“One evening chance led him into a part of the palace gardens that was but seldom used, and suddenly he felt his staff strike the ground three times. He knew well what that betokened and so, drawing his dagger from his girdle, he cut signs in the neighbouring trees, so that he might recognise the spot again, returned to the castle, and, as soon as night fell, went back to the spot carrying a spade with him. “The little dwarf had set himself a weary task, for his arms were weak and the spade was heavy, and he dug for a couple of hours at least before he felt the spade strike against some metal. Jumping into the hole he had dug he found he had unearthed a pot full of golden coins. He was not strong enough to lift the pot from the earth, but he filled his pockets with as many coins as he could carry and the next day, thinking to please his servants and companions, he distributed the money liberally amongst them. [Illustration: _THE STORY OF LITTLE MOUK_ _“He had unearthed a pot full of golden coins”_ (_p. 72_)] “Alas! poor little Mouk, he had better have run off with it and left the kingdom, for now he did but rouse their envy. “One declared he must be a magician, another said he had helped himself from the king’s treasures, for a sum of money had lately been missing, and they one and all agreed that they would conspire together and see if they could not deprive him of the king’s favour. “So one day the cup-bearer, who was a particular enemy of Mouk’s entered the king’s presence and begged to know how he had offended his royal master. “The king looked at him in astonishment. ‘You have not offended me,’ said he, ‘I don’t understand what you are talking about.’ “‘Oh pardon me, your Majesty,’ said the man, ‘but do you not load the dwarf Mouk with treasures, whilst to me you have not given a single gold piece?’ “The king was surprised, for he knew he had given Mouk no money; but the treasurer who was present, and who had cause to know that certain sums were missing from the treasury, added his story to that of the cup-bearer. “They told the king that Mouk always had more money than he knew how to spend, and the treasurer suggested that Mouk had stolen it from his royal master. “So the king ordered spies to be set to watch the little man in order that they might try and catch him in the act of stealing. “The following night little Mouk, who had generously given away all his money, stole out to the garden with his staff and spade to find more treasure. “It was not long before he discovered another pot of gold, and had just uncovered it and begun to fill his mantle with coins, when his enemies fell upon him, bound him hand and foot, and led him before the king. They unearthed the pot of gold and carried that with them too. “The king was not in a very good temper, for he had been awakened from his sleep, and so his poor little courier got a very bad reception.