THE END. 1872 FAIRY TALES OF HANS CHRISTIAN ANDERSENA STORY by Hans Christian AndersenI
N the garden all the apple-trees were in blossom. They hadhastened to bring forth flowers
before they got green leaves, and inthe yard all the ducklings walked up and down, and the
cat too: itbasked in the sun and licked the sunshine from its own paws. Andwhen one looke
d at the fields, how beautifully the corn stood andhow green it shone, without comparison!
and there was a twittering anda fluttering of all the little birds, as if the day were a
greatfestival; and so it was, for it was Sunday. All the bells wereringing, and all the pe
ople went to church, looking cheerful, anddressed in their best clothes. There was a look
of cheerfulness oneverything. The day was so warm and beautiful that one might well havesa
id: "God's kindness to us men is beyond all limits." But insidethe church the pastor stood
in the pulpit, and spoke very loudly andangrily. He said that all men were wicked, and Go
d would punish themfor their sins, and that the wicked, when they died, would be castinto
hell, to burn for ever and ever. He spoke very excitedly,saying that their evil propensiti
es would not be destroyed, norwould the fire be extinguished, and they should never find r
est.That was terrible to hear, and he said it in such a tone ofconviction; he described he
ll to them as a miserable hole where allthe refuse of the world gathers. There was no air
beside the hotburning sulphur flame, and there was no ground under their feet; they,the wi
cked ones, sank deeper and deeper, while eternal silencesurrounded them! It was dreadful t
o hear all that, for the preacherspoke from his heart, and all the people in the church we
re terrified.Meanwhile, the birds sang merrily outside, and the sun was shiningso beautifu
lly warm, it seemed as though every little flower said:"God, Thy kindness towards us all i
s without limits." Indeed,outside it was not at all like the pastor's sermon.The same even
ing, upon going to bed, the pastor noticed his wifesitting there quiet and pensive."What i
s the matter with you?" he asked her."Well, the matter with me is," she said, "that I cann
ot collect mythoughts, and am unable to grasp the meaning of what you said to-dayin church
- that there are so many wicked people, and that theyshould burn eternally. Alas! eternall
y- how long! I am only a womanand a sinner before God, but I should not have the heart to
let eventhe worst sinner burn for ever, and how could our Lord to do so, whois so infinite
ly good, and who knows how the wickedness comes fromwithout and within? No, I am unable to
imagine that, although yousay so."It was autumn; the trees dropped their leaves, the earn
est andsevere pastor sat at the bedside of a dying person. A pious,faithful soul closed he
r eyes for ever; she was the pastor's wife...."If any one shall find rest in the grave and
mercy before ourLord you shall certainly do so," said the pastor. He folded herhands and
read a psalm over the dead woman.