sat twelve beautiful princesses on smaller golden seats.
They were dressed as magnificently as the queen, except that they wore
no golden crowns. On both sides stood numerous attendants, all in bright
silken attire and with golden necklaces. When the chief judge came
forward bowing, the queen demanded, "Why have you come out to-day with
a host of police, as if you were about to arrest criminals?" The judge
was about to answer, but terror stopped his utterance and he could not
speak a word. "I know the base lying charges," continued the queen, "for
nothing is concealed from my eyes. Let the false accuser enter, but
chain him hand and foot, and I will pronounce just sentence. Let the
other judges and attendants enter too, that the matter may be done
publicly, and that they may bear witness that no one suffers injustice
here." One of the servants hastened out to fulfil the order, and after
some time the accuser was led in, chained hand and foot, and guarded by
six soldiers in armour. The remaining judges and attendants followed.
Then the queen addressed the assembly.

"Before I pronounce the well-deserved sentence on the offender, I must
briefly explain the real state of the case. I am the most powerful Lady
of the Waters, and all the springs of water which rise from the earth
are subject to my authority.[40] The eldest son of the King of the Winds
was my lover, but as his father would not allow him to take a wife, we
were obliged to keep our marriage secret as long as his father
lived.[41] As I could not venture to bring up my children at home, I
exchanged them with the children of the labourer's wife, as often as she
was confined. The labourer's children were reared as foster-children by
my aunt, and whenever one of the labourer's daughters was about to
marry, another change was effected.

"Each time, on the night before the wedding, I had my daughter carried
away, and that of the labourer substituted. The old King of the Winds
had been lying ill for a long time, and knew nothing of our proceedings.
On the christening-day I gave each child a silver rouble to form the
marriage portion in her bridal chest. All the sons-in-law were satisfied
with their young wives and with what they brought them, except this
avaricious scoundrel whom you see before you in chains, who dared to
bring false accusations against his father-in-law, in hopes of enriching
himself thereby. The old King of the Winds died a fortnight ago, and my
cons