"So there is," said the Owl. "Oohoo! Well, I can tell you where to find
one of the Brownies; and if you find him, he will tell you where his
brother is. But all this depends upon whether you feel equal to
undertaking it, and whether you will follow my directions."

"I am quite ready to go," said Tommy, "and I will do as you shall tell
me. I feel sure I could persuade them. If they only knew how every one
would love them if they made themselves useful!"

"Oohoo! oohoo!" said the Owl. "Now pay attention. You must go to the
north side of the mere when the moon is shining--('I know Brownies like
water,' muttered Tommy)--and turn yourself round three times, saying
this charm:


'Twist me, and turn me, and show me the Elf--
I looked in the water, and saw--'

When you have got so far, look into the water, and at the same moment
you will see the Brownie, and think of a word that will fill up the
couplet, and rhyme with the first line. If either you do not see the
Brownie, or fail to think of the word, it will be of no use."

"Is the Brownie a merman," said Tommy, wriggling himself along the
beam, "that he lives under water?"

"That depends on whether he has a fish's tail," said the Owl, "and this
you can discover for yourself."