Page:Round the Yule Log.djvu/121

Rh That could not be possible, thought the overlooker, and had a look into the wood-shed. But yes, the youngster had chopped up everything ; he had even cut up the timber and planks in the place. This was vexatious, the overlooker said ; and then he told the youngster that he should not taste food until he had gone into the forest and cut just as much timber as he had chopped up for firewood. The youngster went to the smithy and got the smith to help him to make an axe of five hundredweight of iron, and then he set out for the forest and began to make a regular clearance, not only of the pine and the lofty fir trees, but of everything else which was to be found in the king's forests, and in the neighbours' as well. He did not stop to cut the branches or the tops off, but he left them lying there as if a hurricane had blown them down. He put a proper load on the sledge and put all the horses to it, but they could not even move it ; so he took the horses by the heads to give the sledge a start, but he pulled so hard that the horses' heads came off. He then turned the horses out of the shafts and drew the load himself. When he came to the palace, the king and his overlooker were standing in the hall to give him a scolding for having destroyed the forest — the overlooker had been there and seen what he had been doing. But when the king saw the youngster dragging half the forest after him, he got both angry and afraid ; but he thought he had better be a little careful with him, since he was strong. " but how much do you eat at a time, because I suppose you arc hungry now ? " Oh, when he was to have a proper meal of porridge, it would take twelve barrels of meal to make it, thought the youngster ; but when he had put that away, he could wait a while, of course, for his next meal. It took some time to boil such a dish of porridge, and meantime he was to bring in a little firewood for the cook. He put a lot of wood on a sledge, but whien he waS coming through the door H
 * ' Well, you are a wonderful workman, to be sure," said the king ;