almost as
hot as burning cinders; and as Cuglas advanced over them his body became
dried up, and his tongue clove to the roof of his mouth, and when his
thirst was at its height a fountain of sparkling water sprang up in the
burning plain a few paces in front of him; but when he came up quite
close to it and stretched out his parched hands to cool them in the
limpid waters, the fountain vanished as suddenly as it appeared. With
great pain, and almost choking with heat and thirst, he struggled on,
and again the fountain sprang up in front of him and moved before him,
almost within his reach. At last he came to the end of the desert, and
he saw a green hill up which a pathway climbed; but as he came to the
foot of the hill, there, sitting right in his way, was a beautiful fairy
holding out towards him a crystal cup, over the rim of which flowed
water as clear as crystal. Unable to resist the temptation, the prince
seized the cold, bright goblet, and drank the water. When he did so his
thirst vanished, but the fairy, and the green hill, and the burning
desert disappeared, and he was standing in the forest behind the palace
of the fairy queen.

That evening the queen returned, and at the feast she talked as gaily
to the prince as if she knew not of his attempt to leave the Floating
Island, and the prince spoke as gaily as he could to her, although in
his heart there was sadness when he remembered that if he had only
dashed away the crystal cup, he would be at that moment in the royal
banquet hall of Tara, sitting beside the Princess Ailinn.

And he thought the feast would never end; but it was over at last, and
the prince returned to his apartments. And that night, as he lay on his
couch, he kept his eyes fixed upon the window; but hours passed, and
there was no sign of anyone. At long last, and when he had given up all
hope of seeing her, he heard a tapping at the window, and he got up and
opened it, and the little woman came in.

"You failed again to-day," said she--"failed just at the very moment
when you were about to step on the green hills of Erin. I can give you
only one chance more. It will be your last. The queen will go hunting
in the morning. Join the hunt, and when you are separated from the rest
of the party in the wood throw your reins upon your horse's neck and he
will lead you to the edge of the lake. Then cast this golden bodkin into
the lake in the direction of the mainland, and a golden bridge will be