Chapter 16

"I did," said the Dwarf.

"And I asked you who is yourself?"

"You did," said the Dwarf.

"And who are you, then?"

"Well, to tell the truth, I don't know," said the Dwarf, and he blushed like a rose.

"Well, tell me what you know about yourself."

"I remember nothing at all," said the Dwarf, "before the day I found myself going along with a crowd of all sorts of people to the great fair of the Liffey. We had to pass by the King's palace on our way, and as we were passing the King sent for a band of jugglers to come and show their tricks before him. I followed the jugglers to look on, and when the play was over the King called me to him, and asked me who I was and where I came from. I was dumb then, and couldn't answer; but even if I could speak I could not tell him what he wanted to know, for I remembered nothing of myself before that day. Then the King asked the jugglers, but they knew nothing about me, and no one knew anything, and then the King said he would take me into his service; and the only work I have to do is to go once a month with a bag of corn to the hut in the lonely moor."

"And there you fell in love with the little Princess," said the Fairy, winking at the Dwarf.

The poor Dwarf blushed twice as much as he had done before.

"You need not blush," said the Fairy; "it is a good man's case. And now tell me, truly, do you love the Princess, and what would you give to free her from the spell of enchantment that is over her?"

"I would give my life," said the Dwarf.

"Well, then, listen to me," said the Fairy. "The Princess Finola was banished to the lonely moor by the King, your master. He killed her father, who was the rightful King, and would have killed Finola, only he was told by an old sorceress that if he killed her he would die himself on the same day, and she advised him to banish her to the lonely moor, and she said she would fling a spell of enchantment over it, and that until the spell was broken Finola could not leave the moor. And the sorceress also promised that she would send an old woman to watch over the Princess by night and by day, so that no harm should come to her; but she told the King that he himself should select a messenger to take food to the hut, and that he should look out for someone who had never seen or heard of the Princess, and whom he could trust never to tell anyone anything about her; and that is the reason he selected you."

"Since you know so much," said the Dwarf, "can you tell me who I am, and where I came from?"

"You will know that time enough," said the Fairy. "I have given you back your speech. It will depend solely on yourself whether you will get back your memory of who and what you were before the day you entered the King's service. But are you really willing to try and break the spell of enchantment and free the Princess?"

"I am," said the Dwarf.

"Whatever it will cost you?"

"Yes, if it cost me my life," said the Dwarf; "but tell me, how can the spell be broken?"

"Oh, it is easy enough to break the spell if you have the weapons," said the Fairy.

"And what are they, and where are they?" said the Dwarf.

"The spear of the shining haft and the dark blue blade and the silver shield," said the Fairy. "They are on the farther bank of the Mystic Lake in the Island of the Western Seas. They are there for the man who is bold enough to seek them. If you are the man who will bring them back to the lonely moor you will only have to strike the shield three times with the haft, and three times with the blade of the spear, and the silence of the moor will be broken forever, the spell of enchantment will be removed, and the Princess will be free."

"I will set out at once," said the Dwarf, jumping from his chair.

"And whatever it cost you," said the Fairy, "will you pay the price?"

"I will," said the Dwarf.

"Well, then, mount your horse, give him his head, and he will take you to the shore opposite the Island of the Mystic Lake. You must cross to the island on his back, and make your way through the water-steeds that swim around the island night and day to guard it; but woe betide you if you attempt to cross without paying the price, for if you do the angry water-steeds will rend you and your horse to pieces. And when you come to the Mystic Lake you must wait until the waters are as red as wine, and then swim your horse across it, and on the farther side you will find the spear and shield; but woe betide you if you attempt to cross the lake before you pay the price, for if you do, the black Cormorants of the Western Seas will pick the flesh from your bones."

"What is the price?" said the Dwarf.

"You will know that time enough," said the Fairy; "but now go, and good luck go with you."

