Three good giants

Now, this Captain Touquedillon was a snakish sort of man ; and when he heard honest Ulrich talk he went straight to Picrochole, and coiled and twisted what he had heard in such a way that poor Ulrich, could he have heard it, wouldn't have known it to be his own. The snakish Captain added that they had got into a trap in Roche-Cler-maud, and that those five carts had come in the very nick of time for the starving soldiers.

'You say well," cried Picrochole, "seize the buns the rascal has brought! "

" And the money ? "

" Seize that too ! "

Then Captain Touquedillon, without further ado, sent his men out of the gate to take the money, the buns, the oxen, and the carts.

Good Ulrich returned to Grandgousier, and told him all these things. This made the gentle old Giant very sad. He stopped telling stories of old times, and took no more pleasure in roasted chestnuts. He saw that there must be a war, and a bitter one. He ceased to talk, and was always sighing. All that he ever would say, after long hours of silence and sighs, was : —

"Ho, there ! Has my boy Gargantua come yet?"

CHAPTER XVH. HOW GARGANTUA, WITH A BIG TREE, BROKE DOWN A CASTLE AND PASSED THE FORD OF VEDE.

GARGANTUA was a good son if ever there was one. The minute he read his Father's letter begging him to come home, he ordered his great Mare to be bridled and saddled. It was less than thirty minutes after this that he was galloping on the road along with wise old Ponocrates, his faithful Squire Gym-naste, and the pretty little page Eude-mon. This certainly was not a very strong escort, but Gargantua's single arm was worth an army.

The servants followed slowly with his baggage, books, and philosophical instruments.

Having got as far as Parille, they were told how Picrochole had taken Roche-Clermaud, and how his men had been robbing and pillaging everywhere, and had been frightening everybody so much that nobody was brave enough to tell on them. Another piece of news Gargantua heard at Parille. This was that one of Picrochole's fiercest officers, Captain Tripet, had been sent to take possession of several points near the Ford of Vede.

" Ho ! ho ! ho !" cried Gargantua. "Let us ride, then, as fast as we can to the Ford of Vede."

"No, Prince," said Ponocrates; "what I would advise you to do is to ride on a few miles farther, to the house of the Lord of Vauguyon. He is an old friend of your royal Father, and can give us better counsel than we can get in this place."

"Well, then, so be it." said Gargantua.

The whole party galloped swiftly to Vauguyon, where they were received with open gates and a steaming supper. After wine had "been drunk, and the Lord of Vauguyon had settled down to talk, Gargantua was told that all that had been said was true. Picrochole's soldiers were both at Roche-Clermaud and the Ford of Vede. On hearing this, the Prince would not wait to sleep, so anxious was he to rush to the help of his good old Father. The Lord of Vauguyon tried to keep him in the Castle until after a great storm, which then threatened, was over. It was of no use, Gargantua would hear nothing.

" To your saddies, gentlemen ! " he cried. " It is at - the Ford we shall hunt Picrochole's man- ^^US^M nikins !"

Once more mounted on his

GARGANTUA HUKRIES HOME.

great Mare he started for the Ford. His lips were pressed close, and his eyes glared fiercely down from a height greater than that of the tallest trees. "His Highness is very angry," Ponocrates whispered to Gymnaste. (For the first time he was afraid of his pupil.) "His Highness is awful mad," Gymnaste whispered to Eudemon. On getting near the Ford, what should Gargantua do but tear up a fine and stately tree which he found growing by the roadside, stripping its branches and leaves till he made it a bare pole of enormous length and strength. "Just what I have been looking for ! " he said to himself; "this tree will serve me both as staff and lance."

All this was being done under a fearful tempest of rain. The storm had burst, as the Lord of Vauguyon had foreseen. Ponocrates could hardly sit on his horse, for the heavy drops fell like so much lead; dainty little Eude- mon was quite crushed, and could only keep himself "O from falling by clasping his horse's neck; and all Hf^ Gynanaste could do to keep his spirits up and his blood warm was, every now and then, to turn somersaults on the back of his horse, stand on his head, on the tip of his thumb, and

GYIVTNASTE WARMS HIMSELF