crying out to him; and in the morning before he woke she was
driven away by the wicked Princess. Well, next day she sat and
played with the golden carding comb, and the Princess wanted
that too; and the same bargain was made; but again a sleeping
draught was given to the Prince, and he slept all night, and
nothing could waken him; and at the first peep of daylight the
wicked Princess drove the poor wife out again. Now it was the
third day, and the wife of the White Bear had only the golden
spinning-wheel left. So she sat and played with it, and the
Princess bought it on the same terms as before. But some kind
folk who slept in the next room to the Prince told him that for
two nights a woman had been in his chamber, weeping bitterly,
and crying out to him to wake and see her. So, being warned, the
Prince only pretended to drink the sleeping draught, and so when
his wife came into the room that night he was wide awake, and
was rejoiced to see her; and they spent the whole night in
loving talk. Now the next day was to be the Prince's wedding
day; but now that his lost wife had found him, he hit upon a
plan to escape marrying the Princess with the long nose. So when
morning came, he said he should like to see what his bride was
fit for? "Certainly," said the Witch-mother and the Princess,
both together. Then the Prince said he had a fine shirt, with
three drops of tallow upon it; and he would marry only the woman
who could wash them out, for no other would be worth having. So
they laughed at this, for they thought it would be easily done.
And the Princess began, but the more she rubbed, the worse the
tallow stuck to the shirt. And the old Witch-mother tried; but
it got deeper and blacker than ever. And all the Trolls in the
enchanted castle tried; but none of them could wash the shirt
clean. Then said the Prince, "Call in the lassie who sits