the princess's beauty, and
heard how meek and patient she had been, and the king ordered a great
feast to be got ready for all his court. The bridegroom sat at the top
of the table, with the false princess on one side and the true one on
the other; but the waiting-maid did not recognise the princess, for
her beauty was quite dazzling.

When they had eaten and drunk, and were very merry, the old king said
he would tell them a tale. So he began, and told all the story of the
princess, as if it were a tale he had heard, and he asked the
waiting-woman what she thought ought to be done to any one who behaved
so badly as the servant in the story.

"Nothing better," said the false bride, "than that she should be
thrown into a cask stuck round with sharp nails, and that two white
horses should be put to it, and should drag it from street to street
till she were dead."

"Thou art she," said the old king, "and as thou hast judged thyself,
so it shall be done to thee."

Then the young prince was married to his true wife, and they reigned
over the kingdom in peace and happiness all their lives.

HANS JAGENTEUFEL.

It is commonly believed that if any person is guilty of a crime for
which he deserves to lose his head, he will, if he escape punishment
during his lifetime, be condemned after his death to wander about with
his head under his arm.

In the year 1644 a woman of Dresden went out early one Sunday morning
into a neighbouring wood for the purpose of collecting acorns. In an
open space, at a spot not very far from the place which is called the
Lost Water, she heard somebody blow a very strong blast upon a
hunting-horn, and immediately afterwards a heavy fall succeeded, as
though a large tree had fallen to the ground. The woman was greatly
alarmed, and concealed her little bag of acorns among the grass.
Shortly afterwards the horn was blown a second time, and on looking
round she saw a man without a head, dressed in a long grey cloak, and
riding upon a grey horse. He was booted and spurred, and had a
bugle-horn hanging at his back.

As he rode past her very quietly she regained her courage, went on
gathering the acorns, and when evening came returned home undisturbed.

Nine days afterwards, the woman returned to that spot for the purpose
of again collecting the acorns, and as she sat down by the
Forsterberg, peeling an apple, she heard behind her a voice calling
out to her--

"Have you taken a whole sack of