| "It crackles and creaks
inside of me. It is so cold that it is a pleasure" said the
snowman. "When the wind bites you, then you know you're alive.
Look how the burning one gapes and stares." By "the burning
one" he meant the sun, which was just about to set. "But she
can't make me blink; I'll stare right back at her." |
"Det skrupknager i mig,
saa deiligt koldt er det!" sagde Sneemanden. "Vinden kan rigtignok
bide Liv i Een! Og hvor den Gloende der, hun gloer!" det var
Solen, han meente; den var lige ved at gaae ned. "Hun skal ikke
faae mig til at blinke, jeg kan nok holde paa Brokkerne!" |
| The snowman had two
triangular pieces of tile for eyes, and a children's rake for
a mouth, which meant that he had teeth. |
Det var to store, trekantede
Tagsteens Brokker, han havde til Øine; Munden var et Stykke
af en gammel Rive, derfor havde han Tænder. |
| His birth had been greeted
by the boys with shouts of joy, to the sound of sleigh bells
and the cracking of whips. |
Han var født under Hurraraab
af Drengene, hilset af Bjældeklang og Pidskesmæld fra Kanerne.
|
| The sun set and the
moon rose, full and round, beautiful in the blue evening sky.
|
Solen gik ned, Fuldmaanen
stod op, rund og stor, klar og deilig i den blaae Luft. |
| "There she is again,
just in another place. She couldn't stay away." The snowman
thought that the sun had returned. "I guess, that I have cooled
her off. But now she's welcome to stay up there, for it is pleasant
with a bit of light, so that I can see. If only I knew how to
move and get about, then I would go down to the lake and slide
on the ice as the boys do. But I don't know how to run." |
"Der har vi hende igjen
fra en anden Kant!" sagde Sneemanden. Han troede, at det var
Solen, der viste sig igjen. "Jeg har vænnet hende af med at
gloe! nu kan hun hænge der og lyse op, at jeg kan see mig selv.
Vidste jeg bare, hvorledes man bærer sig ad med at flytte sig!
jeg vilde saa gjerne flytte mig! kunde jeg det, vilde jeg nu
ned at glide paa Isen, som jeg saae Drengene gjøre det; men
jeg forstaaer ikke at løbe!" |
| "Out! Out! Out!" barked
the old watchdog, who was chained to his doghouse. He was hoarse
and had been so ever since he had been refused entrance to the
house. That was a long time ago now; but when the dog lived
inside, it had lain next to the stove. "The sun will teach you
to run. I saw what happened to last year's snowman and to the
one the year before last. . . . Out! Out! Out! . . . They are
all gone." |
"Væk! væk!" bjæffede
den gamle Lænkehund; han var noget hæs, det havde han været,
siden han var Stuehund og laae under Kakkelovnen. "Solen vil
nok lære Dig at løbe! det saae jeg med din Formand ifjor og
med hans Formand; væk! væk! og væk ere de Alle!" |
| "What do you mean by
that, comrade?" asked the snowman. "How can that round one up
there teach me to run?" By "that round one," he meant the moon.
"She ran when I looked straight into her eyes. Now she is trying
to sneak back from another direction." |
"Jeg forstaaer Dig ikke,
kammerat!" sagde Sneemanden; "skal den deroppe lære mig at løbe?"
Han meente Maanen; "ja hun løb jo rigtignok før, da jeg saae
stift paa hende, nu lister hun fra en anden Kant!" |
| "You are ignorant,"
said the watchdog. "But you have only just been put together.
The round one up there is called the moon. The other one is
the sun and she will be back tomorrow. She will teach you how
to run, right down to the lake. I've got a pain in my left hind
leg and that means the weather is about to change." |
"Du veed Ingenting!"
sagde Lænkehunden, "men Du er da ogsaa nylig klattet op! Den
Du nu seer, kaldes Maanen, den der gik, var Solen, hun kommer
igjen imorgen, hun lærer Dig nok at løbe ned i Voldgraven. Vi
faae snart Forandring i Veiret, det kan jeg mærke paa mit venstre
Bagbeen, det jager i det. Vi faae Veirskifte!" |
| "I don't understand
him," thought the snowman, "but I have a feeling that he was
saying something unpleasant. The hot one--the one that was here
a moment ago and then went away, the one he called the sun--is
no friend of mine. Not that she's done me any harm; it's just
a feeling I have." |
"Jeg forstaaer ham ikke!"
sagde Sneemanden, "men jeg har en Fornemmelse af, at det er
noget Ubehageligt, han siger. Hun, der gloede og gik ned, som
han kalder Solen, hun er heller ikke min Ven, det har jeg paa
Følelsen!" |
| |
"Væk! væk!" bjæffede
Lænkehunden, gik tre Gange rundt om sig selv og lagde sig saa
ind i sit Huus for at sove. |
| The weather did change.
