THE FAIR
MAID

‘His great moustaches they twist and twirl,
To win the heart of each right-minded girl.’

Once as he was sitting by the water, trying to find
a rhyme to ‘bandy legs,’ and sorely troubled be-
cause he could not make a suitable line ending in
eggs, a little golden carp that was rising after a
fly sprang out of the water and fell in the grass
beside him, and remained panting, unable to return
to its proper element.
‘Poor little fish!’ said Charming.
He put his hand down, took the carp, and threw it
back into the water.
The carp was delighted to be again in the refresh-
ing coolness of the water. She swam up to the
bank, and said—
‘Thank you, Charming, for what you have done.
You have saved my life,and when you need my
help I will give it you.’
Another day, as Charming was riding along, he saw
araven in great distress. It was pursued by an
eagle, that would have devoured it, had not the
young man quickly discharged an arrow from his
bow, and killed the eagle.
ans raven perched on a tree, nodded its head, and
said— .
‘Thank you, Charming, for what you have done.
You have saved my life, and when you need my
help I will give it you.’
Night came on, and Charming rode through a
wood. The moon shone as clear as the day and
painted the ground silver, where it pierced between
the branches and leaves.
Presently Charming saw what seemed to him a
great lump of snow, but it was making a great
noise. He went up to it and found that it wasa
white owl caught in a gin. Charming at once
released the poor bird, and the owl hopped on toa
branch, and said, ‘To whoo!’

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