ly, and the Levant, his sons and brothers went as far as to Denmark,
and from thence to Iceland in the frozen Seas, where the royal falcon
breeds. Yet are there right noble kinds likewise to be found in the Harz
mountains, nigh to their native country.

The man who was ever Kubbeling's fellow, going with him to the Levant
now, as, erewhile to the far North, was Uhlwurm, who, albeit he had been
old Jordan's serving-man, was held by Seyfried as his equal; and
whoso would make one his guest must be fain to take the other into the
bargain. This was ever gladly done at the Forest-lodge; Uhlwurm was a
man of few words, and the hunting-lads and kennel-men held him to be a
wise man, who knew more than simply which side his bread was buttered.
At any rate he was learned in healing all sick creatures, and in
especial falcons, horses, and hounds, by means of whispered spells, the
breath of his mouth, potions, and electuaries; and I myself have seen
him handle a furious old she-wolf which had been caught in a trap, so
that no man dared go nigh her, as though it were a tame little dog. He
was taller than his master by a head and a half, and he was ever to be
seen in a hood, on which an owl's head with its beak and ears was set.
Verily the whole presence of the man minded me of that nightbird;
and when I think of his Master Seyfried, or Young Kubbeling, I often
remember that he was ever wont to wear three wild-cats' skins, which he
laid on his breast and on each leg, as a remedy against pains he had.
And the falcon-seller, who was thick-set and broad-shouldered, was in
truth not unlike a wild-cat in his unkempt shagginess, albeit free
from all craft and guile. His whole mien, in his yellow leather jerkin
slashed with green, his high boots, and ill-shaven face covered with
short, grey bristles, was that of a woodsman who has grown strange to
man in the forest wilds; howbeit we knew from many dealings that he was
honest and pitiful, and would endure hard things to be serviceable and
faithful to those few whom he truly loved.

All the creatures he brought with him were for sale; even the Iceland
ponies, which he but seldom led home again, by reason that they were in
great favor with the Junkers and damsels of high degree in the castles
where he found shelter; and my uncle believed that his profits and
savings must be no small matter.

Scarce had Kubbeling and his fellow entered the court-yard, when the
house wife appeared once more at