belfry-bell is tolling for the dead," replied the 
 minister ; " your ears have not deceived you. For a long 
 time, Karine, I have known that you have a secret which 
 oppresses you. You can speak now, and perhaps you can 
 be cured. Baron Olaus is dead ! " 
 
 "I know it," she said ; "the great iarl appeared to me 
 last night. He said : ' I am going away forever, ' and I felt 
 my soul reborn. Now I will speak, because the child of 
 the lake is going to return. I saw him, also, in my dream." 
 
 "Do not talk about your dreams, Karine," rejoined the 
 minister, " but try and recall what has really happened. 
 34 
 
530 
 
 THE SNOW MAN 
 
 If you wish to recover reason and tranquillity of soul, 
 by the grace of the Lord, make an effort yourself to be 
 humble and submissive ; for I have often told you that 
 pride had a great deal to do with your madness : you 
 pretend to read in the future, when you are not able, per- 
 haps, to relate the past." 
 
 Karine renaained abashed and thoughtful for an instant, 
 and then answered : 
 
 "If the good pastor of Waldemora, as kind and as hu- 
 mane as he who preceded him was ferocious and cruel, 
 orders me to tell the past, I will tell the past." 
 
 " I both command you and entreat you to do so," said 
 the pastor ; " speak calmly, and remember that God 
 weighs each one of your words." 
 
 Karine collected her thoughts, and said : 
 
 " We are in the room where our well-beloved mistress 
 fell asleep forever." 
 
 *' Do you mean Hilda de Waldemora?" 
 
 " Yes ; she is the widow of the good young iarl, and 
 the mother of the child named Christian, who ought now 
 to return to light the Christmas candle on the hearth of 
 his fathers. She gave birth to this child in the full of 
 the moon of Hcest^* here, in this bed, where she died in 
 the last days of the moon of Jul. She gave him her 
 blessing here, by this window, out of which he flew 
 away, for he was born with wings ! And then she told a lie, 
 saying in her heart : ' God pardon me for killing my son 
 by my word ! But it is better for him to live among the 
 elfs than among men.' Then she sang to her harp, and 
 when she died, she said : ' May God bestow a mother 
 upon my son ! ' " 
 
 Brought back, in a measure, to a perception of real 
 things, Karine began to weep ; then her mind became 
 confused, and the minister, seeing that she could no lon- 
 ger understand the questions that were addressed to her, 
 made a sign to the danneman, who quietly led the poor 
 seeress away, after glancing in triumph at the company, 
 as if to challenge their admiration of the manner in which 
 his sister had answered. 
 
   HcBsti September ; Jul, December. 
 
THE SNOW MAN, 
 
 53* 
 
 "What would you have more?" said M. Goefle, glanc- 
 ing around him. " Has not this poor enthusiast told you, 
 in a few words of her rustic poetry, precisely the same 
 things that Stenson has written in this document, with the 
 methodical clearness of his mind ? And is not her very 
 frenzy — the sort of continual delirium in which she 
 lives — a proof of what she has suffered for those she so 
 dearly loved ? " 
 
 The opportunity for pleading was too fine to be lost ; 
 M. Goefle could not help taking advantage of it. He 
 spoke with inspiration, summed up the facts of the case 
 rapidly, related portions of Christian's life, after having 
 established his identity by means of Manasses' letters to 
 Stenson, explained the romantic circumstances of the last 
 two days, and indeed succeeded so well in convincing his 
 auditors, that they forgot all about the lateness of the 
 hour and their own fatigue, and asked him question after 
 question, so as to keep him talking. Finally, they all 
 signed an official report of the proceedings. 
 
 The Baron de Lindenwald made a last eifort to revive 
 the drooping courage of the other heirs. 
 
 " No matter," he said, rising, for the doors were open, 
 and any one was free to withdraw, " we shall find out 
 the truth of all these ridiculous fictions : we will go to 
 law ! " 
 
 " I suppose so," replied M. Goefle, with great anima- 
 tion ; '' but we shall await you on firm ground." 
 
 " For my part, I shall not go to law," said the Count 
 de Nora ; "I am convinced, and I shall sign." 
 
 " These gentlemen will not go to law either," said the 
 ambassador, pointedly. 
 
 '^ Oh, yes they will," rejoined M. Goefle, " but they 
 will lose." 
 
 "We will attack the validity of the marriage," cried 
 the baron ; "Hilda de Blixen was a Catholic." 
 
 Christian was going to reply angrily, when M. Goefle 
 hastened to interrupt him : 
 
 "How do you know that, monsieur?" he said to the 
 baron. "Where are your proofs? Where is this pre- 
 tended chapel to the Virgin which she is said to hav« 
 
532 
 
 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 erected? Now that the mysteries of Stollborg are dis- 
 closed to all, what evidence remains of this ridiculous 
 fable, which served as a pretext to several persons here 
 present for abandoning that unhappy woman to persecu- 
 tion and to death ? " 
 
 '' This Christian Goffredi may be a Catholic also ; he 
 was brought up in Italy ! " muttered the heirs, as they 
 mthdrew. "Patience ! we will know the truth of it, and 
 will see whether a man who cannot have a seat in the 
 Diet, nor be appointed to any office, is to inherit a domain 
 entitling him to all the privileges of the nobility." 
 
 " Be quiet. Christian, hold your tongue ! " said M. 
 Goefle, in a low voice, holding Christian back with all 
 his force, as the latter started up to follow his adversaries 
 out and defy them to their faces. "Remain where you 
 are, or all is lost. Be a dissenter, if you choose, when 
 you have inherited ; but, for the present, keep quiet about 
 it. No one has remarked that the bear-room has become 
 square again." 
 
 "What do you mean?" inquired the major of M. 
 Goefle. " Why should we hesitate to admit every one 
 freely into the upper room, since the pretended chapel 
 does not exist?" 
 
 " We could do so," replied M. Goefle, " if we had not 
 already broken into it. As it is, they would accuse us of 
 having removed the evidences of the prohibited worship." 
 
 Countess Elveda now approached Christian, and said 
 to him, with her most gracious air : 
 
 " At present, baron, I sincerely trust that I shall have 
 the pleasure of seeing you in Stockholm — " 
 
 "Will you still consent to receive me," he replied, 
 "only on condition that I am to start for Russia?" 
 
 " No," she said, " I leave you free to select her to 
 whom you have given your heart." 
 
 " Will Countess Margaret accompany you to Stock- 
 holm? " said Christian, in a low voice. 
 