In the morning there was a heavy fog. During the day it lifted,
the wind started to blow, and there was frost. The sun came
out and what a beautiful sight it was! The hoarfrost made the
forest appear like a coral reef; every tree and bush looked
as if it were decked with white flowers. In the summer when
they have leaves, you cannot see what intricate and lovely patterns
the branches make. But now they looked like lace and were so
brilliantly white that they seemed to radiate light. The weeping
birch tree swayed in the wind as it did in summer. Oh, it was
marvelous to see. As the sun rose higher in the sky its light
grew sharper and its rays made everything appear as if it were
covered with diamond dust. In the blanket of snow that lay upon
the ground were large diamonds, blinking like a thousand small
candles, whose light was whiter than snow. |
Der kom virkelig Forandring
i Veiret. En Taage, saa tyk og klam, lagde sig i Morgenstunden
hen over hele Egnen; i Dagningen luftede det; Vinden var saa
isnende, Frosten tog ordenlig Tag, men hvor det var et Syn at
see, da Solen stod op. Alle Træer og Buske stode med Riimfrost;
det var som en heel Skov af hvide Koraller, det var som om alle
Grene vare overdængede af straalehvide Blomster. De uendelig
mange og fine Forgreninger, dem man om Sommeren ikke kan see
for de mange Blade, kom nu frem hver evige een; det var en Knipling
og saa skinnende hvid, som strømmede der en hvid Glands ud fra
hver Green. Hængebirken bevægede sig i Vinden, der var Liv i
den, som i Træerne ved Sommertid; det var en mageløs Deilighed!
og da Solen saa skinnede, nei, hvor funklede det Hele, som om
det var overpuddret med Diamantstøv og hen over Jordens Sneelag
glimrede de store Diamanter, eller man kunde ogsaa troe, at
der brændte utallige smaa bitte Lys, endnu hvidere end den hvide
Snee. |
| "Isn't it unbelievably
beautiful?" said a young girl who was taking a walk in the garden
with a young man. "I think it's even lovelier now than it is
in summer." And her eyes shone, as if the beauty of the garden
were reflected in them. |
"Det er en mageløs Deilighed!"
sagde en ung Pige, som med en ung Mand traadte ud i Haven og
standsede just ved Sneemanden, hvor de saae paa de glimrende
Træer. "Deiligere Syn har man ikke om Sommeren!" sagde hun,
og hendes Øine straalede. |
| They stopped near the
snowman to admire the forest. "And a handsome fellow like that
you won't see in the summer either," remarked the young man,
pointing to the snowman. |
"Og saadan en Karl,
som ham der, har man nu slet ikke!" sagde den unge Mand og pegede
paa Sneemanden. "Han er udmærket!" |
| The girl laughed and
curtsied before the snowman, then she took the young man's hand
in hers and the two of them danced across the snow, which crunched
beneath their feet as if they were walking on grain. |
Den unge Pige lo, nikkede
til Sneemanden og dandsede saa med sin Ven hen over Sneen, der
knirkede under dem, som om de gik paa Stivelse. |
| "Who were they?" the
snowman asked the dog. "You've been here on the farm longer
than I have. Do you know them?" |
"Hvem var de To?" spurgte
Sneemanden Lænkehunden; "Du er ældre paa Gaarden end jeg, kjender
Du dem?" |
| "Certainly," answered
the old dog. "She has patted me and he has given me bones. I
would never bite either of them." |
"Det gjør jeg!" sagde
Lænkehunden. "Hun har jo klappet mig, og han har givet mig et
Kjødbeen; dem bider jeg ikke!" |
| "Why do they walk hand
in hand? I have never seen boys walk like that." |
"Men hvad forestille
de her?" spurgte Sneemanden. |
| "They are engaged,"
the old dog sniffed. "Soon they will be moving into the same
doghouse and will share each other's bones." |
"Kjærrrrr-restefolk!"
sagde Lænkehunden. "De skal flytte i Hundehuus og gnave Been
sammen. Væk! væk!" |
| "Are they as important
as you and I?" asked the snowman. |
"Har de To ligesaa meget
at betyde som Du og jeg?" spurgte Sneemanden. |
| "They belong to the
house and are our masters," replied the dog. "You certainly
know precious little, even if you were only born yesterday.
