` And now we will go to the King 's palace , ' said Dapplegrim -- that was the horse 's name , ` but bear in mind that you must ask the King for a good stable and excellent fodder for me . ' So the lad promised not to forget to do that . He rode to the palace , and it will be easily understood that with such a horse as he had he was not long on the way . When he arrived there , the King was standing out on the steps , and how he did stare at the man who came riding up ! ` Nay , ' said he , ` never in my whole life have I seen such a man and such a horse . ' And when the youth inquired if he could have a place in the King 's palace , the King was so delighted that he could have danced on the steps where he was standing , and there and then the lad was told that he should have a place . ` Yes ; but I must have a good stable and most excellent fodder for my horse , ' said he . So they told him that he should have sweet hay and oats , and as much of them as the dappled horse chose to have , and all the other riders had to take their horses out of the stable that Dapplegrim might stand alone and really have plenty of room . But this did not last long , for the other people in the King 's Court became envious of the lad , and there was no bad thing that they would not have done to him if they had but dared . At last they bethought themselves of telling the King that the youth had said that , if he chose , he was quite able to rescue the Princess who had been carried off into the mountain a long time ago by the Troll . The King immediately summoned the lad into his presence , and said that he had been informed that he had said that it was in his power to rescue the Princess , so he was now to do it . If he succeeded in this , he no doubt knew that the King had promised his daughter and half the kingdom to anyone who set her free , which promise should be faithfully and honourably kept , but if he failed he should be put to death . The youth denied that he had said this , but all to no purpose , for the King was deaf to all his words ; so there was nothing to be done but say that he would make the attempt . He went down into the stable , and very sad and full of care he was . Then Dapplegrim inquired why he was so troubled , and the youth told him , and said that he did not know what to do , ` for as to setting the Princess free , that was downright impossible . ' ` Oh , but it might be done , ' said Dapplegrim . ' I will help you ; but you must first have me well shod . You must ask for ten pounds of iron and twelve pounds of steel for the shoeing , and one smith to hammer and one to hold . ' So the youth did this , and no one said him nay . He got both the iron and the steel , and the smiths , and thus was Dapplegrim shod strongly and well , and when the youth went out of the King 's palace a cloud of dust rose up behind him .
But when he came to the mountain XXXXX which the Princess had been carried , the difficulty was to ascend the precipitous wall of rock by which he was to get on to the mountain beyond , for the rock stood right up on end , as steep as a house side and as smooth as a sheet of glass .
So as at for if in into of on that