hen the merry-making was done, and the young
couple were alone, the head suddenly disappeared, or, rather, a body
was added to it, and one of the handsomest young men that ever was
seen stood before the princess.

'A wicked fairy enchanted me at my birth,' he said, 'and for the rest
of the world I must always be a head only. But for you, and you only,
I am a man like other men.'

'And that is all I care about,' said the princess.

[_Traditions populaires de toutes les nations (Asie Mineure)._]

_THE SISTER OF THE SUN_

A long time ago there lived a young prince whose favourite playfellow
was the son of the gardener who lived in the grounds of the palace.
The king would have preferred his choosing a friend from the pages who
were brought up at court; but the prince would have nothing to say to
them, and as he was a spoilt child, and allowed his way in all things,
and the gardener's boy was quiet and well-behaved, he was suffered to
be in the palace, morning, noon, and night.

The game the children loved the best was a match at archery, for the
king had given them two bows exactly alike, and they would spend whole
days in trying to see which could shoot the highest. This is always
very dangerous, and it was a great wonder they did not put their eyes
out; but somehow or other they managed to escape.

One morning, when the prince had done his lessons, he ran out to call
his friend, and they both hurried off to the lawn which was their
usual playground. They took their bows out of the little hut where
their toys were kept, and began to see which could shoot the highest.
At last they happened to let fly their arrows both together, and when
they fell to earth again the tail feather of a golden hen was found
sticking in one. Now the question began to arise whose was the lucky
arrow, for they were both alike, and look as closely as you would you
could see no difference between them. The prince declared that the
arrow was his, and the gardener's boy was quite sure it was
_his_--and on this occasion he was perfectly right; but, as they could
not decide the matter, they went straight to the king.

When the king had heard the story, he decided that the feather
belonged to his son; but the other boy would not listen to this and
claimed the feather for himself. At length the king's patience gave
way, and he said angrily:

'Very well; if you are so sure that the feather is yours, yours it
shall be; only you will have