"Wow, Jack. I cannot believe you stabbed the giant in his eye! That was so brave and you were so young!"

 

Yes, I was young. But I had grown fearless during my time with the giant, so I felt like I could do anything. That, sirs, is what made me take on my next adventure!

 

My mother and I lived for a long time on the golden eggs produced by the hen I had stolen from the one-eyed giant, but after some time the hen could no longer lay any more eggs. And so, despite much argument from my mother, I climbed the beanstalk one more time.

 

I had a feeling I might run into the giant again, so this time I climbed at night, and brought supplies: a horn, a shovel, and a pickaxe. Once I reached the top, I worked until morning, digging a pit that had to be at least twenty feet deep!

 

As the sun came up, I blew my horn. The giant, who was still blind from what I had done to him last time, ran out quickly, shouting "Who is this who disturbs my rest? You will pay for this! I am going to broil your bones for my breakfast!"

 

As he was shouting, he ran straight into my trap. The giant, blind from my knife, tumbled into the pit that he could not see. The ground shook! I called after him, "Oh, giant! How are you going to broil my bones now?" The giant shouted from the pit so loudly that he might have disturbed his wife, so I knocked him on the head with my pickaxe and killed him right there.

 

I then filled the pit with earth and quietly made my way to the giant's home.

 

I knocked on the door and was greeted by the giant's wife. I said, "Hello! I do not know if you remember me. I dined with you once and hid in the oven when your husband came home."

 

"Oh, I remember you," she said. "After you left, my husband was missing a bag of gold and a golden hen."

 

I responded, "I do not know about the gold, ma'am. But I have traveled a long way and I was hoping I could have something to eat and spend a night here."

 

She gave me some bread and took me to a bed, where I lay down for a good night's sleep.

 

But I awoke to a scream and shortly that I heard the wife muttering, "Though here you lodge with me this night, you shall not see the morning light: my club shall dash your brains outright!" I realized then that she had found her husband.

 

I got out of bed quickly and stuffed the blankets with pillows. Not long after, the wife entered the room and struck the bed many times with her club. I slept the rest of the night on the floor.

 

The next morning I entered the kitchen and the giant's wife looked at me, amazed. "How was your night?" she asked. "Did you not feel anything?"

 

"No." I replied. Then I thought further and said, "Well, I did feel a rat, who slapped me several times with her tail." I felt very clever at that moment.

 

The wife was angry and confused as she brought me a large bowl of pudding, four gallons at least, knowing it was too much for me to eat. So I hid a leather pouch under my coat, and as the wife turned away I filled it with the pudding. 

 

I looked at the giant's wife and said, "Ma'am, might I show you a trick?" And I took my knife and ripped open the leather pouch, letting all of the pudding spill out. Because of the way the pouch was positioned, she thought that I had spilled my guts without doing myself any harm!

 

"That is nothing," she said. "I can do that." And, so as not to be outdone by me, the wife took her knife and ripped open her belly, falling down dead. 

 

I had killed the giants, and now was as good a time as any to collect my reward. I searched the house and found a golden harp, one that played beautiful music every time I commanded it to "sing." 

 

I took the harp home to my mother, and we made a fortune from its magic, living on the proceeds for many years. 

 

Coverpage | Introduction | The Beginning | The Middle | The End | Story Four