They would grow
sleepy and dull. There must be some one like myself to rouse them and
keep them in good spirits."
Then she would laugh wildly and, chattering like a magpie, would rush
off, dancing and spinning from one end of the plain to the other. When a
Naerke man saw her come dragging her dust trail over the plain, he could
not help smiling. Provoking and tiresome she certainly was, but she had
a merry spirit. It was just as refreshing for the peasants to meet
Ysaetter-Kaisa as it was for the plain to be lashed by the windstorm.
Nowadays 'tis said that Ysaetter-Kaisa is dead and gone, like all other
witches, but this one can hardly believe. It is as if some one were to
come and tell you that henceforth the air would always be still on the
plain, and the wind would never more dance across it with blustering
breezes and drenching showers.
He who fancies that Ysaetter-Kaisa is dead and gone may as well hear what
occurred in Naerke the year that Nils Holgersson travelled over that part
of the country. Then let him tell what he thinks about it.
MARKET EVE
_Wednesday, April twenty-seventh_.
It was the day before the big Cattle Fair at Oerebro; it rained in
torrents and people thought: "This is exactly as in Ysaetter-Kaisa's
time! At fairs she used to be more prankish than usual. It was quite in
her line to arrange a downpour like this on a market eve.
Pages:
341
342
343
344
345
346
347
348
349
350
351
352
353
354
355
356
357
358
359
360
361
362
363
364
365