Project Gutenberg's Boys and Girls Bookshelf (Vol 2 of 17), by Various This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org Title: Boys and Girls Bookshelf (Vol 2 of 17) Folk-Lore, Fables, And Fairy Tales Author: Various Editor: William Byron Forbush, Herbert Treadwell Wade, Winton James Baltzell, Rossiter Johnson, and Daniel Edwin Wheeler Release Date: July 12, 2009 [EBook #29386] Language: English Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1 *** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK BOYS AND GIRLS BOOKSHELF *** Produced by Marilynda Fraser-Cunliffe, Anne Storer and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net BOYS AND GIRLS BOOKSHELF A Practical Plan of Character Building COMPLETE IN SEVENTEEN VOLUMES I Fun and Thought for Little Folk II Folk-Lore, Fables, and Fairy Tales III Famous Tales and Nature Stories IV Things to Make and Things to Do V True Stories from Every Land VI Famous Songs and Picture Stories VII Nature and Outdoor Life, Part I VIII Nature and Outdoor Life, Part II IX Earth, Sea, and Sky X Games and Handicraft XI Wonders of Invention XII Marvels of Industry XIII Every Land and its Story XIV Famous Men and Women XV Bookland—Story and Verse, Part I XVI Bookland—Story and Verse, Part II XVII Graded and Classified Index THE UNIVERSITY SOCIETY INCORPORATED New York Illustration THE SUNSET FAIRIES FROM A DRAWING BY FLORENCE MARY ANDERSON BOYS AND GIRLS BOOKSHELF A Practical Plan of Character Building Little Folks’ Section Logo Prepared Under the Supervision of THE EDITORIAL BOARD of the UNIVERSITY SOCIETY Volume II FOLK-LORE, FABLES, AND FAIRY TALES THE UNIVERSITY SOCIETY INCORPORATED New York Copyright, 1920, By THE UNIVERSITY SOCIETY INC. Copyright, 1912, 1915, By THE UNIVERSITY SOCIETY INC. Manufactured in the U. S. A. INTRODUCTION This volume is devoted to a choice collection of the standard and new fairy-tales, wonder stories, and fables. They speak so truly and convincingly for themselves that we wish to use this introductory page only to emphasize their value to young children. There are still those who find no room in their own reading, and would give none in the reading of the young, except for facts. They confuse facts and truth, and forget that there is a world of truth that is larger than the mere facts of life, being compact of imagination and vision and ideals. Dr. Hamilton Wright Mabie convinced us of this in his cogent words. “America,” he said, “has at present greater facility in producing ‘smart’ men than in producing able men; the alert, quick-witted money-maker abounds, but the men who live with ideas, who care for the principles of things, and who make life rich in resource and interest, are comparatively few. America needs poetry more than it needs industrial training, though the two ought never to be separated. The time to awaken the imagination, which is the creative faculty, is early childhood, and the most accessible material for this education is the literature which the race created in its childhood.” The value of the fairy-tale and the wonder-tale is that they tell about the magic of living. Like the old woman in Mother Goose, they “brush the cobwebs out of the sky.” They enrich, not cheapen, life. Plenty of things do cheapen life for children. Most movies do. Sunday comic supplements do. Ragtime songs do. Mere gossip does. But fairy stories enhance life. They are called “folk-tales,” that is, tales of the common folk. They were largely the dreams of the poor. They consist of fancies that have illumined the hard facts of life. They find animals, trees, flowers, and the stars friendly. They speak of victory. In them the child is master even of dragons. He can live like a prince, in disguise, or, if he be uncomely, he may hope to win Beauty after he is free of his masquerade. Wonder-stories help make good children as well as happy children. In these stories witches, wolves, and evil persons are defeated or exposed. Fairy godmothers are ministers of justice. The side that the child wishes to triumph always does triumph, and so goodness always is made to seem worth-while. Almost every fairy-tale contains a test of character or shrewdness or courage. Sharp distinctions are made, that require a child of parts to discern. And the heroes of these nursery tales are much more convincing than precepts or golden texts, for they impress upon the child not merely what he ought to do, but what nobly has been done. And the small hero-worshiper will follow where his admirations lead. Fables do much the same, and by imagining that the animals have arrived at human speech and wisdom, they help the child to think shrewdly and in a friendly way, as if in comradeship with his pets and with our brothers and sisters, the beasts of the field and forest. CONTENTS page INTRODUCTION iii THE OLD FAIRY TALES The Road to Fairy Land 2 By Cecil Cavendish The Beautiful Princess Goldenlocks 3 Prince Hyacinth and the Dear Little Princess 7 By Madame Leprince De Beaumont Cinderella 10 By Charles Perrault The Sleeping Beauty 13 Adapted from the Brothers Grimm Beauty and the Beast 15 Prince Darling 20 Rumpelstiltskin 26 Adapted from the Grimm Brothers Rapunzell, or the Fair Maid with Golden Hair 28 By the Brothers Grimm Snow-White and Rose-Red 30 By the Brothers Grimm Hansel and Grethel 34 By the Brothers Grimm STORIES BY FAVORITE AMERICAN WRITERS The Flag-Bearer 39 By Carolyn Sherwin Bailey Johnny Chuck Finds the Best Thing in the World 40 By Thornton W. Burgess Little Wee Pumpkin’s Thanksgiving 41 By Madge A. Bingham The Coming of the King 42 By Laura E. Richards The Little Pig 44 By Maud Lindsay The Travels of the Little Toy Soldier 44 By Carolyn Sherwin Bailey What Happened to Dumps 45 By Carolyn Sherwin Bailey The Wreck of the Hesperus 47 By Henry Wadsworth Longfellow Ballad of the Little Page 48 By Abbie Farwell Brown The Snow-Image 51 By Nathaniel Hawthorne The Castle of Gems 55 By Sophie May The Hen that Hatched Ducks 58 By Harriet Beecher Stowe The Ballad of Piping Will 63 By Anna Hempstead Branch Little Annie’s Dream, or the Fairy Flower 68 By Louisa M. Alcott Companions 71 By Helen Hunt Jackson Prince Little Boy 73 By S. Weir Mitchell, M.D. The Bee-Man of Orn 77 By Frank R. Stockton The Pot of Gold 82 By Mary E. Wilkins Freeman VERSES ABOUT FAIRIES The Fairy Thorn 87 By Samuel Ferguson Fairy Days 88 By William Makepeace Thackeray The Fairy Queen 89 The Sea Princess 89 Long Ago 89 Thistle-Tassel 90 By Florence Harrison Song of the Fairy 90 By William Shakespeare The Fairies 92 By William Allingham Oh, Where Do Fairies Hide Their Heads? 