Can they do anything more than dance and throw abouttheir legs, and make a whirlwind?"
  "You shall soon see what they can do," said the elf king. And thenhe called his youngest daughter to him. She was slender and fair asmoonlight, and the most graceful of all the sisters. She took awhite chip in her mouth, and vanished instantly; this was heraccomplishment. But the old goblin said he should not like his wife tohave such an accomplishment, and thought his boys would have thesame objection. Another daughter could make a figure like herselffollow her, as if she had a shadow, which none of the goblin folk everhad. The third was of quite a different sort; she had learnt in thebrew-house of the moor witch how to lard elfin puddings withglow-worms.
  "She will make a good housewife," said the old goblin, and thensaluted her with his eyes instead of drinking her health; for he didnot drink much.
  Now came the fourth daughter, with a large harp to play upon;and when she struck the first chord, every one lifted up the leftleg (for the goblins are left-legged), and at the second chord theyfound they must all do just what she wanted.
  "That is a dangerous woman," said the old goblin; and the two sonswalked out of the hill; they had had enough of it. "And what can thenext daughter do?" asked the old goblin.
  "I have learnt everything that is Norwegian," said she; "and Iwill never marry, unless I can go to Norway."
  Then her youngest sister whispered to the old goblin, "That isonly because she has heard, in a Norwegian song, that when the worldshall decay, the cliffs of Norway will remain standing like monuments;and she wants to get there, that she may be safe; for she is so afraidof sinking."
  "Ho! ho!" said the old goblin, "is that what she means? Well, whatcan the seventh and last do?"
  "The sixth comes before the seventh," said the elf king, for hecould reckon; but the sixth would not come forward.
  "I can only tell people the truth," said she. "No one cares forme, nor troubles himself about me; and I have enough to do to sew mygrave clothes."
  So the seventh and last came; and what could she do? Why, shecould tell stories, as many as you liked, on any subject.
  "Here are my five fingers," said the old goblin; "now tell me astory for each of them."
  So she took him by the wrist, and he laughed till he nearlychoked; and when she came to the fourth finger, there was a goldring on it, as if it knew there was to be a betrothal. Then the oldgoblin said, "Hold fast what you have: this hand is yours; for Iwill have you for a wife myself."
  Then the elfin girl said that the stories about the ring-fingerand little Peter Playman had not yet been told.
  "We will hear them in the winter," said the old goblin, "andalso about the fir and the birch-trees, and the ghost stories, andof the tingling frost. You shall tell your tales, for no one overthere can do it so well; and we will sit in the stone rooms, where thepine logs are burning, and drink mead out of the goldendrinking-horn of the old Norwegian kings. The water-god has given metwo; and when we sit there, Nix comes to pay us a visit, and will singyou all the songs of the mountain shepherdesses. How merry we shallbe! The salmon will be leaping in the waterfalls, and dashingagainst the stone walls, but he will not be able to come in. It isindeed very pleasant to live in old Norway. But where are the lads?"
  Where indeed were they? Why, running about the fields, and blowingout the will-o'-the-wisps, who so good-naturedly came and broughttheir torches.
  "What tricks have you been playing?"