FAR down in the forest， where the warm sunand the fresh air made a sweet resting-place， GREwa pretty little fir-tree; and yet it was not happy， itwished so much to be tall like its companions— thepines and firs which grew around it. The sun shone，and the soft air fluttered its leaves， and the littlepeasant children passed by， prattling merrily， butthe fir-tree heeded them not. Sometimes the childrenwould bring a large basket of raspberries or strawberries， wreathed on a straw， and seatthemselves near the fir-tree， and say， “Is it not a pretty little tree?” which made it feel moreunhappy than before. And yet all this while the tree grew a notch or joint taller every year;for by the number of joints in the stem of a fir-tree we can discover its age. Still， as it grew，it complained， “Oh! how I wish I were as tall as the other trees， then I would spread out mybranches on every side， and my top would over-look the wide world. I should have the birdsbuilding their nests on my boughs， and when the wind blew， I should bow with statelydignity like my tall companions.” The tree was so discontented， that it took no pleasure inthe warm sunshine， the birds， or the rosy clouds that floated over it morning and evening.Sometimes， in winter， when the snow lay white and glittering on the ground， a hare wouldcome springing along， and jump right over the little tree; and then how mortified it wouldfeel! Two winters passed， and when the third arrived， the tree had grown so tall that thehare was obliged to run round it. Yet it remained unsatisfied， and would exclaim， “Oh， if Icould but keep on growing tall and old! There is nothing else worth caring for in the world!” Inthe autumn， as usual， the wood-cutters came and cut down several of the tallest trees， andthe young fir-tree， which was now grown to its full height， shuddered as the noble trees fellto the earth with a crash. After the branches were lopped off， the trunks looked so slenderand bare， that they could scarcely be recognized. Then they were placed upon wagons， anddrawn by horses out of the forest. “Where were they going? What would become of them?”The young fir-tree wished very much to know; so in the spring， when the swallows and thestorks came， it asked， “Do you know where those trees were taken? Did you meet them?”
the swallows knew nothing， but the stork， after a little reflection， nodded his head，and said， “Yes， I think I do. I met several new ships when I flew from Egypt， and they hadfine masts that smelt like fir. I think these must have been the trees; I assure you they werestately， very stately.”
“Oh， how I wish I were tall enough to go on the sea，” said the fir-tree. “What is the sea，and what does it look like?”
“It would take too much time to explain，” said the stork， flying quickly away.
“Rejoice in thy youth，” said the sunbeam; “rejoice in thy fresh growth， and the younglife that is in thee.”
And the wind kissed the tree， and the dew watered it with tears; but the fir-tree regardedthem not.
Christmas-time drew near， and many young trees were cut down， some even smaller andyounger than the fir-tree who enjoyed neither rest nor peace with longing to leave its foresthome. These young trees， which were chosen for their beauty， kept their branches， andwere also laid on wagons and drawn by horses out of the forest.
“Where are they going?” asked the fir-tree. “They are not taller than I am： indeed， one ismuch less; and why are the branches not cut off? Where are they going?”
“We know， we know，” sang the sparrows; “we have looked in at the windows of thehouses in the town， and we know what is done with them. They are dressed up in the mostsplendid manner. We have seen them standing in the middle of a warm room， and adornedwith all sorts of beautiful things，—honey cakes， gilded apples， playthings， and manyhundreds of wax tapers.”
“And then，” asked the fir-tree， trembling through all its branches， “and then whathappens?”
“We did not see any more，” said the sparrows; “but this was enough for us.”
“I wonder whether anything so brilliant will ever happen to me，” thought the fir-tree. “Itwould be much better than crossing the sea. I long for it almost with pain. Oh! when willChristmas be here? I am now as tall and well grown as those which were taken away last year.Oh! that I were now laid on the wagon， or standing in the warm room， with all thatbrightness and splendor around me! Something better and more beautiful is to come after，or the trees would not be so decked out. Yes， what follows will be grander and more splendid.What can it be? I am weary with longing. I scarcely know how I feel.”
“Rejoice with us，” said the air and the sunlight. “Enjoy thine own bright life in the freshair.”
But the tree would not rejoice， though it GREw taller every day; and， winter andsummer， its dark-green foliage might be seen in the forest， while passers by would say， “What a beautiful tree!”
A short time before Christmas， the discontented fir-tree was the first to fall. As the axecut through the stem， and divided the pith， the tree fell with a groan to the earth，conscious of pain and faintness， and forgetting all its anticipations of happiness， in sorrowat leaving its home in the forest. It knew that it should never again see its dear oldcompanions， the trees， nor the little bushes and many-colored flowers that had grown by itsside; perhaps not even the birds. Neither was the journey at all pleasant. The tree firstrecovered itself while being unpacked in the courtyard of a house， with several other trees;and it heard a man say， “We only want one， and this is the prettiest.”