92 By Thomas Haynes Bayly MODERN FAIRY TALES The Elf of the Woodlands 93 Retold from Richard Hengist Horne by William Byron Forbush Princess Finola and the Dwarf 95 By Edmund Leamy The Straw Ox 100 The Little Princess of the Fearless Heart 103 By B. J. Daskam Mopsa the Fairy 110 Retold from Jean Ingelow The Line of Golden Light, or the Little Blind Sister 114 By Elizabeth Harrison A Fairy Story About a Philosopher’s Stone Which Was Lost 118 By M. Bowley The Bad Temper of the Princess 124 By Marian Burton The Flying Ship 130 Robin of the Loving Heart 133 By Emma Endicott Marean In Spring 137 A Famous Case 138 By Theodore C. Williams OLD-FASHIONED STORIES The Twelve Huntsmen 139 The Twelve Dancing Princesses 140 Edwy and the Echo 143 The Little Old Woman Who Lived in a Vinegar-Bottle 146 The Snow Queen 148 The Master-Maid 158 Cap o’ Rushes 163 Fulfilled 165 King Grisly-Beard 166 Retold from the Brothers Grimm FABLES The Fox and the Goat 172 The Two Frogs 172 The Dog in the Manger 172 The Stag at the Pool 172 The War-Horse and the Ass 172 The Frogs Who Wanted a King 172 The Ox and the Frog 173 The Heron Who Was Hard to Please 174 The Shepherd Boy and the Wolf 175 The Ass, the Cock, and the Lion 175 The Lion, the Bear, and the Fox 175 The Horse and the Stag 175 The Lion and the Boar 175 The Huntsman and the Fisherman 175 The Ass in the Lion’s Skin 176 The Hare and the Tortoise 177 The Fox and the Wood-cutter 178 The Lion and Other Beasts on a Hunt 178 The Eagle and the Arrow 178 The Mouse and the Frog 178 The Wolf and the Goat 178 The Bad Dog 178 The Kid and the Wolf 178 The Fox and the Grapes 179 The Fox and the Raven 180 The Bull and the Goat 181 The Raven and the Swan 181 The Thief and the Dog 181 The Horse and the Loaded Ass 181 The Ass With the Salt 181 The Cock and the Jewel 181 The Fox Who Had Lost His Tail 181 The Eagle and the Jackdaw 182 The Hen and the Golden Eggs 183 The Dog and the Ass 184 The North Wind and the Sun 184 The Fox and the Lion 184 The Crow and the Pitcher 184 The Ass and His Shadow 184 The Wolf and the Crane 184 The Fox and the Crane 185 The Cat and the Monkey 186 The Dancing Monkeys 187 The Hares and the Frogs 187 The Lion and the Gnat 187 The Frogs and the Bulls 187 The Lark and Her Young Ones 187 Belling the Cat 187 A Miller, His Son, and Their Ass 188 The Tortoise and the Eagle 190 The Peacock and Juno 190 The Lion, the Fox, and the Ass 190 The Father and His Sons 190 The Dove and the Ant 191 The Fox and the Cat 192 The Ants and the Grasshopper 193 FABLES FROM INDIA Adapted by Ramaswami Raju The Glow-worm and the Daw 194 The Fox and the Villagers 194 The Frog and the Snake 194 The Assembly of Animals 194 The Cock and His Three Hens 194 The Black Dog and the White Dog 195 The Elephant and the Ape 195 The Crow and the Dawn 195 The Lion and the Goat 195 The Sunling 196 The Mushroom and the Goose 196 The Fables of Pilpay the Hindu 196 The Fox and the Hen 196 The Three Fishes 196 The Falcon and the Hen 197 The King Who Grew Kind 197 MODERN FABLES The Horses’ Council 197 Adapted from John Gay The Oak and the Reed 198 Adapted from the French of La Fontaine The Advantage of Knowledge 198 Adapted from the French of La Fontaine The Torrent and the River 198 Adapted from the French of La Fontaine The Tomtit and the Bear 199 By the Brothers Grimm Why Jimmy Skunk Wears Stripes 200 By Thornton W. Burgess How Cats Came to Purr 202 By John Bennett STORIES FROM SCANDINAVIA The Greedy Cat 207 Gudbrand on the Hillside 210 Pork and Honey 212 How Reynard Outwitted Bruin 212 The Cock and the Crested Hen 213 The Old Woman and the Tramp 213 The Old Woman and the Fish 216 The Lad and the Fox 217 Adventures of Ashpot 217 Norwegian Bird-Legends 219 The Ugly Duckling 222 By Hans Christian Andersen The Wild Swans 227 By Hans Christian Andersen Taper Tom 235 The Boy Who Went to the North Wind 236 The Wonderful Iron Pot 238 The Sheep and Pig Who Set Up Housekeeping 239 Doll-in-the-Grass 241 Boots and His Brothers 242 Viggo and Beate 244 Translated by Mrs. Gudrun Thorne-Thompson STORIES FROM IRELAND The Four White Swans 251 The Mishaps of Handy Andy 258 The Greedy Shepherd 263 The Cobblers and the Cuckoo 264 The Merry Cobbler and His Coat 268 The Story of Child Charity 270 By Frances Browne The Selfish Giant 272 By Oscar Wilde STORIES FROM GREAT BRITAIN The Battle of the Birds, or the Grateful Raven and the Prince 275 Jack and the Beanstalk 277 Retold by Mary Lena Wilson Tom Thumb 280 Retold by Laura Clarke Whittington and His Cat 283 Wild Robin 287 Retold by Sophie May The Story of Merlin 291 JAPANESE AND OTHER ORIENTAL TALES The Cub’s Triumph 293 Chin-Chin Kobakama 294 The Wonderful Mallet 296 The Selfish Sparrow and the Houseless Crows 298 The Story of Zirac 298 My Lord Bag of Rice 302 The Little Hare of Oki 305 Retold by B. M. Burrell The Little Brother of Loo-lee Loo 309 By Margaret Johnson The Curious Case of Ah-Top 314 The Jackal and the Camel 316 Hashnu the Stonecutter 316 The Tiger, the Brahman, and the Jackal 318 The Story of the Willow Pattern Plate 319 Retold by M. Alston Buckley BR’ER RABBIT AND HIS NEIGHBORS Brother Fox’s Tar Baby 321 Translated by Joel Chandler Harris The Rabbit and the Peas 322 By Mrs. M. R. Allen Br'er Rabbit's Fishing 325 Br’er Possum Loves Peace 326 Br’er Fox Tackles Old Br'er Tarrypin 327 How Cousin Wildcat Served Br’er Fox 329 Plantation Stories 332 By Grace