That night they struggled their very hardest to keep awake , and even walked about instead of sitting down . But it was quite useless . One after another they had to give in , and for the third time the princess slipped through their fingers . When morning came , it was as usual the prince who awoke the first , and as usual , the princess being gone , he rushed to Quickeye . -LSB- Illustration : THE GUARDIANS CAUGHT NAPPING -RSB- ` Get up , get up , Quickeye , and tell me where is the princess ? ' Quickeye looked about for some time without answering . ` Oh , my lord , she is far , very far . Three hundred miles away there lies a black sea . In the middle of this sea there is a little shell , and in the middle of the shell is fixed a gold ring . That gold ring is the princess . But do not vex your soul ; we will get her . Only to-day , Long must take Broad with him . He will be wanted badly . ' So Long took Quickeye on one shoulder , and Broad on the other , and they set out . At each stride they left thirty miles behind them . When they reached the black sea , Quickeye showed them the spot where they must seek the shell . But though Long stretched down his hand as far as it would go , he could not find the shell , for it lay at the bottom of the sea . ` Wait a moment , comrades , it will be all right . I will help you , ' said Broad . Then he swelled himself out so that you would have thought the world could hardly have held him , and stooping down he drank .
He drank so much at every mouthful , that only a minute or so passed before the water had sunk enough for Long to put his XXXXX to the bottom .
Long bottom hand prince shell soul spot stride time to-day