aughter, for it is
only lent to me.' So he took it away with him, and gave it back to the
shepherd.

Then the young man threw the skin from off him, and went to the king,
saying: 'Sire, I am persuaded I can find your daughter.'

When the king saw how handsome he was, he said: 'My lad, I have pity on
your youth. This enterprise has already cost the lives of many, and will
certainly be your death as well.'

But the young man answered, 'I accept your conditions, oh king; I will
either find her or lose my head.'

Thereupon he went before the king, who followed after him, till they
came to the great door. Then the young man said to the king: 'Speak the
words that it may open.'

And the king answered: 'What are the words? Shall I say something like
this: "Shut; shut; shut"?'

'No,' said he; 'say "Open, Sartara Martara of the earth."'

When the king had so said, the door opened of itself, and they went
in, while the king gnawed his moustache in anger. Then they came to the
second door, where the same thing happened as at the first, and they
went in and found the princess.

Then spoke the king and said: 'Yes, truly, you have found the princess.
Now I will turn her as well as all her maidens into ducks, and if you
can guess which of these ducks is my daughter, then you shall have her
to wife.'

And immediately the king changed all the maidens into ducks, and he
drove them before the young man, and said: 'Now show me which is my
daughter.'

Then the princess, according to their understanding, began to clean her
wings with her bill, and the lad said: 'She who cleans her wings is the
princess.'

Now the king could do nothing more but give her to the young man to
wife, and they lived together in great joy and happiness.

(From the German.)

THE GIRL WHO PRETENDED TO BE A BOY

Once upon a time there lived an emperor who was a great conqueror, and
reigned over more countries than anyone in the world. And whenever he
subdued a fresh kingdom, he only granted peace on condition that the
king should deliver him one of his sons for ten years' service.

Now on the borders of his kingdom lay a country whose emperor was as
brave as his neighbour, and as long as he was young he was the victor in
every war. But as years passed away, his head grew weary of making
plans of campaign, and his people wanted to stay at home and till their
fields, and at last he too felt that he must do homage to the other
emperor.

One th