 " She may join me, perhaps, when you have gained 
 your lawsuit, if lawsuit there is to be. In the mean- 
 while, she must return to her chateau. It is all settled, 
 and prudence requires it. For my part, I hold to mj^ 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 5.1^ 
 
 promise, and am still ready to carry you to Stockholm, 
 where you will be obliged to go to have your affairs set- 
 tled." 
 
 " I thank you, madame ; but I am entirely uuder the 
 control of my lawyer, who has further use for me here." 
 
 " Au revoir, then ! " replied the countess, taking the arm 
 of the ambassador, who said to her, as they went out : 
 
 " I am quite as well pleased to have that handsome 
 young baron decline travelling with you ! " 
 
 Margaret bade adieu to her aunt at the door '^ Stoll- 
 borg, and started with her governess and the Akerstrom 
 family for the parsonage, where she was to take some 
 rest before returning to Dalby. She did not exchange a 
 word, or even a glance, with Christian, but it was none 
 the less tacitly understood between them that she was not 
 to leave the neighborhood until they had seen each other 
 again. 
 
 The major returned, with his soldiers and his prisoners, 
 to the new chateau, where he was to await the receipt of 
 orders as to whether he was to continue the exercise of 
 his authority. The danneman and his family returned 
 to their mountain, Karine, to the last, being unable to 
 comprehend that she beheld in Christian the child of the 
 lake. Her mind could not so readily be brought back, 
 from the fantasies in which she lived, to a perception of 
 real things. And indeed, even in after years, although 
 her condition was very much ameliorated, although she 
 felt instinctively that she was freed from a gi'eat trouble, 
 she never, while she lived, really succeeded in identifying 
 Christian, and she very often confounded Iiim with his 
 father, the young Baron Adelstan. 
 
 It was four o*clock in the morning ; and though it was 
 the custom of the country to go to bed very late, at a 
 time of the year when the nights are so long, the prin- 
 cipal persons of our story had passed through such a series 
 of vehement emotions, that they were all overwhelmed 
 with fatigue. They all retired, therefore, and slept pro- 
 foundly, being more fortunate in this, probably, than Johan 
 and his gang, shut up in the tower of the new chateau, 
 where they had imprisoned and tortured so many people* 
 
534 ^^^ SNOW MAN. 
 
 However, before daybreak, Stenson glided softly to 
 Christian's bedside, and after gazing upon him with rap- 
 ture for a few seconds, he waked him, without arousing 
 M. Goefle. 
 
 " Rise, my master ! " he whispered in his ear, " I have 
 something to say to you which must be heard by your- 
 self alone ! I will await you in the inner room." 
 
 Christian dressed himself quickly and silently, and 
 closing the doors behind him, followed Stenson into the 
 deserted and dilapidated apartment into which he had 
 penetrated on the previous evening. The old man un- 
 covered his head with reverence. 
 
 " Here, Monsieur Baron," he said, " behind this wains- 
 cot, where you see a dove carved in marble, a mystery is 
 hidden, that ought to be revealed to you alone. Here it 
 is that your mother had secretly erected an altar to the 
 Virgin ; for she was a Catholic, the fact is too certain. 
 The exercise of her worship being forbidden in her hus- 
 band's country, madame was obliged to conceal her faith, 
 so as not to draw down persecution upon his head. 
 
 "Pastor Mickelson could never prove this. The altar 
 was brought and placed in this hiding-place by Italian 
 workmen, travelling through the country, who had ex- 
 ecuted other commissions in marble, and in wood, at the 
 new chateau. I was the only person in her confidence. 
 There was a learned old Frenchman among the retainers 
 of the chateau, who was a Catholic priest, unknown to 
 every one, and who said mass here secretly ; but he^ had 
 died, and the Italian workmen liad departed at the time 
 of the persecution of your poor mother. You must see 
 this altar. Monsieur Baron, and, whatever may be your 
 own religion, you must regard it with respect. Help me 
 to move the spring in the wainscot, which is probably 
 very rusty." 
 
 " You mean that your poor arms are swollen and ach- 
 ing," said Christian, kissing the old man's tortured hands. 
 
 " Ah ! do not pity me," said Stenson, " my hands will 
 get well ; I do not feel them, all that I have suffered is 
 as nothing in comparison with my present happiness." 
 
 Christian opened the wainscot as Stenson directed, and 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 535 
 
 after di'awing a curtain of gilt leather, he saw a white 
 marble altar, in the form of a sarcophagus. Stenson, 
 who was deeply agitated, fell upon his knees. 
 
 " Are you a Catholic also, my friend ? " Christian asked. 
 
 Stenson shook his head in the negative, but without 
 seeming offended by the question. Tears rolled slowly 
 over his pallid cheeks. 
 
 " Stenson ! " cried Christian, " my mother reposes here. 
 This altar became her tomb ! " 
 
 '' Yes," said the old man, almost suffocated by his sobs ; 
 "here it is that Karine and I buried her, in her white 
 robe, and crowned with a cypress wreath, for it was not 
 the season of flowers. We laid her in a coffin filled with 
 aromatics, and the coffin we placed in this sepulchre, 
 stainless as that of Christ, I sealed it up myself, and 
 afterwards I walled up the room, so that the tomb of the 
 victim should not be profaned. Your enemy never knew 
 why I was so anxious to suppress the door. He thought 
 I was afraid of ghosts. When the minister refused to 
 bury a pagan with religious services, and io sacred 
 ground, he thought I obeyed his orders, and threw the 
 poor body into the bottom of the lake ; but whatever Pas- 
 tor Mickelson may have said, it was the body of a saint. 
 Whatever her worship may have been, the baroness loved 
 God, did good, and respected the faith of others. She is 
 in heaven, and prays for us now, and her soul is happy in 
 beholding her son where he is, and such as he is." 
 
 " Ah ! " said Christian, " happiness does not belong, 
 then, to this world, for I should have made her happy, 
 and she is dead." 
 
 He kissed the tomb with respect and fervor, and hav- 
 ing reinclosed it behind the curtain and the panel of the 
 wainscot, he went down with Stenson into the bear-room. 
 
 "I do not know," the old man resumed, " how much 
 trouble and delay there may be before your rights are 
 acknowledged ; but I hope you will empower me to re- 
 store the partition before this chamber. When you are 
 master here, we can carry the tomb to the chapel in the 
 new chateau." 
 
 " Place my mother's tomb by that of Baron Olausl* 
 
536 THE SNOW MAN, 
 
 cried Christian. " Oh no, never ! Since Sweden refused 
 her a plot of ground to cover her bones, after having re- 
 fused her air and liberty, I will carry off these precious 
 remains, and deposit them under a more clement sky. 
 Whether rich or poor, I will procure enough to bear this 
 relic with me to the shore of the Italian lake, where 
 sleeps my second mother ; she who fulfilled the last prayer 
 of her who gave me birth, and who, although herself 
 most unhappy, had at least a son to close her eyes." 
 
