besides being hurt, and
ran home to complain to her father.

'If he had a thousand souls, I would kill them all,' swore the king.

That very day a gallows was built outside the town, and all the people
crowded round to see the execution of the young man who had dared to
beat the king's daughter. The prisoner, with his hands tied behind
his back, was brought out by the hangman, and amidst dead silence his
sentence was being read by the judge when suddenly the sword clanked
against his side. Instantly a great noise was heard and a golden coach
rumbled over the stones, with a white flag waving out of the window.
It stopped underneath the gallows, and from it stepped the king of the
Magyars, who begged that the life of the boy might be spared.

'Sir, he has beaten my daughter, who only asked him to tell her his
secret. I cannot pardon that,' answered the princess's father.

'Give him to me, I'm sure he will tell me the secret; or, if not, I have
a daughter who is like the Morning Star, and he is sure to tell it to
her.'

The sword clanked for the third time, and the king said angrily: 'Well,
if you want him so much you can have him; only never let me see his face
again.' And he made a sign to the hangman. The bandage was removed from
the young man's eyes, and the cords from his wrists, and he took his
seat in the golden coach beside the king of the Magyars. Then the
coachman whipped up his horses, and they set out for Buda.

The king talked very pleasantly for a few miles, and when he thought
that his new companion was quite at ease with him, he asked him what was
the secret which had brought him into such trouble. 'That I cannot tell
you,' answered the youth, 'until it comes true.'

'You will tell my daughter,' said the king, smiling.

'I will tell nobody,' replied the youth, and as he spoke the sword
clanked loudly. The king said no more, but trusted to his daughter's
beauty to get the secret from him.

The journey to Buda was long, and it was several days before they
arrived there. The beautiful princess happened to be picking roses in
the garden, when her father's coach drove up.

'Oh, what a handsome youth! Have you brought him from fairyland?' cried
she, when they all stood upon the marble steps in front of the castle.

'I have brought him from the gallows,' answered the king; rather vexed
at his daughter's words, as never before had she consented to speak to
any man.

'I don't care where you brought him