to the wide world! Birds would build nests among my branches; and
when there was a breeze, I could nod as grandly as the others there."

He had no delight at all in the sunshine, or in the birds, or the red
clouds which morning and evening sailed above him.

When now it was winter and the snow all around lay glittering white,
a hare would often come leaping along, and jump right over the little
Tree. Oh, that made him so angry! But two winters went by, and with
the third the Tree was so big that the hare had to go round it. "Oh, to
grow, to grow, to become big and old, and be tall," thought the Tree:
"that, after all, is the most delightful thing in the world!"

In autumn the wood-cutters always came and felled some of the largest
trees. This happened every year, and the young Pine Tree, that was now
quite well grown, trembled at the sight; for the great stately trees
fell to the earth with noise and cracking, the branches were lopped off,
and the trees looked quite bare, they were so long and thin; you would
hardly know them for trees, and then they were laid on carts, and horses
dragged them out of the wood.

Where did they go to? What became of them?

In spring, when the Swallow and the Stork came, the Tree asked them,
"Don't you know where they have been taken? Have you not met them
anywhere?"

The Swallow did not know anything about it; but the Stork looked
doubtful, nodded his head, and said, "Yes; I have it; I met many new
ships as I was flying from Egypt; on the ships were splendid masts, and
I dare say it was they that smelt so of pine. I wish you joy, for they
lifted themselves on high in fine style!"

"Oh, were I but old enough to fly across the sea! How does the sea
really look? and what is it like?"

"Aye, that takes a long time to tell," said the Stork, and away he went.

"Rejoice in thy youth!" said the Sunbeams, "rejoice in thy hearty
growth, and in the young life that is in thee!"

And the Wind kissed the Tree, and the Dew wept tears over him, but the
Pine Tree understood it not.

II. CHRISTMAS IN THE WOODS

When Christmas came, quite young trees were cut down; trees which were
not even so large or of the same age as this Pine Tree, who had no rest
or peace, but always wanted to be off. These young trees, and they were
always the finest looking, always kept their branches; they were laid on
carts, and the horses drew them out of the wood.

"Where are they going to?" asked the Pine T