to-day. I have a stable outside, in which I keep five hundred horses, and that stable has not been cleaned these seven hundred years. My great-grandmother when a girl lost a slumber-pin (bar an suan) somewhere in that stable, and never could find it. You must have that pin for me when I come home to-night; if you don't, your head will be on the seven hundredth spike to-morrow."
Then two shovels were brought for him to choose from to clean out the stable, an old and a new one. He chose the new shovel, and went to work.
For every shovelful he threw out, two came in; and soon the door of the stable was closed on him. When the stable-door was closed, the giant's daughter called from outside: "How are you thriving now, king's son?"
"I'm not thriving at all," said the king's son; "for as much as I throw out, twice as much comes in, and the door is closed against me."
"You must make a way for me to come in, and I'll help you," said she.
"How can I do that?" asked the king's son.
However, she did it. The giant's daughter made her way into the stable, and she wasn't long inside till the stable was cleared, and she saw the bar an suan.
"There is the pin over there in the corner," said she to the king's son, who put it in his bosom to give to the giant.
Now he was happy, and the giant's daughter had good meat and drink put before him.
When the giant himself came home, he asked: "How did you do your work to-day?"
"I did it well; I thought nothing of it."
"Did you find the bar an suan?"
"I did indeed; here 'tis for you."
"Oh! then," said the giant, "it is either the devil or my daughter that helped you to do that work, for I know you never did it alone."
"It's neither the devil nor your daughter, but my own strength that did the work," said the son of the king of Erin.
"You have done the work; now you must have your meat." "I want no meat to-day; I am well satisfied as I am," said the king's son.
"Well," said the giant, "since you'll have no meat, you must go to sleep in the tank."
He went into the tank. The giant himself was soon snoring, for he was tired from hunting over Erin all day.
The moment her father was away, Yellow Lily came, took the king's son out of the tank, gave him a good supper and bed, and watched till the giant was stirring before daybreak. Then she roused the king's son and put him in the tank.
"Are you alive in the tank?" asked the giant at daybreak.
"I am," said the king's son.
"Well, you have a great work before you to-day. That stable you cleaned yesterday hasn't been thatched these seven hundred years, and if you don't have it thatched for me when I come home to-night, with birds' feathers, and not two feathers of one color or kind, I'll have your head on the seven hundredth spike to-morrow."
"Here are two whistles—an old, and a new one; take your choice of them to call the birds."
The king's son took the new whistle, and set out over the hills and valleys, whistling as he went. But no matter how he whistled, not a bird came near him. At last, tired and worn out with travelling and whistling, he sat down on a hillock and began to cry.
That moment Yellow Lily was at his side with a cloth, which she spread out, and there was a grand meal before him. He hadn't finished eating and drinking, before the stable was thatched with birds' feathers, and no two of them of one color or kind.
When he came home that evening the giant called out: "Have you the stable thatched for me to-night?"
"I have indeed," said the king's son; "and small trouble I had with it."
"If that's true," said the giant, "either the devil or my daughter helped you."
"It was my own strength, and not the devil or your daughter that helped me," said the king's son.
He spent that night as he had the two nights before.
Next morning, when the giant found him alive in the tank, he said: "There is great work before you to-day, which you must do, or your head'll be on the spike to-morrow. Below here, under my castle, is a tree nine hundred feet high, and there isn't a limb on that tree, from the roots up, except one small limb at the very top, where there is a crow's nest. The tree is covered with glass from the ground to the crow's nest. In the nest is one egg: you must have that egg before me here for my supper to-night, or I'll have your head on the seven hundredth spike to-morrow."
The giant went hunting, and the king's son went down to the tree, tried to shake it, but could not make it stir. Then he tried to climb; but no use, it was all slippery glass. Then he thought, "Sure I'm done for now; I must lose my head this time."
He stood there in sadness, when Yellow Lily came, and said: "How are you thriving in your work?"
"I can do nothing," said the king's son.
"Well, all that we have done up to this time is nothing to climbing this tree. But first of all let us sit down together and eat, and then we'll talk," said Yellow Lily.
They sat down, she spread the cloth again, and they had a splendid feast. When the feast was over she took out a knife from her pocket and said:—
"Now you must kill me, strip the flesh from my bones, take all the bones apart, and use them as steps for climbing the tree. When you are climbing the tree, they will stick to the glass as if they had grown out of it; but when you are coming down, and have put your foot on each one, they will drop into your hand when you touch them. Be sure and stand on each bone, leave none untouched; if you do, it will stay behind. Put all my flesh into this clean cloth by the side of the spring at the roots of the tree. When you come to the earth, arrange my bones together, put the flesh over them, sprinkle it with water from the spring, and I shall be alive and well before you. But don't forget a bone of me on the tree."
"How could I kill you," asked the king's son, "after what you have done for me?"
"If you won't obey, you and I are done for," said Yellow Lily. "You must climb the tree, or we are lost; and to climb the tree you must do as I say."
The king's son obeyed. He killed Yellow Lily, cut the flesh from her body, and unjointed the bones, as she had told him.
As he went up, the king's son put the bones of Yellow Lily's body against the side of the tree, using them as steps, till he came under the nest and stood on the last bone.
Then he took the crow's egg; and coming down, put his foot on every bone, then took it with him, till he came to the last bone, which was so near the ground that he failed to touch it with his foot.
He now placed all the bones of Yellow Lily in order again at the side of the spring, put the flesh on them, sprinkled it with water from the spring. She rose up before him, and said: "Didn't I tell you not to leave a bone of my body without stepping on it? Now I am lame for life! You left my little toe on the tree without touching it, and I have but nine toes."
When
