Page:A book of folk-lore (1913).djvu/49

46 and ran away with them. She went back to the grocer’s and got a second bunch. She came to the stile, set down the candles, and proceeded to climb over; up came the dog and ran off with the candles. She went again to the grocer’s and procured a third bunch, and just the same happened. Then she came to her stepmother crying, for she had spent all the money and had lost three bunches of candles.

The stepmother said, ‘Come, lay thy head on my lap that I may comb thy hair.’ So the little one laid her head in the woman’s lap, who proceeded to comb the yellow silken hair. And when she combed, the hair fell over her knees down to the ground. Then the stepmother hated her more for the beauty of her hair, so she said to her, ‘I cannot part thy hair on my knee, fetch me a billet of wood.’ So she fetched it. Then said the stepmother, ‘I cannot part thy hair with a comb, fetch me an axe.’ So she fetched it.

‘Now,’ said the wicked woman, ‘lay thy head on the billet whilst I part thy hair.’ Well, she laid down her little golden head without fear, and, whist! down came the axe and it was off. Then the woman took the heart and liver of the little girl and she stewed them and brought them into the house for supper. The husband tasted them and said