To divert the minds of his guests， who were considerablyabashed by this little incident， the Man of Fancy led themthrough several apartments of the castle， receiving theircompliments upon the taste and varied magnificence thatwere displayed in each. One of these rooms was filled withmoonlight， which did not enter through the window， butwas the aggregate of all the moon-shine that is scatteredaround the earth on a summer night， while no eyes areawake to enjoy its beauty. Airy spirits had gathered it up，wherever they found it gleaming on the broad bosomof a lake， or silvering the meanders of a stream， orglimmering among the windstirred boughs of a wood， andhad garnered it in this one spacious hall. Along the walls，illuminated by the mild intensity of the moon-shine， stooda multitude of ideal statues， the original conceptions of thegreat works of ancient or modern art， which the sculptorsdid but imperfectly succeed in putting into marble. For itis not to be supposed that the pure idea of an immortalcreation ceases to exist； it is only necessary to know wherethey are deposited， in order to obtain possession of them.
In the alcoves of another vast apartment was arranged asplendid library， the volumes of which were inestimable，because they consisted not of actual performances， butof the works which the authors only planned， withoutever finding the happy season to achieve them. To takefamiliar instances， here were the untold tales of Chaucer’sCanterbury Pilgrims； the unwritten Cantos of the FairyQueen； the conclusion of Coleridge’s Christabel； and thewhole of Dryden’s projected Epic on the subject of KingArthur. The shelves were crowded； for it would not betoo much to affirm that every author has imagined， andshaped out in his thought， more and far better works thanthose which actually proceeded from his pen. And here，likewise， were the unrealized conceptions of youthful poets，who died of the very strength of their own genius， beforethe world had caught one inspired murmur from their lips.
When the peculiarities of the library and statue-gallerywere explained to the Oldest Inhabitant， he appearedinfinitely perplexed， and exclaimed， with more energythan usual， that he had never heard of such a thing withinhis memory， and， moreover， did not at all understand howit could be.
“But my brain， I think，” said the good old gentleman，“is getting not so clear as it used to be. You young folks， Isuppose， can see your way through these strange matters.
For my part， I give it up.”
“And so do I，” muttered the Old Harry. “It is enough topuzzle the—ahem！”
Making as little reply as possible to these observations，the Man of Fancy preceded the company to another noblesaloon， the pillars of which were solid golden sunbeams，taken out of the sky in the first hour in the morning.
Thus， as they retained all their living lustre， the room wasfilled with the most cheerful radiance imaginable， yet nottoo dazzling to be borne with comfort and delight. Thewindows were beautifully adorned with curtains， made ofthe many-colored clouds of sunrise， all imbued with virginlight， and hanging in magnificent festoons from the ceilingto the floor. Moreover， there were fragments of rainbowsscattered through the room； so that the guests， astonishedat one another， reciprocally saw their heads made gloriousby the seven primary hues； or， if they chose—as whowould not？ —they could grasp a rainbow in the air， andconvert it to their own apparel and adornment. But themorning light and scattered rainbows were only a typeand symbol of the real wonders of the apartment. By aninfluence akin to magic， yet perfectly natural， whatevermeans and opportunities of joy are neglected in the lowerworld， had been carefully gathered up， and deposited inthe saloon of morning sunshine. As may well be conceived，therefore， there was material enough to supply not merelya joyous evening， but also a happy lifetime， to more thanas many people as that spacious apartment could contain.
The company seemed to renew their youth； while thatpattern and proverbial standard of innocence， the ChildUnborn， frolicked to and fro among them， communicatinghis own unwrinkled gaiety to all who had the good fortuneto witness his gambols.
“My honored friends，” said the Man of Fancy， after theyhad enjoyed themselves awhile， “I am now to request yourpresence in the banqueting-hall， where a slight collation isawaiting you.”
“Ah， well said！” ejaculated a cadaverous figure， who hadbeen invited for no other reason than that he was prettyconstantly in the habit of dining with Duke Humphrey. “Iwas beginning to wonder whether a castle in the air wereprovided with a kitchen.”
