She never thought of asking where he was leading her.
They had not gone far down the _close_, when a roaring sound fell upon her ear, growing louder and louder as they went on; till, turning a sharp corner, there they saw the smithy fire.

The door of the smithy was open, and they could see the smith at work some distance off.

The fire glowed with gathered rage at the impudence of the bellows blowing in its face.

The huge smith, with one arm flung affectionately over the shoulder of the insulting party, urged it to the contest; while he stirred up the other to increased ferocity, by poking a piece of iron into the very middle of it.

How the angry glare started out of it and stared all the murky _smiddy_ in the face, showing such gloomy holes and corners in it, and such a lot of horse-shoes hung up close to the roof, ready to be fitted for unbelievable horse-wear; and making the smith's face and bare arms glow with a dusky red, like hot metal, as if he were the gnome-king of molten iron.