cried the robbers,seizing the horse by the bridle, and dragging the two riders fromits back.
  The priest had nothing to defend himself with, but the knife hehad taken from Helga, and with this he struck out right and left.One of the robbers raised his axe against him; but the young priestsprang on one side, and avoided the blow, which fell with greatforce on the horse's neck, so that the blood gushed forth, and theanimal sunk to the ground. Then Helga seemed suddenly to awake fromher long, deep reverie; she threw herself hastily upon the dyinganimal. The priest placed himself before her, to defend and shelterher; but one of the robbers swung his iron axe against the Christian'shead with such force that it was dashed to pieces, the blood andbrains were scattered about, and he fell dead upon the ground. Thenthe robbers seized beautiful Helga by her white arms and slenderwaist; but at that moment the sun went down, and as its last raydisappeared, she was changed into the form of a frog. A greenish whitemouth spread half over her face; her arms became thin and slimy; whilebroad hands, with webbed fingers, spread themselves out like fans.Then the robbers, in terror, let her go, and she stood among them, ahideous monster; and as is the nature of frogs to do, she hopped up ashigh as her own size, and disappeared in the thicket. Then the robbersknew that this must be the work of an evil spirit or some secretsorcery, and, in a terrible fright, they ran hastily from the spot.
  The full moon had already risen, and was shining in all herradiant splendor over the earth, when from the thicket, in the form ofa frog, crept poor Helga. She stood still by the corpse of theChristian priest, and the carcase of the dead horse. She looked atthem with eyes that seemed to weep, and from the frog's head cameforth a croaking sound, as when a child bursts into tears. She threwherself first upon one, and then upon the other; brought water inher hand, which, from being webbed, was large and hollow, and pouredit over them; but they were dead, and dead they would remain. Sheunderstood that at last. Soon wild animals would come and tear theirdead bodies; but no, that must not happen. Then she dug up theearth, as deep as she was able, that she might prepare a grave forthem. She had nothing but a branch of a tree and her two hands,between the fingers of which the webbed skin stretched, and theywere torn by the work, while the blood ran down her hands. She sawat last that her work would be useless, more than she couldaccomplish; so she fetched more water, and washed the face of thedead, and then covered it with fresh green leaves; she also broughtlarge boughs and spread over him, and scattered dried leaves betweenthe branches. Then she brought the heaviest stones that she couldcarry, and laid them over the dead body, filling up the creviceswith moss, till she thought she had fenced in his resting-placestrongly enough. The difficult task had employed her the wholenight; and as the sun broke forth, there stood the beautiful Helgain all her loveliness, with her bleeding hands, and, for the firsttime, with tears on her maiden cheeks. It was, in this transformation,as if two natures were striving together within her; her whole frametrembled, and she looked around her as if she had just awoke from apainful dream. She leaned for support against the trunk of a slendertree, and at last climbed to the topmost branches, like a cat, andseated herself firmly upon them. She remained there the whole day,sitting alone, like a frightened squirrel, in the silent solitude ofthe wood, where the rest and stillness is as the calm of death.
  Butterflies fluttered around her, and close by were severalant-hills, each with its hundreds of busy little creatures movingquickly to and fro. In the air, danced myriads of gnats, swarm uponswarm, troops of buzzing flies, ladybirds, dragon-flies with goldenwings, and other little winged creatures. The worm crawled forthfrom the moist ground, and the moles crept out; but, exceptingthese, all around had the stillness of death: but when people saythis, they do not quite understand themselves what they mean. Nonenoticed Helga but a flock of magpies, which flew chattering roundthe top of the tree on which she sat. These birds hopped close toher on the branches with bold curiosity. A glance from her eyes wasa signal to frighten them away, and they were not clever enough tofind out who she was; indeed she hardly knew herself.
  When the sun was near setting, and the evening's twilight about tocommence, the approaching transformation aroused her to freshexertion. She let herself down gently from the tree, and, as thelast sunbeam vanished, she stood again in the wrinkled form of a frog,with the torn, webbed skin on her hands, but her eyes now gleamed withmore radiant beauty than they had ever possessed in her most beautifulform of loveliness; they were now pure, mild maidenly eyes thatshone forth in the face of a frog. They showed the existence of deepfeeling and a human heart, and the beauteous eyes overflowed withtears, weeping precious drops that lightened the heart.
