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+The Project Gutenberg EBook of Laboulaye's Fairy Book, 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: Laboulaye's Fairy Book
+
+Author: Various
+
+Commentator: Kate Douglas Wiggin
+
+Illustrator: Edward G. McCandlish
+
+Translator: Mary L. Booth
+
+Release Date: August 21, 2008 [EBook #26386]
+
+Language: English
+
+Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1
+
+*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK LABOULAYE'S FAIRY BOOK ***
+
+
+
+
+Produced by Sankar Viswanathan, David Edwards, and the
+Online Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net
+(This file was produced from images generously made
+available by The Internet Archive)
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+    [Illustration: HE FLUNG HUGE MASSES OF ROCK AFTER THE VESSEL]
+
+
+                       _Laboulaye's_ FAIRY BOOK
+
+
+                           _Illustrated by_
+
+
+                              Edward G.
+                             McCandlish
+
+                           _Translated by_
+
+                            Mary L. Booth
+
+
+                          _Introduction by_
+
+                         Kate Douglas Wiggin
+
+
+
+
+
+
+         HARPER & BROTHERS, PUBLISHERS, NEW YORK _and_ LONDON
+
+
+
+
+                        LABOULAYE'S FAIRY BOOK
+
+             Copyright, 1866, 1920, by Harper & Brothers
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+
+
+
+CONTENTS
+
+
+                                      PAGE
+
+INTRODUCTION                           ix
+
+YVON AND FINETTE                        3
+
+THE CASTLE OF LIFE                     46
+
+DESTINY                                79
+
+THE TWELVE MONTHS                      86
+
+SWANDA, THE PIPER                      96
+
+THE GOLD BREAD                        102
+
+THE STORY OF THE NOSES                109
+
+THE THREE CITRONS                     115
+
+THE STORY OF COQUERICO                137
+
+KING BIZARRE AND PRINCE CHARMING      145
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+
+
+
+ILLUSTRATIONS
+
+
+HE FLUNG HUGE MASSES OF ROCK AFTER THE VESSEL              _Frontispiece_
+
+HE WAS SOON SNORING SO LOUDLY THAT IT SEEMED LIKE THUNDER
+SHAKING THE MOUNTAINS                                      _Facing p._ 16
+
+SHE FOUND HERSELF IN FRONT OF A WRETCHED HUT AT THE DOOR OF
+WHICH STOOD AN OLD WOMAN, OF WHOM SHE BEGGED SHELTER FOR
+THE NIGHT                                                      "       26
+
+AT NIGHT THE GRANDMOTHER ALWAYS GAVE HIM GOOD COUNSELS
+FOR HIM TO FOLLOW WHEN SHE WAS GONE                            "       48
+
+PRETTY DOBRUNKA WAS OBLIGED TO DO ALL THE WORK OF THE
+HOUSE                                                          "       88
+
+TURNED OUT BY HER MOTHER, DOBRUNKA WENT UNHAPPILY INTO
+THE FOREST                                                     "       92
+
+HE BEGAN TO PLAY, AND NEVER HAD HIS MUSIC PRODUCED SUCH AN
+EFFECT                                                         "      100
+
+AS THE MOTHER GAZED LOVINGLY AT HER BEAUTIFUL DAUGHTER,
+MARIENKA LAUGHED IN HER SLEEP                                  "      106
+
+HE RAN TO THE TREE AND SHOOK IT WITH ALL HIS MIGHT, WHEN,
+BEHOLD! A YOUNG GIRL FELL FROM THE BRANCHES                    "      112
+
+HE INSTANTLY GAVE HER THE WATER, WHEN, LO! A BEAUTIFUL,
+SLENDER YOUNG GIRL STOOD BEFORE HIM                            "      126
+
+PAZZA, THOUGH SHE LOVED THE PRINCE, WAS A VERY STERN           "      154
+SCHOOLMISTRESS
+
+THE MOST RENOWNED PHYSICIANS OF THE FACULTY MET ONE EVENING
+IN CONSULTATION AT THE PALACE                                  "      178
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+
+
+
+INTRODUCTION
+
+By KATE DOUGLAS WIGGIN
+
+
+There was once a green book, deliciously thick, with gilt-edged pages
+and the name of the author in gilt script on the front cover.
+
+Like an antique posy ring, it was a "box of jewels, shop of rarities";
+it was a veritable Pandora's box, and if you laid warm, childish hands
+upon it and held it pressed close to your ear, you could hear, as
+Pandora did, soft rustlings, murmurings, flutterings, and whisperings
+from the fairy folk within. For this was a fairy book--Edouard
+Laboulaye's "Tales," and its heroes and heroines became first the
+daily companions, and then the lifetime possession, of the two little
+girls to whom it belonged.
