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The daughter had enough to do cracking nuts for him, and at the end of fourteen days she had only one tooth left in her mouth; she had broken all the rest with the nuts. In this time however, she had taken a liking to Esben, and would willingly have set him free, but could not.
In the end they told him how Sir Red had stirred up the king against them, so that he had ordered them to get for him a boar with bristles of gold and silver time about. 'That's all right, said Esben; 'give me a sack of malt, and it is not quite impossible that I may be able to help you. Esben got his sack of malt; then he took his little white stick, set himself upon it, and said,
The daughter got out of bed, kindled the fire, and put on a pot with water in it. 'You mustn't put any salt in the porridge, though, cried the witch. 'No, neither will I, said the daughter; but while she was away getting the meal Esben slipped out of the oven and emptied the whole bushel of salt into the pot.
Esben now went up to the king and gave him the coverlet, with which the king was greatly delighted. When he touched it it could be heard over eight kingdoms, and all the other kings sat and were angry because they had not one like it. Esben also told how everything had happened, and how Sir Red had done the brothers all the ill he could devise because he was envious of them.
By this time Esben was tired of staying in the dark hole, so he told her to go and cut a teat off a cow, and give it to the witch to bite at. This the daughter did, and the witch cried, 'Ah! now he is fat so fat that one can scarcely feel the bone in him. Now he shall be killed.
When he saw his brothers' sorrowful looks he cried, 'Hallo, what's the matter now? 'Oh, what's the use of telling you? said his brothers. 'You can't help us, at any rate. 'Ah, you don't know that, said Esben; 'I've helped you before.
Long after them came Esben riding on his stick, and he also wanted to get a place in the palace, but no one had any use for him, and he was told that he could just go back the way he had come. However, he stayed there and occupied himself as best he could. He got his food, but nothing more, and by night he lay just where he could.
But now there was no water in the house, so she asked her mother to give her the lamp, so that she could go to the well for more. 'There you have it, then, said the witch; 'but take good care of it. The daughter took the lamp which shone over seven kingdoms, and went out to the well for water, while Esben slipped out after her.
When he saw again his twelve sons, whom he had never expected to see more, he was so glad that he wept for joy. The brothers told him how much Esben had done, and how he had saved their lives, and from that time forward he was no longer the butt of the rest at home. Princess Minon-minette Bibliotheque des Fees et aes Genies
Esben got his bag of peas; then he took his white stick, and said, Fly quick, my little stick, Carry me across the stream. Straightway the stick carried him across the river and straight into the old witch's courtyard. Esben had noticed that she had such a dove; so when he arrived in the courtyard he shook the peas out of the bag, and the dove came fluttering down to pick them up.
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