tell them was that the
boy was summoned before the court at the suit of a noble lady, and that
he had been acquitted and set at liberty; but after this one of the
queen's servants had taken the boy away and put him to service at
another farm. The king hastened thither, and found that his son had
indeed been there for a few weeks, but he had fled, and nothing more had
been heard of him. Where should they now seek for advice, and who was
able to direct their search aright?

While the king was thus greatly troubled at losing all traces of his
son, the old man who had several times encountered the prince presented
himself and said that he knew such a young man as they sought for, who
had first served as a herdsman and had afterwards worked at several
other occupations, and that he hoped to be able to discover him. The
king promised the old man a rich reward if he could help him to find his
son, and he ordered one of his attendants to dismount from his horse,
and pressed the old man to mount, so that they could travel quicker; but
he said, smiling, "No matter how fast a horse can run, my legs can run
as fast, for they have traversed larger districts of the world than any
horse." In fact, in a week's time they came upon the traces of the
prince, and found him in the grounds of a magnificent mansion, where he
was engaged as gardener. The king's joy was unbounded when he recovered
his son, whom he had mourned for so many years as dead. Tears of joy
streamed down his cheeks as he strained his son to his breast and kissed
him. But he heard tidings from his son's mouth which damped the joy of
their meeting, and caused him fresh trouble. The gardener had a young
and beautiful daughter, fairer than all the flowers in this splendid
garden, and as pure and good as an angel. The prince had lost his heart
to this maiden, and he told his father plainly that he would never marry
a lady of higher rank, but would take the gardener's daughter as his
consort, even if he should be forced to abandon his kingdom for her.
"Come home first," said the king, "and afterwards we will talk the
matter over." Then the prince asked his father for a costly gold ring,
and put it on the maiden's finger before the eyes of all, saying, "With
this ring I betroth thee, and I will return, whether the time be long or
short, to claim thee as my bride." But the king answered, "No, not so;
the affair shall be arranged otherwise." He took the ring from the
maiden's f