+
+From the New England village where it was originally given to them, it
+traveled to the far West and its tales were told to countless
+immigrant children of San Francisco, whose great eyes opened wider
+still as they listened, breathless, to stories beloved by their
+ancestors. In later years the green volume journeyed by clumsy,
+rattling stage and rawboned nags to Mexico, and the extraordinary
+adventures of "Yvon and Finette," "Carlino," and "Graceful" were
+repeated in freshly learned Spanish, to many a group of brown-cheeked
+little people on the hillsides of Sonora.
+
+And now, long, long afterward, there stands on a shelf above my desk
+the very selfsame worn green volume, read and re-read a hundred times,
+but so tenderly and respectfully that it has kept all its pages and
+both its covers; and on this desk itself are the proofs of a new
+edition with clear, beautiful print and gay pictures by Edward
+McCandlish!
+
+To be asked to write an introduction to this particular book seems
+insufferable patronage; yet one would do it for love of Laboulaye, or
+for the sake of one's own "little past," or to draw one more young
+reader into the charmed circle that will welcome these pages.
+
+The two children who adored Laboulaye's "Tales" possessed many another
+fairy book, so why did this especial volume hold a niche apart in the
+gallery of their hearts?
+
+Partly, perhaps, because of the Gallic wit and vivacity with which the
+tales are told, for children are never too young to appreciate the
+charms of style.
+
+You remember, possibly, the French chef who, being imprisoned with no
+materials save the tools of his trade, and commanded on pain of death
+to produce an omelette, proudly emerged at last, bearing a savory dish
+made out of the sole of his shoe?
+
+Of even such stuff Laboulaye could have concocted a delectable tale;
+but with Brittany, Bohemia, Italy, Dalmatia, Hungary, and Spain for
+his storehouses, one has only to taste to know how finely flavored are
+the dishes he sets forth.
+
+In his preface to the first American edition Laboulaye writes a letter
+to Mlle. Gabrielle Laboulaye, aged two! In it he says: "When you throw
+away this book with your doll, do not be too severe with your old
+grandfather for wasting his time on such trifles as fairy stories.
+Experience will teach you that the truest and sweetest things in life
+are not those which we see, but of which we dream." Happy the children
+who have this philosophy set before them early in life.
+
+Like the fairy tales Robert Louis Stevenson remembered, these of
+Laboulaye's have "the golden smell of broom and the shade of pine,"
+and they will come back to the child whenever the Wind of Memory
+blows.
+
+In common with the stories of Charles Perrault, literary parent of the
+fairy tale, Laboulaye's charming narratives have a certain unique
+quality due to the fact that they were intended and collected for the
+author's own children, were told to them round the fireside in the
+evening, and so received at first hand the comment and suggestion of a
+bevy of competent, if somewhat youthful, critics.
+
+It is said that there is a great scarcity of fairy folk in modern
+France; and that, terrified by the thunders of the Revolution, they
+left their unhappy country in a body during its stormy years, first
+assembling in grateful concourse around the tomb of Perrault, upon
+whose memory they conferred the boon of immortality.
+
+If this story is true--and the last reported act of the fairies on
+leaving France makes it appear so--then we may be sure that a few of
+the more hardy and adventurous fays skipped back again across the
+border and hid themselves in Laboulaye's box of jewels, where they
+give to each gem an even brighter sheen and a more magical luster.
+
+"QUILLCOTE," HOLLIS, MAINE.
+
+_August, 1920._
+
+
+
+
+LABOULAYE'S FAIRY BOOK
+
+
+
+
+On the Kerver
+
+YVON _and_ FINETTE
+
+_A Tale of Brittany_
+
+[Illustration: ]
+
+
+I
+
+Once upon a time there lived in Brittany a noble lord, who was called
+the Baron Kerver. His manor-house was the most beautiful in the
+province. It was a great Gothic castle, with a groined roof and walls,
+covered with carving, that looked at a distance like a vine climbing
+over an arbor. On the first floor six stained-glass balcony windows
+looked out on each side toward the rising and the setting sun. In the
+morning, when the baron, mounted on his dun mare, went forth into the
+forest, followed by his tall greyhounds, he saw at each window one of
+his daughters, with prayer-book in hand, praying for the house of
+Kerver, and who, with their fair curls, blue eyes, and clasped hands,
+might have been taken for six Madonnas in an azure niche. At evening,
+when the sun declined and the baron returned homeward, after riding
+round his domains, he perceived from afar, in the windows looking
+toward the west, six sons, with dark locks and eagle gaze, the hope
+and pride of the family, that might have been taken for six sculptured
+knights at the portal of a church. For ten leagues round, all who
+wished to quote a happy father and a powerful lord named the Baron
+Kerver.
