The first said: “Let her be struck with leprosy in her face.” The second: “Let her voice be as harsh as a corn-crake's.” The third said: “Let her have for husband but a poor country cobbler.” Well, she goes on till she came to a town, and it being market-day, the people looked at her, and, seeing such a mangy face, and hearing such a squeaky voice, all fled but a poor country cobbler. Now he not long before had mended the shoes of an old hermit, who, having no money gave him a box of ointment for the cure of the leprosy, and a bottle of spirits for a harsh voice. So the cobbler having a mind to do an act of charity, was induced to go up to her and ask her who she was. “I am,” said she, “the King of Colchester's daughter-in-law.” “Well,” said the cobbler, “if I restore you to your natural complexion, and make a sound cure both in face and voice, will you in reward take me for a husband?” “Yes, friend,” replied she, “with all my heart!” With this the cobbler applied the remedies, and they made her well in a few weeks; after which they were married, and so set forward for the Court at Colchester. When the queen found that her daughter had married nothing but a poor cobbler, she hanged herself in wrath. The death of the queen so pleased the king, who was glad to get rid of her so soon, that he gave the cobbler a hundred pounds to quit the Court with his lady, and take to a remote part of the kingdom, where he lived many years mending shoes, his wife spinning the thread for him. OYEZ-OYEZ-OYEZ THE ENGLISH FAIRY TALES ARE NOW CLOSED LITTLE BOYS AND GIRLS MUST NOT READ ANY FURTHER NOTES AND REFERENCES In the following notes I give first the _source_ whence I obtained the various tales. Then come _parallels_ in some fulness for the United Kingdom, but only a single example for foreign countries, with a bibliographical reference where further variants can be found. Finally, a few _remarks_ are sometimes added where the tale seems to need it. In two cases (Nos. xvi. and xxi.) I have been more full. I. TOM TIT TOT. _Source_.--Unearthed by Mr. E. Clodd from the “Suffolk Notes and Queries” of the _Ipswich Journal_, and reprinted by him in a paper on “The Philosophy of Rumpelstiltskin” in _Folk-Lore Journal_, vii. 138-43. I have reduced the Suffolk dialect. _Parallels_.--In Yorkshire this occurs as “Habetrot and Scantlie Mab,” in Henderson's _Folk-Lore of Northern Counties_, 221-6; in Devonshire as “Duffy and the Devil” in Hunt's _Romances and Drolls of the West of England_, 239-47; in Scotland two variants are given by Chambers, _Popular Rhymes of Scotland_, under the title “Whuppity Stourie.” The “name-guessing wager” is also found in “Peerifool”, printed by Mr. Andrew Lang in _Longman's Magazine_, July 1889, also _Folk-Lore_, September, 1890. It is clearly the same as Grimm's “Rumpelstiltskin” (No. 14); for other Continental parallels see Mr. Clodd's article, and Cosquin, _Contes pop. de Lorraine_, i. 269 _seq_.