 " Act with calmness and prudence," replied Stenson, 
 " or your rights will be denied. Some day you will be 
 free to do as you choose ; for the present, do not allow 
 even your best friends, even the worthy M. Goefle, to 
 know that your mother was a dissenter. He will argue 
 your cause with more hope and confidence, believing that 
 she was not so ; and if you yourself are a dissenter, do 
 not acknowledge it, or you will not be able to triumph 
 over your enemies." 
 
 '' Alas ! " said Christian, " are riches worth the trou- 
 ble I must take to acquire them ? can they repay me for 
 practising dissimulation and repressing my just indigna- 
 tion, as I am urged and forced to do ? I had nothing, 
 Stenson, not even an obole, when I came here three days 
 ago, but my heart was light, my mind was free ! I felt 
 no hatred to any human being, no one hated me, and 
 now — " 
 
 " And now you will be less free and less happy, I 
 know," replied the sweet and austere old man, gravely ; 
 " but you will have power to comfort and console the poor 
 and suffering. Think of that, and it will give you strength 
 to struggle for your rights." 
 
 "Well said, my dear Stenson !" cried M. Goefle, who 
 had just risen, and who heard the last words of the pious 
 old retainer. " Whoever meets as he ought the duties 
 and responsibilities which life imposes, rivets chains upon 
 his feet, and insures for himself many bitter hours. It re- 
 mains to be seen whether the man who, in the glory of 
 his youth and strength, finds himself confronted with a 
 plain duty, and who turns away to escape from it, can 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 537 
 
 still be happy in heedless indifference, and can venture to 
 claim that he is contented with himself." 
 
 " You are right, my friend," said Christian ; " do what 
 you choose with me. I promise to be guided by your ad- 
 vice." 
 
 "And then," added M. Goefle, lowering his voice, 
 " our sweet Margaret ought, I think, to be a sufficient 
 compensation for enduring the life of a grand seigneur ! '• 
 
 It was decided by M. Goefle that Christian should 
 leave Waldemora, where he could exert no authority until 
 his inheritance should be secured to him by the decision 
 of the special committee of the Diet, a mysterious, special, 
 and privileged tribunal, which claimed the right of re- 
 moving suits pending in ordinary courts, especially those 
 in which the nobility were interested. It was necessary 
 for Christian to accompany his lawyer to Stockholm, so 
 as to demand and solicit a decision. 
 
 Before bidding farewell to StoUborg, both of them, 
 however, went to the parsonage, where Christian, after 
 thanking Minister Akerstrom respectfully and affection- 
 ately, appointed him guardian of his estates, in so far as 
 it depended upon him, and in the very just anticipation 
 that his choice would be ratified by the house of nobles. 
 He had no opportunity of being alone with Margaret; 
 and even if he could have spoken to her freely, he would 
 not have wished to draw her into an engagement until 
 he was sure that he would not become Christian Waldo 
 again. But Margaret felt no doubt either of his inten- 
 tions or his success, and returned to her retreat with her 
 heart full of the blissful hopes of youth, and the faith of a 
 first love. 
 
 Christian refused to go and breakfast at the new cha- 
 teau with the major and his friends. They understood 
 his repugnance, and dined with M. Goefle and the young 
 baron in Stenson's gaard. In the evening they were all 
 invited to supper at the parsonage. Margaret was not to 
 start until the next day. On the following day Chris- 
 tian also took his departure with M. Goefle, who amused 
 himself by driving Loki, to the great satisfaction of Nils, 
 
538 
 
 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 who slept soundly during the whole journey, never wat 
 ing up at all, except to eat. 
 
 After passing two weeks at Stockholm, where Christiau 
 conducted himself with great prudence, reserve, and dijS- 
 nity, M. Goefle, who was very impatient to return to 
 Gevala, invited him to go there, while awaiting the deci- 
 sion of the supreme court, especially as there was every 
 reason to believe that there would be a great deal of delay 
 in the matter, since, in consequence of the death of the 
 king, and succession of Prince Henry (now become Gus- 
 tavus III.), the ruling powers were unusually busy and 
 preoccupied. But Christian, foreseeing that he would be 
 left in uncertainty for an indefinite period, did not feel 
 willing to live at M. Goefle's expense during all this time, 
 and resolved to carry out his plan of taking a journey with 
 Danneman Boetsoi into the savage and frozen regions in 
 the northern part of Norway. Equally unwilling to be a 
 burden to the brave peasant, he accepted from M. Goefle 
 a very moderate advance upon his inheritance, or upon 
 his future labor; and, after embracing his friends at 
 Waldemora and at StoUborg, he set off with Boetsoi, 
 once more leaving his dear Jean under the charge of 
 Stenson. 
 
 Conclusion. 
 
 /'CHRISTIAN had abundance of leisure to travel. In 
 ^^ spite of all the precautions taken by his friends, and 
 notwithstanding M, Goefle's incessant exertions, the rec- 
 ognition of his rights was so vehemently opposed by the 
 caps, the party to which the Baron de Lindenwald be- 
 longed, that a moment came when the active and cour- 
 ageous lawyer regarded the cause of his client as lost. The 
 Russian ambassador, who at first had been favorable, 
 turned against them, no one knew why, and Countess El- 
 veda formed other projects of marriage for her niece. 
 M. Goefle appealed in person to the young king ; but 
 Gustavus III., who even then was planning, with in- 
 credible prudence, the grand revolution of August, 1772, 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 539 
 
 advised patience, without giving any intimation of the 
 hopes which he himself had conceived. In fact the king, 
 as yet, could do nothing. 
 
 After travelling with the danneman until the end of 
 February, Christian received news from M. Goefle which 
 decided him to continue alone his explorations in the re- 
 gions of the north. M. Goefle, finding that Christian's 
 enemies were very powerful, feared, with reason, that they 
 would seek opportunities of quarrelling with him, if he 
 should appear in Stockholm. He knew how excitable 
 Christian was, and he said to himself that, even if he 
 should kill one or two of his opponents, he would stand a 
 good chance of being killed by the third. There were 
 too many persons whose interest it was to irritate him, and 
 draw him into duels. M. Goefle took good care not to 
 explain to Christian the real grounds of his opinion, but 
 he urged him not to count upon a speedy success, and ad- 
 vised him to remain away. 
 
