FOR THE CHILDREN.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LII, Issue 15834, 3 February 1915, Page 10

FOR THE CHILDREN.

THE WEARY PRINCESS. i ! Mast years ago mere was a horrid giant I who was the terroi •■". A .i the country near ■ and far. He was ten times utkr ttd I stronger than his neighbours and he killed i and devoured everything that he could L>v I hands on. I And this was why. The giant's mother I had been a witch. a:.d on her death-bod i she had called him and said-. - As soon a 1 the breath is out of my body you must burn my bones and tr- ad on the red-'lot cinders and let the flame? acd thlj smote play round your body. 1 hat vrjj] jgyou proof against, eveiy weapon lot oßl> . and that one no one will ever think o {.»~' So lie did exactly as his mother bade him, and from that day he became as baft as a lion. and he went aeon: killings robbing to his heart's content, for ie aid to himself that no one could harm him. But there was a poor peasant and lgj wife, whose hut stood close to the giant'i mountain, and tbey had a son called Jem i a good lad, but weak and delicate. | Now. when Jerry heard how the giant I was carrying on, he thought and though i for a long time, arid one day he said to I hi? father : "' I think I have hit on a •wav I to kill the giant." When everyone lay snoring in bed.he I got up, dressed himself, and took his father's axe, and went out into the forest. Very soon he '-am* to a witch's hut and I knocked at the door as boldly as anything. | The witch came and opened it. "I'm a poor peasant boy.'' said Jerry, " and I've lost my way in this great forest. Can you give me shelter f ,r the night?" " Come in and shut the doer and let we have a look at you," said the witch, thinking that she had caught a juicy morsel to put in her stew-pot. But when she got him to the light she was very much pat out. "Dear, dear'" she said, "wct, ' you're nothing but bones and gristle!'' " The witch gave him a sack of straw md he lay down and pretended to fall fast > asleep. The witch went back to bed, in- ! tending in the morning to cook him for i her breakfast, although he was only 1 bones and gristle. Pretty soon she was ; snoring loudly. ; --en Jerry jumped up. took his axe and i ! threw it at the witch. There she lay k I dead as a door-nail, and he quicks ; I emptied the sack of straw, stuffed in th» - I witch, and away home he went, dragging • the sack after him. He hid the sack and went to bed Next day. while no one was about, be took-th« r kitchen poker, put the sack over -"lis shoulder, and set out to meet the giant. ? When he got to the foot of the giant's i mountain he gathered a heap of dry sticks, i sot light to them, and put the sack—with £ the witch inside of it, of course—on top. , Then, as soon as the fire was red-hot, he - stuck the poker into it and sat and iraitej 1 for the giant to come down bam it's » mountain. ::■.*?": i "Now then, monster," said be, "Trail see whether we can't fight you wifhytai own weapons. The fir© and smoke oi a v burnt witch made yon strong; new it s shall make you weak." \\ i r The giant came roaring and stamping s from the mountain, ar.d the moment % ha [i saw Jerry he took up a huge, rock and a threw it at him, but Jerry dodged it, drew a out the poker, which was now red-hot, and ~ ran at the giant. ,f Now, it was just as jerry had guessed, n When the poker touched him the giant gave a fearful yell, and leaped 50 feet into e the air. He came down tumbling to the ground, a rolled over on the grass, and lay like a y log. " Dead as a door-nail !" said Jerry, y The news of Jerry's deed spread far and s wide, so that folks came from all parts of d ! the country to see him and to do him e | honour. They brought bags of gold and a ; silver and precious stones, and Jerry built h himself a splendid house on the top of the r giant's mountain. There he took his father y and mother to live with aim, so that they ?1 never knew want again for the rest of - ■t days. y But the strangest thinj of all was tht£ iv the air of that mountain was so wondsrful s' that in less than no ticae Jerry himself e became as strong as the giant had been, l- Now the king of tha, country had » d daughter who was very proud. She had many suitors, but she would not take the ; e trouble to look at any of them. She 1, went to bed, although the doctor said that n she had nothing the matter, and there she ,e stopped, saying that she was weary and d that nothing was worth doing, and why g should she get up. r. Of course this troubled the king, her m father, very much, and he searched far ?s and wide for anything that would interest a his daughter and make her get out of her ie bed.

At last he sent a proclamation to say that anyone who could make the princess ride a mile, run a mile, and swim a mile might marry her, and take half the kingdom into the bargain. '„.' ■ Then it was that men by the thousand came to try and win the princess and halt the kingdom. They brought the most splendid horses and the most costly gifts, but to no purpose : the princess wonW listen to none of them. When Jerry his mountain heard all that was happening at the palace lie said nothing at all. But that very same day what did he do but march into the princess's room, whip up her bed, for he was so strong, and run off with it, princess and all, tip the mountainFor a while the princess sobbed ac " cried. But when the sun shone upon her, and the wind began to play with her shiny hair, and the bed rocked with the mountain freeze, she rose in bed and her ejvs

grew bright and her cheeks red, and IB the twinkling of an eye she was out ol bed, running and jumping about the place in sheer lightness of spirit. Jerry watched her for a good while, and then he went to his stable and fetched out two splendid horses, already saddled and bridled. " Now. my pretty princess." said he, "you're run your mile. I'll be boundNow Vide a mile*, and see how you Use

it '" The verv minute the princess caught sight of the splendid horses she dapped her hands with joy. Then Jerry seized one by the bridle and held his hand for the princes? to leap into the saddle. This she did. and lost no time about it either. She started galloping straight down the hill and round it. and round again, with Jerry at her side. " There's good measure for a mif*. ' 6* l " he. lifting her in his arm? and running with her to the seashore. The king and all the people saw everything that happened, and they followed the two to the edge of the water. Now. there was a little boat that lay high and dry on the sand. In a trice Jerry had it" in the water, sprang in wit a the princess, and rowed out a mile to sea. Then he threw down the oars, jumped overboard, and called out to the princess : " Come and see how pleasant the water

is." At that she plunged in acd began "> swim ashore- as merrily as you please, and when the king saw that he_ clapped h,s hands and shouted, " Bravo !" When Jerry and the princess stepped ashore the king came forward and j" l ** their hand?, commanding thai they should be made man and wife that very day. \nd so the wedding was held with great pomp, and Jerry got half the kingdom and a lovely bride into tie bargain* i