He found a little door behind the altar which was not locked , and at ten o'clock he slipped out at it , and took to his heels and made for the beach . He had got half-way thither , when all at once the same little man stood in front of him and said , ` Good evening , Christian , where are you going ? ' ` I 've leave to go where I please , ' said the smith , but at the same time he noticed that he could not move a foot . ` No , you have undertaken to keep guard to-night as well , ' said the little man , ` and you must attend to that . ' He then took hold of him , and however unwilling he was , Christian had to go with him right back to the same little door that he had crept out at . When they got there , the little man said to him , ` Go in front of the altar now , and take in your hand the book that is lying there . There you shall stay till you hear the lid of the chest slam down over the dead . In that way you will come to no harm . ' With that the little man shoved him in at the door , and locked it . Christian then immediately went in front of the altar , and took the book in his hand , and stood thus until the clock struck twelve , and the appearance sprang out of the chest . ` Sentry , where are you ? Sentry , where are you ? ' it shrieked , and then rushed to the pulpit , and right up into it . But there was no one there that night . Then it howled and shrieked again , My father has set no sentry in , War and Pest this night begin . At the same moment , it noticed the smith standing in front of the altar , and came rushing towards him . ` Are you there ? ' it screamed ; ` now I 'll catch you . ' But it could not come up over the step in front of the altar , and there it continued to howl , and scream , and threaten , until the clock struck one , when it had to go into the chest again , and Christian heard the lid slam above it . That night , however , it had not the same appearance as on the previous one ; it was less ugly .
When all was quiet in the church , the smith lay down before the altar and slept calmly till the following morning , when the colonel came XXXXX fetch him .
at behind for in into of over that till to