he prince hardly knew where to begin, and indeed if he had had a
thousand people to help him, and a week to do it in, he could never have
finished his task. So he flung himself on the ground in despair, and
covered his face with his hands.

While he lay thus, a wood-pigeon flew in through the window.

'Why are you weeping, noble prince?' asked the wood-pigeon.

'How can I help weeping at the task set me by the king. For he says, if
I fail to do it, I shall die a horrible death.'

'Oh, there is really nothing to cry about,' answered the wood-pigeon
soothingly. 'I am the king of the wood-pigeons, whose life you spared
when you were hungry. And now I will repay my debt, as I promised.' So
saying he flew out of the window, leaving the prince with some hope in
his heart.

In a few minutes he returned, followed by a cloud of wood-pigeons, so
dense that it seemed to fill the room. Their king showed them what they
had to do, and they set to work so hard that the grain was sorted into
two heaps long before the council was over. When the king came back
he could not believe his eyes; but search as he might through the
two heaps, he could not find any barley among the wheat, or any wheat
amongst the barley. So he praised the prince for his industry and
cleverness, and made him his steward at once.

This made the two soldiers more envious still, and they began to hatch
another plot.

'Your Majesty,' they said to the king, one day, as he was standing on
the steps of the palace, 'that fellow has been boasting again, that if
he had the care of your treasures not so much as a gold pin should ever
be lost. Put this vain fellow to the proof, we pray you, and throw the
ring from the princess's finger into the brook, and bid him find it. We
shall soon see what his talk is worth.'

And the foolish king listened to them, and ordered the prince to be
brought before him.

'My son,' he said, 'I have heard that you have declared that if I made
you keeper of my treasures you would never lose so much as a gold pin.
Now, in order to prove the truth of your words, I am going to throw the
ring from the princess's finger into the brook, and if you do not find
it before I come back from council, you will have to die a horrible
death.'

It was no use denying that he had said anything of the kind. The king
did not believe him; in fact he paid no attention at all, and hurried
off, leaving the poor boy speechless with despair in the corner.
How