lf up
in great masses, and of these huts had been built in the form of
beehives, some of them spacious as the old "Hun's Graves"--others only
containing room enough to hold two or four men. But it was not dark,
for the northern lights flamed red and blue, like a great continual
firework; and the snow glistened and gleamed, so that the night here
was one long, flaming, twilight hour. When the gleam was brightest,
the natives came in crowds, wonderful to behold in their rough, hairy,
fur dresses; and they rode in sledges formed of blocks of ice, and
brought with them furs and peltry in great bundles, so that the snow
houses were furnished with warm carpets; and, in turn, the furs also
served for coverlets when the sailors went to bed under their roofs of
snow, while outside it froze in far different fashion than here with
us in the winter. In our regions it was still the late autumn-time;
and they thought of that up yonder, and often pictured to themselves
the yellow leaves on the trees of home. The clock showed that it was
evening, and time to go to sleep; and in the huts two men already had
stretched themselves out, seeking rest. The younger of these had his
best, dearest treasure, that he had brought from home--the Bible,
which his grandmother had given him on his departure. Every night the
sacred volume rested beneath his head, and he knew from his childish
years what was written in it. Every day he read in the book, and often
the holy words came into his mind where it is written, "If I take the
wings of the morning, and flee into the uttermost parts of the sea,
even there Thou art with me, and Thy right hand shall uphold me;" and,
under the influence of the eternal word and of the true faith, he
closed his eyes, and sleep came upon him, and dreams--the
manifestation of Providence to the spirit. The soul lived and was
working while the body was enjoying its rest: he felt this life, and
it seemed to him as if dear old well-known melodies were sounding; as
if the mild breezes of summer were playing around him; and over his
bed he beheld a brightness, as if something were shining in through
the crust of snow. He lifted up his head, and behold, the bright gleam
was no ripple down from the snowy roof, but came from the mighty
pinions of an angel, into whose beaming face he was gazing. As if from
the cup of a lily the angel arose from among the leaves of the Bible,
and stretching out his arm, the walls of the snow hut sunk d