In the Yule-Log Glow, Book II | Page 8

to do it
with."
"You leave that to me," said the goblin. "Your brother fairies are not far
off, you may be sure."
As he spoke he clapped his hands thrice, and before the third clap had
died away the poor cottage was swarming with tiny figures, whom the
baron rightly conjectured to be the fairies themselves.
Now, you may not be aware (the baron was not, until that night) that
there are among the fairies trades and professions, just as with ordinary
mortals.
However, there they were, each with the accompaniments of his or her
particular business, and to it they went manfully. A fairy glazier put in
new panes to the shattered windows, fairy carpenters replaced the doors
upon their hinges, and fairy painters, with inconceivable celerity, made
cupboards and closets as fresh as paint could make them; one fairy
housemaid laid and lit a roaring fire, while another dusted and rubbed
chairs and tables to a miraculous degree of brightness; a fairy butler
uncorked bottles of fairy wine, and a fairy cook laid out a repast of
most tempting appearance.

The baron, hearing a tapping above him, cast his eyes upward, and
beheld a fairy slater rapidly repairing a hole in the roof; and when he
bent them down again they fell on a fairy doctor mixing a cordial for
the sleepers. Nay, there was even a fairy parson, who, not having any
present employment, contented himself with rubbing his hands and
looking pleasant, probably waiting till somebody might want to be
christened or married.
Every trade, every profession or occupation appeared, without
exception, to be represented; nay, we beg pardon, with one exception
only, for the baron used to say, when afterwards relating his
experiences to bachelor friends,--
"You may believe me or not, sir, there was every mortal business under
the sun, but deil a bit of a lawyer."
The baron could not long remain inactive. He was rapidly seized with a
violent desire to do something to help, which manifested itself in insane
attempts to assist everybody at once. At last, after having taken all the
skin off his knuckles in attempting to hammer in nails in aid of the
carpenter, and then nearly tumbling over a fairy housemaid, whose
broom he was offering to carry, he gave it up as a bad job, and stood
aside with his friend the goblin.
He was just about to inquire how it was that the poor occupants of the
house were not awakened by so much din, when a fairy Sam Slick, who
had been examining the cottager's old clock with a view to a thorough
repair, touched some spring within it, and it made the usual purr
preparatory to striking. When, lo! and behold, at the very first stroke,
cottage, goblin, fairies, and all disappeared into utter darkness, and the
baron found himself in his turret-chamber, rubbing his toe, which he
had just hit with considerable force against the fender. As he was only
in his slippers, the concussion was unpleasant, and the baron rubbed his
toe for a good while.
After he had finished with his toe he rubbed his nose, and, finally, with
a countenance of deep reflection, scratched the bump of something or
other at the top of his head.

The old clock on the stairs was striking three, and the fire had gone out.
The baron reflected for a short time longer, and finally decided that he
had better go to bed, which he did accordingly.
III.
The morning dawned upon the very ideal, as far as weather was
concerned, of a Christmas-day. A bright winter sun shone out just
vividly enough to make everything look genial and pleasant, and yet
not with sufficient warmth to mar the pure, unbroken surface of the
crisp, white snow, which lay like a never-ending white lawn upon the
ground, and glittered in myriad silver flakes upon the leaves of the
sturdy evergreens.
I am afraid the baron had not had a very good night; at any rate, I know
that he was wide-awake at an hour long before his usual time of rising.
He lay first on one side, and then on the other, and then, by way of
variety, turned on his back, with his magenta nose pointing
perpendicularly towards the ceiling; but it was all of no use. Do what
he would, he couldn't get to sleep, and at last, not long after daybreak,
he tumbled out of bed and proceeded to dress.
Even after he was out of bed his fidgetiness continued. It did not strike
him, until after he had got one boot on, that it would be a more natural
proceeding to put his stockings on first; after which he caught himself
in the act of trying to put his trousers