 At the same time he sent him an additional sum, which 
 Christian resolved not to add to the amount of the debt 
 which he had already incurred. In his uncertain position 
 he joined a crew of fishermen, who were about sailing for 
 the Luffbden Islands ; and, in the beginning of April, he 
 wrote to M. Goefle as follows : 
 
 "Here I am in a small, straggling village of Nordland, 
 where it seems to me that I have entered the land of 
 Canaan, although the chalet of Danneman Boetsoi is a 
 Louvre in comparison with my present lodging, and his 
 kakebroe delicious cake by the side of the bread of pure 
 wood in which I am now luxuriating. You will guess 
 from this that I have been through a great deal of suf- 
 fering, without referring to our fatigue and dangers. But, 
 on the other hand, I have seen the most terrible spectacles 
 of the universe, the most austere and sublime scenes of 
 nature : sub-marine gulfs, into which ships and whales are 
 drawn like autumn leaves in a current of wind ; rivers 
 which never freeze, in the midst of ice that never melts ; 
 waterfalls whose roaring can be heard leagues away; 
 precipices upon whose verge the reindeer and the elk grow 
 dizzy ; snows harder than the marble of Paros ; men as 
 
540 
 
 THE SNOW MAN, 
 
 ugly as monkeys — angelic souls in unclean bodies, a hos 
 pitable people dwelling in unheard-of misery — a patient, 
 gentle and pious people living in eternal conflict with 
 nature, who appears to them under her most formidable 
 and violent aspect. I have had no disappointments. 
 Everything. that I have seen has been more sublime, or 
 more astonishing, than all that I had imagined. 
 
 " So, then, I am a fortunate traveller. Add that my 
 health has withstood all hardships, and that my purse is 
 so well filled that I am in condition to pay off my debt 
 to you, and still have money of my own ; lastly, that I 
 have succeeded in studying the geological formation of a 
 long chain of mountains, from which I bring back treas- 
 ures — in the way of rare and precious specimens — 
 that will make the illustrious Professor Stangstadius pine 
 away with envy, and useful observations that ought to 
 make me — if I take it into my head to aspire to the 
 honor, and exert a little diplomacy to obtain it — Knight 
 of the Polar Star. 
 
 " You will ask me how I have grown rich so fast. By 
 enduring a great deal of fatigue ; by running the risk, a 
 thousand times, of being drowned or of breaking my 
 neck ; by skating along the verge of fearful chasms, on 
 great skates which I have learned to use ; by catching a 
 great many fish in the Norwegian archipelago ; by sell- 
 ing my cargo on the spot, and very cheap, to those who 
 have a genius for trade ; and, lastly, by exposing myself 
 to the danger of being beaten to death by my comrsides 
 for my pains. However, they gave up this fancy when 
 they found out that my arm was ready and my hand heavy. 
 
 " Now I am going to Bergen, where I must arrive 
 before the thaw, unless I want to be shut up here for six 
 weeks by whirlwinds and avalanches, which man is not 
 strong enough to conquer. 
 
 " Do not be distressed, O best of men and of friends ! 
 if I lose my suit. I shall make out to be something, and 
 since Margaret is poor (as long as I am well-born) , I may 
 win her yet. And then, am I not secure of your friend- 
 ship ? I only ask of Heaven to enable me to take care of 
 my dear Stenson in his feeble old age, if he should lose 
 
THE SNO W MAN. 
 
 54^ 
 
 his aDQuity, and be driven from his asylum at Stoll- 
 borg." 
 
 M. Goefle received several other letters of the same 
 sort during the following summer and winter. The law- 
 suit made no progress ; in fact there was no suit, in any 
 proper sense of the word. The presumptive heirs carried 
 on the war in the most fatal and insidious way, by inter- 
 posing constant obstacles, preventing or delaying the de- 
 cision of the committee. 
 
 Christian, in the meanwhile, was beginning to be sati- 
 ated with danger, fatigue, and hard work. He did not 
 acknowledge it to his friend, but the exuberance of his 
 curiosity was satisfied. His heart, which had been 
 awakened to a new life by hopes that would perhaps 
 prove deceitful, often claimed the happiness of which he 
 had caught a glimpse. His heroic resolutions, and the 
 cheerful energy of his character, were fully equal to the 
 requirements of his terrible life, as he called it, but in 
 silence, in the secrecy of his soul, he was often unhappy. 
 The time had come when the bird, according to Major 
 Larrsou's expression, fatigued with flying through the 
 vastness of space, was longing to find a milder sky, and 
 a sure place to build his nest. 
 
 In spite of his intelligence and his activity. Christian 
 was several times overtaken by poverty. The life of the 
 traveller is a series of Godsends and losses, of unexpected 
 successes, and desperate disasters. He earned enough 
 to live upon from day to day, by selling game and fisli, 
 and by exchanging commodities transported over great 
 distances with incredible courage and resolution. And 
 yet the young baron, careless, confident, and generous as 
 he was, had not been born a merchant, and his troubles 
 and anxieties could not transform the aristocratic liber- 
 ality of his character. 
 
 Unavoidable accidents, moreover, often defeated his 
 wisest calculations ; and one day, he found that his own 
 life must be governed by the ideal of heroic desperation 
 with which he had entertained Major Larrson on the 
 mountain of Blaakdal. Like Gustavus Wasa, he became 
 a workman in the mines, and, as with that hero of a 
 
542 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 romantic epopee, he was soon recognized as an extraor- 
 dinary workman, not so much on account of the embroid- 
 ered collar of his shirt, but rather from the authority of hia 
 language and his haughty expression. 
 
 Christian, at this time, was in the mines of Roraas, in 
 the highest mountains of Norway, at about ten leagues 
 from the Swedish frontier. He had been working like a 
 common day-laborer for eight days, but with a skill and 
 vigor that had procured him the respect of his compan- 
 ions, when he received a letter from M. Goefle to the 
 following purport : 
 
 " All is lost. I have seen the king, and he is a charm- 
 ing man — but nothing more! I made known to him 
 who you are : I laid all my proofs before him ; I told 
 him how you felt, and how useful you could be to a phil- 
 osophical and courageous prince who wished to establish 
 equality of rights in the nation. After listening to me 
 with an attention and comprehending with a lucidity that 
 I have never encountered in any judge, he replied : 
 
 " 'Unfortunately, Monsieur Advocate, it is a great 
 task to do justice to the oppressed, and one beyond my 
 strength. I should be crushed in attempting it, like ray 
 poor father, whom the nobility doomed to perish of wea- 
 riness and grief.' 
 
 " Gustavus is feeble and good ; he does not wish to 
 die ! We flattered ourselves in vain that he would smite 
 the senate with heavy blows. Sweden is lost, and our 
 suit also ! 
 
 " Come back to me. Christian. I love and respect 
 you. I have a little fortune, and no children. Say the 
 word, and I will make you my partner. You speak 
 Swedish captivatingly ; you are eloquent. You shall 
 study law, and be my successor. I await you." 
 
 " No ! " cried Christian, kissing the letter of his 
 generous friend; "I understand better than he thinks 
 how limited the resources of this country are, and what 
 great sacrifices such an association would condemn 
 this noble man to make. And then it would take 
 years to study law, and, during all that time, I should 
 have to be supported — young and strong as I am — by 
 
THE SNO W MAN. 543 
 
 one who, after a laborious and anxious life, deserves 
 now to enjoy comfort and repose ! No no ! I have my 
 hands, and I shall use them, until destiny shows me some 
 better way than this of making my talents available." 
 
 While thus reflecting, he returned to the gallery where 
 it was his duty to excavate one of the veins of copper 
 distributed through the rocks, by the light of a little lamp, 
 and amid the sulphureous emanations rising from the 
 mine. 
 
 But after a few days Christian's position was mate- 
 rially improved. The superintendent of the mines no- 
 ticed him, and put him at the head of certain works, 
 which he was fitted by education and capacity to direct, 
 as he had shown, without any pretence or affectation, 
 when an opportunity occurred. Learned, modest, and 
 industrious, he spent his leisure hours in instructing the 
 miners. In the evenings he delivered a course of gratu- 
 itous lectures on elementary mineralogy, and was listened 
 to by these rude men, who respected him as an industri- 
 ous comrade, and looked up to him as an original and 
 cultivated thinker. His lecture-room was one of the 
 great metallic caverns to which miners love to give 
 high-sounding names. His chair was a block of naked 
 copper. 
 
 Christian tried to make himself happy by working hard, 
 and doing good to others ; for happiness is what man 
 always seeks, even when he sacrifices himself. He took 
 care of the sick and wounded in the mine. When acci- 
 dents occurred, he, with heroic courage, was always the 
 first to hasten to the spot, and he taught the workmen, 
 moreover, to guard against these terrible dangers by ex- 
 erting ordinary common sense and prudence. He tried 
 to refine their manners, and to cure them of their fatal 
 passion for brandy, the too fruitful source of quarrels and 
 fights that often terminated in the terrific duel with knives 
 in vogue in this part of the country. They both loved 
 and esteemed him ; but, since he devoted all his wages to 
 helping cripples, orphans and widows, he remained poor. 
 
 ''DecidecUy," he often said to himself, as he stepped 
 into the bucket to descend to the bottom of the iromeas- 
 
544 ^^^ SNOW MAN. 
 
 urable shaft, "I was bom a seigneur — that is to say, 
 as I understand it, the protector of the feeble — and for 
 that reason I am not permitted to live in the light of 
 the sun." 
 
 "Christian," cried the inspector, one day, through 
 the speaking-tube at the frightful mouth of the mine, 
 "stop working for a while, and go to the bottom of the 
 inclines, to receive some visitors, who want to see the 
 large halls. Show them round ia my place — I have no 
 time to come down." 
 
 As usual, Christian lighted the great resinous torches 
 which are kept ready in all parts of the excavations, and 
 went to meet the visitors. But when he recognized Min- 
 ister Akerstrom and his family, and Lieutenant Osburn 
 with his young bride Martina leaning upon his arm. 
 Christian handed his torch to an old miner whom he 
 knew, and, saying that he had been seized with cramp, 
 begged him to conduct the visitors in his stead. Pulling 
 down his tarred cap over his eyes, he stepped back, re- 
 joicing in his inmost heart to see his friends happy, but 
 unwilling to be recognized, lest they should be distressed 
 about him, and should make known his situation to 
 Margaret. 
 
 He was about to withdraw, after having listened for a 
 moment to their cheerful and animated conversation, 
 when Madame Osburn turned, saying : 
 
 "Why does not Margaret come? The little coward 
 will never dare cross that plank bridge I " , 
 
 " Oh, you were very much afraid yourself, my dear 
 Martina ! " replied the lieutenant. " But you need not be 
 anxious ; M. Stangstadius is with her." 
 
 Christian, forgetting all about his cramp, ran swiftly 
 along the steep, vaulted passage that led to the plank- 
 bridge, which was really very dangerous, and which 
 Margaret was to cross in company with M. Stangstadius, 
 the man of all the world who knew best himself how to 
 fall to advantage, but not, perhaps, the most capable 
 person in the world of protecting others. 
 
 Margaret was really there, hesitating and dizzy, to- 
 gether with Mademoiselle Potin, who, hoping to encourage 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 545 
 
 her young friend, had already crossed the planks quite 
 bravely, with the assistance of M. Stangstadius. The 
 lieutenant returned to assist them, and to quiet his wife ; 
 but, before he could reach the spot. Christian stepped up, 
 took Margaret in his arms, and crossed the subterranean 
 torrent in silence. 
 
 Certainly Margaret did not recognize him, for she 
 shut her eyes tightly to avoid beholding the chasm be- 
 neath. He put her down near her friends, intending to 
 make his escape as quickly as possible, but Margaret, 
 who was still frightened, tottered, and he was obliged to 
 take her hand, and to draw her away from the preci- 
 pice. His fingers, blackened by his work, left a mark 
 upon the young girl's delicate green gloves, and he saw 
 her, a moment afterwards, wipe it off carefully with her 
 handkerchief, while saying to her governess : 
 
 " Give some money quickly to that poor man who car- 
 ried me." 
 
 The poor man had run away with his heart a little 
 swollen ; he was not angry with the young countess for 
 liking clean gloves, but he said to himself that it was 
 quite impossible for him, for his part, to have white 
 hands. 
 
 He returned to the forge, where he was having some 
 tools made after an improved pattern, suggested by him- 
 self and approved of by the inspectors ; but after an 
 hour's labor, for he often lent a hand himself to help on 
 his men, he heard the visitors returning, and could not 
 resist his desire of again seeing the young countess. She 
 had seemed to him a little taller, and greatly improved ; 
 beautiful enough, indeed, to madden the blindest and 
 sulkiest of the cyclops. 
 
 As the voices again became more distant, he entered, 
 without any precaution, a gallery through which the party 
 would be obliged to pass, when suddenly, in a brightly- 
 lighted hall, he met Margaret face to face. Now that she 
 had become a little accustomed to the terrific noises and 
 gloomily sublime aspect of this subterranean world, she 
 had I'ecovered her courage, and was coming forward 
 alone, in advance of the others. She trembled on seeing 
 
 15 
 
54^ 
 
 THE SNOW MAN, 
 
 him ; she thought that she recognized him. He pulled 
 his cap quickly over his forehead, and she knew him then, 
 beyond a doubt, by the care he took to hide his face. 
 