MacGowan Cooke AMERICAN INDIAN STORIES Robin Redbreast 337 The Three Wishes 338 The Joker 340 Little Moccasin’s Ride on the Thunder-Horse 342 By Colonel Guido Ilges Waukewa’s Eagle 348 By James Buckham A Huron Cinderella 352 By Howard Angus Kennedy The Fire Bringer 356 By Mary Austin Scar Face 358 Why the Baby Says “Goo” 359 Retold by Ehrma G. Filer The Old Fairy Tales The Road To Fairy Land The day is dull and dreary, And chilly winds and eerie Are sweeping through the tall oak trees that fringe the orchard lane. They send the dead leaves flying, And with a mournful crying They dash the western window-panes with slanting lines of rain. My little ’Trude and Teddy, Come quickly and make ready, Take down from off the highest shelf the book you think so grand. We’ll travel off together, To lands of golden weather, For well we know the winding road that leads to Fairy Land. A long, long road, no byway, The fairy kings’ broad highway, Sometimes we’ll see a castled hill stand up against the blue, And every brook that passes, A-whispering through the grasses, Is just a magic fountain filled with youth and health for you; And we’ll meet fair princesses With shining golden tresses, Some pacing by on palfreys white, some humbly tending sheep; And merchants homeward faring, With goods beyond comparing, And in the hills are robber bands, who dwell in caverns deep. Sometimes the road ascending, Around a mountain bending, Will lead us to the forests dark, and there among the pines Live woodmen, to whose dwelling Come wicked witches, telling Of wondrous gifts of golden wealth. There, too, are lonely mines. But busy gnomes have found them, And all night work around them, And sometimes leave a bag of gold at some poor cottage door. There waterfalls are splashing, And down the rocks are dashing, But we can hear the sprites’ clear call above the torrent’s roar. Where quiet rivers glisten We’ll sometimes stop and listen To tales a gray old hermit tells, or wandering minstrel’s song. We’ll loiter by the ferries, And pluck the wayside berries, And watch the gallant knights spur by in haste to right a wrong. Oh, little ’Trude and Teddy, For wonders, then, make ready, You’ll see a shining gateway, and, within, a palace grand, Of elfin realm the center; But pause before you enter To pity all good folk who’ve missed the road to Fairy Land. Cecil Cavendish THE BEAUTIFUL PRINCESS GOLDENLOCKS There was once a lovely Princess who had such beautiful golden hair that everyone called her Goldenlocks. She possessed everything that she wanted: she was lovely to look at, she had beautiful clothes, and great wealth, and besides all these, she was the Princess in a large kingdom. In the country next to that of Goldenlocks there ruled a rich and handsome young King. When he heard about the charming Princess he decided that he wanted her for his Queen. The question was, of course, how to make her feel that she wanted him for her husband! This young King did not go about his wooing after the manner of people that you and I know. He called one of the chief men of his court, and said: “You have heard of the lovely Princess Goldenlocks. I have determined that she shall be my bride. I want you to go and see her; tell her about me, and beg her to become my Queen.” Then the King ordered a great number of horses brought for the ambassador, and he directed his men to send more than a hundred servants also. You see, in that way he hoped to be able to impress the Princess with his wealth and importance. The King was conceited, and did not think for a moment that any Princess, no matter how beautiful, would refuse to become his wife. So he ordered his servants to make great preparations for her coming, and to refurnish the palace. He told his ambassador to be sure to bring the Princess back with him. The King waited with great impatience for the return of the ambassador, who had quite a long journey to make before he could get to the court of the Princess Goldenlocks. Then one day he appeared in the King’s court. “Where is my lovely bride?” the King asked eagerly, expecting the ambassador to say that she was in the next room, and would come in at once. “Your Majesty,” replied the ambassador, very sadly, “I could not bring the Princess to you. She sent you her thanks for your offer, but she could not accept the gifts which you sent her, and she will not marry you.” “What!” the King exclaimed indignantly, as he fingered the pearls and diamonds which he had sent Goldenlocks, and which she had sent back. “I and my jewels are not good enough for the Princess Goldenlocks!” And the King cried and cried, just as if he had not been grown up. All the people in the court were greatly disturbed because the ambassador had failed in his mission. They felt themselves injured to think that Goldenlocks would not marry their King. There was one courtier, named Charming, who felt especially bad, for he was very fond of the King. He even said one day that he was certain that if the King had only let him go to Goldenlocks, she would have consented to a royal marriage. Now, there were in that court some very jealous men, who thought that Charming was altogether too great a favorite with the King. When they heard him say that he could have won Goldenlocks for his master, they got together and agreed to tell the King that Charming was making silly boasts. “Your majesty,” one of them said, “Charming told us that if you had let him go to Goldenlocks she would never have refused to marry you. He thinks that he is so attractive that the Princess would have fallen in love with him immediately, and would have consented to go anywhere he wished with him.” “Villain!” the King exclaimed. “And I thought he was my friend.” Of course, you and I know that if the King himself had been any sort of a friend he would never have doubted the good faith of Charming just because someone else spoke evil of him. But what did the King do but order Charming put into a dungeon and given no