could do nothing but walk round and round her treasure,
admiring the yellow gold and wondering at her good luck, and saying to
herself about every two minutes, "Well, I _do_ be feeling rich and
grand!" But presently she began to think how she could best take it home
with her; and she couldn't see any other way than by fastening one end
of her shawl to it, and so dragging it after her along the road.

"It'll certainly be soon dark," she said to herself, "and folk'll not
see what I'm bringing home with me, and so I'll have all the night to
myself to think what I'll do with it. I could buy a grand house and all,
and live like the Queen herself, and not do a stroke of work all day,
but just sit by the fire with a cup of tea; or maybe I'll give it to the
priest to keep for me, and get a piece as I'm wanting; or maybe I'll
just bury it in a hole at the garden-foot, and put a bit on the chimney,
between the chiney teapot and the spoons--for ornament like. Ah! I feel
so grand, I don't know myself rightly!"

And by this time, being already rather tired with dragging such a heavy
weight after her, she stopped to rest for a minute, turning to make sure
that her treasure was safe.

But when she looked at it, it wasn't a pot of gold at all, but a great
lump of shining silver!

She stared at it, and rubbed her eyes and stared at it again; but she
couldn't make it look like anything but a great lump of silver. "I'd
have sworn it was a pot of gold," she said at last, "but I reckon I must
have been dreaming. Ay, now, that's a change for the better; it'll be
far less trouble to look after, and none so easy stolen; yon gold pieces
would have been a sight of bother to keep 'em safe. Ay, I'm well quit of
them; and with my bonny lump I'm as rich as rich--!"

And she set off homewards again, cheerfully planning all the grand
things she was going to do with her money. It wasn't very long, however,
before she got tired again and stopped once more to rest for a minute or
two.

Again she turned to look at her treasure, and as soon as she set eyes on
it she cried out in astonishment. "Oh, my!" said she; "now it's a lump
o' iron! Well, that beats all; and it's just real convenient! I can sell
it as _easy_ as _easy_, and get a lot o' penny pieces for it. Ay, hinny,
an' it's much handier than a lot o' yer gold and silver as 'd have kept
me from sleeping o' nights thinking the neighbours were robbing me--an'
it's a real good thing to have by you