12 THE FAIRY-FOLK OF THE BLUE HILL

not listen to one. The dwarfs it was who
burnt the porridge by building a hot fire under
it, while I slept.”

“Tt serves thee right, thou great sleepy
head,” replied the little gray man. “ Hadst
thou been attending to thy duty as thou
shouldst have done, the dwarfs would not have
played the trick on thee. Now, listen to your
sentence, ye great over-grown children! The
next time ye so forget yourselves, shall ye for-
feit the right to these pleasant regions and be
banished to far-off realms. And now, the
fruits of your senseless rage shall ye ever see
before ye, to. serve ye as a reminder. Hun-
dreds of years hence, when it is forgotten that
such a race as ye ever existed, men shall prize
a stone that they little dream was once the oat-
meal porridge of the giants. Thus shall good
come out of your senseless bickerings. Re-
member my words, and know that I will keep
my vow.”

Bowing submissively, the giants silently
trooped down the hill. The little gray man
watched them until, with a few strides, they
were out of sight, when his severe countenance
relaxed and an amused expression stole over