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“Tell me,” said he, “why are you crying.”

And he turned his tail around.

So the poor girl told him about the pies, and the skeins, and everything.

“I’ll help you,” says the little black impet, “I’ll come to your window every morning and take the flax and bring it ready at night.”

“What do you want for that?” says she.

He said, “I’ll give you three guesses every night to guess my name, and if you don’t guess it before the end of the month you will be mine.”

Well, she thought, “I’ll guess his name for sure”. “All right,” says she, “I agree.”

The next day, her husband took her into the room, and there was the flax and her food.

“This is the flax,” says he, “and if you don’t spin it this night, you’ll lose your head.” And then he went out and locked the door.

So the girl heard a knock near the window. She stood up and opened it, and there was the little old impet.

“Where’s the flax?” says he.

“Here it is,” says she. And she gave it to him.

When the evening came, the knock came again to the window. The girl stood up and opened it, and there was the little old impet with five skeins of flax on his arm.

“Here it is,” says he, and he gave it to her.

“Now, what’s my name?” says he.

“Is that Bill?” says she.

“No, it isn’t!” says he, and he twirled his tail.

“Is that Ned?” says she.

“No, it isn’t!” says he, and he twirled his tail.

“Well, is that Mark?” says she.

“No, it isn’t!” says he, and he twirled his tail harder and flew away.

When her husband came in, there were the five skeins ready for him. “Well, I shan’t kill you tonight, my dear,” says he; “you’ll have your food and your flax in the morning,” says he, and goes away.

Every day he brought the flax and the food, and every day that little black impet came mornings and evenings. And all the day the girl was trying to guess his name in order to say it when the impet came at night. But she did not say the right name. By the end of the month, the impet began to look very angrily, and twirled his tail faster and faster.

Finally the last day came. The impet came at night with the five skeins, and said:

“Do you know my name?”

“Is that Nicodemus?” says she.

“No, it isn’t,” he says.

“Is that Sammle?” says she.

“No, it isn’t,” he says.

“Is that Methusalem?” says she.

“No, no, no!” he says.

Then he looks at her and says: “Woman, there’s only tomorrow night, and then you’ll be mine!” And he flew away.

She was very afraid. But the king came. When he sees the five skeins, he says:

“Well, my dear, if I see the skeins ready tomorrow night, I shan’t kill you. And I’ll have supper here.” So he brought supper, and another stool for him, and they sat down.

Suddenly he stops and begins to laugh.

“What’s up?“ says she.

“Oh,” says he, “I was hunting today, and I went very far in the wood. And I heard a song. So I got off my horse, and I went forward. I saw a funny little black man. He had a little spinning-wheel, and he was spinning wonderfully fast, and he was twirling his tail. And he was singing:

“Nimmy nimmy not

My name’s Tom Tit Tot.”