ung man for a son-in-law. No sooner
said than done! The marriage took place at once, and the King returned
to his own palace, and left Jenik with his wife in the enchanted house.

Now Jenik was not a very clever man, and at the end of a very short time
he began to bore his wife. She inquired how he managed to build palaces
and to get so many precious things. He told her all about the watch, and
she never rested till she had stolen the precious talisman. One night
she took the watch, rubbed it, and wished for a carriage drawn by
four horses; and in this carriage she at once set out for her father's
palace. There she called to her own attendants, bade them follow her
into the carriage, and drove straight to the sea-side. Then she rubbed
her watch, and wished that the sea might be crossed by a bridge, and
that a magnificent palace might arise in the middle of the sea. No
sooner said than done. The Princess entered the house, rubbed her watch,
and in an instant the bridge was gone.

Left alone, Jenik felt very miserable. His father, mother, and brothers,
and, indeed, everybody else, all laughed at him. Nothing remained to him
but the cat and dog whose lives he had once saved. He took them with
him and went far away, for he could no longer live with his family.
He reached at last a great desert, and saw some crows flying towards
a mountain. One of them was a long way behind, and when he arrived his
brothers inquired what had made him so late. 'Winter is here,' they
said, 'and it is time to fly to other countries.' He told them that he
had seen in the middle of the sea the most wonderful house that ever was
built.

On hearing this, Jenik at once concluded that this must be the
hiding-place of his wife. So he proceeded directly to the shore with his
dog and his cat. When he arrived on the beach, he said to the dog: 'You
are an excellent swimmer, and you, little one, are very light; jump on
the dog's back and he will take you to the palace. Once there, he will
hide himself near the door, and you must steal secretly in and try to
get hold of my watch.'

No sooner said than done. The two animals crossed the sea; the dog
hid near the house, and the cat stole into the chamber. The Princess
recognised him, and guessed why he had come; and she took the watch down
to the cellar and locked it in a box. But the cat wriggled its way into
the cellar, and the moment the Princess turned her back, he scratched
and scratched till he had m