 " Christian ! " she cried ; " it is you, I am sure of it ! " 
 And she held cnit her hand. 
 
 " Do not touch me ! " said Christian. " I am all black 
 with powder and smoke." 
 
 " Ah ! what do I care for that," she replied, " since it 
 1 is you ? I know all now. The miners who have been 
 [showing us about have been talking all the while of a 
 certain Christian, a very learned man and a famous work- 
 man, who would not tell his family name, but who has 
 the strength of a peasant and the dignity of an iarl, who 
 is courageous for all and devoted to all. Our friends did 
 not suppose for a moment that it could be you, there are 
 so many Christians in this Scandinavian land ! But, for 
 my part, I said to myself : ' There is only one answering 
 to that description ; it is he ! ' Come, then, shake hands ! 
 Are we not still brother and sister, as at StoUborg ? " 
 
 How could Christian help forgetting the little offence 
 of the wiped glove ? Margaret held out her hand to him 
 ungloved. 
 
 "You do not blush, then, to see me here? " he said ; 
 " you know that I have not been driven to come here by 
 bad conduct, and that if I am working to-day, it is not 
 to make up for days of idleness and folly ? " 
 
 " I do not know anything about you," replied Marga- 
 ret, " except that you have kept your word given formerly 
 to Major Larrson, to be a miner, or a hunter of bears, 
 rather than continue an occupation of which I did not 
 approve." 
 
 "And I, Margaret, do not know anything about you 
 either," he replied, "except that your aunt intends to 
 have you marry the Baron de Lindenwald, my suit 
 against whom it appears is lost.' 
 
 "It is true," said Margaret, laughing. "My aunt 
 hopes, in that way, to console me for the death of Baron 
 Olaus. But since you guess so well what is going on, you 
 ought to know, also, that I do not intend to marry at all." 
 
 Christian understood this resolution, which left him free 
 
THE SNOW MAN, 547 
 
 to hope, and he vowed in his heart that he would make a 
 fortune, even if he should have to become an egotist. In 
 spite of all he could say, Margaret would not consent to 
 hide the fact of his being there from the lieutenant and 
 the minister's family, who drew near in the midst of their 
 tete-a-tete. 
 
 "It is he ! " she cried, running to meet them ; " it is 
 our Stollborg friend — you know who I mean ! This Chris- 
 tian, this friend of the poor, the hero of the mine, is the 
 baron without a barony, but not without honor and heart, 
 and if you are not as happy as I am to see him again — " 
 
 "We are, we are ! " cried the minister, shaking hands 
 with Christian. "He is setting a grand example of true 
 nobility and religious faith." 
 
 Christian, overwhelmed with caresses, praise, and ques- 
 tions, was obliged to promise to go and take supper in the 
 village with his friends, who intended to pass the night 
 there before returning to Waldemora, where Margaret 
 was spending a fortnight at the parsonage. 
 
 They wanted to carry him away with them immedi- 
 ately ; but, on the one hand. Christian could not dispose 
 of his time so freely as they supposed, and, on the other, 
 he was more anxious, than was quite appropriate for such 
 a reasonable man, to dress himself in clothes, which, how- 
 ever coarse, should at least be irreproachably clean. 
 They made an appointment to meet in the evening, and 
 Christian, aroused and happy, returned to his work. 
 
 There, however, he was agitated by tumultuous and 
 conflicting thoughts. Ought he to persist in cherishing 
 the chimerical hope that he was loved? Margaret ex- 
 pressed her affection for him with too much warmth, too 
 much frankness ; it might be that she regarded him merely 
 with a peaceful friendship, bringing no trouble to her soul, 
 no blush to her forehead ! Could love be so spontaneous, 
 so courageous, so expansive ? He accused himself of pre- 
 sumption and folly ; and then, a moment afterwards, he 
 accused himself of ingratitude ; an inner voice told him 
 that, whatever his fate might be, he would always find 
 Margaret resolved to share it. 
 
 He left his work at last, when the hour came for quitting 
 
jj48 the snow man, 
 
 the mine, and as he greatly preferred being pulled up in 
 the bucket, in which he never felt dizzy, to making: the 
 long ascent over the ladders and inclines, he got ready to 
 mount, in a moment, to the entrance of the gloomy shaft, 
 through which he could catch a glimpse of a scrap of 
 blue sky framed with branches of the mountain-ash and 
 lilacs. Just then a miner came up, whom he had already 
 met on the previous evening within his limits, although he 
 did not belong to the brigade that he had joined at first, 
 and which he was now directing. 
 
 None of the miners with whom Christian was asso- 
 ciated knew this man. Excessively begrimed with smoke 
 and dirt, either through negligence or design, and 
 wearing a rag of a hat that flapped about his ears, it was 
 not easy to form any idea of his face. Christian had not 
 tried to see him. He might be one of those who were called 
 humble workmen ; as we sometimes say the humble poor, 
 in speaking of persons whose apparent humility is perhaps 
 a mere mask concealing their silent pride. Christian res- 
 pected the evident desire of the unknown to avoid observa- 
 tion ; and after having given the customary whist'.e to warn 
 those who worked the pulley, he contented hi.nself with 
 pointing to a seat by his side in the bucket ; for he sup- 
 posed that he also wished to ascend. The unknown hes- 
 itated. Laying his hands upon the edge &f the bucket, 
 he seemed about to jump in, but paused, and looked 
 around, apparently to seek for something. ^ 
 
 "You have lost a tool, perhaps?" said Christian, who 
 noticed that he was quite stout and heavy, and had noth- 
 ing of the freedom and ease which is usual with miners 
 accustomed to the use of the bucket. 
 
 Scarcely had he spoken, when the unknown, who seemed 
 to have been waiting to hear his voice before coming to 
 some decision, took the seat by his side with more resolution 
 than agility, and waited in silence for the second whistle. 
 
