ts mother.

But it was when he watched the love-light in the eyes of the mother deer
that he would shut his eyes and try to dream that he too had a
loving mother.

THE BROKEN SWORD

Mimi always pretended to be Siegfried's father, and he pretended to love
Siegfried.

But Siegfried knew there was no love in Mimi's heart.

Daily Siegfried grew larger and stronger.

Mimi continually boasted of his work at the forge.

Often he said: "No one in this world can make such marvelous swords as
Mimi."

Siegfried urged him to make one sword after another, but as fast as they
were made the boy would shatter them to bits with one blow on the
dwarf's forge.

Then he would cry in disgust: "Nonsense, Mimi. Your swords are mere
toys. Just like little switches.

"Either make me a good strong sword or quit your bragging."

Mimi always kept the pieces of Siegmund's sword carefully hidden.
While Siegfried roamed through the woods, the dwarf would work for hours
trying to mend the magic blade, but its hard steel would never yield
either to his fire or his hammer.

Mimi grew tired and discouraged.

"I can never mend it," he groaned.

A BIG BROWN BEAR

Siegfried grew to be a young man.

Often he saw his reflection in the water, and he said:--

"I am not Mimi's son. The babes in the forest all look like their
parents. I do not look like Mimi."

Siegfried's reflection showed him a fearless face with large, honest
eyes.

About the face fell a wealth of waving, sunny hair.

One day, as he studied this reflection and thought of the blinking,
sneaking little black Mimi, he said:--

"I will endure his falsehoods no longer. I know he is not my father.
This very day I am going to make him tell me who I am!"

Lifting his silver horn, he blew a loud blast.

Out of the woods came one of his good friends, a great brown bear.

"Come, Bruin," said Siegfried.

And he put a rope around Bruin's neck.

"We will go to Mimi's cave and we will make him tell us all we want to
know."

Siegfried led the big bear to the mouth of Mimi's cave.

When the cowardly Mind saw the bear, he crouched behind the forge and
screamed:--

"Take him away! Oh, Siegfried, take him away!"

"Eat him, Bruin," laughed Siegfried, as Mimi trembled with fear.

The bear growled at Mimi.

"Oh! keep him off!" gasped Mimi.

"I shall," said Siegfried, "if you will promise to answer all I ask."

[Illustration: "EAT HIM, BRUIN," LAUGHED SIEGFRIED]

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