, said to him, "Go
to the charcoal-burner's cottage in the forest, and give the man this
purse in exchange for a new-born infant. On your way back drown the
child. See well that he is drowned, for if he should in any way
escape, you yourself shall suffer in his place."

The servant was given the child in a basket, and on reaching the
centre of a narrow bridge that stretched across a wide and deep river,
he threw both basket and baby into the water.

"A prosperous journey to you, Mr. Son-in-Law," said the king, on
hearing the servant's story: for he fully believed the child was
drowned. But it was far from being the case; the little one was
floating happily along in its basket cradle, and slumbering as sweetly
as if his mother had sung him to sleep. Now it happened that a
fisherman, who was mending his nets before his cottage door, saw the
basket floating down the river. He jumped at once into his boat,
picked it up, and ran to tell his wife the good news.

"Look," said he, "you have always longed for a son; here is a
beautiful little boy the river has sent us."

The woman was delighted, and took the infant and loved it as her own
child. They named him _Plavacek_ (the floater), because he had come to
them floating on the water.

The river flowed on. Years passed away. The little baby grew into a
handsome youth; in all the villages round there were none to compare
with him. Now it happened that one summer day the king was riding
unattended. And the heat being very great he reined in his horse
before the fisherman's door to ask for a drink of water. Plavacek
brought the water. The king looked at him attentively, then turning to
the fisherman, said, "That is a good-looking lad; is he your son?"

"He is and he isn't," replied the fisherman. "I found him, when he was
quite a tiny baby, floating down the stream in a basket. So we adopted
him and brought him up as our own son."

The king turned as pale as death, for he guessed that he was the same
child he had ordered to be drowned. Then recovering himself he got
down from his horse and said: "I want a trusty messenger to take a
letter to the palace, could you send him with it?"

"With pleasure! Your majesty may be sure of its safe delivery."

Thereupon the king wrote to the queen as follows--

"The man who brings you this letter is the most dangerous of all
my enemies. Have his head cut off at once; no delay, no pity, he
must be executed before my retur