 Christian supposed that he did not understand Norwe- 
 gian, and being familiar by this time with almost alJ 
 the dialects of the north, he tried to enter into conversa- 
 tion with him ; but all his efforts were useless. The mail 
 remained perfectly silent, as if fright at seeing himself 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 549 
 
 suspended directly over the abyss had paralyzed his fac- 
 ulties. The bucket, as it is called, employed in mines, 
 is made, as the reader knows, of stout staves, bound with 
 iron, and requires to be steered in its passage up and 
 down the tremendous shaft. Christian, who was already 
 accustomed to this mode of transportation, worked it 
 very skilfully. Standing on the edge, with one arm 
 thrown around a rope, he lightly struck the sides of the 
 shaft with his foot, to prevent the rocking bucket 
 from being broken against them, and, having given up 
 getting anything out of his companion, he began quietly 
 to sing a Venetian barcarolle, when his foot — the only 
 one that happened to be on the edge of the conveyance 
 at the moment — was treacherously pushed with sufficient 
 force to make him lose his balance, and send him swing- 
 ing off into the void. 
 
 Fortunately, Christian, who was habitually no less pru- 
 dent than bold, had grasped the rope firmly with his left 
 arm, and he slipped down somewhat as a basket would 
 have done by the handle, without loosening his hold. 
 The unknown lifted his sharp-edged hammer with the 
 intention of striking off his right hand, with which 
 Christian had saved himself by seizing the edge of 
 the bucket. He would inevitably have lost one of his 
 hands, and probably his life as well, had it not been 
 for the swinging and sudden dip of the bucket, jerked 
 down by the weight of his body. At the same time 
 his feet, as they hung in the air, struck a second bucket, 
 which had been let down from above, and he was able to 
 give the first one such a push that the assassin was 
 obliged to take to the ropes himself, in order to keep from 
 being thrown out. 
 
 This moment was sufficient to enable Christian to cling 
 to the second rope, and jump into the second bucket, 
 which ascended rapidly, while the one in which the 
 assassin remained alone, disappeared from sight with even 
 greater rapidity. Just as Christian reached the top of 
 the shaft, and jumped out on the platform around it, a 
 dull crash ascended from its depths, while, at that very 
 
550 
 
 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 moment, Stangstadius, with his fantastic face all radiant 
 with smiles, came up to him. 
 
 " Come, my dear baron," he cried, " make haste ! 
 They will not have supper over yonder in the village 
 until you arrive, and I am dying of inanition." 
 
 "What has happened?" cried Christian to the miners 
 who were working the pulley, without answering Stang- 
 stadius ; "where is the other bucket? Where is the 
 man? — " 
 
 "The rope broke," replied one of them, with a tremen- 
 dous oath, and pretending to deplore the accident, while 
 the other whispered in Christian's ear : 
 
 " Not a word ! We let him fall ! " 
 
 " What ! you have precipitated this unfortunate — this 
 madman — ?" 
 
 "This unfortunate was not a madman," replied the 
 workman. " He has been looking out for an opportunity 
 to be alone with you for three days. We watched him, 
 and saw what he wanted to do. We let down another 
 bucket at a venture ; and as for the one he is in, it is a 
 bucket spoiled, that is all about it ! " 
 
 Christian knew that these rough miners were in the 
 habit of taking the law into their own hands, and that 
 they dealt out to criminals summary and terrible justice. 
 
 He felt the more regret and anxiety about what had hap- 
 pened, because he knew, also, that people who enter this 
 subterranean world when rather advanced in years,. are 
 sometimes seized with fits of involuntary and ungovernable 
 fury. He descended into the mine again with Stang- 
 stadius, who claimed, with good reason, to have a profes- 
 sional knowledge of such accidents. Two of the miners 
 went down with them", to investigate, they said, but in 
 reality to remove the corpse, so as to avoid being obliged 
 to give any explanation to the inspectors of the mine. 
 
 " Faith," said Stangstadius, when they had examined 
 the miserable body by the light of their torches, " he is 
 done for ! He was not so lucky as I ! By heavens ! I 
 declare I must draw up a report on the use of ropes in 
 descending buckets in mines. These accidents are too 
 frequent — when I think that eveh I myself — " 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 551 
 
 "Monsieur Stangstadius ! " cried Christian, "look at 
 this man. Do you not know him? " 
 
 "By heavens, it is a fact ! " replied Stangstadius ; " it 
 is Master Johan, the ex-major-domo of Waldemora. Oh 
 then, there is no great harm done ! He confessed in 
 prison ; it was this very fellow who assassinated poor 
 Baron Adelstan, in former years — apropos! yes, your 
 father, my dear Christian. This Johan was once a miner 
 in Falun, and he was a great scoundrel. It appears that 
 he made his escape from his last prison, but it was writ- 
 ten in his destiny that he was to perish by the rope." 
 
 Delighted with this bon-mot, M. Stangstadius returned 
 with Christian to the upper world, while the workmen, 
 after having thrown the corpse into a deserted pit, well 
 known to them, in the deepest part of the works, set 
 quietly to work to mend the bucket. Christian, who 
 had a room in a little house in the village, ran thither to 
 change his dress. He found a letter awaiting him that had 
 just been brought by a courier ; it was from M. Goefle. 
 
 " All is saved ! " he wrote ; " the king is good, as I told 
 you, but not weak, as I thought. He is a gallant fellow, 
 who — but»you will have time enough to hear about that. 
 Make all speed ! Be at Waldemora on the twelfth ; you 
 will find one of your friends there, and hear some good 
 news. 
 
 " Until a speedy meeting, I am, my dear baron," etc. 
 
 Christian did not saj'' a word about this letter to his 
 friends, with whom he took supper at the parsonage of 
 the minister of Roraas, where the minister of Waldemora 
 and his party had been entertained with cordial hospital- 
 ity. After supper, he found an opportunity of being 
 alone with Margaret and her governess. He was bolder 
 than he had ever been. He dared to speak of love. 
 Mademoiselle Potin wanted to interrupt him, but Mar- 
 garet, in her turn, interrupted her friend. 
 
 " Christian," she said, " I do not well know what love 
 is, or what distinction there can be between that senti- 
 ment and the feeling with which I regard you. But one 
 thing I do know, and that is, that I respect and esteem 
 you, and that if I am ever free, and you are the same, I 
 
55^ 
 
 THE SNOW MAN. 
 
 will share your fortune, whatever it may be. 1 have 
 worked very hard since we parted, and I shall be able now 
 to give lessons or keep accounts, like so many other poor 
 young girls who support themselves, and who have too 
 much good sense to blush upon that account; — like 
 Mademoiselle Potin herself, whose family is noble, and 
 who has not lost in the opinion of any one, but, on the 
 other hand, who has been elevated in the eyes of all per- 
 sons of real feeling, by having the courage to make 
 use of her talents. To prove it," she added, glancing 
 tenderly and archly at her governess, " I need only tell 
 you that she is betrothed secretly to the excellent Major 
 Larrson, and is only waiting until my affairs are a little 
 more settled, to celebrate her marriage." 
 