+
+The castle had but twelve windows, and the baron had thirteen
+children. The last, the one that had no place, was a handsome boy of
+sixteen, by the name of Yvon. As usual, he was the best beloved. In
+the morning, at his departure, and at evening, on his return, the
+baron always found Yvon waiting on the threshold to embrace him. With
+his hair falling to his waist, his graceful figure, his wilful air,
+and his bold bearing, Yvon was beloved by all the Bretons. At twelve
+years of age he had bravely attacked and killed a wolf with an ax,
+which had won him the name of _Fearless_. He deserved the title, for
+never was there a bolder heart.
+
+One day, when the baron had stayed at home, and was amusing himself by
+breaking a lance with his squire, Yvon entered the armory in a
+traveling dress, and, bending one knee to the ground, "My lord and
+father," said he to the baron, "I come to ask your blessing. The house
+of Kerver is rich in knights, and has no need of a child; it is time
+for me to go to seek my fortune. I wish to go to distant countries to
+try my strength and to make myself a name."
+
+"You are right, Fearless," replied the baron, more moved than he
+wished to appear. "I will not keep you back; I have no right to do so;
+but you are very young, my child; perhaps it would be better for you
+to stay another year with us."
+
+"I am sixteen, my father; at that age you had already fought one of
+the proudest lords of the country. I have not forgotten that our arms
+are a unicorn ripping up a lion, and our motto. Onward! I do not wish
+the Kervers to blush for their last child."
+
+Yvon received his father's blessing, shook hands with his brothers,
+embraced his sisters, bid adieu to all the weeping vassals, and set
+out with a light heart.
+
+Nothing stopped him on his way. A river appeared, he swam it; a
+mountain, he climbed it; a forest, he made his way through it with the
+sun for a guide. "_On--the Kerver!_" he cried, whenever he met with an
+obstacle, and went straight forward in spite of everything.
+
+For three years he had been roaming over the world in search of
+adventures, sometimes conquering, sometimes conquered, always bold and
+gay, when he received an offer to go to fight the heathen of Norway.
+To kill unbelievers and to conquer a kingdom was a double pleasure.
+Yvon enlisted twelve brave comrades, freighted a ship, and hoisted
+from the mainmast a blue standard with the unicorn and motto of the
+Kervers.
+
+The sea was calm, the wind fair, and the night serene. Yvon,
+stretched on the deck, watched the stars, and sought the one which
+cast its trembling light on his father's castle. All at once the
+vessel struck upon a rock; a terrible crash was heard; the sails fell
+like tinder; and an enormous wave burst over the deck and swept away
+everything upon it.
+
+"_On--the Kerver!_" cried Yvon, as soon as his head appeared above the
+water, and he began to swim as tranquilly as if he had been bathing in
+the lake of the old castle. Happily the moon was rising. Yvon saw, at
+a little distance, a black speck among the silvery waves--it was land.
+He approached it, not without difficulty, and finally succeeded in
+gaining a foothold. Dripping wet, exhausted with fatigue, and out of
+breath, he dragged himself on the sand, then, without more anxiety,
+said his prayers and went to sleep.
+
+
+II
+
+In the morning, on awaking, Yvon tried to discover in what country he
+had been cast. He saw in the distance a house as large as a church,
+with windows fifty feet in height. He walked a whole day before
+reaching it, and at last found himself in front of an immense door,
+with a knocker so heavy that it was impossible for a man to lift it.
+
+Yvon took a great stone and began to knock. "Come in," cried a voice
+that sounded like the roar of a bull. At the same instant the door
+opened, and the little Breton found himself in the presence of a
+giant not less than forty feet in height.
+
+"What is your name, and what do you want here?" said the giant, taking
+up Yvon between his thumb and finger and lifting him from the ground
+so as to see him better.
+
+"My name is Fearless, and I am seeking my fortune," answered Yvon,
+looking at the monster with an air of defiance.
+
+"Well, brave Fearless, your fortune is made," said the giant, in a
+mocking tone. "I am in need of a servant and I will give you the
+place. You can go to work directly. This is the time for leading my
+sheep to the pasture; you may clean the stable while I am gone. I
+shall give you nothing else to do," added he, bursting into a laugh.
+"You see that I am a good master. Do your task, and, above all things,
+don't prowl about the house, or it will cost you your life."
