第201章
《安徒生童话英文版 全TXT版》章节:第201章,宠文网网友提供全文无弹窗免费在线阅读。!
her conscience felt satisfied on this question, and shefound it a comfort to her, that on the Christian Sabbath she couldhave an hour for her own prayers undisturbed. The music and singing ofthe congregation sounded in her ears while at work in her kitchen,till the place itself became sacred to her. Then she would read in theOld Testament, that treasure and comfort to her people, and it wasindeed the only Scriptures she could read. Faithfully in her inmostthoughts had she kept the words of her father to her teacher whenshe left the school, and the vow he had made to her dying motherthat she should never receive Christian baptism. The New Testamentmust remain to her a sealed book, and yet she knew a great deal of itsteaching, and the sound of the gospel truths still lingered amongthe recollections of her childhood.
One evening she was sitting in a corner of the dining-room,while her master read aloud. It was not the gospel he read, but an oldstory-book; therefore she might stay and listen to him. The storyrelated that a Hungarian knight, who had been taken prisoner by aTurkish pasha, was most cruelly treated by him. He caused him to beyoked with his oxen to the plough, and driven with blows from the whiptill the blood flowed, and he almost sunk with exhaustion and pain.The faithful wife of the knight at home gave up all her jewels,mortgaged her castle and land, and his friends raised large sums tomake up the ransom demanded for his release, which was most enormouslyhigh. It was collected at last, and the knight released from slaveryand misery. Sick and exhausted, he reached home.
Ere long came another summons to a struggle with the foes ofChristianity. The still living knight heard the sound; he could endureno more, he had neither peace nor rest. He caused himself to be liftedon his war-horse; the color came into his cheeks, and his strengthreturned to him again as he went forth to battle and to victory. Thevery same pasha who had yoked him to the plough, became hisprisoner, and was dragged to a dungeon in the castle. But an hourhad scarcely passed, when the knight stood before the captive pasha,and inquired, "What do you suppose awaiteth thee?"
"I know," replied the pasha; "retribution."
"Yes, the retribution of a Christian," replied the knight. "Theteaching of Christ, the Teacher, commands us to forgive our enemies,to love our neighbors; for God is love. Depart in peace: return to thyhome. I give thee back to thy loved ones. But in future be mild andhumane to all who are in trouble."
Then the prisoner burst into tears, and exclaimed, "Oh how could Iimagine such mercy and forgiveness! I expected pain and torment. Itseemed to me so sure that I took poison, which I secretly carriedabout me; and in a few hours its effects will destroy me. I mustdie! Nothing can save me! But before I die, explain to me the teachingwhich is so full of love and mercy, so great and God-like. Oh, thatI may hear his teaching, and die a Christian!" And his prayer wasgranted.
This was the legend which the master read out of the oldstory-book. Every one in the house who was present listened, andshared the pleasure; but Sarah, the Jewish girl, sitting so still in acorner, felt her heart burn with excitement. Great tears came into hershining dark eyes; and with the same gentle piety with which she hadonce listened to the gospel while sitting on the form at school, shefelt its grandeur now, and the tears rolled down her cheeks. Thenthe last words of her dying mother rose before her, "Let not mychild become a Christian;" and with them sounded in her heart thewords of the law, "Honor thy father and thy mother."
"I am not admitted among the Christians," she said; "they mockme as a Jewish girl; the neighbors' boys did so last Sunday when Istood looking in through the open church door at the candles burningon the altar, and listening to the singing. Ever since I sat on theschool-bench I have felt the power of Christianity; a power which,like a sunbeam, streams into my heart, however closely I may closemy eyes against it. But I will not grieve thee, my mother, in thygrave. I will not be unfaithful to my father's vow. I will not readthe Bible of the Christian. I have the God of my fathers, and in Him Iwill trust."
And again years passed by. Sarah's master died, and his widowfound herself in such reduced circumstances that she wished to dismissher servant maid; but Sarah refused to leave the house, and she becamea true support in time of trouble, and kept the household togetherby working till late at night, with her busy hands, to earn theirdaily bread. Not a relative came forward to assist them, and the widowwas confined to a sick bed for months and grew weaker from day to day.Sarah worked hard, but contrived to spare time to amuse her andwatch by the sick bed. She was gentle and pious, an angel ofblessing in that house of poverty.
