inhabitants nearly went wild with joy, but the son of seven Queens
said he would not marry the Princess unless they first let him recover
his mothers' eyes. When the beautiful bride heard his story, she asked
to see the potsherd, for she was very learned and clever. Seeing the
treacherous words, she said nothing, but taking another similar-shaped
bit of potsherd, she wrote on it these words, "Take care of this
lad, giving him all he desires," and returned it to the son of seven
Queens, who, none the wiser, set off on his quest.

Ere long he arrived at the hovel in the ravine where the white witch's
mother, a hideous old creature, grumbled dreadfully on reading the
message, especially when the lad asked for the necklace of eyes.
Nevertheless she took it off and gave it him, saying, "There are only
thirteen of 'em now, for I lost one last week."

The lad, however, was only too glad to get any at all, so he hurried
home as fast as he could to his seven mothers, and gave two eyes
apiece to the six elder Queens; but to the youngest he gave one,
saying, "Dearest little mother!--I will be your other eye always!"

After this he set off to marry the Princess, as he had promised, but
when passing by the white Queen's palace he saw some pigeons on the
roof. Drawing his bow, he shot one, and it came fluttering past the
window. The white hind looked out, and lo! there was the King's son
alive and well.

She cried with hatred and disgust, but sending for the lad, asked him
how he had returned so soon, and when she heard how he had brought
home the thirteen eyes, and given them to the seven blind Queens,
she could hardly restrain her rage. Nevertheless she pretended to be
charmed with his success, and told him that if he would give her this
pigeon also, she would reward him with the Jogi's wonderful cow, whose
milk flows all day long, and makes a pond as big as a kingdom. The
lad, nothing loth, gave her the pigeon; whereupon, as before, she bade
him go and ask her mother for the cow, and gave him a potsherd where
on was written, "Kill this lad without fail, and sprinkle his blood
like water!"

But on the way the son of seven Queens looked in on the Princess,
just to tell her how he came to be delayed, and she, after reading the
message on the potsherd, gave him another in its stead; so that when
the lad reached the old hag's hut and asked her for the Jogi's cow,
she could not refuse, but told the boy how to find it; and bidding