"Oh, let her stay!
We'll not say nay."

Then Alween thanked the animals for their kindness and, going close to
them, she stroked the smooth feathers of the cock and the hen and
patted the brindled cow on the white star in her forehead. She made
ready the supper and set it before the old man; but, before satisfying
her own hunger, she said, "The good animals are hungry too. I must
first get food for them." So she placed a bundle of hay in front of
the brindled cow and scattered wheat and barley for the cock and the
hen and brought a fresh drink of water for all. Then she herself ate
and was satisfied.

That night Alween slept soundly in the loft of the little hut, but not
before she had seen the old man tucked snugly into his bed and fast
asleep. When she wakened, with the first rays of morning light, she
thought, "I must dress quickly and get breakfast for the poor old man
and feed the little cock and the little hen and the pretty brindled
cow." But when she opened her eyes she seemed to be no longer in the
loft of the little old hut in the wood. Instead of its dingy walls she
saw before her a vast hall hung with cloth of gold and rich
embroideries, and light and sunshine and flowers were everywhere. "I
am surely dreaming," said Alween. Pushing aside the rich silken
curtain of her bed, which also seemed a part of her dream, she thought
to dress herself; but the poor ragged clothes she had put off the night
before were nowhere to be found. In their place lay costly garments of
satin and velvet.

"Oh, this is a dream, a dream!" thought the girl. She rubbed her eyes
again and again as she gazed at the rich curtains and the costly