my father hath doomed me!"

So he set to work with the little scissors to cut the great ropes of the
net in twain. At first each strand seemed as hard as steel, and the
blades of the scissors were so rusty and dull that he could scarcely
move them. Great beads of sweat stood out on his brow as he bent himself
to the task.

Presently, as he worked, the blades began to grow sharper and sharper,
and brighter and brighter, and longer and longer. By the time that the
last rope was cut the scissors were as sharp as a broadsword, and half
as long as his body.

At last he raised the net to let the beast go free. Then he sank on his
knees in astonishment. It had suddenly disappeared, and in its place
stood a beautiful Fairy with filmy wings, which shone like rainbows in
the moonlight.

"Prince Ethelried," she said in a voice that was like a crystal bell's
for sweetness, "dost thou not know that thou art in the domain of a
frightful Ogre? It was he who changed me into the form of a wild beast,
and set the snare to capture me. But for thy fearlessness and faithful
perseverance in the task which thou didst in pity undertake, I must have
perished at dawn."

At this moment there was a distant rumbling as of thunder. "'Tis the
Ogre!" cried the Fairy. "We must hasten." Seizing the scissors that lay
on the ground where Ethelried had dropped them, she opened and shut them
several times, exclaiming:

"Scissors, grow a giant's height
And save us from the Ogre's might!"

Immediately they grew to an enormous size, and, with blades extended,
shot through the tangled thicket ahead of them, cutting down everything
that stood in their way,--bushes, stumps, trees, vines; nothing could
stand before the fierce onslaught of those mighty blades.

The Fairy darted down the path thus opened up, and Ethelried followed as
fast as he could, for the horrible roaring was rapidly coming nearer. At
last they reached a wide chasm that bounded the Ogre's domain. Once
across that, they would be out of his power, but it seemed impossible to
cross. Again the Fairy touched the scissors, saying:

"Giant scissors, bridge the path,
And save us from the Ogre's wrath."

Again the scissors grew longer and longer, until they lay across the
chasm like a shining bridge. Ethelried hurried across after the Fairy,
trembling and dizzy, for the Ogre was now almost upon them. As soon as
they were safe on the other side, the Fairy blew upon the sci