shining yonder among the trees
there lives a woman who does things such as nobody else can do. Only
persuade her to lend you her door for the bottom of the carriage, and,
in my opinion, it will hold till morning."

The baron made a sign, and twenty peasants ran to the cottage of
Finette, who very obligingly lent them her gold door. They put it in
the bottom of the carriage, where it fitted as if it had been made
expressly for it. The party took their seats in the carriage, the
coachman cracked his whip, the church was in sight, and all the
troubles of the journey seemed ended.

Not at all! Suddenly the horses stopped and refused to draw. There
were four of them. Six, eight, ten, twenty-four more were put to the
carriage, but all in vain; it was impossible to stir them. The more
they were whipped the deeper the wheels sunk into the ground, like the
coulter of a plow.

What were they to do? To go on foot would have been a disgrace. To
mount a horse and ride to the church like simple peasants was not the
custom of the Kervers. They tried to lift the carriage, they pushed
the wheels, they shook it, they pulled it, but all in vain. Meanwhile
the day was declining and the hour for the marriage had passed.

Every one had a word of advice to offer. This gave the seneschal
courage. He approached the baron, alighted from his horse, raised his
velvet cap, and said:

"My lord, in the house that you see shining yonder among the trees
there lives a woman who does things such as nobody else can do. Only
persuade her to lend you her cow to draw the carriage, and, in my
opinion, she will draw it till morning."

The baron made a sign, and thirty peasants ran to the cottage of
Finette, who very obligingly lent them her golden-horned cow.

To go to church drawn by a cow was not, perhaps, what the ambitious
bride had dreamed of, but it was better than to remain unmarried in
the road. The heifer was harnessed, therefore, before the four horses,
and everybody looked on anxiously to see what this boasted animal
would do.

But before the coachman had time to crack his whip, lo! the cow
started off as if she were about to go around the world anew. Horses,
carriage, baron, betrothed, coachman, all were hurried away by the
furious animal. In vain the knights spurred their horses to follow the
pair; in vain the peasants ran at full speed, taking the cross-road
and cutting across the meadows. The carriage flew as if it had wings;
a pigeo