o was dead tired with standing so
long, lay down between the eagle's wings and fell asleep, the mouse and
the eagle fell to quarrelling as to which of them had helped Jack the
most, and they quarrelled so much that at last they laid the case before
the frog. Then the frog, who made a very wise judge, said he must see
the whole affair from the very beginning; so the mouse brought out the
golden snuff-box from Jack's pocket, and began to relate where it had
been found and all about it. Now, at that very moment Jack awoke, kicked
out his leg, and plump went the golden snuff-box down to the very bottom
of the sea!

"I thought my turn would come," said the frog, and went plump in after
it.

Well, they waited, and waited, and waited for three whole days and three
whole nights; but froggie never came up again, and they had just given
him up in despair when his nose showed above the water.

"Have you got it?" they shouted.

"No!" says he, with a great gasp.

"Then what do you want?" they cried in a rage.

"My breath," says froggie, and with that he sinks down again.

Well, they waited two days and two nights more, and at last up comes the
little frog with the golden snuff-box in its mouth.

Then they all rejoiced exceedingly, and the eagle flew ever so fast to
the palace of the King of the Birds.

But alas and alack-a-day! Jack's troubles were not ended; his mother's
malison was still bringing him ill-luck, for the King of the Birds flew
into a fearsome rage because Jack had not brought the Castle of the
golden pillars back with him. And he said that unless he saw it by eight
o'clock next morning Jack's head should come off as a cheat and a liar.

Then Jack being close to death opened the golden snuff-box, and out
tumbled the three little red men in their three little red caps. They
had recovered their tempers and were quite glad to be back with a master
who knew that they would only, as a rule, work under fear of death; for,
see you, the servant-master had been for ever disturbing their sleep
with opening the box to no purpose.

So before the clock struck eight next morning, there was the Castle on
its twelve golden pillars, and the King of the Birds was fine and
pleased, and let Jack take his horse and ride to the palace of the King
of the Frogs. But there exactly the same thing happened, and poor Jack
had to open the snuff-box again and order the Castle to come to the
palace of the King of the Frogs. At this the