So saying he made a cut with the sword of strength at the giant’s head, but, somehow, missing his aim, cut off the nose instead, clean as a whistle!  My goodness!  How the giant roared!  It was like claps of thunder, and he began to lay about him with the knotted iron club, like one possessed.  But Jack in his coat of darkness easily dodged the blows, and running in behind, drove the sword up to the hilt into the giant’s back, so that he fell stone dead.

Jack then cut off the head and sent it to King Arthur by a waggoner whom he hired for the purpose.  After which he began to search the giant’s cave to find his treasure.  He passed through many windings and turnings until he came to a huge hall paved and roofed with freestone.  At the upper end of this was an immense fireplace where hung an iron cauldron, the like of which, for size, Jack had never seen before.  It was boiling and gave out a savoury steam; while beside it, on the right hand, stood a big massive table set out with huge platters and mugs.  Here it was that the giants used to dine.  Going a little further he came upon a sort of window barred with iron, and looking within beheld a vast number of miserable captives.

“Alas!  Alack!” they cried on seeing him.  “Art come, young man, to join us in this dreadful prison?”

“That depends,” quoth Jack:  “but first tell me wherefore you are thus held imprisoned?”

“Through no fault,” they cried at once.  “We are captives of the cruel giants and are kept here and well nourished until such time as the monsters desire a feast.  Then they choose the fattest and sup off them.”

On hearing this Jack straightway unlocked the door of the prison and set the poor fellows free.  Then, searching the giants’ coffers, he divided the gold and silver equally amongst the captives as some redress for their sufferings, and taking them to a neighbouring castle gave them a right good feast.

VI

Now as they were all making merry over their deliverance, and praising Jack’s prowess, a messenger arrived to say that one Thunderdell, a huge giant with two heads, having heard of the death of his kinsman, was on his way from the northern dales to be revenged, and was already within a mile or two of the castle, the country folk with their flocks and herds flying before him like chaff before the wind.

[Illustration:  On his way ... to be revenged]

Now the castle with its gardens stood on a small island that was surrounded by a moat twenty feet wide and thirty feet deep, having very steep sides.  And this moat was spanned by a drawbridge.  This, without a moment’s delay, Jack ordered should be sawn on both sides at the middle, so as to only leave one plank uncut over which he in his invisible coat of darkness passed swiftly to meet his enemy, bearing in his hand the wonderful sword of strength.

Now though the giant could not, of course, see Jack, he could smell him, for giants have keen noses.  Therefore Thunderdell cried out in a voice like his name: