"I passed on in my course," said the Wind, "and he passed awayalso. He was not allowed to remain, and little Ida got over it,because she was obliged to do so. Proud, black horses, worth lookingat, were neighing in the stable. And they were locked up; for theadmiral, who had been sent by the king to inspect the new ship, andmake arrangements for its purchase, was loud in admiration of thesebeautiful horses. I heard it all," said the Wind, "for I accompaniedthe gentlemen through the open door of the stable, and strewedstalks of straw, like bars of gold, at their feet. Waldemar Daa wantedgold, and the admiral wished for the proud black horses; thereforehe praised them so much. But the hint was not taken, andconsequently the ship was not bought. It remained on the shore coveredwith boards,- a Noah's ark that never got to the water- Whir-r-r-r-and that was a pity.
  "In the winter, when the fields were covered with snow, and thewater filled with large blocks of ice which I had blown up to thecoast," continued the Wind, "great flocks of crows and ravens, darkand black as they usually are, came and alighted on the lonely,deserted ship. Then they croaked in harsh accents of the forest thatnow existed no more, of the many pretty birds' nests destroyed and thelittle ones left without a home; and all for the sake of that greatbit of lumber, that proud ship, that never sailed forth. I made thesnowflakes whirl till the snow lay like a great lake round the ship,and drifted over it. I let it hear my voice, that it might know whatthe storm has to say. Certainly I did my part towards teaching itseamanship.
  "That winter passed away, and another winter and summer bothpassed, as they are still passing away, even as I pass away. Thesnow drifts onwards, the apple-blossoms are scattered, the leavesfall,- everything passes away, and men are passing away too. But thegreat man's daughters are still young, and little Ida is a rose asfair to look upon as on the day when the shipbuilder first saw her.I often tumbled her long, brown hair, while she stood in the garden bythe apple-tree, musing, and not heeding how I strewed the blossomson her hair, and dishevelled it; or sometimes, while she stoodgazing at the red sun and the golden sky through the openingbranches of the dark, thick foliage of the garden trees. Her sisterJoanna was bright and slender as a lily; she had a tall and loftycarriage and figure, though, like her mother, rather stiff in back.She was very fond of walking through the great hall, where hung theportraits of her ancestors. The women were represented in dresses ofvelvet and silk, with tiny little hats, embroidered with pearls, ontheir braided hair. They were all handsome women. The gentlemenappeared clad in steel, or in rich cloaks lined with squirrel's fur;they wore little ruffs, and swords at their sides. Where wouldJoanna's place be on that wall some day? and how would he look,- hernoble lord and husband? This is what she thought of, and often spokeof in a low voice to herself. I heard it as I swept into the longhall, and turned round to come out again. Anna Dorothea, the palehyacinth, a child of fourteen, was quiet and thoughtful; her large,deep, blue eyes had a dreamy look, but a childlike smile stillplayed round her mouth. I was not able to blow it away, neither didI wish to do so. We have met in the garden, in the hollow lane, in thefield and meadow, where she gathered herbs and flowers which sheknew would be useful to her father in preparing the drugs and mixtureshe was always concocting. Waldemar Daa was arrogant and proud, buthe was also a learned man, and knew a great deal. It was no secret,and many opinions were expressed on what he did. In his fireplacethere was a fire, even in summer time. He would lock himself in hisroom, and for days the fire would be kept burning; but he did not talkmuch of what he was doing. The secret powers of nature are generallydiscovered in solitude, and did he not soon expect to find out the artof making the greatest of all good things- the art of making gold?