Like other knights, he met with many adventures on his way.  There was always something to contend with, either wild beasts or else knights, who, like himself, roved about the country delighting to find any one with whom they could do battle.  On every occasion, however, Walter came off conqueror, for he was far more valiant than any of his opponents.

At last, one day he came within sight of a mountain, on which stood a high castle belonging to a certain queen.  As he reached the summit, he saw from afar a little maiden, who sat playing with her doll before the castle gate, and when he drew nearer he found that it was his little Gertrude.  Then he put spurs to his horse and shouted joyfully—­

“Good-day, dear Gertrude!” But the child knew him not.  As he drew nearer, he called again:  “It is I indeed!—­it is Cousin Walter!” but the child believed him not.  And when he sprang from his horse to kiss her, and his armour, sword, and spurs rattled and clashed as he did so, the child was afraid that this strange man would hurt her, and she ran away back into the castle.

Poor Walter was very much troubled.  He went in, however, and presented himself to the queen, who received him very graciously.  He told her all that had happened, and learnt from her that she had bought Gertrude from the gipsies.  But when he begged that she would let him take his dear little cousin away with him, she consented only on condition that the child herself should be willing, for Gertrude had become very dear to the old queen.  So she called the little maid in, and said—­

“Now look here, my child:  this really is your Cousin Walter.  Do you no longer love him, and will you not go away with him?”

The child looked at the knight from head to foot, and then said in a troubled voice—­

“Since you both declare that it is Walter, I suppose I must believe it.  Ah! if only he were still as little as he was a year ago, I would go into the wide world with him, wherever he wanted; but now, I never can.  It would be no good, whilst he is like that.  If I wanted to play hide-and-seek, as we used to do, his armour would shine, and his spurs rattle, and I should know where he was directly.  If I wanted to go to school with him, he could not sit by me on the little benches at the little tables.  Then what could a poor child like me do for such a stately knight?  If I tried to work for him, I should burn my little hands; if I tried to make his clothes, I should prick my little fingers; and if I ran races with him, I should hurt my little feet.  If I were a grown-up princess, indeed, it would be a different thing.”

Walter could not but feel that what Gertrude said was true.  So he took leave of them both, mounted his horse, and rode away; but the queen and Gertrude watched him from the battlements of the castle.

He had not ridden many steps when a voice from a tree called “Walter!  Walter!” and when he looked up, there was the raven, who said—­