laughed good-humoredly.

"That's all right, landlord. Don't mind me. As I've told you before I'm
not the Devil. I'm only his little brother-in-law."

The landlord shook his head.

"Yes, I know, but I must say it seems much the same to me."

One afternoon the prince came riding down to the tavern and asked for
Peter. He was horrified at first by Peter's appearance, but he treated
him most politely, invited him to the castle, and ended by begging the
loan of a large sum of money.

Peter said to the prince:

"I'll give you as much money as you want provided you let me marry one
of your daughters."

The prince wasn't prepared for this but he needed money so badly that he
said:

"H'm, which one of them?"

"I'm not particular," Peter answered. "Any of them will do."

When he gave the prince some money in advance, the prince agreed and
Peter promised to come to the castle the next day to meet his bride to
be.

The prince when he got home told his daughters that he had seen Peter.
They questioned him about Peter's appearance and asked him what sort of
a looking person this brother-in-law of the Devil was.

"He isn't so very ugly," the prince said, "really he isn't. If he washed
his face and trimmed his hair and nails he'd be fairly good-looking. In
fact I rather like him."

He then talked to them very seriously about the state of the treasury
and he told them that unless he could raise a large sum of money shortly
there was danger of an uprising among the people.

"If you, my daughters, wish to see the peace of the country preserved,
if you want to make me happy in my old age, one of you will have to
marry this young man, for I see no other way to raise the money."

At this the two older princesses tossed their heads scornfully and
laughed loud and long.

"You may rest assured, dear father, that neither of us will marry such a
creature! We are the daughters of a prince and won't marry beneath us,
no, not even to save the country from ruin!"

"Then I don't know what I'll do," the prince said.

"Father," whispered Linka, the youngest. Her voice quavered and her face
turned pale. "Father, if your happiness and the peace of the country
depend on this marriage, I will sacrifice myself, God help me!"

"My child! My dear child!" the prince cried, taking Linka in his arms
and kissing her tenderly.

The two elder sisters jeered and ha-ha-ed.

"Little sister-in-law of the Devil!" they said mockingly. "Now if yo