The Dwarf thanked the Fairy, and said good-by. He then threw the reins on his horse's neck, and started up the hill, that seemed to grow bigger and bigger as he ascended, and the Dwarf soon found that what he took for a hill was a great mountain. After traveling all the day, toiling up by steep crags and heathery passes, he reached the top as the sun was setting in the ocean, and he saw far below him out in the waters the island of the Mystic Lake.

He began his descent to the shore, but long before he reached it the sun had set, and darkness, unpierced by a single star, dropped upon the sea. The old horse, worn out by his long and painful journey, sank beneath him, and the Dwarf was so tired that he rolled off his back and fell asleep by his side.

He awoke at the breaking of the morning, and saw that he was almost at the water's edge. He looked out to sea, and saw the island, but nowhere could he see the water-steeds, and he began to fear he must have taken a wrong course in the night, and that the island before him was not the one he was in search of. But even while he was so thinking he heard fierce and angry snortings, and, coming swiftly from the island to the shore, he saw the swimming and prancing steeds. Sometimes their heads and manes only were visible, and sometimes, rearing, they rose half out of the water, and, striking it with their hoofs, churned it into foam, and tossed the white spray to the skies. As they approached nearer and nearer their snortings became more terrible, and their nostrils shot forth clouds of vapor. The Dwarf trembled at the sight and sound, and his old horse, quivering in every limb, moaned piteously, as if in pain. On came the steeds, until they almost touched the shore, then rearing, they seemed about to spring on to it.

The frightened Dwarf turned his head to fly, and as he did so he heard the twang of a golden harp, and right before him whom should he see but the little man of the hills, holding a harp in one hand and striking the strings with the other.

"Are you ready to pay the price?" said he, nodding gayly to the Dwarf.

As he asked the question, the listening water-steeds snorted more furiously than ever.

"Are you ready to pay the price?" said the little man a second time.

A shower of spray, tossed on shore by the angry steeds, drenched the Dwarf to the skin, and sent a cold shiver to his bones, and he was so terrified that he could not answer.

"For the third and last time, are you ready to pay the price?" asked the Fairy, as he flung the harp behind him and turned to depart.

When the Dwarf saw him going he thought of the little Princess in the lonely moor, and his courage came back, and he answered bravely:

"Yes, I am ready."

The water-steeds, hearing his answer, and snorting with rage, struck the shore with their pounding hoofs.

"Back to your waves!" cried the little harper; and as he ran his fingers across his lyre, the frightened steeds drew back into the waters.

"What is the price?" asked the Dwarf.

"Your right eye," said the Fairy; and before the Dwarf could say a word, the Fairy scooped out the eye with his finger, and put it into his pocket.

The Dwarf suffered most terrible agony; but he resolved to bear it for the sake of the little Princess. Then the Fairy sat down on a rock at the edge of the sea, and, after striking a few notes, he began to play the "Strains of Slumber."

The sound crept along the waters, and the steeds, so ferocious a moment before, became perfectly still. They had no longer any motion of their own, and they floated on the top of the tide like foam before a breeze.

"Now," said the Fairy, as he led the Dwarf's horse to the edge of the tide.

The Dwarf urged the horse into the water, and once out of his depth, the old horse struck out boldly for the island. The sleeping water-steeds drifted helplessly against him, and in a short time he reached the island safely, and he neighed joyously as his hoofs touched solid ground.

The Dwarf rode on and on, until he came to a bridle-path, and following this, it led him up through winding lanes, bordered with golden furze that filled the air with fragrance, and brought him to the summit of the green hills that girdled and looked down on the Mystic Lake. Here the horse stopped of his own accord, and the Dwarf's heart beat quickly as his eye rested on the lake, that, clipped round by the ring of hills, seemed in the breezeless and sunlit air--

"As still as death. And as bright as life can be."

After gazing at it for a long time, he dismounted, and lay at his ease in the pleasant grass. Hour after hour passed, but no change came over the face of the waters; and when the night fell, sleep closed the eyelids of the Dwarf.

The song of the lark awoke him in the early morning, and, starting up, he looked at the lake, but its waters were as bright as they had been the day before.

