In his joy he never remembered to inquire in what kind of country the future queen had been found . In fact his head was so turned by the beauty of the two ladies that when the invitations were sent by his orders to all the great people in the kingdom , he did not even recollect his two children , who remained shut up in their own house ! After the marriage the king ceased to have any will of his own and did nothing without consulting his wife . She was present at all his councils , and her opinion was asked before making peace or war . But when a few months had passed the king began to have doubts as to whether the minister 's choice had really been a wise one , and he noticed that his children lived more and more in their palace and never came near their stepmother . It always happens that if a person 's eyes are once opened they see a great deal more than they ever expected ; and soon it struck the king that the members of his court had a way of disappearing one after the other without any reason . At first he had not paid much attention to the fact , but merely appointed some fresh person to the vacant place . As , however , man after man vanished without leaving any trace , he began to grow uncomfortable and to wonder if the queen could have anything to do with it . Things were in this state when , one day , his wife said to him that it was time for him to make a progress through his kingdom and see that his governors were not cheating him of the money that was his due . ` And you need not be anxious about going , ' she added , ` for I will rule the country while you are away as carefully as you could yourself . ' The king had no great desire to undertake this journey , but the queen 's will was stronger than his , and he was too lazy to make a fight for it . So he said nothing and set about his preparations , ordering his finest ship to be ready to carry him round the coast . Still his heart was heavy , and he felt uneasy , though he could not have told why ; and the night before he was to start he went to the children 's palace to take leave of his son and daughter . He had not seen them for some time , and they gave him a warm welcome , for they loved him dearly and he had always been kind to them . They had much to tell him , but after a while he checked their merry talk and said : ` If I should never come back from this journey I fear that it may not be safe for you to stay here ; so directly there are no more hopes of my return go instantly and take the road eastwards till you reach a high mountain , which you must cross . Once over the mountain keep along by the side of a little bay till you come to two trees , one green and the other red , standing in a thicket , and so far back from the road that without looking for them you would never see them . Hide each in the trunk of one of the trees and there you will be safe from all your enemies . ' With these words the king bade them farewell and entered sadly into his ship . For a few days the wind was fair , and everything seemed going smoothly ; then , suddenly , a gale sprang up , and a fearful storm of thunder and lightning , such as had never happened within the memory of man . In spite of the efforts of the frightened sailors the vessel was driven on the rocks , and not a man on board was saved .
That very night Prince Sigurd had a dream , in which he thought his father appeared to him in dripping clothes , and , taking the crown XXXXX his head , laid it at his son 's feet , leaving the room as silently as he had entered it .
In as for from over though till while within without