but she feared that she would be
whipped if she kept them, so she obeyed the cruel order. At first
the poor children did not want to go away; but, when they saw that
their bad father was going to kick them, they ran off crying.

Soon the children came to a wild forest. "Maria, what will become of
us here?" said Juan. "I am very hungry," said the little girl. "I
don't think that I can get you any food in this wilderness," said
the kind brother, "but let me see!" He then looked around. By good
luck he found a guava-tree with one small fruit on it. He immediately
climbed up for the guava, and gave it to his hungry sister. Then the
two children resumed their journey.

As they were walking along, Maria found a hen's egg on the grass. She
picked it up and carried it along with her in her dirty ragged
skirt. At last they saw a very small hut roofed with dry talahib
(coarse, long grass). An old woman in the hut welcomed them, and asked
them where they were going. After Juan had told her their story, she
invited the tired children to stay in the hut with her. She promised
that she would treat them as her little son and daughter. From that
time on, Juan and Maria lived with the kind old woman. Juan grew to
be a strong fine man, and Maria became a beautiful young woman. Juan
spent almost all his time hunting in the mountains and woods.

One morning he caught a black deer. While he was taking the animal
home, the deer said to him, "Juan, as soon as you reach your home,
kill me, eat my flesh, and put my hide in your trunk. After three days
open your trunk, and you will see something astonishing." When Juan
reached home, he did as the deer had told him to do. On the third
day he found in the trunk golden armor. He was greatly delighted by
the precious gift.

Maria had not been living long with the old woman when she found
that the egg had hatched into a chick, which soon grew into a fine
fighting cock. One morning the cock crowed, "Tok-to-ko-kok! Take me
to the cockpit. I'll surely win!" Maria told the old woman what the
cock had said, and the next Sunday Juan took the fighting cock to the
cockpit. There the rooster was victorious, and won much money for Juan.

One day Juan heard that a tournament would be held in front of the
king's palace. The winner of the contest was to become the husband of
the princess, and would inherit the throne. Juan quickly put on his
golden armor, and hastened to the palace to try his skill. He defe