came, nor the Summer. The Autumn gave golden fruit
to every garden, but to the Giant's garden she gave none. "He is too
selfish," she said. So it was always Winter there, and the North Wind,
and the Hail, and the Frost, and the Snow danced about through the
trees.

One morning the Giant was lying awake in bed when he heard some lovely
music. It sounded so sweet to his ears that he thought it must be the
King's musicians passing by. It was really only a little linnet singing
outside his window, but it was so long since he had heard a bird sing in
his garden that it seemed to him to be the most beautiful music in the
world. Then the Hail stopped dancing over his head, and the North Wind
ceased roaring, and a delicious perfume came to him through the open
casement. "I believe the Spring has come at last," said the Giant; and
he jumped out of bed and looked out.

What did he see?

He saw a most wonderful sight. Through a little hole in the wall the
children had crept in and they were sitting in the branches of trees. In
every tree that he could see there was a little child. And the trees
were so glad to have the children back again that they had covered
themselves with blossoms, and were waving their arms gently above the
children's heads. The birds were flying about and twittering with
delight, and the flowers were looking up through the green grass and
laughing. It was a lovely scene, only in one corner it was still Winter.
It was the farthest corner of the garden, and in it was standing a
little boy. He was so small that he could not reach up to the branches
of the tree, and he was wandering all around it, crying bitterly. The
poor tree was still quite covered with frost and snow, and the North
Wind was blowing and roaring above it. "Climb up! little boy," said the
tree, and it bent its branches down as low as it could; but the boy was
too tiny.

And the Giant's heart melted as he looked out. "How selfish I have
been!" he said; "now I know why the Spring would not come here. I will
put that poor little boy on the top of the tree, and then I will knock
down the wall, and my garden shall be the children's playground for ever
and ever." He was really very sorry for what he had done.

So he crept downstairs and opened the front door quite softly, and went
out into the garden. But when the children saw him they all ran away.
Only the little boy did not run, for his eyes were so full of tears that
he did not see the Gia