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 The Lad :and the North Wind. 165 The lad was well satisfied with this. But as the way was so long that he couldn't get home that night, he went into a roadside inn, and when they were going to have supper, he put the cloth on a table which stood in the corner, and said, " Cloth, spfead your self, and serve up all kinds of fine dishes." He had scarccly said these words before the cloth did as it was told, and all in the room thought it was a very nice thing to have, but no one liked it better than the innkeeper's wife. She thought that would be the very thing for her. It vvould save her such a lot of trouble in frying and boiling, laying the cloth, and putting the things on the table, and so on. So in the middle of the night, when all were asleep, she took the cloth from the lad, and put another one in its stead, just like the one he had got from the north wind, but her cloth couldn't, of course, serve up as much as an oatmeal cake. When the lad awoke, he took the cloth and set out on his journey, and that day he got back to his mother. '*. Well," he said, " I have been to the north wind, I have ! He is a decent fellow, I think, because he gave me this cloth, and I have only to say, ' Cloth, spread yourself, and serve up all kinds of fine dishes,' and then I get the best of everything I want to eat and drink." '* Ah, indeed ! I daresay," said the mother, " but I don't believe it, till I see it." So the lad lost no time, but took a table, laid the cloth on it, and said, " Cloth, spread yourself, and serve up all kinds of fine dishes," but the cloth didn't serve up so much as a dry crust. " Ah, well!"saidthelad, " there's no helpfor it,I must go to the north wind again," and away he went. Towards evening, he came to where the north wind lived. " Good evening," said the lad. * Good evening," said the north wind. " I want my rights for the meal you took from us," said the lad, " for that cloth you gave me is not good for anything." "I haven't any meal," said the north wind, "but here is a goat for you, which måkes only golden ducats, if you only say, ' Goat of mine, make money i ' "