Take that to your master,' she said; but as she spoke the glass cracked
and the poison spurted over the horse, and it was so powerful that the
poor creature sank down dead. The servant ran after his master and told
him what had happened, and then, not wishing to lose the saddle as well
as the horse, he went back to fetch it. When he got to the spot he saw
that a raven had perched on the carcase and was pecking at it. 'Who
knows whether we shall get anything better to eat to-day!' said the
servant, and he shot the raven and carried it off.

Then they rode on all day through the forest without coming to the end.
At nightfall they reached an inn, which they entered, and the servant
gave the landlord the raven to dress for their supper. Now, as it
happened, this inn was a regular resort of a band of murderers, and the
old witch too was in the habit of frequenting it.

As soon as it was dark twelve murderers arrived, with the full intention
of killing and robbing the strangers. Before they set to work, however,
they sat down to table, and the landlord and the old witch joined them,
and they all ate some broth in which the flesh of the raven had been
stewed down. They had hardly taken a couple of spoonfuls when they all
fell down dead, for the poison had passed from the horse to the raven
and so into the broth. So there was no one left belonging to the house
but the landlord's daughter, who was a good, well-meaning girl, and had
taken no part in all the evil doings.

She opened all the doors, and showed the strangers the treasures the
robbers had gathered together; but the Prince bade her keep them all
for herself, as he wanted none of them, and so he rode further with his
servant.

After travelling about for some length of time they reached a town where
lived a lovely but most arrogant Princess. She had given out that anyone
who asked her a riddle which she found herself unable to guess should
be her husband, but should she guess it he must forfeit his head. She
claimed three days in which to think over the riddles, but she was so
very clever that she invariably guessed them in a much shorter time.
Nine suitors had already lost their lives when the King's son arrived,
and, dazzled by her beauty, determined to risk his life in hopes of
winning her.

So he came before her and propounded his riddle. 'What is this?' he
asked. 'One slew none and yet killed twelve.'

She could not think what it was! She thought, and thought,