He was tired of the splendours of the town and its pleasures , and was glad enough to be back in the green country , among the peach-blossoms and sweet flowers . Strolling about in the early morning , he caught sight of the girl with the odd wooden helmet on her head , and immediately he went to his mother to ask who she was , and where she came from , and why she wore that strange thing over her face . His mother answered that it was a whim , and nobody could persuade her to lay it aside ; whereat the young man laughed , but kept his thoughts to himself . One hot day , however , he happened to be going towards home when he caught sight of his mother 's waiting maid kneeling by a little stream that flowed through the garden , splashing some water over her face . The helmet was pushed on one side , and as the youth stood watching from behind a tree he had a glimpse of the girl 's great beauty ; and he determined that no one else should be his wife . But when he told his family of his resolve to marry her they were very angry , and made up all sorts of wicked stories about her . However , they might have spared themselves the trouble , as he knew it was only idle talk . ' I have merely to remain firm , ' thought he , ` and they will have to give in . ' It was such a good match for the girl that it never occurred to anyone that she would refuse the young man , but so it was . It would not be right , she felt , to make a quarrel in the house , and though in secret she wept bitterly , for a long while , nothing would make her change her mind . At length one night her mother appeared to her in a dream , and bade her marry the young man . So the next time he asked her -- as he did nearly every day -- to his surprise and joy she consented . The parents then saw they had better make the best of a bad business , and set about making the grand preparations suitable to the occasion . Of course the neighbours said a great many ill-natured things about the wooden helmet , but the bridegroom was too happy to care , and only laughed at them . When everything was ready for the feast , and the bride was dressed in the most beautiful embroidered dress to be found in Japan , the maids took hold of the helmet to lift it off her head , so that they might do her hair in the latest fashion . But the helmet would not come , and the harder they pulled , the faster it seemed to be , till the poor girl yelled with pain . Hearing her cries the bridegroom ran in and soothed her , and declared that she should be married in the helmet , as she could not be married without . Then the ceremonies began , and the bridal pair sat together , and the cup of wine was brought them , out of which they had to drink . And when they had drunk it all , and the cup was empty , a wonderful thing happened . The helmet suddenly burst with a loud noise , and fell in pieces on the ground ; and as they all turned to look they found the floor covered with precious stones which had fallen out of it .
But the guests were less astonished at the brilliancy XXXXX the diamonds than at the beauty of the bride , which was beyond anything they had ever seen or heard of .
So about among at by from of that towards with