"My Bible lies on the table yonder," said the sick woman one dayto Sarah. "Read me something from it; the night appears so long, andmy spirit thirsts to hear the word of God."
And Sarah bowed her head. She took the book, and folded her handover the Bible of the Christians, and at last opened it, and read tothe sick woman. Tears stood in her eyes as she read, and they shonewith brightness, for in her heart it was light.
"Mother," she murmured, "thy child may not receive Christianbaptism, nor be admitted into the congregation of Christian people.Thou hast so willed it, and I will respect thy command. We aretherefore still united here on earth; but in the next world there willbe a higher union, even with God Himself, who leads and guides Hispeople till death. He came down from heaven to earth to suffer for us,that we should bring forth the fruits of repentance. I understand itnow. I know not how I learnt this truth, unless it is through the nameof Christ." Yet she trembled as she pronounced the holy name. Shestruggled against these convictions of the truth of Christianity forsome days, till one evening while watching her mistress she wassuddenly taken very ill; her limbs tottered under her, and she sankfainting by the bedside of the sick woman.
"Poor Sarah," said the neighbors; "she is overcome with hardwork and night watching." And then they carried her to the hospitalfor the sick poor. There she died; and they bore her to herresting-place in the earth, but not to the churchyard of theChristians. There was no place for the Jewish girl; but they dug agrave for her outside the wall. And God's sun, which shines upon thegraves of the churchyard of the Christians, also throws its beams onthe grave of the Jewish maiden beyond the wall. And when the psalms ofthe Christians sound across the churchyard, their echo reaches herlonely resting-place; and she who sleeps there will be countedworthy at the resurrection, through the name of Christ the Lord, whosaid to His disciples, "John baptized you with water, but I willbaptize you with the Holy Ghost."
THE END.
1872
FAIRY TALES OF HANS CHRISTIAN ANDERSEN
THE JUMPER
by Hans Christian Andersen
THE Flea, the Grasshopper, and the Skipjack once wanted to seewhich of them could jump highest; and they invited the whole world,and whoever else would come, to see the grand sight. And there thethree famous jumpers were met together in the room.
"Yes, I'll give my daughter to him who jumps highest," said theKing, "for it would be mean to let these people jump for nothing."
The Flea stepped out first. He had very pretty manners, andbowed in all directions, for he had young ladies' blood in hisveins, and was accustomed to consort only with human beings; andthat was of great consequence.
Then came the Grasshopper: he was certainly much heavier, but hehad a good figure, and wore the green uniform that was born withhim. This person, moreover, maintained that he belonged to a veryold family in the land of Egypt, and that he was highly esteemedthere. He had just come from the field, he said, and had been put intoa card house three stories high, and all made of picture cards withthe figures turned inwards. There were doors and windows in the house,cut in the body of the Queen of Hearts.
"I sing so," he said, "that sixteen native crickets who havechirped from their youth up, and have never yet had a card house oftheir own, would become thinner than they are with envy if they wereto hear me."
Both of them, the Flea and the Grasshopper, took care toannounce who they were, and that they considered themselves entitledto marry a Princess.
The Skipjack said nothing, but it was said of him that hethought all the more; and directly the Yard Dog had smelt at him hewas ready to assert that the Skipjack was of good family, and formedfrom the breastbone of an undoubted goose. The old councillor, who hadreceived three medals for holding his tongue, declared that theSkipjack possessed the gift of prophecy; one could tell by his boneswhether there would be a severe winter or a mild one; and that'smore than one can always tell from the breastbone of the man whowrites the almanac.
"I shall not say anything more," said the old King. "I only goon quietly, and always think the best."
Now they were to take their jump. The Flea sprang so high thatno one could see him; and then they asserted that he had not jumped atall. That was very mean. The Grasshopper only sprang half as high, buthe sprang straight into the King's face, and the King declared thatwas horribly rude. The Skipjack stood a long time considering; at lastpeople thought that he could not jump at all.
"I only hope he's not become unwell," said the Yard Dog, andthen he smelt at him again.