the sun had gone down, red as fire, leaving in
its wake enough colour to tint the whole sky, which was now rose
hued not only across that corner of it where the sun had just been
seen, but over its entire expanse. At the same time the waters of
Dove Lake had become as dark as mirror glass in the shadow of the
towering hills. In this black-looking water ran streaks of red
blood and molten gold.

It was the sort of night that makes one feel that the earth is not
worthy a glance; that only the heavens and the waters that mirror
them are worth seeing.

As Jan sat gazing out at the beauties of the light summer night he
suddenly began to wonder. Could it be that he saw aright? But it
actually looked as if the firmament were sinking. Anyway, to his
vision it was much nearer to the earth than usual.

Could it be possible that something had gone wrong? Surely his eyes
were not deceiving him! The great pink dome of sky was certainly
moving down toward the earth, and all the while it was becoming
hotter and more oppressive. He already felt the terrible heat that
seemed to come from the red-hot dome that was sinking toward him.

To be sure Jan had heard a good deal of talk about the coming
destruction of the world and had often pictured it as being
effected by means of thunder-storms and earthquakes that would hurl
the mountains into the seas and drive the waters of the lakes and
rivers over plains and valleys, so that all life would become
extinct. But he never imagined the end should come in this way: by
the earth's burial under the vault of heaven with its inhabitants
all dying from heat and suffocation! This, it seemed to him, was
the worst of all.

He put down his pipe, though it was only half-smoked, but remained
quietly seated in the one spot. For what else could he do? This was
not something which he could ward off--something he could run away
from. One could not take up arms and defend one's self against it,
nor find safety by creeping into cellars or caves. Even if one had
the power to empty all the oceans and lakes, their waters would not
suffice to quench the fires of the firmament. If one could uproot
the mountains and prop them, beam-like, against the sky, they could
not hold up this heavy dome if it was meant that it should sink.

Singularly enough no one but himself seemed to be aware of what was
happening.

Ah, look! What was that that went shooting up above the crest of
the hill over yonder? A lot of bla