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2$o THE YOUNG GIANT |
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bailiff if he wanted a head man amongst his labourers. "Well, yes, I do," he replied; "and as you seem likely to suit me, I may as well engage you ; but what do you ask a year ?"
He replied that he did not care for wages, but only to be able by right to give his master three hard knocks at the end of the year; and he must promise him this. The bailiff readily agreed to this proposal, for he also was avaricious.
The following morning the men had to rise early to fetch timber from the forest, but the stranger lay still in bed. One of the men called to him, " It is time to get up, we are going to the forest, and you must come with us."
" Be off r he cried, quite roughly, " I shall be there as soon as you." Then one of them went to the master and told him that the new man was in bed, and would not get up to go with them to the forest.
" Go and tell him I say he is to get up directly and harness the horses to the waggons." But it was all useless, the great fellow wouldn't move, and told them to go by themselves. He remained in bed after they were gone for two hours, and then got up, went into the garden, picked two dishes full of peas and boiled them into soup, and ate them for his breakfast quite contentedly.
When he had finished, he harnessed the horses and drove them to the forest. Not far from the spot where the forest lay, was a narrow lane. Through this lane he led his horses, and when they reached the other end, he made them stand still, while he went back, broke down great boughs and stems of trees, and laid them across the lane, forming barriers, over which neither horses nor waggons could pass.
When he reached the forest, the other labourers were just going home with their loaded waggons. He said to them, " Go home, all of you, as fast as you please; I shall be there as soon as you are." Then, without going farther, he tore up two full-grown trees from the ground, threw them on his waggon, and turned to go home.
On arriving at the end of the lane, he found the others standing there with their waggons, not knowing how to get over the barriers thrown across the road. " See," cried he, " you might as well have stayed and had another hour's sleep, for I shall be at home after all as quickly as you." Then as his own horses could not get over the |
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