ith his axe
under his arm, came to listen to the music.

"At last here comes the right sort of companion," said the musician; "it
was a man I wanted, and not wild animals." And then he began to play so
sweetly that the poor man stood as if enchanted, and his heart was
filled with joy. And as he was standing there up came the wolf, the fox,
and the hare, and he could easily see that they meant mischief. Then he
raised his shining axe, and stood in front of the musician, as if to
say,

"Whoever means harm to him had better take care of himself, for he will
have to do with me!"

Then the animals were frightened, and ran back into the wood, and the
musician, when he had played once more to the man to show his gratitude,
went on his way.

THE TWELVE BROTHERS

ONCE upon a time there lived a King and Queen very peacefully together;
they had twelve children, all boys. Now the King said to the Queen one
day,

"If our thirteenth child should be a girl the twelve boys shall die, so
that her riches may be the greater, and the kingdom fall to her alone."

Then he caused twelve coffins to be made; and they were filled with
shavings, and a little pillow laid in each, and they were brought and
put in a locked-up room; and the King gave the key to the Queen, and
told her to say nothing about it to any one.

But the mother sat the whole day sorrowing, so that her youngest son,
who never left her, and to whom she had given the Bible name Benjamin,
said to her,

"Dear mother, why are you so sad?"

"Dearest child," answered she, "I dare not tell you."

But he let her have no peace until she went and unlocked the room, and
showed him the twelve coffins with the shavings and the little pillows.
Then she said,

"My dear Benjamin, your father has caused these coffins to be made for
you and your eleven brothers, and if I bring a little girl into the
world you are all to be put to death together and buried therein." And
she wept as she spoke, and her little son comforted her and said,

"Weep not, dear mother, we will save ourselves and go far away." Then
she answered,

"Yes, go with your eleven brothers out into the world, and let one of
you always sit on the top of the highest tree that can be found, and
keep watch upon the tower of this castle. If a little son is born I will
put out a white flag, and then you may safely venture back again; but if
it is a little daughter I will put out a red flag, and then flee away as