There was nothing the matter with him , and he complained neither of hunger or thirst . He had got into a fog , he said , and could not find land again . What he did not tell , however , was where he had been all the time ; that only came out six years later , when people got to know that he had been caught by a mermaid out on the deep sea , and had been her guest during the three days that he was missing . From that time forth he went out no more to fish ; nor , indeed , did he require to do so , for whenever he went down to the shore it never failed that some wreckage was washed up , and in it all kinds of valuable things . In those days everyone took what they found and got leave to keep it , so that the smith grew more prosperous day by day . When seven years had passed since the smith went out to sea , it happened one morning , as he stood in the smithy , mending a plough , that a handsome young lad came in to him and said , ` Good-day , father ; my mother the mermaid sends her greetings , and says that she has had me for six years now , and you can keep me for as long . ' He was a strange enough boy to be six years old , for he looked as if he were eighteen , and was even bigger and stronger than lads commonly are at that age . ` Will you have a bite of bread ? ' said the smith . ` Oh , yes , ' said Hans , for that was his name . The smith then told his wife to cut a piece of bread for him . She did so , and the boy swallowed it at one mouthful and went out again to the smithy to his father . ` Have you got all you can eat ? ' said the smith . ` No , ' said Hans , ` that was just a little bit . ' The smith went into the house and took a whole loaf , which he cut into two slices and put butter and cheese between them , and this he gave to Hans . In a while the boy came out to the smithy again . ` Well , have you got as much as you can eat ? ' said the smith . ` No , not nearly , ' said Hans ; ' I must try to find a better place than this , for I can see that I shall never get my fill here . '
Hans wished to set off at once , XXXXX soon as his father would make a staff for him of such a kind as he wanted .
From as between by for of since that to while