food or water, so that the poor fellow should die of hunger! Poor Charming was bewildered when the King’s guards came to carry him off to prison. He could not imagine why the King had turned against him in this unfair way. It made him miserable enough to be in a cold, damp cell, with no food to eat, and no water to drink except that from a little stream which flowed through the cell. He had no bed—just a dirty pile of straw. But all these discomforts were as nothing to the worry he had as to why the King, whom he had always liked, had treated him so unjustly. He used to talk to himself about it. One day he said, as he had thought dozens of times before: “What have I done that my kindest friend, to whom I have always been faithful, should have turned against me and left me to die in this prison cell?” As luck would have it, the King himself was passing by the dungeon where Charming was confined when he spoke these words, and the King heard them. Perhaps the King’s better self had been telling him that he ought at least to have given Charming a chance to tell his side of the story before condemning him to die. I do not know. At any rate when he heard this voice coming out of the dungeon he insisted on going in at once to see Charming. “Your Gracious Majesty,” said Charming, “I could not believe that it was really your wish that I be confined in this cell. All my life I have had no wish but to serve you faithfully.” “Charming!” the King exclaimed, “can this be true! They told me that you have made fun of me because the Princess Goldenlocks had refused to marry me.” “I, Your Majesty, mocked you?” Charming was astonished. “That is not true. It is true, however, that I said that if you would send me to Goldenlocks I believed I could persuade her to become your wife, because I know so many good things about you which I would tell her. I could paint such a lovely picture of you that she could not possibly help falling in love with your Majesty.” Then the King knew that he had been deceived by his courtiers, and he felt that he had been very silly to believe them. He took Charming with him to the palace right away, and, after having the best supper which the cooks could prepare served for Charming, the King asked him to go and see whether it was not yet possible to persuade Goldenlocks to marry him. Charming did not set off with any such retinue of servants as had the other ambassador. The King gave him letters to the Princess, and Charming picked out one present for her—a lovely scarf embroidered with pearls. The next morning Charming started out. He had armed himself with a notebook and pencil. As he rode along he thought much about what he might say to the Princess that would make her want to marry his King. One day as he rode along he saw a deer stretching out its neck to reach the leaves of the tree above it. “What a graceful creature!” thought Charming. “I will tell Goldenlocks that the King is as graceful as a deer.” Then on the road ahead he saw a great shadow, cast by an eagle in its flight. “How swift and strong that eagle is,” he mused. “I will tell the Princess that the King is like the eagle in strength and swiftness and majesty.” Charming got off his horse and sat down by a brook to jot down his thoughts in his notebook. As he opened his book to write he saw, struggling in the grass by his side, a golden carp. The fish had jumped too high when it tried to catch a fly, and had landed on the ground. The poor creature was helpless to get back into the water, and was gasping for breath; fish, you know, cannot live long out of water. Charming felt so sorry for the carp that he could not write until he had put it carefully back into the brook. “Thank you, Charming,” said a voice from the water. Charming had never heard a fish speak before, and you can imagine that he was mightily surprised. “Some day I will repay this kindness.” For several days after this adventure Charming journeyed on. Then, one morning, he heard a great crying in the air, above him. A huge vulture was pursuing a raven. The vulture was drawing closer and closer to its prey—was almost upon it. Charming could not stand idly by and watch the helpless little raven fight against its enormous enemy. He drew his bow, and shot an arrow straight into the vulture’s heart. The raven flew down, and as it passed Charming it said gratefully: “I have you to thank that I am not now in that great vulture’s beak. I will remember your great kindness.” Not long afterward, Charming came upon a great net which men had stretched in the woods in order to catch birds. A poor owl was caught in it. “Men are cruel creatures,” thought Charming. “I don’t think it is very kind or praiseworthy to set a trap for these creatures who do no one any harm.” And Charming proceeded to cut the net and set the owl free. The owl flapped its wings noisily as it flew out of the net. “Thank you, Charming,” it said. “You know I can’t see well in the daylight, and I did not notice this trap. I shall never forget that I have you to thank for my being alive.” Charming found Goldenlocks surrounded by a splendor greater than any he had ever seen before. Pearls and diamonds were so plentiful that he began to think they must grow on trees in this kingdom! It worried him a little, for he thought he would have to be very clever to persuade Goldenlocks to leave so much luxury. With fear and trembling Charming presented himself at the door of Princess Goldenlocks’ palace on the morning after his arrival. He had dressed himself with the greatest care in a handsome suit of crimson velvet. On his head was a hat of the same brocaded material, trimmed with waving ostrich plumes, which were fastened to his hat with a clasp set with flashing diamonds. A messenger was sent at once to the Princess to announce his arrival. “Your Majesty,” the messenger said. “There is the most handsome gentleman sent from a King awaiting you below. He is dressed like a Prince, and he is the most charming