t they all led into long underground passages.

"This is my one chance to get back to earth!" the girl thought and
commending her undertaking to God she fled down one of the passages.

You may be sure the Vampire when he came back and found her gone fell
into a great rage. He went running wildly up and down the various
passages and lost so much time searching the wrong passages that the
girl was able to make good her escape and reach the upper world in
safety.

She came out in a wood with no sign of human habitation anywhere in
sight.

"What shall I do now?" she thought. "If I stay here alone and
unprotected some wild beast or evil creature may get me."

So she knelt down and prayed God to give her a chest that she could lock
from the inside with one of her own golden hairs so securely that no one
could force it open. God heard her prayer and presently behind some
bushes she found just such a chest. When it grew dark and she was ready
to go to bed, she crept into the chest, locked it with a hair, and slept
peacefully knowing that nothing could harm her.

So she lived in the wood some time, eating berries and fruits, and
sleeping safely in the chest.

Now it so happened that the King's son one morning went hunting in this
very wood and caught a glimpse of the girl as she was gathering berries.
He thought he had never seen such a beautiful creature and instantly he
fell in love with her. But when he reached the clump of bushes where he
had seen her, she was gone. He called his huntsmen together and told
them to search everywhere. They hunted for hours and all they could find
was a chest. They tried to open the chest to see what was in it but
couldn't.

"Waste no more time over it," the Prince said at last. "Carry it home to
the palace as it is and have it placed in my chamber."

The huntsmen did this and a few hours later when the girl peeped out of
her chest she found herself alone in the Prince's chamber. His supper
was standing on a table in readiness for his coming. The girl ate the
supper and was safely back in her chest before he arrived. When he did
come the Prince was amazed to see empty plates and called the servants
to know who had eaten his supper. The servants were as much surprised as
the Prince and declared that no one had entered the chamber.

The same thing happened the next day and the following day the Prince
had one of his servants hide behind the curtains and watch to find out
if possible h