Toward midday he beheld what he thought was a black cloud sailing across the sky from east to west. It seemed to grow larger as it came nearer and nearer, and when it was high above the lake he saw it was a huge bird, the shadow of whose outstretched wings darkened the waters of the lake; and the Dwarf knew it was one of the Cormorants of the Western Seas. As it descended slowly, he saw that it held in one of its claws a branch of a tree larger than a full-grown oak, and laden with clusters of ripe red berries. It alighted at some distance from the Dwarf, and, after resting for a time, it began to eat the berries and to throw the stones into the lake, and wherever a stone fell a bright red stain appeared in the water. As he looked more closely at the bird the Dwarf saw that it had all the signs of old age, and he could not help wondering how it was able to carry such a heavy tree.

Later in the day, two other birds, as large as the first, but younger, came up from the west and settled down beside him. They also ate the berries, and throwing the stones into the lake it was soon as red as wine.

When they had eaten all the berries, the young birds began to pick the decayed feathers off the old bird and to smooth his plumage. As soon as they had completed their task, he rose slowly from the hill and sailed out over the lake, and dropping down on the waters dived beneath them. In a moment he came to the surface, and shot up into the air with a joyous cry, and flew off to the west in all the vigor of renewed youth, followed by the other birds.

When they had gone so far that they were like specks in the sky, the Dwarf mounted his horse and descended toward the lake.

He was almost at the margin, and in another minute would have plunged in, when he heard a fierce screaming in the air, and before he had time to look up, the three birds were hovering over the lake.

The Dwarf drew back frightened.

The birds wheeled over his head, and then, swooping down, they flew close to the water, covering it with their wings, and uttering harsh cries.

Then, rising to a great height, they folded their wings and dropped headlong, like three rocks, on the lake, crashing its surface, and scattering a wine-red shower upon the hills.

Then the Dwarf remembered what the Fairy told him, that if he attempted to swim the lake, without paying the price, the three Cormorants of the Western Seas would pick the flesh off his bones. He knew not what to do, and was about to turn away, when he heard once more the twang of the golden harp, and the little fairy of the hills stood before him.

"Faint heart never won fair lady," said the little harper. "Are you ready to pay the price? The spear and shield are on the opposite bank, and the Princess Finola is crying this moment in the lonely moor."

At the mention of Finola's name the Dwarf's heart grew strong.

"Yes," he said; "I am ready--win or die. What is the price?"

"Your left eye," said the Fairy. And as soon as said he scooped out the eye, and put it in his pocket.

The poor blind Dwarf almost fainted with pain.

"It's your last trial," said the Fairy, "and now do what I tell you. Twist your horse's mane round your right hand, and I will lead him to the water. Plunge in, and fear not. I gave you back your speech. When you reach the opposite bank you will get back your memory, and you will know who and what you are."

Then the Fairy led the horse to the margin of the lake.

"In with you now, and good luck go with you," said the Fairy.

The Dwarf urged the horse. He plunged into the lake, and went down and down until his feet struck the bottom. Then he began to ascend, and as he came near the surface of the water the Dwarf thought he saw a glimmering light, and when he rose above the water he saw the bright sun shining and the green hills before him, and he shouted with joy at finding his sight restored.

But he saw more. Instead of the old horse he had ridden into the lake he was bestride a noble steed, and as the steed swam to the bank the Dwarf felt a change coming over himself, and an unknown vigor in his limbs.

When the steed touched the shore he galloped up the hillside, and on the top of the hill was a silver shield, bright as the sun, resting against a spear standing upright in the ground.

The Dwarf jumped off, and, running toward the shield, he saw himself as in a looking-glass.

He was no longer a dwarf, but a gallant knight. At that moment his memory came back to him, and he knew he was Conal, one of the Knights of the Red Branch, and he remembered now that the spell of dumbness and deformity had been cast upon him by the Witch of the Palace of the Quicken Trees.

Slinging his shield upon his left arm, he plucked the spear from the ground and leaped on to his horse. With a light heart he swam back over the lake, and nowhere could he see the black Cormorants of the Western Seas, but three white swans floating abreast followed him to the bank. When he reached the bank he galloped down to the sea, and crossed to the shore.

