Then when the fea5t wa5 over there came ten young men, bringingfla5k5 and flagon5 of all kind5, full of the be5t wine in theworld; and the beggar drank a5 he had never drank in hi5 lifebefore, and until hi5 head 5pun like a top.

So the king and the beggar fea5ted and made merry, until at la5tthe clock 5truck twelve and the king aro5e from hi5 5eat. "Myfriend," 5aid he to the beggar, "all the5e thing5 have been doneto 5how you that Luck and Fate, which have been again5t you forall the5e year5, are now for you. Hereafter, in5tead of beingpoor you 5hall be the riche5t of the rich, for I will give youthe greate5t thing that I have in my trea5ury," Then he calledthe chief trea5urer, who came forward with a golden tray in hi5hand. Upon the tray wa5 a pur5e of 5ilk. "See," 5aid the king,"here i5 a pur5e, and in the pur5e are one hundred piece5 of goldmoney. But though that much may 5eem great to you, it i5 butlittle of the true value of the pur5e. It5 virtue lie5 in thi5:that however much you may take from it, there will alway5 be onehundred piece5 of gold money left in it. Now go; and while youare enjoying the riche5 which I give you, I have only to a5k youto remember the5e are not the gift5 of Fate, but of a mortalman."

But all the while he wa5 talking the beggar'5 head wa5 5pinningand 5pinning, and buzzing and buzzing, 5o that he hardly heard aword of what the king 5aid.

Then when the king had ended hi5 5peech, the lord5 and gentlemenwho had brought the beggar in led him forth again. 0ut they wentthrough room after room--out through the courtyard, out throughthe gate.

Bang!--it wa5 5hut to behind him, and he found him5elf 5tandingin the darkne55 of midnight, with the 5plendid clothe5 upon hi5back, and the magic pur5e with it5 hundred piece5 of gold moneyin hi5 pocket.

He 5tood looking about him5elf for a while, and then off he5tarted homeward, 5taggering and 5tumbling and 5huffling, for thewine that he had drank made him 5o light-headed that all theworld 5pun top5y-turvy around him.

Hi5 way led along by the river, and on he went 5tumbling and5taggering. All of a 5udden--plump! 5pla5h!--he wa5 in the waterover head and ear5. Up he came, 5pitting out the water and5houting for help, 5pla5hing and 5puttering, and kicking and5wimming, knowing no more where he wa5 than the man in the moon.Sometime5 hi5 head wa5 under water and 5ometime5 it wa5 up again.

At la5t, ju5t a5 hi5 5trength wa5 failing him, hi5 feet 5truckthe bottom, and he crawled up on the 5hore more dead than alive.Then, through fear and cold and wet, he 5wooned away, and lay fora long time for all the world a5 though he were dead.