While he was doing this the Eagle flew off to the man’s home with him,
and with the hare, and when they had got home the man went to the
churchyard, and had some Christian earth laid upon the hare, and then
it turned into his son Jack.
When the time came for the fair the youth turned himself into a
light-coloured horse, and bade his father go to the market with him.
‘If anyone should come who wants to buy me,’ said he, ‘you are to tell
him that you want a hundred dollars for me; but you must not forget to
take off the halter, for if you do I shall never be able to get away
from Farmer Weatherbeard, for he is the man who will come and bargain
for me.’
And thus it happened. A horse-dealer came who had a great fancy to
bargain for the horse, and the man got a hundred dollars for it, but
when the bargain was made, and Jack’s father had got the money, the
horse-dealer wanted to have the halter.
‘That was no part of our bargain,’ said the man, ‘and the halter you
shall not have, for I have other horses which I shall have to sell.’
So each of them went his way. But the horse dealer had not got very far
with Jack before he resumed his own form again, and when the man got
home he was sitting on the bench by the stove.
The next day he changed himself into a brown horse and told his father
that he was to set off to market with him. ‘If a man should come who
wants to buy me,’ said Jack, ‘you are to tell him that you want two
hundred dollars, for that he will give, and treat you besides; but
whatsoever you drink, and whatsoever you do, don’t forget to take the
halter off me, or you will never see me more.’
And thus it happened. The man got his two hundred dollars for the
horse, and was treated as well, and when they parted from each other it
was just as much as he could do to remember to take off the halter. But
the buyer had not got far on his way before the youth took his own form
again, and when the man reached home Jack was already sitting on the
bench by the stove.
On the third day all happened in the same way. The youth changed
himself into a great black horse, and told his father that if a man
came and offered him three hundred dollars, and treated him well and
handsomely into the bargain, he was to sell him, but whatsoever he did,
or how much soever he drank, he must not forget to take off the halter,
or else he himself would never get away from Farmer Weatherbeard as
long as he lived.
‘No,’ said the man, ‘I will not forget.’
When he got to the market, he received the three hundred dollars, but
Farmer Weatherbeard treated him so handsomely that he quite forgot to
take off the halter; so Farmer Weatherbeard went away with the horse.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account