When it
was dark he galloped up to the little house, knocked, and cried, "My
little sister, let me in." And when the door was opened he sprang in,
and rested all night on his pretty little bed. Next morning the hunt
began again, and when the roe heard the blast of the horns, and the
"Ho! ho!" of the hunters, he could not rest, and cried, "Sister, open
the door; I must go."
His sister opened the door and said, "But mind you must be back in the
evening and make your little speech, that I may let you in."
When the king and his huntsmen saw the white roe with the gold band
once more, they all rode after him, but he was too quick and agile for
them. This chase lasted the whole day; at last, towards evening, the
hunters surrounded him, and wounded him with an arrow in the foot, so
that he was forced to limp and go slowly. One of the hunters, creeping
softly after him to the little house, heard him say, "My sister, let
me in," and saw that the door was opened and immediately shut to
again; so he went back to the king, and told him all he had seen and
heard.
"We will have another hunt to-morrow," said the king.
The little sister was greatly alarmed when she saw her white roe was
wounded; she washed off the blood, laid herbs upon the place, and
said, "Go now to thy bed, dear Roe, and get well."
The wound, however, was so slight that the next morning he felt
nothing of it, and when he heard the noise of the hunt, he said, "I
cannot keep away; I must go, and nothing shall keep me.
Pages:
258
259
260
261
262
263
264
265
266
267
268
269
270
271
272
273
274
275
276
277
278
279
280
281
282