George Webbe Dasent

“ Well, the years went on and on, and when the time was up, the Devil came to fetch the Smith, as it was written in their bargain.
"Are you ready?" he said, as he stuck his nose in at the door of the forge.
"Oh," said the Smith, "I must just hammer the head of this tenpenny nail first; meantime you can just climb up into the pear-tree, and pluck yourself a pear to gnaw at; you must be both hungry and thirsty after your journey."
So the Devil thanked him for his kind offer, and climbed up into the pear-tree. ”

“ Then he took the woman and laid her in the furnace, and smithied a lovely young maiden out of her.
"Well," said the Smith, "I say now, as I said before, you are not such a bad smith after all. There it stands over my door—Here dwells the Master over all Masters; but for all that, I say right out, one learns as long as one lives;" ”

“ So after dinner, just after he had got back to his forge, a man came riding up to have his horse shod.
"It shall be done in the twinkling of an eye," said the Smith, "for I have just learnt a new way to shoe; and a very good way it is when the days are short."
So he began to cut and hack till he had got all the horse's legs off, for he said, I don't know why one should go pottering backwards and forwards—first with one leg, and then with another. ”