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The Ice-Maiden [And 3 Other Stories] Tr. by Mrs. Bushby
The Ice-Maiden Tr by Mrs Bushby - And 3 Other Stories Author:Hans Christian Andersen Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: PSYCHE. T the dawn of day through the red atmosphere shines a large star, morning's clearest star; its ray quivers upon the white wall, as if it would there i... more »nscribe what it had to relate— what in the course of a thousand years it has witnessed here and there on our revolving earth. Listen to one of its histories:— Lately (its lately is a century ago to us human beings) my rays watched a young artist; it was in the territory of the Pope, in the capital of the world—Rome. Much has changed in the flight of years, but nothing so rapidly asthe change which takes place in the human form between childhood and old age. The imperial city was then, as now, in ruins; fig-trees and laurels grew among the fallen marble pillars, and over the shattered bath-chambers, with their gold-enamelled walls; the Colosseum was a ruin ; the bells of the churches rang, incense perfumed the air, processions moved with lights and splendid canopies through the streets. The Holy Church ruled all, and art was patronised by it. At Rome lived the world's greatest painter, Raphael; there also lived the first sculptor of his age, Michael Angelo. The Pope himself paid homage to these two artists, and honoured them by his visits. Art was appreciated, admired, and recompensed. But even then not all that was great and worthy of praise was known and brought forward. In a narrow little street stood an old house; it had formerly been a temple, and there dwelt a young artist. He was poor and unknown; however, he had a few young friends, artists like himself, young in mind, in hopes, in thoughts. They told him that he was rich in talent, but that he was a fool, since he never wouldbelieve in his own powers. He always destroyed what he had formed in clay; he was never satisfied with anything he did, and never had an...« less