Then he flung the reins upon his horse's neck, and swifter than the wind the gallant horse swept on and on, and it was not long until he was bounding over the enchanted moor. Wherever his hoofs struck the ground, grass and flowers sprang up, and great trees with leafy branches rose on every side.

At last the knight reached the little hut. Three times he struck the shield with the haft and three times with the blade of his spear. At the last blow the hut disappeared, and standing before him was the little Princess.

The knight took her in his arms and kissed her; then he lifted her on to the horse, and, leaping up before her, he turned toward the north, to the palace of the Red Branch Knights; and as they rode on beneath the leafy trees, from every tree the birds sang out, for the spell of deathly silence over the lonely moor was broken forever.

[H] From "The Golden Spear," by Edmund Leamy; used by permission of the publisher, Desmond Fitzgerald, New York.

THE STRAW OX

_A Russian Tale_

An old man and an old woman lived in an old house on the edge of the forest. The old man worked in the field all day and the woman spun flax. But for all of their hard work they were very poor--never one penny could they save. One day the old man said to the old woman:

"I would like to give you something to please you, but I have nothing to give."

"Never mind that," said the old woman, "make me a straw ox."

"A straw ox!" cried the old man. "What will you do with that?"

"Never mind that," said the old woman.

So the old man made a straw ox.

"Smear it all over with tar," said the old woman.

"Why should I smear it with tar?" asked the old man.

"Never mind that," said the old woman.

So the old man smeared the straw ox all over with tar.

The next morning when the old woman went out into the field to gather flax she took the straw ox with her and left it standing alone near the edge of the forest.

A bear came out of the woods, and said to the ox: "Who are you?"

"I am an ox all smeared with tar, And filled with straw, as oxen are,"

replied the ox.

"Oh," said the bear. "I need some straw to mend my coat, and the tar will keep it in place. Give me some straw and some tar."

"Help yourself," said the ox.

So the bear began to tear at the ox, and his great paws stuck fast, and he pulled and he tugged, and he tugged and he pulled, and the more he pulled and tugged, the faster he stuck, and he could not get away.

Then the ox dragged the bear to the old house on the edge of the forest.

When the old woman came back with her apron full of flax and saw that the straw ox had gone she ran home as fast as she could. There stood the ox with the bear stuck fast to him.

"Husband, husband! Come here at once," she cried. "The ox has brought home a bear; what shall we do?"

So the old man came as fast as he could, pulled the bear off the ox, tied him up, and threw him into the cellar.

The next morning when the old woman went into the field to gather flax she again took the straw ox with her, and again she left him standing alone near the edge of the forest.

A wolf came out of the woods, and said to the ox: "Who are you?"

"I am an ox all smeared with tar, And filled with straw, as oxen are,"

replied the ox.

"Oh," said the wolf, "I need some tar to smear my coat so that the dogs cannot catch me."

"Help yourself," said the ox.

The wolf put up his paws to take the tar and his paws stuck fast. He pulled and he tugged, and he tugged and he pulled, and the more he pulled and tugged, the faster he stuck and he could not get away.

Then the ox dragged the wolf to the old house on the edge of the forest.

When the old woman came back with her apron full of flax and saw that the straw ox had gone she ran home as fast as she could. There stood the ox in the yard with the wolf stuck fast to him.

"Husband, husband! Come here at once!" she cried. "The ox has brought home a wolf; what shall we do?"

So the old man came as fast as he could, pulled the wolf off the ox, tied him up, and threw him into the cellar.

The next morning when the old woman went out into the field to gather flax she again took the straw ox with her, and again she left it standing alone near the edge of the forest.

A fox came out of the woods, and said to the ox: "Who are you?"

"I am an ox all smeared with tar, And filled with straw, as oxen are,"

replied the ox.

"Oh," said the fox, "I need some tar to smear my coat so that the dogs cannot catch me."

"Help yourself," said the ox.