 It was impossible for Mademoiselle Potin to contradict 
 Margaret, but she was none the less angry with Christian 
 for speaking to her of love at the very moment when his 
 suit was lost, and she felt still more indignant on the fol- 
 lowing morning, when he joined their little party to cross 
 the mountains, and return to Sweden by the Idre, and the 
 mountains of Blaakdal. On the next day, the twelfth of 
 June, 1772, Christian saw the friend to whom,M. Goefie 
 had referred, coming to meet him on the mountain-road 
 over which they were travelling ; it was no other than 
 M. Goefle himself, escorted by Major Larrson. They em- 
 braced each other, and after briefly exchanging joyful and 
 affectionate greetings, hastened forward, and arrived by 
 dinner-time at the danneman's chalet, which they jfound 
 gayly adorned with wild flowers. Karine was at the 
 door, only partly comprehending what was passing, and 
 finding it difficult to recognize the child of the lake in the 
 features of the handsome young iarl. 
 
 The dinner was served in the open air, under a bower 
 of foliage, in sight of the magnificent prospect of moun- 
 tains, with whose wild and melancholy beauty Christian 
 had been so deeply impressed on a day in December. 
 The summer is short in these elevated regions, but it is 
 magnificent. The verdure is as dazzling as the snows ; 
 the vegetation grows with such rapidity, and is so luxuri* 
 
THE SNOW MAN, 
 
 553 
 
 ant, thai Christian imagined he was beholding a different 
 locality and a different country. 
 
 They remained upon the mountain until six o'clock. 
 But no one thought now of hunting bears ; instead, they 
 plucked flowers sentimentally from beside running streams, 
 and listened to their sweet murmuring or impetuous roll- 
 ing — so eager, as all of them seemed, with their various 
 voices, to sing and to live to the utmost, before the return 
 of the frost, when they must all be changed into crystal 
 again by the elfs of the gloomy autumn. 
 
 Christian was very happy, and yet he was longing to 
 see Stenson once more ; but M. Stenson would not consent 
 to leave the chalet, on account of the heat. The sun, at this 
 season, does not set until ten o'clock, and it rises three 
 hours afterwards, in a starry twilight that softly veils the 
 sky ; for, during the summer, the darkness of a genuine 
 night is unknown. In fact, the good lawyer had prepared a 
 surprise for Christian. As soon as the cool evening breeze 
 began to be felt, old Stenson drove up in a carriage, tri- 
 umphant and rejuvenated. Thanks to the heat of the 
 season, and perhaps also to his returning joy and confi- 
 dence, his deafness was almost entirely cured. He 
 brought the decree of the committee of the Diet, recog- 
 nizing Christian's rights, and a letter from Countess El- 
 veda to M. Goefle, authorizing him privately to dispose 
 of the hand of her niece in favor of the new Baron of 
 Waldemora. 
 
 Christian returned to the chateau with his uncle Goefle, 
 while the rest of the party followed in their various car- 
 riages over the winding and picturesque road ; but, in 
 the midst of the young man's joy, as he anticipated the 
 reunion of all his beloved friends, he was seized with a 
 sudden fit of melancholy. 
 
 " I am too happy," he said to the lawyer ; "I should 
 like to die to-day. It seems to me that the life into 
 which I am about to enter will be in constant conflict 
 with the simple and pure happiness I have dreamed about." 
 
 "It is quite possible, my friend," replied M. Goefle; 
 *' for it is only novels that end with the eternal formula : 
 ' They died in old age, after a long and happy life.' You 
 
554 '^HE SNOW MAN. 
 
 cannot come into contact with the world as a public maq 
 without suffering ; for society is terribly convulsed in 
 these days, and above all in the aristocratic circles where 
 you will take your place. I do not know what strange 
 events are preparing ; and yet I had a sort of revelation 
 of the future in the last interview which the king granted 
 me. On that day, he seemed to me both grand and ter- 
 rible. I believe he is meditating a movement which will 
 send a good many people back where they belong ; but 
 can he keep them there, and will he ? Can revolutions 
 establish a permanent condition of things, when they 
 come in advance of the slow labor of time and ideas ? " 
 
 "Not always," said Christian, "but they form land- 
 marks in history ; even when an effort at reformation is 
 premature, something is always gained." 
 
 "Then you will really support the king against the 
 senate ? " 
 
 " Yes, most certainly !" 
 
 "You see, then, that you do not intend to flee the tem- 
 pest, but to seek it. Well, that is always the way with 
 the young, at least when they are intelligent ; instinct 
 and fate drives them on. For my part, I will say amen 
 to whatever frees us from Russia and England. But 
 how the devil do you propose to sit in the senate, if you 
 refuse to acknowledge the religion of the country ? But 
 no matter, do not answer now ; you will see hereafter 
 what your conscience dictates, and w^hat course you will 
 have to pursue, in order to fulfil your duties as a father 
 and a citizen." 
 
 "My duties as a father !" cried Christian. "Ah ! M. 
 Goefle, it will be in fulfilling them that 1 shall find hap- 
 piness ; I feel it ! Mon Dieu I When I am united at last 
 to that brave and loyal woman, how I shall love our 
 children — to whom she will transmit disinterestedness 
 and nobility of character, as well as grace and beauty ! " 
 
 " Yes, yes. Christian, you will be happy in your fam- 
 ily. That is due to vou for your devotion to poor Sophia 
 Goffredi ! You will live in the Swedish fashion, on your 
 estates, in the enjoyment of every comfort, and in the 
 presence of the grand and rude nature of the north. You 
 
THE SNOW MAN. 555 
 
 will cultivate science and the fine arts. You will make the 
 poor around you happy, as your predecessor has made 
 them miserable. You will bring up your children yourself. 
 Those little rascals will be surrounded, as soon as they 
 are born, with love and devotion ; and they will grow up 
 with the children of Osmund and of Osburn. For my 
 part, I shall keep at my profession as long as possible, 
 for I shall become too much of a babbler, and too nervous, 
 when I stop pleading cases ; but every year I will come 
 and pass the summer months with you. We will vie 
 with each other in spoiling old Sten, and poor Karine ; 
 we will build political castles in Spain ; we will dream 
 of a cloudless alliance with France, and a Scandinavian 
 union that will enable us to resist the ambitious designs 
 of Russia. And, in the evenings, we will bring out the 
 hurattini, and give exhibitions to all the dear little folks 
 assembled at the chateau ; and then, you may be sure, I 
 shall become the equal of the famous Christian Waldo, 
 of joyous and gentle memory." 
 

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