Hans Christian Andersen

“ The more you ate, the more history, geography, and tables you knew. All this he believed then; but as he grew older and wiser and learnt more, he easily perceived that the delights of the Garden of Paradise must be far beyond all this.
"Oh, why did Eve take of the tree of knowledge! Why did Adam eat the forbidden fruit! If it had only been I it would not have happened! never would sin have entered the world!" ”

“ It was the Tree of Knowledge, of whose fruit Adam and Eve had eaten. From every leaf hung a shining red drop of dew; it was as if the tree wept tears of blood.
"Now let us get into the boat," said the Fairy. "We shall find refreshment on the swelling waters. The boat rocks, but it does not move from the spot; all the countries of the world will pass before our eyes." ”

“ He bit a hole in the leaf I gave you; that is his greeting to the Princess."
"Let us have something to eat now!" said the mother of the winds; and they all sat down to eat the roast stag, and the Prince sat by the side of the Eastwind, so they soon became good friends.
"I say," said the Prince, "just tell me who is this Princess, and where is the Garden of Paradise?"
"Oh ho!" said the Eastwind, "if that is where you want to go you must fly with me to-morrow. But I may as well tell you that no human being has been there since Adam and Eve's time. ”

“ When the Eastwind gave her the inscribed leaf from the phœnix her eyes sparkled with delight. She took the Prince's hand and led him into her palace, where the walls were the colour of the brightest tulips in the sunlight. The ceiling was one great shining flower, and the longer one gazed into it the deeper the calyx seemed to be. The Prince went to the window, and looking through one of the panes saw the Tree of Knowledge, with the Serpent, and Adam and Eve standing by.
"Are they not driven out?" ”

“ He called the fields and meadows "the green board."
"It was very rude of me to leave without saying good-bye to your mother and brothers," said the Prince.
"One is excused when one is asleep!" said the Eastwind, and they flew on faster than ever. You could mark their flight by the rustling of the trees as they passed over the woods; and whenever they crossed a lake, or the sea, the waves rose and the great ships dipped low down in the water, like floating swans. ”

“ The harpoons were plunged into the walruses' breasts and the steaming blood spurted out of them, like fountains, over the ice. Then I remembered my part of the game! I blew up and made my ships, the mountain-high icebergs, nip the boats; whew! how they whistled and how they screamed, but I whistled louder. They were obliged to throw the dead walruses, chests, and ropes out upon the ice! I shook the snowflakes over them and let them drift southward to taste the salt water. They will never come back to Behring Island! ”

“ The queen of the fairies lives there. The Island of Bliss, where death never enters, and where living is a delight, is there. Get on my back to-morrow and I will take you with me; I think I can manage it! But you mustn't talk now, I want to go to sleep."
When the Prince woke up in the early morning, he was not a little surprised to find that he was already high above the clouds. He was sitting on the back of the Eastwind, who was holding him carefully; they were so high up that woods and fields, rivers and lakes, looked like a large coloured map. ”

“ The fragrance in the scented air around grew stronger, the harps sounded sweeter than ever, and it seemed as if the millions of smiling heads in the hall where the Tree grew, nodded and sang, "One must know everything. Man is lord of the earth." ”

“ A fire was burning in the middle, big enough to roast a stag, which was in fact being done; a splendid stag with its huge antlers was stuck on a spit, being slowly turned round between the hewn trunks of two fir trees. An oldish woman, tall and strong enough to be a man dressed up, sat by the fire throwing on logs from time to time. ”

“ The Prince was so happy, and he saw a hundred times more than we have described.
"Can I stay here always?" he asked.
"That depends upon yourself," answered the Fairy. "If you do not, like Adam, allow yourself to be tempted to do what is forbidden, you can stay here always."
"I will not touch the apples on the Tree of Knowledge," said the Prince. "There are thousands of other fruits here as beautiful."
"Test yourself, and if you are not strong enough, go
The Fairy of the Garden now advanced to meet them ”

“ THERE was once a king's son; nobody had so many or such beautiful books as he had. He could read about everything which had ever happened in this world, and see it all represented in the most beautiful pictures. ”

“ Father and benefactor,' but they didn't mean what they said, and I went on ringing the bells and singing 'Tsing, tsang, tsu!'" "You're quite uproarious about it!" said the old woman. "It's a good thing you are going to the Garden of Paradise to-morrow; it always has a good effect on your behaviour. Mind you drink deep of the well of wisdom, and bring a little bottleful home to me."
"That I will," said the Eastwind. "But why have you put my brother from the south into the bag? Out with him! He must tell me about the phœnix ”

“ asked the Prince.
"Well, that's not so easy to answer when the question is stupidly put," said the woman. ”

“ They are just as frightened of them as you used to be of the cane behind the looking glass. I can double the boys up, I can tell you, and then they have to go into the bag; we don't stand upon ceremony, and there they have to stay; they can't get out to play their tricks till it suits me to let them. But here we have one of them." It was the Northwind who came in with an icy blast ”