The fox put up his paws to take the tar, and his paws stuck fast. He pulled and he tugged, and he tugged and he pulled, and the more he pulled and tugged, the faster he stuck, and he could not get away.

Then the ox dragged the fox to the old house on the edge of the forest.

When the old woman came back with her apron full of flax and saw that the straw ox had gone she ran home as fast as she could. There stood the ox with the fox stuck fast to him.

"Husband, husband! Come here at once!" she cried. "The ox has brought home a fox; what shall we do?"

So the old man came as fast as he could, pulled the fox off the ox, tied him up, and threw him into the cellar.

The next morning when the woman came back with her apron full of flax and saw that the ox had gone and she had run home as fast as she could, there stood the ox with a rabbit stuck fast to him.

And the old man threw the rabbit into the cellar.

The next morning the old man said:

"Now we will see what will come of all of this."

So he took his knife and sat down by the cellar door and began to make the knife sharp and bright.

"What are you doing, old man?" asked the bear.

"I am making my knife sharp and bright so as to cut up your coat and make a nice warm jacket for the old woman to keep her warm this winter."

"Oh," said the bear. "Do not cut up my coat. Let me go, and I will bring you some nice, sweet honey to eat."

"Very well," said the old man, "see to it that you do."

So the old man let the bear go.

Then he sat down again and began to make his knife sharp and bright.

"What are you doing, old man?" asked the wolf.

"I am making my knife sharp and bright so as to cut up your coat to make me a fine fur cap," said the old man.

"Oh," said the wolf. "Do not cut up my coat. Let me go and I will bring you some sheep."

"Very well," said the old man, "see to it that you do."

So the old man let the wolf go.

Then he sat down again with his knife in his hand.

"What are you doing, old man?" asked the fox.

"I am making my knife sharp and bright so as to cut up your coat to make me a nice fur collar."

"Oh," said the fox, "do not cut up my coat. Let me go and I will bring you some geese."

"Very well," said the old man, "see to it that you do."

And in the same way he let the rabbit loose, who said that he would bring some cabbage and some turnips and some carrots.

The next morning early the old woman woke up and said:

"Some one is knocking at the door."

So the old man got up and went to the door and opened it.

"See," said the bear, "I have brought you a jar full of honey."

"Very well," said the old man, and he gave the jar to the old woman who put it on the shelf.

Then came the wolf driving a flock of sheep into the yard.

"See," said the wolf, "I have brought you a flock of sheep."

"Very well," said the old man, and he drove the sheep into the pasture.

Then came the fox, with many geese running before him, and the old man drove them into the pen; and then came the rabbit with cabbages and turnips and carrots and other good things, and the old woman took them and put them into the pot and cooked them.

And the old man said to the old woman, "Now we have sheep in the pasture and many geese in the pen, and we are rich, and I can give you something to please you."

THE LITTLE PRINCESS OF THE FEARLESS HEART

BY B. J. DASKAM

Once upon a time the great, yellow stork carried a baby Princess to the Queen of that country which lies next to fairy-land.

All throughout the kingdom the bells rang, the people shouted, and the King declared a holiday for a whole year. But the Queen was very anxious, for she knew that the fairies are a queer lot, and their borders were very close indeed.

"We must be very careful to slight none of them at the christening," she said, "for goodness knows what they might do, if we did!"

So the wise-men drew up the lists, and when the day for the christening arrived, the fairies were all there, and everything went as smoothly as a frosted cake.

But the Queen said to the Lady-in-waiting:

"The first fairy godmother gave her nothing but a kiss! I don't call that much of a gift!"

"'Sh!" whispered the Lady-in-waiting. "The fairies hear everything!"

And indeed, the fairy heard her well enough, and very angry she was about it, too. For she was so old that she knew all about it, from beginning to end, and she was sure that the Wizard with Three Dragons was sitting in the Black Forest, watching the whole matter in his crystal globe. So she had whispered her gift--which was nothing more nor less than a Fearless Heart--into the ear of the Little Princess. But the Queen thought she had only kissed her.