n last Christmas Eve
through the glass doors of the rich merchant's house. Hundreds of wax
tapers lighted up the green branches, and tiny painted figures, such as
she had seen in the shop windows, looked down from the tree upon her.
The child stretched out her hands towards them in delight, and in that
moment the light of the match was quenched. Still, however, the
Christmas candles burned higher and higher--she beheld them beaming
like stars in heaven. One of them fell, the lights streaming behind
it like a long, fiery tail.

[Illustration]

"Now someone is dying," said the little girl softly, for she had been
told by her old grandmother--the only person who had ever been kind to
her, and who was now dead--that whenever a star falls an immortal spirit
returns to God who gave it.

She struck yet another match against the wall. It flamed up, and,
surrounded by its light, appeared before her that same dear grandmother,
gentle and loving as always, but bright and happy as she had never
looked during her lifetime.

"Grandmother!" exclaimed the child, "Oh, take me with you! I know you
will leave me as soon as the match goes out. You will vanish like the
warm fire in the stove, like the splendid New Year's feast, like the
beautiful large Christmas tree!" And she hastily lighted all the
remaining matches in the bundle, lest her grandmother should disappear.
And the matches burned with such a blaze of splendor, that noonday could
scarcely have been brighter. Never had the good old grandmother looked
so tall and stately, so beautiful and kind. She took the little girl in
her arms, and they both flew together--joyfully and gloriously they
flew--higher and higher, till they were in that place where neither
cold, nor hunger, nor pain is ever known--they were in Paradise.

But in the cold morning hour, crouching in the corner of the wall, the
poor little girl was found--her cheeks glowing, her lips smiling--frozen
to death on the last night of the Old Year. The New Year's sun shone on
the lifeless child. Motionless she sat there with the matches in her
lap, one bundle of them quite burnt out.

"She has been trying to warm herself, poor thing!" the people said; but
no one knew of the sweet visions she had beheld, or how gloriously she
and her grandmother were celebrating their New Year's festival.

BEAUTY AND THE BEAST

[Illustration]

There was once a Merchant who had three daughters, the youngest of whom
was so