the piles which
they make in the streets to burn on a _festa_ night.

The little old woman saw what he was doing and ran to get the magic
sacks in which her daughters were imprisoned. They laid the sacks on
top of the pile of magic wood and lighted the fire. There was a great
noise like thunder. Out of the three magic sacks there sprang three
beautiful maidens who had been preserved alive in the sacks by a
miracle of _Nossa Senhora_.

The little old woman and her three beautiful daughters turned to thank
the little black boy for what he had done. The little black boy was no
longer black. He had been turned white.

The three _cavalheiros_ married the three beautiful maidens and the
little boy who was now white, grew up to be the greatest _cavalheiro_
of them all.

XVI

How the Pigeon Became a

Tame Bird

Once upon a time there was a father with three sons who had reached
the age when they must go out into the world to earn their own living.
When the time for parting came he gave to each of them a large melon
with the advice that they open the melons only at a place where there
was water nearby.

The three brothers set out from their father's house, each taking a
different path. As soon as the eldest son was out of sight of the
house he opened his melon. A beautiful maiden sprang out of the melon
saying, "Give me water or give me milk." There was no water nearby and
neither did the young man have any milk to give her. She fell down
dead.

The second son left his father's house by a path which led over a
steep hill. The large melon was heavy to carry and in a little while
he became very tired and thirsty. He saw no water nearby and feared
that there was no possibility of finding any soon, so he thought he
would open the melon and use it to quench his thirst. Accordingly he
opened his melon. To his great surprise, a beautiful maiden sprang
forth saying, "Give me water or give me milk." Of course he had
neither to give her and she fell down dead.

The third son also travelled by a path which led over a steep hill.
He, too, became very tired and thirsty and he often thought how much
he would like to open his melon. However, he remembered his father's
advice to open it only where there was water nearby. So he travelled
on and on hoping to find a spring of water on the hillside. He did not
have the good fortune to pass near a spring either going up the hill
or coming down on the opposite side. At the foot