King ALFRED O f England once led his army to fight with another army and was beaten. So he had to run away through the woods and swamps¹（沼泽，湿地） to save his life.

One evening he came to a woodcutter's hut². He was very tired and hungry, so he begged the woodcutter's wife to give him something to eat and a place to sleep in. He was ragged³ and dirty and she did not know that he was the king. She felt so sorry for him that she told him to come in and gave hem⁴ a seat near the fire.

She was baking some cakes. She said to King Alfred, "I must go and milk the cow. Watch the cakes and do not let them burn." The king was willing⁵ to do this, but he kept thinking about his army and soon forgot all about the cakes. In a few minutes the woman came back and found the cakes burning. She was so angry that she struck the king with a stick and cried, "You lazy fellow! You want to eat, but you do not want to work."