dren."

Now was the critical time, for the poor clerk despaired of being able to
deceive her.

The young queen was turned of twenty years of age, not counting the
hundred years she had been asleep. Though her skin was somewhat tough,
yet she was fair and beautiful: and how to find a beast in the yard so
firm that he might kill and cook to appease her canine appetite, was
what puzzled him greatly, and made him totally at a loss what to do.

He then took a resolution that he must save his own life, and cut the
queen's throat; and going into her chamber with an intent to do it at
once, he put himself into as great a fury as he could, went into the
queen's room with his dagger in his hand. However, his humanity would
not allow him to surprise her; but he told her, with a great deal of
respect, the orders he had received from the queen her mother.

"Do it," said she, stretching out her neck; "execute your orders, and I
shall go and see my children, whom I so dearly love." For she thought
them dead ever since they had been taken from her.

"No, fair princess!" cried the humane clerk of the kitchen, all in
tears; "you shall see your children again. But then you shall go with me
to my lodgings, where I have concealed them; and I shall deceive the
queen once more by giving her another young kid in your stead."

Upon this he forthwith conducted her to her chamber, where he left her
to embrace her children, and cry aloud with them; and he then went and
dressed a young kid, which the queen had for supper, and devoured it
with the same appetite as though it had been the young queen.

Now was she exceedingly delighted with this unheard of cruelty; and she
had invented a story to tell the king at his return how the mad wolves
had eaten up the queen, his wife, with her two children. One evening
some time after, as she was, according to her usual custom, rambling
about the court and yards of the palace to see if she could smell any
fresh meat, she heard, in a ground room, little Day crying, for his
mother was going to whip him because he had been guilty of some fault
and she heard at the same time little Morning soliciting pardon for her
brother.

The ogress presently knew the voice of the queen and her children, and
being quite in a rage to think she had been thus deceived, she commanded
the next morning, by break of day, in a most terrible voice, which made
every one tremble, that they should bring into the middle of the court