oor, but he had a beautiful
daughter. Now, it happened that he came to speak to the king, and, to
give himself importance, he said to him, "I have a daughter who can
spin straw into gold."

The king said to the miller, "That is a talent that pleases me well;
if she be as skilful as you say, bring her to-morrow to the palace,
and I will put her to the proof."

When the maiden was brought to him, he led her to a room full of
straw, gave her a wheel and spindle, and said, "Now set to work, and
if by the morrow this straw be not spun into gold, you shall die." He
locked the door, and left the maiden alone.

The poor girl sat down disconsolate, and could not for her life think
what she was to do; for she knew not--how could she?--the way to spin
straw into gold; and her distress increased so much that at last she
began to weep. All at once the door opened, and a little man entered,
and said, "Good evening, my pretty miller's daughter why are you
weeping so bitterly?"

"Ah!" answered the maiden, "I must spin straw into gold, and know not
how to do it."

The little man said, "What will you give me if I do it for you?"

"My neckerchief," said the maiden.

He took the kerchief, sat down before the wheel, and grind, grind,
grind--three times did he grind--and the spindle was full: then he put
another thread on, and grind, grind, grind, the second was full; so he
spun on till morning; when all the straw was spun, and all the
spindles were full of gold.

The king came at sunrise, and was greatly astonished and overjoyed at
the sight; but it only made his heart the more greedy of gold. He put
the miller's daughter into another much larger room, full of straw,
and ordered her to spin it all in one night, if life were dear to her.
The poor helpless maiden began to weep, when once more the door flew
open, the little man appeared, and said, "What will you give me if I
spin this straw into gold?"

"My ring from my finger," answered the maiden.

The little man took the ring, began to turn the wheel, and, by the
morning, all the straw was spun into shining gold.

The king was highly delighted when he saw it, but was not yet
satisfied with the quantity of gold; so he put the damsel into a still
larger room, full of straw, and said, "Spin this during the night; and
if you do it, you shall be my wife." "For," he thought, "if she's only
a miller's daughter I shall never find a richer wife in the whole
world."

As soon as the d