st beautiful places
in the world, and can you tell us all about them? and have you been in
the storeroom, where cheeses lie on the shelf, and hams hang from
the ceiling? One can run about on tallow candles there, and go in thin
and come out fat."

"I know nothing of that place," said the fir-tree, "but I know the
wood where the sun shines and the birds sing." And then the tree
told the little mice all about its youth. They had never heard such an
account in their lives; and after they had listened to it attentively,
they said, "What a number of things you have seen? you must have
been very happy."

"Happy!" exclaimed the fir-tree, and then as he reflected upon
what he had been telling them, he said, "Ah, yes! after all those were
happy days." But when he went on and related all about Christmas-eve,
and how he had been dressed up with cakes and lights, the mice
said, "How happy you must have been, you old fir-tree."

"I am not old at all," replied the tree, "I only came from the
forest this winter, I am now checked in my growth."

"What splendid stories you can relate," said the little mice.
And the next night four other mice came with them to hear what the
tree had to tell. The more he talked the more he remembered, and
then he thought to himself, "Those were happy days, but they may
come again. Humpty Dumpty fell down stairs, and yet he married the
princess; perhaps I may marry a princess too." And the fir-tree
thought of the pretty little birch-tree that grew in the forest, which
was to him a real beautiful princess.

"Who is Humpty Dumpty?" asked the little mice. And then the tree
related the whole story; he could remember every single word, and
the little mice was so delighted with it, that they were ready to jump
to the top of the tree. The next night a great many more mice made
their appearance, and on Sunday two rats came with them; but they
said, it was not a pretty story at all, and the little mice were
very sorry, for it made them also think less of it.

"Do you know only one story?" asked the rats.

"Only one," replied the fir-tree; "I heard it on the happiest
evening of my life; but I did not know I was so happy at the time."

"We think it is a very miserable story," said the rats. "Don't you
know any story about bacon, or tallow in the storeroom."

"No," replied the tree.

"Many thanks to you then," replied the rats, and they marched off.

The little mice also kept away after this, and the tre