person I have ever seen. In fact, his very name is Charming.” “His name sounds as if I would like him,” said the Princess, musingly. “I will see him presently. Honora, bring me my best blue satin gown—the one embroidered with pearls.” Then the Princess had a fresh wreath of pink roses made to wind in her lovely golden hair; Honora pushed tiny blue satin slippers on the feet of her mistress, and handed her an exquisite silver lace fan. Then Goldenlocks was all ready. She assumed her most princess-like manner, and entered the great throne room. You may be sure, however, that she stopped on the way, in the hall of mirrors, to see that she really deserved all the compliments which her handmaids gave her. When Goldenlocks was seated on the throne of gold and ivory, and her handmaids were posed gracefully about her, playing idly on guitars, Charming was brought in. He was as though struck dumb by the beauty which greeted his eyes. He forgot for the moment all that he had intended to say—all the long harangue prepared so carefully on the way. Then he took a deep breath, and began, just as he had intended, with: “Most lovely Princess Goldenlocks, I have come to ask your hand in marriage for the most noble King in the world.” I think his speech must have been very interesting, for Goldenlocks did not take her eyes from Charming’s face during the hour in which Charming described the glories of his King. “What, O most gracious Princess, may I take to the King as an answer to his plea?” Charming finally inquired. “Tell him,” said Goldenlocks kindly, “I believe that no King who was not worthy and charming himself could have an ambassador like you.” “But,” she added after a pause, “tell him also that Goldenlocks may not marry. I have taken a solemn vow that I will not marry until a ring which I lost in the brook a month ago is found. I valued that ring more than my whole kingdom, but it cannot be found.” Charming went away disheartened, because he did not have the slightest idea how to go about finding the Princess’s ring. Luckily for him, he had brought with him a cunning little dog named Frisk. Frisk was a light-hearted creature. He always was hopeful. So he said to Charming: “Why, master, let us not give up hope without even trying. Let’s go down to the brook to-morrow morning and see if we can’t find the Princess’s bothersome ring.” So, bright and early the next day, Charming and Frisk walked slowly along the edge of the brook which flowed near the palace, hunting for the ring. They walked for about half an hour, when a voice spoke to them out of nowhere: “Well, Charming, I have kept my promise. You once saved my life, you know. Now I have brought you the Princess Goldenlocks’ ring.” Charming looked up and down and all around in great amazement. Then, at his very feet, he saw the golden carp which he had rescued a few days before; and, best of all, in the carp’s mouth was the Princess’s gold ring. With joy in his heart Charming rushed to the palace, with Frisk dancing along at his heels. Goldenlocks was disappointed to hear that he had come back so soon. “He must have given up already,” she told her handmaids, as she made ready to receive Charming. When Charming entered the Princess’s throne room he did not say a word; he simply handed her the ring. “My ring!” the Princess called out in amazement. “You have found it!” And she seemed delighted that Charming had succeeded. “Now,” said Charming, with something of assurance, “you will make ready to return to my King with me, will you not?” “Oh, no!” the Princess cried, as if she had never thought of such a thing. “I can never marry until an awful enemy of mine is killed. There is a fierce giant who lives near here. He once asked me to marry him, and I, of course, refused. It made him very angry. He swore vengeance upon me, and I am afraid to leave my kingdom while he is alive. I think the creature—his name is Galifron—can really have no human heart at all, for he can kill two or three or four persons a day without feeling anything but joy in his crimes.” Charming shuddered at this appalling picture of his enemy-to-be. “If it be in my power so to do, Princess Goldenlocks, I will slay your enemy.” With these words Charming turned on his heels and left the palace. Frisk realized that Charming was worried about the difficult new task which Goldenlocks had given him. “Never you worry, Master,” he said cheerfully. “If you will but attack the monster I will bark and bite at his heels until he won’t know what he is doing. He will be so confused that I know you will be able to conquer him.” Charming rode up to the giant’s castle boldly enough. He knew the monster was coming toward him, because he could hear the crash of trees which broke under the huge feet. Then he heard a voice roaring like thunder: “Poof, woof, clear the way! Bing, bang, ’tis to-day! Zip, zook, I must slay! Whizz, fizz, the King’s pet, Charming! Pish, tush, isn’t it alarming!” Charming trembled, and he could feel the cold perspiration stand out on his brow. But he took a deep breath, and shouted as loud as he could (which was not nearly as loud as the giant could): “Galifron, take warning, For your day is ending. Prepare to find that Charming Is really quite alarming!” Galifron was so high above Charming that he had to hunt quite hard before he could discover who was saying these words. When he saw the little fellow standing ready to fight him he laughed, and yet he was angry. He lifted his great club and would have knocked the life out of Charming in a trice, but suddenly he could not see. He roared with pain, for a raven had plucked out his eyes. Galifron beat wildly in the air, trying to protect himself from the bird; meanwhile Charming seized his opportunity, and it was only a moment until Galifron lay at Charming’s feet. Only Galifron was so big that Charming had to stand on top of him in order to make sure that he was really dead. To the Princess, Charming rode back as fast as his horse