once the schoolmaster of etnedal was staying in the mountains to fish . he was very fond of reading , and so he always carried one book or another along with him , with which he could lie down , and which he read on holidays , or when the weather forced him to stay in the little fishing - hut . one sunday morning , as he was lying there reading , it seemed as though he could hear church bells ; sometimes they sounded faintly , as though from a great distance ; at other times the sound was clear , as though carried by the wind . he listened long and with surprise ; and did not trust his ears -- for he knew that it was impossible to hear the bells of the parish church so far out among the hills -- yet suddenly they sounded quite clearly on his ear . so he laid aside his book , stood up and went out . the sun was shining , the weather was fine , and one group of churchgoers after another passed him in their sunday clothes , their hymn - books in their hands . a little further on in the forest , where he had never before seen anything but trees and brush , stood an old wooden church .
sometimes they sounded faintly ; at other times the sound was clear .
what was special about the sound of the church bells ?
what was special about the sound of the church bells ?