  On the raised mound which she had made as a grave for the deadpriest, she found the cross made of the branches of a tree, the lastwork of him who now lay dead and cold beneath it. A sudden thoughtcame to Helga, and she lifted up the cross and planted it upon thegrave, between the stones that covered him and the dead horse. The sadrecollection brought the tears to her eyes, and in this gentlespirit she traced the same sign in the sand round the grave; and asshe formed, with both her hands, the sign of the cross, the web skinfell from them like a torn glove. She washed her hands in the water ofthe spring, and gazed with astonishment at their delicate whiteness.Again she made the holy sign in the air, between herself and thedead man; her lips trembled, her tongue moved, and the name whichshe in her ride through the forest had so often heard spoken, roseto her lips, and she uttered the words, "Jesus Christ." Then thefrog skin fell from her; she was once more a lovely maiden. Her headbent wearily, her tired limbs required rest, and then she slept.
  Her sleep, however, was short. Towards midnight, she awoke; beforeher stood the dead horse, prancing and full of life, which shone forthfrom his eyes and from his wounded neck. Close by his side appearedthe murdered Christian priest, more beautiful than Baldur, as theViking's wife had said; but now he came as if in a flame of fire. Suchgravity, such stern justice, such a piercing glance shone from hislarge, gentle eyes, that it seemed to penetrate into every corner ofher heart. Beautiful Helga trembled at the look, and her memoryreturned with a power as if it had been the day of judgment. Everygood deed that had been done for her, every loving word that hadbeen said, were vividly before her mind. She understood now thatlove had kept her here during the day of her trial; while the creatureformed of dust and clay, soul and spirit, had wrestled and struggledwith evil. She acknowledged that she had only followed the impulses ofan evil disposition, that she had done nothing to cure herself;everything had been given her, and all had happened as it were bythe ordination of Providence. She bowed herself humbly, confessedher great imperfections in the sight of Him who can read every faultof the heart, and then the priest spoke. "Daughter of the moorland,thou hast come from the swamp and the marshy earth, but from this thoushalt arise. The sunlight shining into thy inmost soul proves theorigin from which thou hast really sprung, and has restored the bodyto its natural form. I am come to thee from the land of the dead,and thou also must pass through the valley to reach the holy mountainswhere mercy and perfection dwell. I cannot lead thee to Hedeby thatthou mayst receive Christian baptism, for first thou must remove thethick veil with which the waters of the moorland are shrouded, andbring forth from its depths the living author of thy being and thylife. Till this is done, thou canst not receive consecration."
  Then he lifted her on the horse and gave her a golden censer,similar to those she had already seen at the Viking's house. A sweetperfume arose from it, while the open wound in the forehead of theslain priest, shone with the rays of a diamond. He took the cross fromthe grave, and held it aloft, and now they rode through the air overthe rustling trees, over the hills where warriors lay buried each byhis dead war-horse; and the brazen monumental figures rose up andgalloped forth, and stationed themselves on the summits of thehills. The golden crescent on their foreheads, fastened with goldenknots, glittered in the moonlight, and their mantles floated in thewind. The dragon, that guards buried treasure, lifted his head andgazed after them. The goblins and the satyrs peeped out from beneaththe hills, and flitted to and fro in the fields, waving blue, red, andgreen torches, like the glowing sparks in burning paper. Over woodlandand heath, flood and fen, they flew on, till they reached the wildmoor, over which they hovered in broad circles. The Christian priestheld the cross aloft, and it glittered like gold, while from hislips sounded pious prayers. Beautiful Helga's voice joined with his inthe hymns he sung, as a child joins in her mother's song. She swungthe censer, and a wonderful fragrance of incense arose from it; sopowerful, that the reeds and rushes of the moor burst forth intoblossom. Each germ came forth from the deep ground: all that hadlife raised itself. Blooming water-lilies spread themselves forth likea carpet of wrought flowers, and upon them lay a slumbering woman,young and beautiful. Helga fancied that it was her own image she sawreflected in the still water. But it was her mother she beheld, thewife of the Marsh King, the princess from the land of the Nile.
  The dead Christian priest desired that the sleeping woman shouldbe lifted on the horse, but the horse sank beneath the load, as ifhe had been a funeral pall fluttering in the wind. But the sign of thecross made the airy phantom strong, and then the three rode awayfrom the marsh to firm ground.
  At the same moment the cock crew in the Viking's castle, and thedream figures dissolved and floated away in the air, but mother anddaughter stood opposite to each other.
  "Am I looking at my own image in the deep water?"