FIRESIDE STORIES, 519

 

At length, losing his road, he was belated, and could not get to
any place of entertainment until, coming to a lonesome valley, he
found a large house, and by reason of his present necessity, took
courage to knock at the gate. But what was his astonishment
when there came forth a monstrous giant with two heads! yet
he did not appear so fiery as the others were, for he was a Welsh
giant, and what he did was by private and secret malice under
the false show of friendship. Jack having unfolded his condition
to the giant, was shown into a bed-room, where, in the dead of
night, he heard his host in another apartment uttering these for-
midable words:

Though here you lodge with me this night,
You shall not see the morning light:
My club shall dash your brains out quite!

“ Say’st thou so?” quoth Jack; “that is like one of your Welsh
tricks, yet I hope to be cunning enough for you.” He immediately
got out of bed, and feeling about in the dark, found a thick billet
of wood, which he laid in the bed in his stead, and hid himself
in a dark corner of the room. Shortly after he had done So, in
came the Welsh giant, who thoroughly pummelled the billet with
his club, thinking, naturally enough, he had broken every bone
in Jack’s skin. The next morning, however, to the inexpressible
surprise of the giant, Jack came downstairs as if nothing had
happened, and gave him thanks for his night’s lodging. “How
have you rested?” quoth the giant ; “did you not feel anything
in the night?” Jack provokingly replied, “No, nothing but a rat
which gave me two or three flaps with her tail.”