I wouldn't have believed such ignorance existed if I hadn't
heard it with my own ears. But I have both age and knowledge,
and from them you acquire wisdom. I know everyone on the farm;
and I have known better times, when I didn't have to stand here,
chained up and frozen to the bone. . . . Out! Out! Get out!"
|
"De høre jo til Herskabet!"
sagde Lænkehunden; "det er rigtignok saare Lidt man veed, naar
man er født igaar! det mærker jeg paa Dig! Jeg har Alder og
Kundskab, jeg kjender Alle her paa Gaarden! og jeg har kjendt
en Tid, hvor jeg ikke stod her i Kulde og Lænke; væk! væk!" |
| "I love to freeze,"
said the snowman. "Tell me about the time when you were young,
but stop rattling your chain like that, it makes me shudder
inside." |
"Kulden er deilig!"
sagde Sneemanden. "Fortæl, fortæl! men Du maa ikke rasle med
Lænken, for saa knækker det i mig!" |
| "Out! Out!" barked the
old dog. "I was a puppy once. 'See that lovely little fellow,'
they used to say, and I slept on a velvet chair. I lay in the
lap of the master of the house and had my paws wiped with embroidered
handkerchiefs. They kissed me and called me a sweetheart, and
their little doggy-woggy. When I grew too big to lie in a lap
they gave me to the housekeeper. She had a room in the cellar.
You can look right into her window from where you are standing.
Down there I was the master. It wasn't as nicely furnished as
upstairs, but it was much more comfortable. I had my own pillow
to lie on, and the housekeeper gave me just as good food and
more of it. Besides, upstairs there were children and they are
a plague, always picking you up, squeezing you, and hugging
you, and carrying you about as if you had no legs of your own
to walk on. . . . Then there was the stove. In winter there
is nothing as lovely as a stove. When it was really cold I used
to crawl all the way under it. I still dream of being there,
though it's a long time since I was there last. . . . Out! Out!
Out!" |
"Væk! væk!" bjæffede
Lænkehunden. "Hvalp har jeg været; lille og yndig, sagde de,
da laae jeg i Fløielsstol derinde paa Gaarden, laae i Skjødet
paa det øverste Herskab; blev kysset i Flaben og visket om Poterne
med broderet Lommetørklæde; jeg hed "den Deiligste", "Nussenussebenet",
men saa blev jeg dem for stor! saa gav de mig til Huusholdersken;
jeg kom i Kjelder-Etagen! Du kan see ind i den, hvor Du staaer;
Du kan see ned i Kamret, hvor jeg har været Herskab; for det
var jeg hos Huusholdersken. Det var vel et ringere Sted end
ovenpaa, men her var mere behageligt; jeg blev ikke krammet
og slæbt om med af Børn, som ovenpaa. Jeg havde ligesaa god
Føde, som før og meget mere! jeg havde min egen Pude, og saa
var der en Kakkelovn, den er paa denne Tid det Deiligste i denne
Verden! jeg krøb heelt ind under den, saa at jeg blev borte.
0, den Kakkelovn drømmer jeg endnu om; væk! væk!" |
| "Is a stove a thing
of beauty?" asked the snowman. "Does it look like me?" |
"Seer en Kakkelovn saa
deilig ud!" spurgte Sneemanden. "Ligner den mig?" |
| "You're as much alike
as day and night. The stove's as black as coal; it has a long
black neck with a brass collar around it. The fire's in the
bottom. The stove lives on wood, which it eats so fast that
it breathes fire out of its mouth. Ah! To lie near it or, better
still, underneath it; until you have tried that you have no
idea what comfort is. . . . You must be able to see it from
where you are. That window, there, just look in." |
"Den er lige det Modsatte
af Dig! kulsort er den! har en lang Hals med Messing-Tromle.
