cloth. Wine and beer were offered, and Ole kept going round himself,
lifting his feet even higher than usual; but the right foot always
higher than the left.



Before this little tale ends, it may be told that five weeks later
Oyvind and Marit were united in the parish church. The school-master
himself led the singing on the occasion, for the assistant chorister
was ill. His voice was broken now, for he was old; but it seemed to
Oyvind that it did the heart good to hear him. When the young man had
given Marit his hand, and was leading her to the altar, the
school-master nodded at him from the chancel, just as Oyvind had seen
him do, in fancy, when sitting sorrowfully at that dance long ago.
Oyvind nodded back while tears welled up to his eyes.

These tears at the dance were the forerunners of those at the wedding.
Between them lay Oyvind's faith and his work.

Here endeth the story of A HAPPY BOY.






Transcriber's Note: Some words which appear to be typos are printed
thus in the original book. A list of these possible misprints follows:

ascendency