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 216 TheWidow's Son. all," said the lad. — u Well, wc shall soon see/' said the man, and with that he went into the room where the lad had been. "ButI find you have been there after all," said the man, "and now you shall lose your life." The lad cried and begged for himself till he got off with his life; but he got a good thrashing. When that was over they were as good friends as ever. Some time afterwards the man went away again ; he was going to stay away for a fortnight this time, but first he told the lad that he must not put a foot in any of the roorns where he had not already been ; he might, however, go into that room where he had been. Well, it happened just as the last time, only that the lad waited eight days before he went into the second room. In this room he saw nothing but a shelf over the door, and a piece of rock and a water-jug on it. Well, that's something to be so afraid of, thought the lad again. When the man came back he asked the lad if he had been into any of the rooms. — No, not likely, the lad hadn't been there !— " Wc shall soon see," said the man, but when he saw that the lad had been into one of the rooms after all, he said : " I shall spare you no longer now; you will lose your life this time !" But the lad cried and begged for himself again, and he got off with a good thrashing again, but this time he got as much as he could possibly stand. When he had got over the effects of the thrashing he led the same comfortable life as before, and he and the man were the best of friends again. Some time after the man had to go on a journey again, and this time he should be away for three weeks, and so he said to the lad that if he went into the third room during his absence, he would not have the slightest chance of escaping with his life. When fourteen days had gohe the lad could not help himself ; but stole inio the third room ; he saw nothing in there except a trap-door in the floor. When he lifted it up and looked down into the room below he saw a big copper kettle which stood there and boiled and bubbled ; but he saw no fire under it. It would be great fun to feel if it is hot, thought the boy, and gut