“See, now,” said Trouble to the soldier, “who can say that I have done nothing for you? I tell you, comrade, that I am a good friend of yours, and love you as though you were my born brother. Listen! over yonder in the field is a great stone under which the giants have hidden stacks and stacks of money. Go and borrow a cart and two horses, and I will go with you and show you where it is.” Well, you may guess that that was a song that pleased the soldier. Off he went and borrowed a cart and two horses. Then he and Trouble went into the field together, and Trouble showed him where the stone was where the treasure lay. The soldier rolled the stone over, and there, sure enough, lay bags and bags, all full of gold and silver money. Down he went into the pit and began bringing up the money and loading it into the cart. After a while he had brought it all but one bag full. “See, Trouble,” said he, “my back is nearly broken with carrying the money. There is still one bag down there yet; go down like a good lad and bring it up for me.” [Illustration: The three Giants fight one another like fury.] Oh, yes! Trouble would do that much for the soldier, for had they not been comrades for many and one bright, blessed days? Down he went into the pit, and then you may believe that the soldier was not long in rolling the stone into its place. So there was Trouble as tight as a fly in a bottle. After that the soldier went back home again with great contentment—as I would have done had I ridden home upon a cart full of gold and silver, all of which belonged to me. He had left one bag of money, but then it was worth that much to be rid of Trouble. After that the soldier built a ship and loaded it with the money. Then he and the princess sailed away to the king’s house, for they thought that maybe the king would like them better now that Trouble had left them and money had come. When the king saw what a great boatload of gold and silver the soldier had brought home with him he was as pleased as pleased could be. He could not make enough of the brave soldier; he called him son, and walked about the streets with him arm in arm, so that the folks might see how fond he was of his son-in-law. Besides that he gave him half of the kingdom to rule over, so that the soldier and the princess lived together as snugly as a couple of mice in the barn when threshing is going on. Well, one day a neighbor came to the rich brother and said, “Dear! dear! but the world is easy with your brother, the soldier!” At this the rich brother pricked up his ears. “How is that?” said he—“my brother, the soldier? How comes the world to be easy with him, I should like to know?” Oh, the neighbor could not tell him that; all that he knew was that the soldier was living over yonder with a princess for his wife, and more gold and silver money than a body could count in a week.