The other sister then thought she would go and do the same.  And she went the same way.  But when she reached the oven, and the bread said, “Little girl, little girl, take us out.  Seven years have we been baking, and no one has come to take us out,” the girl said, “No, I don’t want to burn my fingers.”  So she went on till she met the cow, and the cow said, “Little girl, little girl, milk me, milk me, do.  Seven years have I been waiting, and no one has come to milk me.”  But the girl said, “No, I can’t milk you, I’m in a hurry,” and went on faster.  Then she came to the apple-tree, and the apple-tree asked her to help shake the fruit.  “No, I can’t; another day p’raps I may,” and went on till she came to the witch’s house.  Well, it happened to her just the same as to the other girl—­she forgot what she was told, and one day when the witch was out, looked up the chimney, and down fell a bag of money.  Well, she thought she would be off at once.  When she reached the apple-tree, she heard the witch coming after her, and she cried: 

     “Apple-tree, apple-tree, hide me,
      So the old witch can’t find me;
      If she does she’ll break my bones,
      And bury me under the marble stones.”

But the tree didn’t answer, and she ran on further.  Presently the witch came up and said: 

     “Tree of mine, tree of mine,
      Have you seen a girl,
      With a willy-willy wag, and a long-tailed bag,
      Who’s stole my money, all I had?”

The tree said, “Yes, mother; she’s gone down that way.”

So the old witch went after her and caught her, she took all the money away from her, beat her, and sent her off home just as she was.

The Three Wishes

Once upon a time, and be sure ’t was a long time ago, there lived a poor woodman in a great forest, and every day of his life he went out to fell timber.  So one day he started out, and the goodwife filled his wallet and slung his bottle on his back, that he might have meat and drink in the forest.  He had marked out a huge old oak, which, thought he, would furnish many and many a good plank.  And when he was come to it, he took his axe in his hand and swung it round his head as though he were minded to fell the tree at one stroke.  But he hadn’t given one blow, when what should he hear but the pitifullest entreating, and there stood before him a fairy who prayed and beseeched him to spare the tree.  He was dazed, as you may fancy, with wonderment and affright, and he couldn’t open his mouth to utter a word.  But he found his tongue at last, and, “Well,” said he, “I’ll e’en do as thou wishest.”

“You’ve done better for yourself than you know,” answered the fairy, “and to show I’m not ungrateful, I’ll grant you your next three wishes, be they what they may.”  And therewith the fairy was no more to be seen, and the woodman slung his wallet over his shoulder and his bottle at his side, and off he started home.