kept growing larger and larger,
and by-and-by--pop! out he came at the other end of the passage.

Sure enough, there he stood on the sea-shore, with the waves beating and
dashing on the rocks. He stood looking and wondering to find himself in
such a place, when all of a sudden something came with a whiz and a rush
and caught him by the belt, and away he flew like a bullet.

By-and-by he managed to screw his head around and look up, and there it
was Ill-Luck that had him. "I thought so," said the Fiddler; and then he
gave over kicking.

Well; on and on they flew, over hill and valley, over moor and mountain,
until they came to another garden, and there Ill-Luck let the Fiddler
drop.

Swash! Down he fell into the top of an apple-tree, and there he hung in
the branches.

It was the garden of a royal castle, and all had been weeping and woe
(though they were beginning now to pick up their smiles again), and this
was the reason why:

The king of that country had died, and no one was left behind him but
the queen. But she was a prize, for not only was the kingdom hers, but
she was as young as a spring apple and as pretty as a picture; so that
there was no end of those who would have liked to have had her, each man
for his own. Even that day there were three princes at the castle, each
one wanting the queen to marry him; and the wrangling and bickering and
squabbling that was going on was enough to deafen a body. The poor young
queen was tired to death with it all, and so she had come out into
the garden for a bit of rest; and there she sat under the shade of an
apple-tree, fanning herself and crying, when--

Swash! Down fell the Fiddler into the apple-tree and down fell a dozen
apples, popping and tumbling about the queen's ears.

The queen looked up and screamed, and the Fiddler climbed down.

"Where did you come from?" said she.

"Oh, Ill-Luck brought me," said the Fiddler.

"Nay," said the queen, "do not say so. You fell from heaven, for I saw
it with my eyes and heard it with my ears. I see how it is now. You were
sent hither from heaven to be my husband, and my husband you shall be.
You shall be king of this country, half-and-half with me as queen, and
shall sit on a throne beside me."

You can guess whether or not that was music to the Fiddler's ears.

So the princes were sent packing, and the Fiddler was married to the
queen, and reigned in that country.

Well, three or four days passed, and all was as