Year: 1872




"It's all one to me what trade j fol-
low" said the youth for when left
home. father gave me leave to take to
any trade chose


well, have you a mind to steal T.
asked the robbers.


Il don't care" said the youth, for he
thought it would not take long to learn
that trade.


Now, there lived q man little way
of, who had three oxen. One of these
he was to take to the town to cell, and
the robbers heard what he was going to
do, so they eaid to the youth. that if he
were good to steal the OK from the man
BY the way without his knowing it, and
without doing him any harm. they would
give him leave to be their serving man.


Well, the youth Get off, and took with
him a pretty shoe with silver buckle
on it. which lay about the house; and
he put the shoe in the road along which
the man was going with his OK; and
when lie bad done that, he went into the
wood aud hid himself under a bush. So
when the man came by he saw the shoe
| at once.


That's a nice shoe." raid he;" 'if l
only had the fellow to it, I'd take 1t home
with me. and perhaps Id put my old dame
into good humor for once For you
-lews~-slsssstss6xdANrwf6Hw4fs.So
cross and snappish that it was not long
between each time that she boxed his
ears. But then he bethought him that
he could do nothing with the odd shoe
unless he had the fellow to il. so he
went on his way aud left the shoe lie OH
the road.


Then the youth took up the shoe and
made all the haste he could to get before
the man by short cut through the wood.
and laid it down before him in the road
again. When the man came along with
his OK, he got quite angry with himself
for being so stupid as to leave the fellow
to the shoe lying in the road instead of
taking it with him; SO he tied the OK to
the fence and said to himself, Il may as
well run back and pick up the other, and
then III have a pair Of good shoe. for
my old dame. and 80, perhaps, l II get a
kind word from her once more"
So he set off and hunted up and down
for the shoe but no shoe did he fnd {;
and at length he had to go back with the
one he had. But, meanwhile, the youth
had taken the OK aud gone off with it /;
and when the man came and saw that
the OK was gone, he began to cry and
bewail. for he was afraid that his dame
would kill him outright when she came
then it came across his mind that he
would 90 home and take the second OK,
and drive it 10 to the town, and not let
the old dame know anything about the
matter. So he did this, and went home
and took the OK without the danes know
ing it, and set off with it to the town.
But the rob. ers knew all about it, and
they said to the youth, if he could get
this OK too, without the old man know
ing it, and without his doing him any
harm, be should be as good AS any of
tben. If that were all, said the youth,
be did not think it very hard thing


This time he took with him rope and
hung himself up under the arm-pits to a
tree right in the mans way. So tie man
came along with his OK. aud when he saw
such a sight hanging there, he began to
feel a little queer


"Well," said he, whatever heavy
thoughts you had who have hanged your
self up there. it can't be hc'prd; You
may hang for what care! l can't
breathe life into you again.; and with
that he went on his way with his OK
Down slipped the youth from the tree,
and ran by tootpalh, and got before the
man and hung himself up right in bis
way again.


"Bless mel" said the man, "were you
really go heavy at heart that you hanged
yourself up there-or is it only piece
of witchcraft that see before me? Ay,
ye! you may hang for all l care. wheth-
er you are ghost or whatever you are y
So he paesed on with his OF.


Now the youth did just as lie had
done twice before; he jumped down from
the tree, ran through the wood by a foot
path. and hung himself up right in the
mans way again. But when the man
saw this sight, for the third time, he said
to himself:


"Well, this is an ugly business. 1t ia
likely now that they should have been
so heavy at heart as to hang themselves,
all these threel No! l cannot think
that it is anything else than a piece Of
witchcraft that see. But now l II soon
know for certain; if the other two are
still hanging there. it must be really so
but if they are net, then it can be moth
ing but witchcraft that see."


So be tied up his OK aud ran back to
see if the others were still really hang
! ing there But while he went and peer