mped to his feet, though only half awake. He looked at
the byre, and then he rubbed his eyes; and then he looked at the byre
again, for, lo! it was clean. Some one had come to his aid while he
slept. When the Giant came home, he knew the King's son had not cleaned
the byre, but he could not prove it, so he had to keep his word.

The second and third tasks were done in much the same way. The Prince
would try very hard to do the work alone, and when he was just about to
fail the Giant's daughter would come and encourage the youth.

In getting the eggs from the magpie's nest, the Giant's daughter was in
a great hurry, because she felt her father's breath on the back of her
neck. In her haste she left her little finger in the magpie's nest, but
there was no time to go back and get it.

When the third task was finished, the Giant ordered them to get ready
for the wedding.

The Giant tried to deceive the King's son at the very last. The three
daughters were dressed alike, and brought before him, and he was to
choose which one was his promised bride. But the Prince knew her by the
hand on which the little finger was missing; so all was well.

After the wedding the bride and bridegroom went to their chamber. The
Giant's daughter said: "Quick! quick! We must fly. My father plans to
kill you."

Then she took an apple and cut it into four parts, two of which she put
on the bed; one piece was placed by the door, and the other outside.
After that was done, they hurried out to the stables, mounted the
blue-gray filly, and were off.

In the meantime the Giant was waiting for them to go to sleep. At last
he could wait no longer, so he called out: "Are you asleep yet?" And the
apple at the head of the bed answered: "No, we are not asleep." He
called out the same thing three more times, and the three other pieces
of apple answered him the same way. When the piece outside the door
replied, the Giant knew he had been fooled, and that the couple had
fled. He started after them in hot pursuit.

Just at dawn the Giant's daughter said: "My father is close behind us,
because his breath is burning my neck. Put thy hand in the filly's ear
and throw behind thee whatever thou findest."

The Prince did so, and at once a thick forest of blackthorn sprang up
behind them.

At noon the Giant's daughter again said: "I feel my father's breath on
my neck." So the Prince reached into the filly's ear and took a piece of
stone, which he threw behi