` As sure as I live , it 's a cow ! ' exclaimed Maie . And certainly it was a cow , a fine red cow , fat and flourishing , and looking as if it had been fed all its days on spinach . It wandered peacefully up and down the shore , and never so much as even looked at the poor little tufts of grass , as if it despised such fare . Matte could not believe his eyes . But a cow she seemed , and a cow she was found to be ; and when the old woman began to milk her , every pitcher and pan , even to the baler , was soon filled with the most delicious milk . The old man troubled his head in vain as to how she came there , and sallied forth to seek for his lost net . He had not proceeded far when he found it cast up on the shore , and so full of fish that not a mesh was visible . ` It is all very fine to possess a cow , ' said Matte , as he cleaned the fish ; ` but what are we going to feed her on ? ' ` We shall find some means , ' said his wife ; and the cow found the means herself . She went out and cropped the seaweed which grew in great abundance near the shore , and always kept in good condition . Every one Prince alone excepted , thought she was a clever beast ; but Prince barked at her , for he had now got a rival . From that day the red rock overflowed with milk and junkets , and every net was filled with fish . Matte and Maie grew fat on this fine living , and daily became richer . She churned quantities of butter , and he hired two men to help him in his fishing . The sea lay before him like a big fish tank , out of which he hauled as many as he required ; and the cow continued to fend for herself . In autumn , when Matte and Maie went ashore , the cow went to sea , and in spring , when they returned to the rock , there she stood awaiting them . ` We shall require a better house , ' said Maie the following summer ; ` the old one is too small for ourselves and the men . ' ` Yes , ' said Matte . So he built a large cottage , with a real lock to the door , and a store-house for fish as well ; and he and his men caught such quantities of fish that they sent tons of salmon , herring , and cod to Russian and Sweden . '
I am quite overworked XXXXX so many folk , ' said Maie ; ' a girl to help me would not come amiss . '
From So as before for in near of to with