《安徒生童话英文版》第339章

　　So he fondly hoped; therefore the chimney smoked and the fire crackledso constantly. Yes, I was there too," said the Wind. "'Leave italone,' I sang down the chimney; 'leave it alone, it will all end insmoke, air, coals, and ashes, and you will burn your fingers.' ButWaldemar Daa did not leave it alone, and all he possessed vanishedlike smoke blown by me. The splendid black horses, where are they?What became of the cows in the field, the old gold and silvervessels in cupboards and chests, and even the house and home itself?It was easy to melt all these away in the gold-making crucible, andyet obtain no gold. And so it was. Empty are the barns andstore-rooms, the cellars and cupboards; the servants decreased innumber, and the mice multiplied. First one window became broken, andthen another, so that I could get in at other places besides the door.'Where the chimney smokes, the meal is being cooked,' says theproverb; but here a chimney smoked that devoured all the meals for thesake of gold. I blew round the courtyard," said the Wind, "like awatchman blowing his home, but no watchman was there. I twirled theweather-cock round on the summit of the tower, and it creaked like thesnoring of a warder, but no warder was there; nothing but mice andrats. Poverty laid the table-cloth; poverty sat in the wardrobe and inthe larder. The door fell off its hinges, cracks and fissures madetheir appearance everywhere; so that I could go in and out atpleasure, and that is how I know all about it. Amid smoke and ashes,sorrow, and sleepless nights, the hair and beard of the master ofthe house turned gray, and deep furrows showed themselves around histemples; his skin turned pale and yellow, while his eyes stilllooked eagerly for gold, the longed-for gold, and the result of hislabor was debt instead of gain. I blew the smoke and ashes into hisface and beard; I moaned through the broken window-panes, and theyawning clefts in the walls; I blew into the chests and drawersbelonging to his daughters, wherein lay the clothes that had becomefaded and threadbare, from being worn over and over again. Such a songhad not been sung, at the children's cradle as I sung now. Thelordly life had changed to a life of penury. I was the only one whorejoiced aloud in that castle," said the Wind. "At last I snowedthem up, and they say snow keeps people warm. It was good for them,for they had no wood, and the forest, from which they might haveobtained it, had been cut down. The frost was very bitter, and Irushed through loop-holes and passages, over gables and roofs withkeen and cutting swiftness. The three high-born daughters were lyingin bed because of the cold, and their father crouching beneath hisleather coverlet. Nothing to eat, nothing to burn, no fire on thehearth! Here was a life for high-born people! 'Give it up, give itup!' But my Lord Daa would not do that. 'After winter, spring willcome,' he said, 'after want, good times. We must not lose patience, wemust learn to wait. Now my horses and lands are all mortgaged, it isindeed high time; but gold will come at last- at Easter.'

　　"I heard him as he thus spoke; he was looking at a spider's web,and he continued, 'Thou cunning little weaver, thou dost teach meperseverance. Let any one tear thy web, and thou wilt begin againand repair it. Let it be entirely destroyed, thou wilt resolutelybegin to make another till it is completed. So ought we to do, if wewish to succeed at last.'

　　"It was the morning of Easter-day. The bells sounded from theneighboring church, and the sun seemed to rejoice in the sky. Themaster of the castle had watched through the night, in feverishexcitement, and had been melting and cooling, distilling and mixing. Iheard him sighing like a soul in despair; I heard him praying, and Inoticed how he held his breath. The lamp burnt out, but he did notobserve it. I blew up the fire in the coals on the hearth, and itthrew a red glow on his ghastly white face, lighting it up with aglare, while his sunken eyes looked out wildly from their cavernousdepths, and appeared to grow larger and more prominent, as if theywould burst from their sockets. 'Look at the alchymic glass,' hecried; 'something glows in the crucible, pure and heavy.' He lifted itwith a trembling hand, and exclaimed in a voice of agitation, 'Gold!