could carry him. In front of him, on his saddle, he carried the giant’s head. The Princess was taking her afternoon nap, when she was awakened by loud shouts of “Hail, Charming! Hail, conqueror of hideous Galifron!” Goldenlocks could scarcely believe her ears. She rushed to the front of the palace, and sure enough, there she was greeted by Charming, bearing her enemy’s head. It seemed as if such a feat of daring should have been enough to satisfy even Goldenlocks. “Now, fair Princess, will you not return with me to my King?” “Charming, I cannot,” said the Princess; and to Charming her words sounded like the stroke of doom. “Before I marry I must have some water from the spring of eternal youth. This spring is at the bottom of Gloomy Cavern—a great cave not far from here, which is guarded by two fierce dragons. If I have a flask from that spring I shall always remain young and beautiful. I should never dare to marry without its protection.” “Beautiful Goldenlocks, you could never be anything but young and beautiful; but I will none the less try to fulfill your mission.” Even though Charming had just conquered a giant he did not feel very comfortable at the idea of having to find his way past two dragons into a dark and gloomy cavern. He approached the cavern with much determination, but with many misgivings. When Frisk saw the black smoke belching out of the rocks at the entrance of the cavern the dog shook all over with fear; and I have been told that when Charming saw Frisk run off and try to hide, he himself would have been very glad if he could have run away, too. But being a man, he, of course, had to be brave; so he set his teeth and approached the cave. Then he saw the first dragon—a huge, slimy creature, all yellow and green, with great red claws, and a tail which seemed to Charming to be nearly a mile long. Charming turned back and called to Frisk. “Dear Frisk,” he said sadly, “I know I shall never see the light of day again if I enter this cavern. Wait here for me until nightfall; then, if I have not come back, go and tell the Princess that I have lost my life trying to win for her eternal youth and beauty. Then tell the King that I did my best for him, but failed.” Charming turned again to attack the dragon. “Wait a minute, Charming!” Charming looked around to see who spoke these words. “It’s I, Charming, the owl you rescued from the net the fowlers set for us poor birds. Let me take Goldenlocks’ flask, and I will fetch the water for you. I know every turn of that dark cavern, and the dragons will not notice whether I pass them or not.” And the owl took the flask out of Charming’s hand, fluttered into the cavern, and disappeared. “Here you are, Charming. You see I did not forget your kindness to me.” With these words the owl handed to Charming the flask full of water from the magic spring. Charming was so happy that he could hardly find words to thank the owl. He rode straight to Goldenlocks with the wonderful liquid. “Beautiful Goldenlocks, here is the water you asked me to get for you. My mind cannot conceive of anything, however, which would add to your beauty. I do know, however, something which would add to your happiness. I have found your ring, slain your enemy, brought you the secret of youth and health; now will you not come with me to my King, who loves you so much that he will make you the happiest woman on earth?” “Yes,” said Goldenlocks, softly. Her answer really surprised Charming very much, because he had come to think that she would never cease to find new tasks for him to perform. She gave orders at once for the necessary preparations for the journey, and in a few days she and Charming and little Frisk set out for home, with a great retinue of servants, of course. The King greeted them with the greatest enthusiasm. He proclaimed a holiday throughout his kingdom, and every one feasted and danced. But, strange to say, the Princess Goldenlocks found herself daily thinking more and more, not of the King, but of Charming. One day Charming found himself once more in prison, bound hand and foot. The King thought this would be a good way to rid himself of his rival. Goldenlocks used to beg the King to set Charming free, but that only made things worse. Little Frisk was Charming’s only comfort; he used to take him all the court news. “Maybe,” said the King to himself one day, “the reason Goldenlocks prefers Charming to me is that I am not beautiful enough to suit her. I believe I will try some of that water of eternal beauty and health that she is always talking about.” Without a word to anyone the King stole into the Queen’s room and hunted about until he found the flask of water. He bathed his face in the water and stood in front of a mirror to watch the change. A few hours later the Queen found him sound asleep. She could not awaken him, and they sent for the court physician; he could not rouse the King. “The King,” the physician told the Queen, “is dead.” Now this is what had happened. One day when the Princess’s maid Honora was cleaning her room she knocked over the flask which contained the precious water, and broke it in a thousand pieces. Honora was terribly frightened. She would not have let the Princess know what had occurred for anything. She remembered seeing a flask in the King’s room just like the one she had broken, and she put it in the very spot from which she had knocked the other. Unluckily for the King, the maid took a flask which contained a deadly water which was used to “do away” with criminals. “Woof, woof!” said Frisk in the Queen’s ear. “Please have pity on my poor master, good Queen! Remember all he did for you, and how he is suffering for your sake now!” Goldenlocks at once left the room where the King’s body lay in state and went to the tower where Charming was confined. She opened his cell and set him free. She put a golden crown on his head, and removed the chains from his wrists and ankles. “King Charming!” said the Queen, “now you and I shall