in witness of a desolate world, and as if it tolled a dirge of endless woe. “Ah! ha! thou hast scarce any one to whom to cuckoo now”, said Venik, and smiled to himself thereat.
Then a bat flew out and fluttered round the tree, just as if it sought something.
And Venik smiled tauntingly and said, “Brother mine, seek.” Then he perceived that there were two bats and that they had found one another, and in the tree a piping from a nest of young bats made itself heard. And after this Venik said, “Ha! ha! how fares it with the young vampires, how fares it with the young vampires?” And again he added, “I also am but a hollow tree.”
Then he began to look to the horizon and saw the river glittering dead white below him, and above him a wan firmament and wan stars. And again his eyes looked deep into those star-depths, and far away in that direction whither Krista’s eyes had strayed, and he began to murmur fitful snatches of melody.
The hill-side and his life upon it began to skip about in his memory, like the ignes fatui of the night. And thus, too, wildly rose and fell his snatches of wild melody.
Then he said to himself, “What is it all worth? When chill autumn comes, the birds must hie away, away home!”
And he felt the chill winter round him once again. And once again he peered into the tree, at the couch of moss and leaves and said, “What shall I do with thee?”
And he arose and gathered up about half the leaves and moss. “Thou shalt smile too”, he said, and made a fire of it. All was winter in his heart, and he warmed himself and smiled inanely and said to himself, “It was a merry bout to warm himself at Krista’s couch.” Then he patted down the leaves and moss and added more fuel until he made a roaring bonfire of it, and it burnt higher and higher and crackled and smiled as he said. And he smiled, too. And there was yet merrier sport to come: for the old hollow tree took fire from the bonfire and burnt like a gigantic fiery column, scattering sparks in all directions. The whole horizon was aflame, the smoke stretched ruddy to the firmament, and Venik thought the sport grew merrier and merrier, so that now everything smiled upon him, even the whole world.
Then he took his violin once again for the last time, and played just as if he had gathered all the dust of life into a single pinch and would scatter it to the winds by the vibrations of his instrument.
