nkets He gives the earth in winter get smaller and smaller as
the warm weather comes, little by little, day by day."

"And then a hard frost comes, grandfather," said Ivan.

"God knows all about that, little one," said old Peter, "and it's for
the best. It's good to have a nip or two in the spring, to make you
feel alive. Perhaps it's His way of telling the earth to wake up. For
the whole earth is only His little one after all."

That night, when it was story-time, Ivan and Maroosia consulted
together; and when old Peter asked what the story was to be, they were
ready with an answer.

"The snow is all melting away," said Ivan.

"The summer is coming," said Maroosia.

"We'd like the tale of the little snow girl," said Ivan.

"'The Little Daughter of the Snow,'" said Maroosia.

Old Peter shook out his pipe, and closed his eyes under his bushy
eyebrows, thinking for a minute. Then he began.

THE LITTLE DAUGHTER OF THE SNOW.

There were once an old man, as old as I am, perhaps, and an old woman,
his wife, and they lived together in a hut, in a village on the edge
of the forest. There were many people in the village; quite a town it
was--eight huts at least, thirty or forty souls, good company to be
had for crossing the road. But the old man and the old woman were
unhappy, in spite of living like that in the very middle of the world.
And why do you think they were unhappy? They were unhappy because they
had no little Vanya and no little Maroosia. Think of that. Some would
say they were better off without them.

"Would you say that, grandfather?" asked Maroosia.

"You are a stupid little pigeon," said old Peter, and he went on.

Well, these two were very unhappy. All the other huts had babies in
them--yes, and little ones playing about in the road outside, and
having to be shouted at when any one came driving by. But there were
no babies in their hut, and the old woman never had to go to the door
to see where her little one had strayed to, because she had no little
one.

And these two, the old man and the old woman, used to stand whole
hours, just peeping through their window to watch the children playing
outside. They had dogs and a cat, and cocks and hens, but none of
these made up for having no children. These two would just stand and
watch the children of the other huts. The dogs would bark, but they
took no notice; and the cat would curl up against them, but they never
felt her; and as for the co