l time they went to bed, and when his wife thought he slept she got
up, opened the door, and laid herself down again.
The Tailor, however, only pretended to be asleep, and began to call out
in a loud voice, "Boy, make me a coat, and then stitch up these
trowsers, or I will lay the yard-measure about your shoulders. Seven
have I slain with one blow, two Giants have I killed, a unicorn have I
led captive, and a wild boar have I caught, and shall I be afraid of
those who stand outside my room?"
When the men heard these words spoken by the Tailor, a great fear came
over them, and they ran away as if wild huntsmen were following them;
neither afterwards dared any man venture to oppose him. Thus the Tailor
became a King, and so he lived for the rest of his life.
LITTLE RED CAP
Many years ago there lived a dear little girl who was beloved by every
one who knew her; but her grand-mother was so very fond of her that she
never felt she could think and do enough to please this dear
grand-daughter, and she presented the little girl with a red silk cap,
which suited her so well, that she would never wear anything else, and
so was called Little Red-Cap.
One day Red-Cap's mother said to her, "Come, Red-Cap, here is a nice
piece of meat, and a bottle of wine: take these to your grandmother; she
is weak and ailing, and they will do her good. Be there before she gets
up; go quietly and carefully."
The grandmother lived far away in the wood, a long walk from the
village, and as Little Red-Cap came among the trees she met a Wolf; but
she did not know what a wicked animal it was, and so she was not at all
frightened. "Good morning, Little Red-Cap," he said.
"Thank you, Mr. Wolf," said she.
"Where are you going so early, Little Red-Cap?"
"To my grandmother's," she answered.
"And what are you carrying in that basket?"
"Some wine and meat," she replied. "We baked the meat yesterday, so that
grandmother, who is very weak, might have a nice strengthening meal."
"And where does your grandmother live?" asked the Wolf.
"Oh, quite twenty minutes walk further in the forest. The cottage stands
under three great oak trees; and close by are some nut bushes, by which
you will at once know it."
The Wolf was thinking to himself, "She is a nice tender thing, and will
taste better than the old woman; I must act cleverly, that I may make a
meal of both."
[Illustration: THE VALIANT LITTLE TAILOR.]
Presently he came u
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