THE next morning the giant went out without giving Yvon any orders,
which troubled Finette. At noon he returned without his flock,
complaining of the heat and fatigue, and said to the young girl:
"You will find a child, my servant, at the door. Cut his throat, put him
into the great pot to boil, and call me when the broth is ready." Saying
this he stretched himself on the bed to take a nap, and was soon snoring
so loud that it seemed like thunder shaking the mountains.
Finette prepared a log of wood, took a large knife, and called Yvon. She
pricked his little finger; three drops of blood fell on the log.
"That is enough," said Finette; "now help me to fill the pot."
They threw into it all that they could find--old clothes, old shoes, old
carpets, and everything else. Finette then took Yvon by the hand, and
led him through the three antechambers, where she ran in a mold three
bullets of gold, two bullets of silver, and one bullet of copper, after
which they quitted the house and ran toward the sea.
"_On--the Kerver!_" cried Yvon, as soon as he saw himself in the
country. "Explain yourself, dear Finette; what farce are we playing
now?"
"Let us run--let us run!" she cried; "if we do not quit this wretched
island before night, it is all over with us."
"_On--the Kerver!_" replied Yvon laughing, "and down with the giant!"
When he had snored a full hour, the giant stretched his limbs, half
opened one eye, and cried, "Is it ready?"
"It is just beginning to boil," answered the first drop of blood on the
log.
The giant turned over, and snored louder than ever for an hour or two
longer. Then he stretched his limbs, half opened one eye, and cried out,
"Do you hear me? Is it almost ready?"
"It is half done," answered the second drop of blood on the log.
The giant turned over, and slept an hour longer. Then he yawned,
stretched his great limbs, and cried out impatiently, "Isn't it ready
yet?"
"It is ready now," answered the third drop of blood on the log.
The giant sat up in bed, rubbed his eyes, and looked around to see who
had spoken; but it was in vain to look; he saw nobody.
"Finette!" howled he, "why isn't the table set?"
There was no answer. The giant, furious, sprang out of bed, seized a
ladle, which looked like a caldron with a pitchfork for a handle, and
plunged it into the pot to taste the soup.
"Finette!" howled he, "you haven't salted it. What sort of a soup is
this? I see neither meat nor vegetables."
No; but, in return, he saw his carpet, which had not quite all boiled to
pieces. At this sight he fell into such a fit of rage that he could not
keep his feet.
"Villains!" said he, "you have played a fine trick on me; but you shall
pay for it!"
He rushed out with a stick in his hand, and strode along at such a rate
that in a quarter of an hour he discovered the two fugitives still far
from the seashore. He uttered such a cry of joy that the earth shook for
twelve leagues around.
Finette stopped, trembling. Yvon clasped her to his heart.
"_On--the Kerver!_" said he; "the sea is not far off; we shall be there
before our enemy."
"Here he is! here he is!" cried Finette, pointing to the giant not a
hundred yards off; "we are lost if this charm does not save us."
She took the copper bullet and threw it on the ground, saying:
"Copper bullet, save us, pray,
Stop the giant on his way."
And behold, the earth cracked apart with a terrific noise, and an
enormous fissure, a bottomless pit, stopped the giant just as he was
stretching out his hand to seize his prey.
"Let us fly!" cried Finette, grasping the arm of Yvon, who was gazing at
the giant with a swaggering air, defying him to come on.
The giant ran backward and forward along the abyss like a bear in his
cage, seeking a passage everywhere and finding none; then, with a
furious jerk, he tore up an immense oak by the roots, and flung it
across the gap. The branches of the oak nearly crushed the children as
it fell. The giant seated himself astride the huge tree, which bent
under his weight, and crept slowly along, suspended between heaven and
earth, entangled as he was among the branches. When he reached the other
side, Yvon and Finette were already on the shore with the sea rolling
before them.
Alas! there was neither bark nor ship. The fugitives were lost. Yvon,
always brave, picked up stones to attack the giant, and to sell his life
dearly. Finette, trembling with fear, threw one of the silver bullets
into the sea, saying:
"Silver bullet, bright and pliant,
Save us from this frightful giant."
Scarcely had she spoken the magic words when a beautiful ship rose from
the waves like a swan spreading its white wings. Yvon and Finette
plunged into the sea; a rope was thrown them by an invisible hand; and
when the furious giant reached the shore, the ship was receding rapidly
at full sail, leaving behind it a long furrow of shining foam.
Giants do not like the water. This fact is certified to by old Homer,
who knew Polyphemus; and the same observation will be found in all
natural histories worthy of the name. Finette's master resembled
Polyphemus. He roared with rage when he saw his slaves about to escape
him. He ran hesitatingly along the shore; he flung huge masses of rock
after the vessel, which happily fell by the side of it, and only made
great black holes in the water; and, finally, mad with anger he plunged
head foremost into the sea, and began to swim after the ship with
frightful speed. At each stroke he advanced forty feet, blowing like a
whale, and like a whale cleaving the waves. By degrees he gained on his
enemies; one more effort would bring him within reach of the rudder, and
already he was stretching out his arm to seize it, when Finette threw
the second silver bullet into the sea, and cried, in tears:
"Silver bullet, bright and pliant,
Save us from this frightful giant."
Suddenly from the midst of the foam darted forth a gigantic swordfish,
with a sword at least twenty feet in length. It rushed straight toward
the giant, who scarcely had time to dive, chased him under the water,
pursued him on the top of the waves, followed him closely whichever way
he turned, and forced him to flee as fast as he could to his island,
where he finally landed with the greatest difficulty, and fell upon the
shore dripping, worn out, and conquered.
"_On--the Kerver!_" cried Yvon, "we are saved!"
"Not yet," said Finette, trembling. "The giant has a witch for a
godmother, I fear that she will revenge on me the insult offered to her
godson. My art tells me, my dear Yvon, that if you quit me a single
instant until you give me your name in the chapel of the Kervers, I have
everything to dread."
[Illustration: "HE FLUNG HUGE MASSES OF ROCK AFTER THE VESSEL"]
"By the unicorn of my ancestors," cried Yvon, "you have the heart of a
hare and not of a hero! Am I not here? Am I going to abandon you? Do you
believe that Providence has saved us from the fangs of that monster to
wreck us in port?"
He laughed so gayly that Finette laughed in turn at the terror that had
seized her.