s.

When they arrived at their father's palace there was great rejoicing,
and everyone praised the two princes for their courage and bravery.

When the king inquired after the youngest brother they answered that
he had led such a life in the inn that he had been hanged for debt. The
king sorrowed bitterly over this, because the youngest prince was his
dearest son, and the joy over the treasures soon died away, for the
bird Grip would not sing so that the king might recover his sight, the
princess wept night and day, and no one dared to venture so close to the
horse as to have a look at his golden shoes.

Now when the youngest prince was thrown down into the lions' den he
found the fox sitting there, and the lions, instead of tearing him to
pieces, showed him the greatest friendliness. Nor was the fox angry with
him for having forgot his last warning. He only said that sons who could
so forget their old father and disgrace their royal birth as those had
done would not hesitate to betray their brother either. Then he took the
prince up out of the lion's den and gave him directions what to do now
so as to come by his rights again.

The prince thanked the fox with all his heart for his true friendship,
but the fox answered that if he had been of any use to him he would now
for his own part ask a service of him. The prince replied that he would
do him any service that was in his power.

'I have only one thing to ask of you,' said the fox, 'and that is, that
you should cut off my head with your sword.'

The prince was astonished, and said that he could not bring himself to
cut the had off his truest friend, and to this he stuck in spite of all
the fox's declarations that it was the greatest service he could do him.
At this the fox became very sorrowful, and declared that the prince's
refusal to grant his request now compelled him to do a deed which he was
very unwilling to do--if the prince would not cut off his head, then
he must kill the prince himself. Then at last the prince drew his good
sword and cut off the fox's head, and the next moment a youth stood
before him.

'Thanks,' said he, 'for this service, which has freed me from a spell
that not even death itself could loosen. I am the dead man who lay
unburied in the robber's inn, where you ransomed me and gave me
honourable burial, and therefore I have helped you in your journey.'

With this they parted and the prince, disguising himself as a
horse-shoer, went