will you take for
that?" she said. "I will give it to you," the girl said, "if you will
let me see my husband's head above the water." "I will do that much for
you," said the witch.

'Then the young man put up his head above the water, and she could see
his face; but she could not touch him, and she went away.

'The next day she came again with a musical instrument that was better
again than the first, and she began to play it. The witch put up her
hand, and asked what would she take for it. "Let me see my husband to
his waist this time," she said. So the young man was let up out of the
water as far as his waist, and then he disappeared again.

'The next day she came again, and the musical instrument she brought
with her was seven times better than the other two. "What will you take
for that?" said the witch. "Let my husband stand up on your shoulders,
clear and clean out of the water," she said. So the witch put him up on
her shoulder; and when she did, he took the shape of a hawk on the
moment, and away with him through the air, back to his own home again.

'The witch followed him then; and when he was in a field, she came to
fight him, and they fought the whole day, and they were both tired, and
they stopped to rest. "Oh, if I had three drops of sea-water and a
crumb of wheaten bread!" said the witch. "Oh, if I had three drops of
fresh water and a crumb of barley bread!" said the young man.

'And a fairy brought the witch the three drops of sea-water and the
crumb of bread. And a little serving-girl from the farm brought the
young man the three drops of fresh water and the crumb of bread. And
then they fought together again; and he having the strength of a lion,
he killed her in the end.'

* * * * *

Another old man said: 'There was a young man looking for service one
time; and a farmer said he would take him to mind his cattle. For a
great many of his cattle had died with the herds he had, and he didn't
know what the reason was.

So the first morning the young man led them up as he was told, to the
green grassy place on the top of Cruachmaa. And when he looked about him
there, he noticed it to be very dirty and trampled by the cattle. So he
brought them to graze in the fields at the side of the hill; and he came
back, and cleared all the dirt from that field till it was green and
smooth. And no more of the cattle died.

'He was up in the field one day, and he saw a great hurl