Den æder Brænde, saa at Ilden staaer den ud af Munden. Man maa
holde sig paa Siden af den, tæt op, ind under den, det er en
uendelig Behagelighed! Du maa ind af Vinduet kunde see den der,
hvor Du staaer!" |
| And the snowman did
and he saw the stove: a black, polished metal figure with brass
fixtures. The little door at the bottom, through which ashes
could be removed, had a window in it; and the snowman could
see the light from the fire. A strange feeling of sadness and
joy came over him. A feeling he had never experienced before.
A feeling that all human beings know, except those who are made
of snow. |
Og Sneemanden saae,
og virkelig saae han en sort blankpoleret Gjenstand med Messing-Tromle;
Ilden lyste ud forneden. Sneemanden blev ganske underlig til
Mode; han havde en Fornemmelse, han ikke selv kunde gjøre sig
Rede for; der kom over ham Noget, han ikke kjendte, men som
alle Mennesker kjende, naar de ikke ere Sneemænd. |
| "Why did you leave her?"
The snowman somehow felt certain that the stove was of the female
sex. "How could you bear to go away from such a lovely place?"
|
"Og hvorfor forlod Du
hende?" sagde Sneemanden. Han følte at det maatte være et Hunkjøns
Væsen. "Hvor kunde Du forlade et saadant Sted?" |
| "I had to," answered
the old watchdog. "They threw me out, put a chain around my
neck, and here I am. And all I had done was to bite the youngest
of the children from upstairs. I was pawing on a bone and he
took it away. A bone for a bone, I thought, and bit him in the
leg. But the master and the mistress put all the blame on me.
And ever since then I have been chained. The dampness has spoiled
my voice. Can't you hear how hoarse I am? . . . Out! Out! Get
out! . . . And that is the end of my story." |
"Det var jeg nok nødt
til!" sagde Lænkehunden, "De smed mig udenfor og satte mig her
i Lænke. Jeg havde bidt den yngste Junker i Benet, for han stødte
fra mig det Been, jeg gnavede paa; og Been for Been, tænker
jeg! men det toge de ilde op, og fra den Tid har jeg staaet
i Lænke, og har mistet min klare Røst, hør hvor hæs jeg er:
væk! væk! det blev Enden paa det!" |
| The snowman, who had
stopped listening to the watchdog, was staring with longing
through the cellar window into the housekeeper's room, where
the stove stood on its four black legs. "She is exactly the
same height as I am," he thought. |
Sneemanden hørte ikke
mere efter; han saae stadig ind i Huusholderskens Kjelder-Etage,
ned i hendes Stue, hvor Kakkelovnen stod paa sine fire Jernbeen
og viste sig i Størrelse som Sneemanden selv. |
| "It creaks so strangely
inside of me," the snowman muttered. "Shall I never be able
to go down into the cellar and be in the same room with her?
Isn't it an innocent wish, and shouldn't innocent wishes be
granted? It is my greatest, my most earnest, my only wish! And
it would be a terrible injustice if it were never fulfilled!
I shall get in, even if I have to break the window to do it."
|
"Det knager saa underligt
i mig!" sagde han. "Skal jeg aldrig komme derind? det er et
uskyldigt Ønske, og vore uskyldige Ønsker maae dog vist blive
opfyldte. Det er mit høieste Ønske, mit eneste Ønske og det
vilde være næsten uretfærdig, om det ikke blev stillet tilfreds.
Jeg maa derind, jeg maa helde mig op til hende, om jeg ogsaa
skal knuse Vinduet!" |
| "You will never get
down into the cellar," the old dog said. "And if you did manage
it, then the stove would make sure that you were out in a minute.
. . . Out! Out!" |
"Der kommer Du aldrig
ind!" sagde Lænkehunden, "og kom Du til Kakkelovnen, saa var
Du væk! væk!" |
| "I am almost out already!"
cried the snowman. "I feel as if I were about to break in two."
|
"Jeg er saa godt som
væk!" sagde Sneemanden, "jeg brækker over, troer jeg!" |
| All day long the snowman
gazed through the window. In the evening the housekeeper's room
seemed even more inviting. The light from the stove was so soft.
