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When his guests had partaken of these, their hunger was fully satisfied, and they related to him the reason of their coming. When the Giant learned how the Princess was kept from her lover, and in all probability from a throne, by this wicked sorceress, his anger knew no bounds.

“I knew the woman well!” he cried, “but I thought her dead. Many is the deed of vile magic which I have known her to do, but now–well, my friends, you shall be avenged. I will take up the cause of the Princess, and we will set out for the hollow mountain as soon as I can get myself ready to start.”

Leaving the two friends in comfortable chairs on the porch, in which they fell asleep as soon as he had left them, the Giant ascended the great stone stairs into his armory, which was an immense room, filled with his mighty weapons, and armor and all sorts of implements of warfare. Kicking off his slippers, he put upon his feet great boots, the like of which were never seen before. Their soles were enormously thick, and studded with nails, each one of which was so heavy that I would not like to have to carry it very far. Then, having put on his chain armor and his great gauntlets, and having arrayed himself otherwise according to his taste, he put upon his head his helmet, which was like a great iron pot, and big enough to–well, big enough to cover his head, which is saying a great deal. He then took, from the corner of the room, his club, which was the trunk of a tall tree, with one end fastened into a great rock, by way of having a knob to it. Having thus accoutred himself, he came down-stairs, and, finding his guests in such a sound slumber, he had not the heart to waken them; so he gently took them up, and put one of them in each of the side-pockets of the coat which he wore over his armor. Then, having given orders to his servants to close all the gates, and see that the house was well fastened up for fear of thieves, he strode out of the great gate, and proceeded towards the hollow mountain. Although this was a long journey for a man or a horse, our Giant made such tremendous strides that it did not seem like a very great distance to him; and when Trumkard and the Prince awoke, and stood up, and looked in astonishment out of the pocket-holes, they saw the mountain in the distance. The Giant, perceiving that they were awake, looked from one to the other with his peculiar pleasant smile, and assured them that their troubles would soon be at an end.

“I hardly think,” said he, “that the old woman can keep me out of her tower;” and he laughed at the very idea of such a thing. The Prince made no reply, but he thought that if the Giant did get into the tower, it would be considerably stretched.

Having arrived at the mountain, the Giant walked around it until he came to the place where, the Prince informed him, he had made his escape, and which was, as far as there was an opportunity of judging, one of the thinnest parts. Tur-il-i-ra took his friends out of his pockets, and set them on the ground at a little distance from the foot of the mountain; and then letting his club down from his shoulder, he whirled it around his head, and struck such a tremendous blow on the side of the mountain, with the rock end, that everything cracked again. Then another on the same place, and another, and another, until, at the last blow, a great mass of rock and earth fell inside with a crash like thunder, leaving a gap large enough for the whole party to walk in without stooping. You may be sure that the three were not long in entering; but no sooner had they set foot upon the great interior plain, than they perceived a mighty commotion among the inhabitants of this secluded spot. Ghouls, Afrites, and all sorts of demons were running towards them in a great state of excitement; and as they approached, they formed into a solid body, evidently intending to repel the invaders. There was no mistaking their intentions; for they hurled at the Giant a volley of spears and javelins that would have annihilated any one who was not so large, and who had not on such strong and secure chain-armor.