2»'> S. X. Dec. 15, '60.] 



NOTES AND QUERIES. 



469 



Close to the shore lay a ship at anchor, and not 

 far from it stood the sailor's house. The latter 

 came out, saluted the youth, and offered him 

 something to eat and drink. This he gratefully 

 accepted, for for many days he had lived entirely 

 on roots and herbs. Then he asked the sailor 

 whether he knew where the Kingdom of Gold lay. 

 And the sailor answered, " You are ill-advised if 

 you wish to go there. It lies far, far on the other 

 side of the lake and the giants' land, and the way 

 thither is hard and dangerous ; for the giants de- 

 mand of every one who is desirous of passing 

 through their territory a hand or a foot as tribute." 



" 1 do not fear the giants," replied the youth ; 

 " all I want is to reach the Kingdom of Gold." 



" If you will not be dissuaded from going," said 

 the sailor, " I will take you over." 



So the young man, with his horse and the lion, 

 stopped into the ship ; the wind filled the white 

 s;iils, and they flew away over the waves. But 

 soon the sky grew dark, a storm arose, and tossed 

 the ship up and down like a plaything, so that 

 they thought every moment that it must sink ; 

 yet the young man's courage did not desert him. 

 After a short time the storm ceased ; it grew clear 

 and bright again, and when the ship came to land 

 the sun was shining beautifully. The young man 

 gave the sailor a rich reward, thanked him, and 

 jumped ashore. 



Before he had time to look around him he heard 

 a horrible noise, and saw three giants carrying 

 iron bars, who ran up to him, and cried out for 

 his right hand, as toll. " Stop a minute," said the 

 youth, " we're not in such a hurry as all that," and 

 marched boldly towards them, brandished his sword, 

 and in one second cut off the heads of two of them ; 

 the lion tore the third in pieces, and ate him by way 

 of breakfast, but could not finish him quite, for the 

 giant had a layer of fat as thick as your hand on 

 liis bones, and was thoroughly well fed. Then the 

 young man remounted his horse, and rode more 

 cheerfully through wood and thicket, over mea- 

 dow and pasture land, till he came to another 

 large lake. On the shore stood a house, and close 

 to the house lay a ship. 



The sailor came out of his house when he heard 

 the horse's footstep, and saluting the youth, 

 offered him shelter and refreshment in his house ; 

 of the latter the young man partook gratefully, 

 for he had eaten nothing since his fight with the 

 giants. When he had finished his meal he asked 

 the sailor what was the name of the lake, and 

 where the Kingdom of Gold lay ? 



" The lake is called ' Lake Terrible,' " said the 

 sailor, " because it engulphs everything which swims 

 or sails in it. As for the Kingdom of Gold, you 

 have a hard journey before you if you want to 

 get there. It lies far over the other side of the 

 lake and the giants' territory. But the giants de- 

 mand a hand or a foot of everyone who wishes to 



2nd S, X. No. 259.] 



cross their territory, and there are many of them ; 

 so stay quietly here." 



" I don't care for the giants, even if they come 

 in dozens," said our hero. 



So they all got into the ship ; the ferryman 

 hoisted the sails, and the wind blew favourably at 

 first, but it soon began to blow fresher and fresher 

 every minute. The sky grew dark, and a violent 

 thunder-storm broke upon them. The water be- 

 came rougher and rougher ; the waves seized the 

 ship with their white hands and threw it up and 

 down, and the ferryman lost his senses : so the 

 young man took his place at the helm, and stood 

 there firm and erect, and the rougher the water 

 grew the more it seemed to please him. At last 

 the storm ceased, the waves got smaller and the 

 water smoother, and in a short time all was 

 still and calm, and the ship glided peacefully 

 to its destination. Our hero leapt on shore with 

 his lion and his horse, and paid the sailor very 

 handsomely. Immediately six enormous giants, 

 with iron clubs in their hands, rushed up to him, 

 and cried out that he must pay toll of his left 

 hand if he wished to pass through their country. 



" You shall have it directly," said the youth, 

 and raising his sword — whish! — down it came, 

 and four of the giants immediately lost their 

 heads ; the lion ate the two others for luncheon, 

 and devoured enough to last him for a week. 



And now they continued their journey still 

 further, over hill and dale, till they reached a 

 third lake. Here a large vessel lay at anchor, 

 and on the shore was the ship-master's house. 

 The latter came out, and offered the youth shelter 

 and refreshment. This he accepted, for amongst 

 the hills and dales he had met with no inn, and 

 his stomach cried out for food. After he had satis- 

 fied his appetite, he asked the sailor what the lake 

 was called, and how far it was to the Kingdom of 

 Gold ? "The lake," answered the sailor, "is called 

 'The-most-terrible-of-all,' because as yet no ship 

 has been able to cross it. But should you get 

 across there is more work for you, for nine giants 

 dwell there who demand as tribute the feet of all 

 those who wish to go to the Kingdom of Gold." 



" I sha'n't trouble myself about the giants, if 

 you will only ferry me across." " I care too much 

 for my ship and my own life to do that," answered 

 the sailor ; but Avhen the youth began to pour out 

 bright golden ducats from his purse, the ferryman 

 grew more courageous, and when the table was 

 well covered he said, " Well, I'll try it." 



So the youth with his lion and horse hastened 

 into the vessel. This time the storm broke upon 

 them very suddenly. The water appeared to grow 

 quite black, the waves rose mountains high, and 

 seemed as if they would tear the ship to pieces ; 

 and the lightning flashed so incessantly that the 

 sky resembled a sea of fire, whilst the thunder 

 followed peal on peal, and, in short, it was just as 



