"This time when you have caught Half-a-Cock, put it in a house and shut all the doors till morning. I will kill it myself." The negroes seized him immediately and put him in the treasure-room. When it got there, it saw money under its feet. It waited till it had nothing to fear from the masters of the house, who were all sound asleep, took from under its wing the hair of the boar, started a fire, and placed the hair in it. At once the boar came running and shaking the earth. It thrust its head against the wall. The wall shook and half of it fell down, and going to Half-a-Cock the boar said: "Why are you burning my hair at this moment?" "Pardon me, you see the situation in which I am, without counting what awaits me in the morning, for the King is going to kill me with his own hands if you don't get me out of this prison." The boar replied: "The thing is easy; fear not, I will open the door so that you may go out. In fact, you have stayed here long enough. Get up, go and take money enough for you and your children." Half-a-Cock obeyed. It rolled in the gold, took all that stuck to its wing and its foot, and swallowed as much as it could hold. It took the road it had followed the first day and when it had arrived near the house it called the mistress and said: "Strike now, be not afraid to kill me." His mistress began to strike until Half-a-Cock called from beneath the mat: "Enough now. Roll the mat." She obeyed and saw the earth all shining with gold. * * * * * At the time when Half-a-Cock returned from his pilgrimage the two women owned a dog in common. The foolish one seeing that her companion had received much money said to her: "We will divide the dog between us." The wise woman answered: "We can't do anything with it. Let it live, I will give you my half. Keep it for yourself. I have no need of it." The foolish one said to the dog, "Go on a pilgrimage as Half-a-Cock did and bring me some gold." The dog started to carry out the commands of his mistress. She began her journey in the morning and came to a fountain. As she was thirsty she started to drink. As she stopped she saw in the middle of the fountain a yellow stone. She took it in her mouth and ran back home. When she reached the house she called her mistress and said to her: "Get ready the mats and the rods, you see that I have come back from the pilgrimage." The foolish one prepared the mats under which the dog ran as soon as she heard the voice of her mistress and said, "Strike gently." The woman seized the rods and struck with all the force possible. The dog cried out to her a long while for her to stop the blows. Her mistress refused to stop until the animal was cold. She lighted up the mats and found the dog dead with the yellow stone in its mouth. * * * * * STRANGE MEETINGS