ing on trees and he thought he was out of
his mind. He came back and he found his sheep gone. "What will I do
now?" said he. "I daren't let Ann know I lost a goat and a sheep until
I put her into good humor by showing the shawl I bought her at the fair.
There's nothing to be done now, but take a bullock out of the field and
sell it at the fair." He went to the field then, took a bullock out of
it, and passed the house just as the robbers were lighting their pipes.
"If he watched the goat and the sheep closely he'll watch the bullock
nine times as closely," said one of the robbers.

"Which of you could take the bullock without doing the man any
violence?" said Gilly. "I couldn't," said one robber, and "I couldn't,"
said another robber. "If you could do it," said the Captain of the
Robbers to Gilly, "I'll resign my command and give it to you." "Done,"
said Gilly, and he went out of the house again.

He went quickly through the wood, and when he came near where the farmer
was he began to bleat like a goat. The farmer stopped and listened. Then
Gilly began to baa like the sheep. "That sounds very like my goat and
sheep," said the farmer. "Maybe they weren't taken at all, but just
strayed off. If I can get them now, I needn't make any excuses to Ann my
wife." He tied the bullock to a tree and went into the wood. As soon as
he did, Gilly slipped out, took the bullock by the rope and hurried back
to the house. The robbers were gathered at the door to watch for his
coming back. When they saw him with the bullock they threw up their
hats. "This man must be our Captain," they said. The Captain was biting
his lips and his nails. At last he took off his hat with the feathers in
it and gave it to Gilly. "You're our Captain now," said the robbers.

Gilly ordered that the goat, the sheep and the bullock be put into the
byre, that the door be locked and the key be given to him. All that was
done. Then said he to all the robbers, "I demand to know what became of
the Crystal Egg that was with the goose you stole from the Spae-Woman."
"The Crystal Egg," said one of the robbers. "It hatched, and a queer
bird came out of it." "Where is that bird now?" said Gilly. "On the
waves of the lake near at hand," said the robbers. "We see it every
day." "Take me to the lake till I see the Bird out of the Crystal Egg,"
said Gilly. They locked the door of the house behind them, and the
seven, Gilly at their head, wearing the hat with feathers, marched