pleased at the young man agreeing so readily, but he
had no choice, and ordered the servant to be taken downstairs. Oh, how
he enjoyed himself! All day long he drank, and drank, and drank, till
instead of half the cellar, he had drunk the whole, and there was not
a cask but what stood empty. And when the king saw this he said to the
youth, 'You have conquered, and I can no longer withhold my daughter.
But, as her dowry, I shall only give so much as one man can carry away.'

'But,' answered he, 'let a man be ever so strong, he cannot carry more
than a hundredweight, and what is that for a king's daughter?'

'Well, do as you like; I have said my say. It is your affair--not mine.'

The young man was puzzled, and did not know what to reply, for, though
he would gladly have married the princess without a sixpence, he had
spent all his money in building the ship, and knew he could not give her
all she wanted. So he went to the hermit and said to him, 'The king will
only give for her dowry as much as a man can carry. I have no money of
my own left, and my brothers have none either.'

'Silly boy! Why, you have only got to fetch the man who carried half the
forest on his shoulders.'

And the youth was glad, and called the strong man, and told him what he
must do. 'Take everything you can, till you are bent double. Never mind
if you leave the palace bare.'

The strong man promised, and nobly kept his word. He piled all he
could see on his back--chairs, tables, wardrobes, chests of gold and
silver--till there was nothing left to pile. At last he took the king's
crown, and put it on the top. He carried his burden to the ship and
stowed his treasures away, and the youth followed, leading the king's
daughter. But the king was left raging in his empty palace, and he
called together his army, and got ready his ships of war, in order that
he might go after the vessel and bring back what had been taken away.

And the king's ships sailed very fast, and soon caught up the little
vessel, and the sailors all shouted for joy. Then the hermit looked out
and saw how near they were, and he said to the youth, 'Do you see that?'

The youth shrieked and cried, 'Ah, good father, it is a fleet of ships,
and they are chasing us, and in a few moments they will be upon us.'

But the hermit bade him call the man who had the fog in his sack, and
the sack was opened and the fog flew out, and hung right round the
king's ships, so that they could see