Year: 1874

| away l4Ou Tue uIRu TOA1.


} Where should he go? To the no
empty house he bought and furnishe


for Aasta? Or should he go somewhel


further away? Il mattered nothing


for, wherever he thought of going,


saw Aasta standing there. Il is sal


that when folks are dying, the last oil


jec5 they see is pictured upon their eye


so, too, when a man awakes to col


sciousness after doing q wicked deet


the first object he sees is pictured upo


his eyes, and he can never get rid of i


Thus, when Botolf saw Aasta, she n


longer appeared to him as she had upo


the mOuntain-siope SO short time bG


fore, but she seemed to be a little innC


cent girl-in fact, to be Agnes. Eve
| the picture he retained of her figure


while she was sinking down the steep


was that of Agnes with her little hand


uplifted. In whatever direction b
! turned his thoughts and remembrance
| of the suffering woman whom he had 81
| suspected, they were met by this innO


cent child, whom he had JUS heard re


peating the Lords prayer. In ever,
scene of his life with Aasta- from thr


night of the shipwreck to this Sunda,
AAAOA Lii S-LiIC CllIAu 1dCO dppGhTStl


The thought of this mysterious trans


formation SO preyed upon him, in botl


mind and body, that in the course of ,


few days he became unable to take hi


necessary food, and a little while aftel


was compelled to keep his bed.


Soon every ono could see he was ap


preaching death. He whose mind i!


burdened by some great life-enigma ao


quires a peculiar manner, through which


he himself becomes an enigma to others


Even from the day Botolf and AastF
first came to live in that parish, his
gloomy taciturnity, her beauty, and the
loneliness of the life of both, had beer
the subject of frequent gossip among
the neighbOrs and now, when Aastg
all at once disappeared, the talk in.
creased until the most incredible things
said we're the best believed. Nobody
could throw any light upon the matter
for none of all those who lived upon the
mountain-ridge, or the shore beneath,
or who were accustomed to go there,
had happened to be looking toward the
steep when Aasta flung herself over.
Neither did her corpse ever drift to
land, itself to give evidence.


Even while Botolf was vet alive,
therefore, no end of strange spiritual
istic stories were told about him. He
became dreadful to see, as he lay there
with long, sunken face, red beard, and
unkempt red hair, growing tangled to-
gether, and large eyes looking up like
some dark tarn in deep mountain Lol-
low. He seemed to have no wish either
to live or to die; and so the folks said
there was fight for his soul going on
between God and the devil. Some said
they had even seen the evil one, sur
rounded by flames, climb up to the win
dows of the dying mans chamber to
call to him. They had seen the evil
one, too, they said, in the form Of a
black dog, go smiling round the house.
Others, who had rowed past, had seen
the whole place on fire; while others,
again, had heard company Of devils,
shouting, barking, and laughing, come
up from the sea, pass slowly toward the
house, enter through the closed doors,
rush furiously through all the rooms,
and then go down once more beneath
the waves, with the same awful row as
they made in coming out. Botolf's ser
wants, men as well as women, left imme-
diately, and told all these tales to every
body. Hardly any one dared go near
the place and if an old peasant and
his wife, to whom the sick man had
shown some kindness, had not taken
care of him, he would have lain utterly
INTENDED. Even this old woman her
self was in terror when she was with
him and she used to burn straw under
his bed to keep off the evil one but,
though the sick man was nearly scorched
up, he still kept alive.


He lay in terrible suffering; and the
old woman thought at last he must be
waiting to see some one. So she asked
him whether she should send for the
there any one else he would like to see
To that he made no answer. Ghe next
day, while he was lying as usual, he
pronounced the name, Gag
nes." Certainly, this was not in reply
to the old wOman's question of the day
before; but she fanoied it was, and she
rose gladly, went out to her husband
and bade him harness the horses with
all speed, and drive over to the parson-
age to fetch Agnes.


When he reached there, everybody
thought there must be some mistake,
and that it was the clergyman who was
sent for; but the old man insisted it
was the little girl. She herself was in
doors, and heard the message, which
frightened her greatly for she, among
the rest, had heard the tales about the
devil, and about the company of devils
rushing up out of the sea. But she had
also heard that there was some one
whom the sick man was waiting to see,
and must see before he could die; and
she did not think it anywise strange that
that one should be herself, whom his
wife had so often fetched over to the
house before. Agnes Sisters told her,
too, that one must always try to do
what dying folks wished +; and that if
she prayed nicely to God, nothing could
10 her any harm. She believed this,
and let them dress her to go.


1t was cold, clear evening, wherein
she could see long dark shadows follow
ing, and hear echoes of the harness.
bells sounding far off in the forest. On
the whole, she felt it was rather dread
tul, and she sat saying her prayers, with
ler hands folded together inside her
where, neither did she hear any COM
Oduy Vi uONu5 IuSuluS up Oub OI GuS
sea while she rode along the shore but
she saw many stars above her, and
light shining straight b fore her upon
5he mountain-peak. Up around Botalf's
house all seemed dismally quiet; but the
I'D peasant woman came out at once and
carried Agnes indoors, took off her
travelling dress, and let her warm her
'elf at the fire. Meanwhile the old
woman told her she need not be any
wise afraid OF the sick man, but must
ust go in to him with good courage,
md say the Lords prayer to him.
Then, when Agnes had got warm, the
I'D woman took her hand and led her
nto the sick room. Botolf lay there
With long beard and hollow eyes he
ooked at her intensely; but she did
lot think he looked dreadful, and she
vas not afraid.


"Do You forgive me ?" he whispered.


She supposed she ought to say "yes,"
md she said " yes" accordingly.


Then he smiled, and tried to raise
himself in the bed, but his strength
allied, and he rema ned lying.


She began at once to say the Lords
prayer but he made a movement as
hough to bid her pause, and pointed to
lis breast. So she laid both her hands
here-for this was what she thought he
Intended her to do-and he directly
aid one of his clammy, ice-cold, bony