be married, and—live happily ever after!” PRINCE HYACINTH AND THE DEAR LITTLE PRINCESS BY MADAME LEPRINCE DE BEAUMONT Once upon a time there lived a King who was deeply in love with a Princess, but she could not marry anyone, because she was under an enchantment. So the King set out to seek a fairy, and asked what he could do to win the Princess’s love. The Fairy said to him: “You know that the Princess has a great cat which she is very fond of. Whoever is clever enough to tread on that cat’s tail is the man she is destined to marry.” The King said to himself that this would not be very difficult; and he left the Fairy, determined to grind the cat’s tail to powder rather than not tread on it at all. You may imagine that it was not long before he went to see the Princess; and puss, as usual, marched in before him, arching its back. The King took a long step, and quite thought he had the tail under his foot, but the cat turned round so sharply that he trod only on air. And so it went on for eight days, till the King began to think that this fatal tail must be full of quick-silver—it was never still for a moment. At last, however, he was lucky enough to come upon puss fast asleep and with its tail conveniently spread out. So the King, without losing a moment, set his foot upon it heavily. With one terrific yell the cat sprang up and instantly changed into a tall man, who, fixing his angry eyes upon the King, said: “You shall marry the Princess because you have been able to break the enchantment, but I will have my revenge. You shall have a son, who will never be happy until he finds out that his nose is too long, and if you ever tell anyone what I have just said to you, you shall vanish away instantly, and no one shall ever see you or hear of you again.” Though the King was horribly afraid of the enchanter, he could not help laughing at this threat. “If my son has such a long nose as that,” he said to himself, “he must always see it or feel it; at least, if he is not blind or without hands.” But, as the enchanter had vanished, he did not waste any more time in thinking, but went to seek the Princess, who very soon consented to marry him. But after all, they had not been married very long when the King died, and the Queen had nothing left to care for but her little son, who was called Hyacinth. The little Prince had large blue eyes, the prettiest eyes in the world, and a sweet little mouth, but, alas! his nose was so enormous that it covered half his face. The Queen was inconsolable when she saw this great nose, but her ladies assured her that it was not really as large as it looked; that it was a Roman nose, and you had only to open any history book to see that every hero has a large nose. The Queen, who was devoted to her baby, was pleased with what they told her, and when she looked at Hyacinth again, his nose certainly did not seem to her quite so large. The Prince was brought up with great care; and, as soon as he could speak, they told him all sorts of dreadful stories about people who had short noses. No one was allowed to come near him whose nose did not more or less resemble his own, and the courtiers, to get into favor with the Queen, took to pulling their babies’ noses several times every day to make them grow long. But, do what they would, they were nothing by comparison with the Prince’s. When he grew older he learned history; and whenever any great prince or beautiful princess was spoken of, his teachers took care to tell him that they had long noses. His room was hung with pictures, all of people with very large noses; and the Prince grew up so convinced that a long nose was a great beauty that he would not on any account have had his own a single inch shorter! When his twentieth birthday was past, the Queen thought it was time that he should be married, so she commanded that the portraits of several princesses should be brought for him to see, and among the others was a picture of the Dear Little Princess! Now, she was the daughter of a great King, and would some day possess several kingdoms herself; but Prince Hyacinth had not a thought to spare for anything of that sort, he was so much struck with her beauty. The Princess, whom he thought quite charming, had, however, a little saucy nose, which, in her face, was the prettiest thing possible, but it was a cause of great embarrassment to the courtiers, who had got into such a habit of laughing at little noses that they sometimes found themselves laughing at hers before they had time to think; but this did not do at all before the Prince, who quite failed to see the joke, and actually banished two of his courtiers who had dared to mention disrespectfully the Dear Little Princess’s tiny nose! The others, taking warning from this, learned to think twice before they spoke, and one even went so far as to tell the Prince that, though it was quite true that no man could be worth anything unless he had a long nose, still, a woman’s beauty was a different thing, and he knew a learned man who understood Greek and had read in some old manuscripts that the beautiful Cleopatra herself had a “tip-tilted” nose! The Prince made him a splendid present as a reward for this good news, and at once sent ambassadors to ask the Dear Little Princess in marriage. The King, her father, gave his consent; and Prince Hyacinth, who, in his anxiety to see the Princess, had gone three leagues to meet her, was just advancing to kiss her hand when, to the horror of all who stood by, the enchanter appeared as suddenly as a flash of lightning, and, snatching up the Dear Little Princess, whirled her away out of their sight! The Prince was left quite inconsolable, and declared that nothing should induce him to go back to his kingdom until he had found her again, and refusing to allow any of his courtiers to follow him, he mounted his horse and rode sadly away, letting the animal choose its own path. So it happened that he came presently to a great plain, across