Atondido Stories
reading the message, especially when the lad asked for the neck-
lace of eyes. Nevertheless she took it off, and gave it him, saying,
"There are only thirteen of 'em now, for I lost one last week."
The lad, however, was only too glad to get any at all, so he hur-
ried home as fast as he could to his seven mothers, and gave two
eyes apiece to the six elder Queens; but to the youngest he gave
one, saying, "Dearest little mother!—I will be your other eye al-
ways!"
After this he set off to marry the Princess, as he had prom-
ised, but when passing by the white Queen's palace he saw some
pigeons on the roof. Drawing his bow, he shot one, and it came
fluttering past the window. The white hind looked out, and lo!
there was the King's son alive and well.
She cried with hatred and disgust, but sending for the lad,
asked him how he had returned so soon, and when she heard
how he had brought home the thirteen eyes, and given them to
the seven blind Queens, she could hardly restrain her rage. Nev-
ertheless she pretended to be charmed with his success, and told
him that if he would give her this pigeon also, she would reward
him with the Jogi's wonderful cow, whose milk flows all day
long, and makes a pond as big as a kingdom. The lad, nothing
loth, gave her the pigeon; whereupon, as before, she bade him
go ask her mother for the cow, and gave him a potsherd where-
on was written— "Kill this lad without fail, and sprinkle his
blood like water!"
But on the way the son of seven Queens looked in on the
Princess, just to tell her how he came to be delayed, and she, af-
ter reading the message on the potsherd, gave him another in its
stead; so that when the lad reached the old hag's hut and asked
her for the Jogi's cow, she could not refuse, but told the boy how
to find it; and bidding him of all things not to be afraid of the
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