d all were living snowflakes.

Little Gerda repeated the Lord's Prayer, and the cold was so great that
she could see her own breath come out of her mouth like steam, as she
uttered the words. The steam appeared to increase as she continued her
prayer, till it took the shape of little angels, who grew larger the
moment they touched the earth. They all wore helmets on their heads and
carried spears and shields. Their number continued to increase more and
more, and by the time Gerda had finished her prayers a whole legion
stood round her. They thrust their spears into the terrible snowflakes
so that they shivered into a hundred pieces, and little Gerda could go
forward with courage and safety. The angels stroked her hands and feet,
so that she felt the cold less as she hastened on to the Snow Queen's
castle.

But now we must see what Kay is doing. In truth he thought not of little
Gerda, and least of all that she could be standing at the front of the
palace.

SEVENTH STORY

OF THE PALACE OF THE SNOW QUEEN AND WHAT HAPPENED THERE AT LAST

The walls of the palace were formed of drifted snow, and the windows and
doors of cutting winds. There were more than a hundred rooms in it, all
as if they had been formed of snow blown together. The largest of them
extended for several miles. They were all lighted up by the vivid light
of the aurora, and were so large and empty, so icy cold and glittering!

There were no amusements here; not even a little bear's ball, when the
storm might have been the music, and the bears could have danced on
their hind legs and shown their good manners. There were no pleasant
games of snapdragon, or touch, nor even a gossip over the tea table for
the young-lady foxes. Empty, vast, and cold were the halls of the Snow
Queen.

The flickering flames of the northern lights could be plainly seen,
whether they rose high or low in the heavens, from every part of the
castle. In the midst of this empty, endless hall of snow was a frozen
lake, broken on its surface into a thousand forms; each piece resembled
another, because each was in itself perfect as a work of art, and in the
center of this lake sat the Snow Queen when she was at home. She called
the lake "The Mirror of Reason," and said that it was the best, and
indeed the only one, in the world.

[Illustration: In the center of the lake sat the Snow Queen]

Little Kay was quite blue with cold,--indeed, almost black,--but he did
not feel it; for