which he rode all day long without seeing a single house, and horse and rider were terribly hungry, when, as the night fell, the Prince caught sight of a light. He rode up to it, and saw a little old woman, who appeared to be at least a hundred years old. She put on her spectacles to look at Prince Hyacinth, but it was quite a long time before she could fix them securely, because her nose was so very short. The Prince and the Fairy (for that was who she was) had no sooner looked at one another than they went into fits of laughter, and cried at the same moment, “Oh, what a funny nose!” “Not so funny as your own,” said Prince Hyacinth to the Fairy; “but, madam, I beg you to leave the consideration of our noses—such as they are—and to be good enough to give me something to eat, for I am starving, and so is my poor horse.” “With all my heart!” said the Fairy. “Though your nose is so ridiculous, you are, nevertheless, the son of my best friend. I loved your father as if he had been my brother. Now he had a very handsome nose!” “And pray, what does mine lack?” said the Prince. “Oh! it doesn’t lack anything,” replied the Fairy. “On the contrary quite, there is only too much of it. But never mind, one may be a very worthy man though his nose is too long. I was telling you that I was your father’s friend; he often came to see me in the old times, and you must know that I was very pretty in those days; at least, he used to say so. I should like to tell you of a conversation we had the last time I ever saw him.” “Indeed,” said the Prince, “when I have supped it will give me the greatest pleasure to hear it; but consider, madam, I beg of you, that I have had nothing to eat to-day.” “The poor boy is right,” said the Fairy; “I was forgetting. Come in, then, and I will give you some supper, and while you are eating I can tell you my story in a very few words—for I don’t like endless tales myself. Too long a tongue is worse than too long a nose, and I remember when I was young that I was so much admired for not being a great chatterer. They used to tell the Queen, my mother, that it was so. For though you see what I am now, I was the daughter of a great king. My father—” “Your father, I dare say, got something to eat when he was hungry!” interrupted the Prince. “Oh! certainly,” answered the Fairy, “and you also shall have supper directly. I only just wanted to tell you—” “But I really cannot listen to anything until I have had something to eat,” cried the Prince, who was getting quite angry; but then, remembering that he had better be polite as he much needed the Fairy’s help, he added: “I know that in the pleasure of listening to you I should quite forget my own hunger; but my horse, who cannot hear you, must really be fed!” The Fairy was very much flattered by this compliment, and said, calling to her servants: “You shall not wait another minute, you are so polite, and in spite of the enormous size of your nose you are really very agreeable.” “Plague take the old lady! How she does go on about my nose!” said the Prince to himself. “One would almost think that mine had taken all the extra length that hers lacks! If I were not so hungry I would soon have done with this chatterpie who thinks she talks very little! How stupid people are not to see their own faults! That comes of being a princess; she has been spoilt by flatterers, who have made her believe that she is quite a moderate talker!” Meanwhile the servants were putting the supper on the table, and the Prince was much amused to hear the Fairy, who asked them a thousand questions simply for the pleasure of hearing herself speak; especially he noticed one maid who, no matter what was being said, always contrived to praise her mistress’s wisdom. “Well!” he thought, as he ate his supper. “I’m very glad I came here. This just shows me how sensible I have been in never listening to flatterers. People of that sort praise us to our faces without shame, and hide our faults or change them into virtues. For my part I never will be taken in by them. I know my own defects, I hope.” Poor Prince Hyacinth! He really believed what he said, and hadn’t an idea that the people who had praised his nose were laughing at him, just as the Fairy’s maid was laughing at her; for the Prince had seen her laugh slyly when she could do so without the Fairy’s noticing her. However, he said nothing, and presently, when his hunger began to be appeased, the Fairy said: “My dear Prince, might I beg you to move a little more that way, for your nose casts such a shadow that I really cannot see what I have on my plate. Ah! thanks. Now let us speak of your father. When I went to his Court he was only a little boy, but that is forty years ago, and I have been in this desolate place ever since. Tell me what goes on nowadays; are the ladies as fond of amusement as ever? In my time one saw them at parties, theaters, balls, and promenades every day. Dear me! What a long nose you have! I cannot get used to it!” “Really, madam,” said the Prince, “I wish you would leave off mentioning my nose. It cannot matter to you what it is like. I am quite satisfied with it, and have no wish to have it shorter. One must take what is given one.” “Now you are angry with me, my poor Hyacinth,” said the Fairy, “and I assure you that I didn’t mean to vex you; on the contrary, I wished to do you a service. However, though I really cannot help your nose being a shock to me, I will try not to say anything about it. I will even try to think that you have an ordinary nose. To tell the truth, it would make three reasonable ones.” The Prince, who was no longer hungry, grew so impatient at the Fairy’s continual remarks about his nose that at last he threw himself upon his horse and rode hastily away. But wherever he came in his journey he thought the people were mad, for they all talked of his nose, and yet he could not bring himself to admit that it was too long, he had been so used all his life to hear it called handsome.