ve nothing to say to
him, and, what was worse, often made fun of him with the rest.

Jegu, for that was his name, of course heard of this, and it made him
very unhappy. Still, he would not leave the farm, and look for work
elsewhere, as he might have done, for then he would never see Barbaik at
all, and what was life worth to him without that?

* * * * *

One evening he was bringing back his horses from the fields, and stopped
at a little lake on the way home to let them drink. He was tired with a
long day's work, and stood with his hand on the mane of one of the
animals, waiting till they had done, and thinking all the while of
Barbaik, when a voice came out of the gorse close by.

'What is the matter, Jegu? You mustn't despair yet.'

The young man glanced up in surprise, and asked who was there.

'It is I, the brownie of the lake,' replied the voice.

'But where _are_ you?' inquired Jegu.

'Look close, and you will see me among the reeds in the form of a little
green frog. I can take,' he added proudly, 'any shape I choose, and
even, which is much harder, be invisible if I want to.'

'Then show yourself to me in the shape in which your family generally
appear,' replied Jegu.

'Certainly, if you wish,' and the frog jumped on the back of one of the
horses, and changed into a little dwarf, all dressed green.

This transformation rather frightened Jegu, but the brownie bade him
have no fears, for he would not do him any harm; indeed, he hoped that
Jegu might find him of some use.

'But why should you take all this interest in me?' asked the peasant
suspiciously.

'Because of a service you did me last winter, which I have never
forgotten,' answered the little fellow. 'You know, I am sure, that the
korigans[3] who dwell in the White Corn country have declared war on my
people, because they say that they are the friends of man. We were
therefore obliged to take refuge in distant lands, and to hide ourselves
at first under different animal shapes. Since that time, partly from
habit and partly to amuse ourselves, we have continued to transform
ourselves, and it was in this way that I got to know you.'

[Footnote 3: The spiteful fairies.]

'How?' exclaimed Jegu, filled with astonishment.

'Do you remember when you were digging in the field near the river,
three months ago, you found a robin redbreast caught in a net?'

'Yes,' answered Jegu, 'I remember it very well, and I o