It was not like the moonlight or the sun light. "Only a stove
can glow like that," he thought. Every so often, when the top
door of the stove was opened to put more wood in, the bright
flames would shoot out, and the blaze would reflect through
the window and make the snowman blush from the neck up. |
Hele Dagen stod Sneemanden
og saae ind af Vinduet; i Tusmørket blev Stuen endnu mere indbydende;
fra Kakkelovnen lyste det saa mildt, som ikke Maanen lyser og
heller ikke Solen, nei, som kun Kakkelovnen kan lyse, naar der
er Noget i den. Gik de med Døren, saa slog Luen ud, det var
den i Vane med; det blussede ordenligt rødt i Sneemandens hvide
Ansigt, det lyste rødt lige op af hans Bryst. |
| "It's more than I can
bear!" he exclaimed. "See how beautiful she is when she sticks
out her tongue." |
"Jeg holder det ikke
ud!" sagde han. "Hvor det klæder hende at række Tungen ud!"
|
| The night was long,
but not for the snowman, who was daydreaming happily. Besides,
it was so cold that everything seemed to tingle. |
Natten var meget lang
men ikke for Sneemanden, han stod i sine egne deilige Tanker
og de frøs, saa de knagede. |
| In the morning the cellar
window was frozen; the most beautiful white flowers decorated
the glass, which the snowman did not appreciate because they
hid the stove from his view. It was so cold that the windows
couldn't thaw and the running nose on the water pump in the
yard grew an icicle. It was just the kind of weather to put
a snowman in the best of moods, but it didn't. Why, it was almost
a duty to be content with weather like that; but he wasn't.
He was miserable. He was suffering from "stove-yearning." |
I Morgenstunden vare
Kjeldervinduerne frosne til, de bare de deiligste Iisblomster,
nogen Sneemand kunde forlange, men de skjulte Kakkelovnen. Ruderne
vilde ikke tøe op, han kunde ikke see hende. Det knagede, det
knasede, det var just et Frostveir, der maatte fornøie en Sneemand,
men han var ikke fornøiet; han kunde og burde have følt sig
saa lykkelig, men han var ikke lykkelig, han havde Kakkelovns
Længsel. |
| "That is a very serious
disease, especially for a snowman to get." The old watchdog
shook his head. "I have suffered from it myself, but I got over
it. . . . Out! Out! Get out! . . . I have a feeling that the
weather is going to change." |
"Det er en slem Syge
for en Sneemand!" sagde Lænkehunden; "jeg har ogsaa lidt af
den Syge, men jeg har overstaaet den! væk! væk! - Nu faae vi
Veirskifte!" |
| And it did. |
Og der blev Veirskifte,
det slog om i Tø. |
| It became warmer and
the snowman became smaller. He didn't say a word, not even one
of complaint, and that's a very telling sign. |
Tøveiret tog til, Sneemanden
tog af. Han sagde ikke Noget, han klagede ikke, og det er det
rigtige Tegn. |
| One morning he fell
apart. His head rolled off and something that looked like the
handle of a broom stuck up from where he had stood. It was what
the boys had used to help hold the snowman together and make
him stand upright. |
En Morgen styrtede han.
Der stak Noget ligesom et Kosteskaft i Veiret, hvor han havde
staaet, det havde Drengene reist ham om. |
| "Now I understand why
he longed for the stove," said the old watchdog. 'That's the
old poker he had inside him. No wonder. Well, now that's over.
. . . Out! Out! Out!" |
"Nu kan jeg forstaae
det med hans Længsel!" sagde Lænkehunden, "Sneemanden har havt
en Kakkelovnsskraber i Livet! det er den, som har rørt sig i
ham, nu er det overstaaet; væk! væk!" |
| And soon the winter
was over, |
Og snart var ogsaa Vinteren
overstaaet. |
| and the little girls
sang: |
"Væk, væk!" bjæffede
Lænkehunden; men Smaapigerne paa Gaarden sang: |
"Come, anemones, so pure and white, Come, pussy willows,
so soft and fight, Come, lark and cuckoo, and sing That
in February we have spring."
|
"Skyd frem, Skovmærke! frisk og prud, Hæng, Piil! din uldne
Vante ud, Kom, Kukker, Lærke! syng, vi har Alt Foraar sidst
i Februar! Jeg synger med, Kukkuk! qvivit! Kom, kjære Sol,
kom saadan tidt!"
|
| And no one thought about
the snowman. |
Saa tænker Ingen paa
Sneemanden! |