t
the stake back in the ground, He then left the first field and went to
the rest. He tried the stakes, shook his head, and returned home. In
the dusk he went out the second time to the fields, tried the stakes,
shook his head, and after putting them again in the ground, went home.
Next morning he went out to the fields the third time. When he reached
the first stake he pulled it out of the ground and put it to his nose
as he did on the foregoing days. But no sooner had he done that than
he threw the stake from him, and stretched away for the horses with
all his might.

He got the horses, the withes, and the plough, and when he reached the
end of the first field with them, he thrust the plough into the
ground, and cried:

"My horses and my leather-traces, and mettlesome lads,
The earth is coming up!"

He then began ploughing, kept at it all day at a terrible rate and
before the sun went down that night there was not a palm-breadth of
the three fields which he had not ploughed, sowed, and harrowed. When
the Farmer saw this he was exceedingly well pleased, for he had his
work finished as soon as his neighbours.

The Ploughman was quick and ready to do everything that he was told,
and so he and the Farmer agreed well until the harvest came. But on a
certain day when the reaping was over the Farmer said to him that he
thought the corn was dry enough for putting in. The Ploughman tried a
sheaf or two, and answered that it was not dry yet. But shortly after
that day he said that it was now ready. "If it is," said the Farmer,
"we'd better begin putting it in."

"We will not until I get my share out of it first," said the
Ploughman. He then went off to the wood, and in a short time returned,
having in his hand a withe scraped and twisted. He stretched the withe
on the field, and began to put the corn in it. He continued putting
sheaf after sheaf in the withe until he had taken almost all the
sheaves that were on the field. The Farmer asked of him what he meant?
"Thou didst promise me as wages as much corn as I could carry with me
in one burden-withe, and here I have it now," said the Ploughman, as
he was shutting the withe.

The Farmer saw that he would be ruined by the Ploughman, and therefore
said:

"'T was in the Mart I sowed,
'T was in the Mart I baked,
'T was in the Mart I harrowed.
Thou Who hast ordained the three Marts,
Let not my share go in one burden-withe.'"

Inst