have nothing
to do with him. At last their father said that as they would not let
him choose husbands for them, they must make the choice themselves:
he proposed to assemble all the men in his kingdom on a certain day
and there and then they must take to themselves husbands.

So proclamation was made that all the men were to assemble outside
the palace and that three of them would receive the Raja's daughters
in marriage without having to pay any brideprice. On the fixed day
a great crowd collected and among others went the six brothers: and
the dog followed them. Then the three princesses were brought out
and three flies were caught: round one fly was tied a piece of white
thread for the eldest princess and round the second fly a red thread
for the second princess: and round the last fly a blue thread for
the youngest princess. Then the three princesses solemnly promised
that each would marry the man on whom the fly marked with her colour
settled, and the flies were let loose. The red fly and the blue fly
soon settled on two of the men sitting in the crowd but the white
fly flew high in the air and circled round and at last settled on
the dog which was sitting beside the six brothers.

At this the crowd laughed and jeered but the eldest princess said
that she must accept what fate had decreed and that she would marry
the dog. So the betrothal ceremony of the three princesses took place
at once, soon followed by their weddings. The husbands of the two
youngest princesses took their brides home, but the eldest princess
stayed in her father's house with her dog.

One day after its dinner the dog was lying on its side asleep and the
princess chanced to see the heads of the iron nails in its feet: "Ah,"
thought she, "that is why the poor dog limps." So she ran and fetched
a pair of pincers and pulled out the nails: no sooner had she done
so than the dog was restored to its human shape and the princess was
delighted to find that not only was he a man but also very handsome:
and they settled down to live happily together.

Some months later the six brothers resolved to go and visit the Raja,
so that the princess might not feel that the dog she had married had
no friends in the world. Off they set and when they reached the Raja's
palace they were amazed to find their younger brother and still more
so when they heard the story of all that had happened to him.

They immediately decided to take vengeance on their wives and