cult to vanquish
one when he is invisible, and no one had ever thought of such an
exploit.

The prince and the Poor Boy's sister hid themselves in a ditch near
the palace, that the dragon might not see them; but the Poor Boy
stationed himself a little behind the gate and waited for the dragon
to hurl his club, in order to get near him, for when he no longer had
a club he would be obliged to fight either with his sword or with his
fists.

Ere long, crash! the club struck the iron-barred gate, but the Poor
Boy was not slow, he opened the other gate and ran out with it,
leaving the palace to fall in ruins behind him.

"Come on, if you have the courage to show yourself," he shouted,
believing that the dragon would make some reply and thus betray
himself.

But the dragon felt that he had found his match, and did not think of
speaking, but, invisible to the youth, approached, drew his sword, and
aimed straight at his enemy's head to hack it off, but the blow only
broke the lad's jaw. The wound hurt the Poor Boy, but it pleased him,
too, because he now knew where to look for his foe; so he rushed in
the direction from which the blow had come, struck out, and felt that
he hit flesh, struck again, and again felt that he had hit, and so
continued to deal short, swift thrusts, with, which he drove the
dragon before the point of his sword. Suddenly he perceived that he
no longer hit any thing and the dragon had escaped, so he stood
cowering, like a person who does not know from whence the next blow
will come.

The dragon again aimed straight at the Poor Boy's head, and as he
hacked, struck off his right ear.

"I'll pay you for that," shouted the youth, rushing upon him again.
But his strength was now greatly diminished, and he only hit the
dragon twice before he lost him from the point of his saber.

The princess was watching their battle from her tower, which had
remained standing, and as she watched wondered at the Poor Boy's
heroic courage; but when she saw the dragon aiming a third blow at the
youth's head, she called: "Dear hero, turn to the right and spit three
times, then you can see your foe."

When the Poor Boy heard this, he felt a hundred thousand times
stronger than he had been before, and as he turned to the right, spit,
and saw the dragon, he rushed upon him, seized him in his arms, and
squeezed him so that he crushed all his bones and flung him on the
ground as dead as a mouse.

The prince and the Poor