verything
vanished. The fool folded up his tablecloth and went on his way. But
the old man said, "If you will give me your tablecloth you shall have
this wand in exchange. When you say certain words to it, it will set
upon the person or persons pointed out, and give them such a
thrashing, that to get rid of it they will give you anything they
possess."

The fool thought of his brothers and exchanged the tablecloth for the
wand, after which they both went on their respective ways.

Suddenly the fool remembered that the oak had ordered him to keep the
tablecloth for his own use, and that by parting with it he had lost
the power of giving his mother an agreeable surprise. So he said to
the wand:

"Thou self-propelling, ever willing, fighting Wand,
Run quick and bring
My feast-providing tablecloth back to my hand,
Thy praise I'll sing."

The wand went off like an arrow after the old man, quickly overtook
him, and throwing itself upon him began to beat him dreadfully, crying
out in a loud voice:

"For others' goods you seem to have a liking,
Stop, thief, or sure your back I'll keep on striking."

The poor beggar tried to run away, but it was of no use, for the wand
followed him, striking all the time and repeating the same words over
and over again. So in spite of his anxiety to keep the tablecloth he
was forced to throw it away and flee.

The wand brought the cloth back to the fool, who again went on his way
towards home, thinking of the surprise in store for his mother and
brothers. He had not gone very far when a traveller, carrying an empty
wallet, accosted him, saying, "For the love of God, give me a small
coin or a morsel of food, for my bag is empty and I am very hungry. I
have, too, a long journey before me."

The fool again spread his tablecloth on the grass and said:

"O Tablecloth, who for the poor,
The hungry, and thirsty, makes cheer,
May he who begs from door to door
Feed off you without stint or fear."

A whistling was heard in the air, something shone brightly overhead,
and a table, spread as for a royal feast, placed itself before them.
It was laid with a numerous variety of dishes, hydromel and costly
wines. The fool and his guest sat down, crossed themselves, and ate to
their hearts' content. When they had finished whistling was again
heard, and everything vanished. The fool folded the cloth up
carefully, and was about to continue his journey when the travell