keeping the boat there until day dawned.
Then the King and his court would come, bringing the beauteous
Gemlovely to offer up to the Stoorworm. They would put her in the boat
and set the sails to carry her toward him.

Ashipattle looked out across the water, and he could see the black
back of the beast rising out of the sea like a long low mountain.

He lighted down from Feetgong and called across the water to the
boatman, "Hello, friend! How fares it with you out there?"

"Bitterly, bitterly!" answered the boatman. "Here I sit and freeze all
night, for it is cold on the water, and not a soul except myself but
what is safe asleep in a good warm bed."

"I have a fire here in the pot," called Ashipattle. "Draw your boat in
to shore and come and warm yourself, for I can see even from here that
you are almost perished."

"That I may not do," answered the man. "The King and his court may
come at any time now, and they must find me ready and waiting for them
as the commands were."

Then Ashipattle put his pot down on the shore and stood and thought a
bit. Suddenly he dropped on his knees and began to dig in the sand as
though he had gone mad. "Gold! Gold!" he shouted.

"What is the matter?" called the boatman. "What have you found?"

"Gold! Gold!" shouted Ashipattle, digging faster than ever.

The boatman thought Ashipattle must certainly have found a treasure in
the sand. He made haste to bring the boat to land. He sprang out upon
the shore, and pushing Ashipattle aside, he dropped on his knees and
began to scoop out the sand. But Ashipattle did not wait to see
whether he found anything. He caught up the pot and leaped into the
boat, and before the boatman could stop him he pushed off from the
shore.

Too late the boatman saw what he was doing. He ran down to the edge of
the water and shouted and stormed and cried to Ashipattle to come
back, but Ashipattle paid no heed to him. He never even turned his
head. He set the sail and steered over toward where the great monster
lay, with the waves washing up and breaking into foam against him.

And now the dawn was breaking. It was time for the monster to awake,
and down the road from the castle came riding the King and all his
court, and the Princess Gemlovely rode among them on a milk-white
horse. All the color was gone from her face, and she looked as white
as snow.

When the King and all the others reached the shore there stood the
boatman, wringing his hands and