r this the Giant accompanied him down to the sea, where he saw a
stone boat which was just big enough to hold the two of them and the
Dog. On reaching the mainland the Giant took a friendly farewell of
Ring, and told him he might take possession of all that was in the
island after he and his wife died, which would happen within two weeks
from that time. The Prince thanked him for this and for all his other
kindnesses, and the Giant returned home, while Ring went up some
distance from the sea; but he did not know what land he had come to,
and was afraid to speak to the Dog. After he had walked on in silence
for a time the Dog spoke to him and said:

'You don't seem to have much curiosity, seeing you never ask my name.'

The Prince then forced himself to ask, 'What is your name?'

'You had best call me Snati-Snati,' said the Dog. 'Now we are coming
to a King's seat, and you must ask the King to keep us all winter, and
to give you a little room for both of us.'

The Prince now began to be less afraid of the Dog. They came to the
King and asked him to keep them all the winter, to which he agreed.
When the King's men saw the Dog they began to laugh at it, and make as
if they would tease it; but when the Prince saw this he advised them
not to do it, or they might have the worst of it. They replied that
they didn't care a bit what he thought.

After Ring had been with the King for some days the latter began to
think there was a great deal in him, and esteemed him more than the
others. The King, however, had a counsellor called Red, who became
very jealous when he saw how much the King esteemed Ring; and one day
he talked to him, and said he could not understand why he had so good
an opinion of this stranger, who had not yet shown himself superior to
other men in anything. The King replied that it was only a short time
since he had come there. Red then asked him to send them both to cut
down wood next morning, and see which of them could do most work.
Snati-Snati heard this and told it to Ring, advising him to ask the
King for two axes, so that he might have one in reserve if the first
one got broken. Next morning the King asked Ring and Red to go and cut
down trees for him, and both agreed. Ring got the two axes, and each
went his own way; but when the Prince had got out into the wood Snati
took one of the axes and began to hew along with him. In the evening
the King came to look over their day's work, as Red had proposed,