+
+"Certainly I have a good master; the work is not hard," thought Yvon,
+when the giant was gone. "I have plenty of time to sweep the stable.
+What shall I do meanwhile to amuse myself? Shall I look about the
+house? Since I am forbidden to do so, it must be because there is
+something to see."
+
+He entered the first room, and saw a large fireplace in which a great
+pot was hanging, suspended from a hook. The pot was boiling, but there
+was no fire on the hearth.
+
+"What does this mean?" thought Yvon; "there is some mystery here." He
+cut off a lock of his hair, dipped it into the pot, and took it out
+all coated with copper.
+
+"Oh, oh!" cried he, "this is a new kind of soup; anybody that swallows
+it must have an iron-clad stomach."
+
+He went into the next room; there also a pot was suspended from a
+hook, and boiling without fire. Yvon dipped a lock of hair into it,
+and took it out all coated with silver.
+
+"The broth is not so rich as this in the Kerver kitchen," thought he,
+"but it may have a better taste."
+
+Upon this, he entered the third room. There also a pot was suspended
+from a hook, and boiling without fire. Yvon dipped a lock of hair into
+it, and took it out all coated with gold. It shone so brightly that it
+might have been mistaken for a sunbeam.
+
+"Good!" cried he. "In our country the old women have a saying, 'Everything
+gets worse and worse'; here it is just the contrary--everything gets
+better and better. What shall I find in the fourth room, I wonder--diamond
+soup?"
+
+He pushed open the door and saw something rarer than precious stones.
+This was a young woman of such marvelous beauty that Yvon, dazzled,
+fell on his knees at the sight.
+
+"Unfortunate youth!" cried she, in a trembling voice, "what are you
+doing here?"
+
+"I belong to the house," answered Yvon; "the giant took me into his
+service this morning."
+
+"His service!" repeated the young girl. "May Heaven preserve you from
+it!"
+
+"Why so?" said Yvon. "I have a good master; the work is not hard. The
+stable once swept, my task is finished."
+
+"Yes, and how will you set to work to sweep it?" said the lady. "If
+you sweep it in the usual way, for every forkful of dung that you
+throw out of the door, ten will come in at the window. But I will tell
+you what to do. Turn the fork and sweep with the handle, and the dung
+will instantly fly out of itself."
+
+"I will obey," said Yvon; upon which he sat down by the young girl and
+began to talk with her. She was the daughter of a fairy, whom the
+wretched giant had made his slave. Friendship soon springs up between
+companions in misfortune. Before the end of the day Finette (for that
+was the lady's name) and Yvon had already promised to belong to each
+other if they could escape from their abominable master. The
+difficulty was to find the means.
+
+Time passes quickly in this kind of talk. Evening was approaching when
+Finette sent away her new friend, advising him to sweep the stable
+before the giant came home.
+
+Yvon took down the fork and attempted to use it as he had seen it
+done at his father's castle. He soon had enough of it. In less than a
+second there was so much dung in the stable that the poor boy knew not
+which way to turn. He did as Finette had bid him; he turned the fork
+and swept with the handle, when, behold! in the twinkling of an eye
+the stable was as clean as if no cattle had ever entered it.
+
+The task finished, Yvon seated himself on a bench before the door of
+the house. As soon as he saw the giant coming he lolled back in his
+seat, crossed his legs, and began to sing one of his native airs.
+
+"Have you cleaned the stable?" asked the giant, with a frown.
+
+"Everything is ready, master," answered Yvon, without troubling
+himself to move.
+
+"I am going to see for myself," howled the giant. He entered the
+stable grumbling, found everything in order, and came out furious.
+
+"You have seen my Finette," cried he; "this trick did not come from
+your own head."
+
+"What is myfinette?" asked Yvon, opening his mouth and shutting his
+eyes. "Is it one of the animals that you have in this country? Show it
+to me, master."
+
+"Hold your tongue, fool," replied the giant; "you will see her sooner
+than you will want to."
+
+The next morning the giant gathered his sheep together to lead them
+to the pasture, but before setting out he ordered Yvon to go in the
+course of the day in search of his horse, which was turned out to
+graze on the mountain. "After that," said he, bursting into a laugh,
+"you can rest all day long. You see that I am a good master. Do your
+task; and, above all things, don't prowl about the house or I will cut
+off your head."
+
+Yvon winked his eye as the giant left. "Yes, you are a good master,"
+said he, between his teeth. "I understand your tricks; but, in spite
+of your threats, I shall go into the house and talk with your Finette.
+It remains to be seen whether she will not be more mine than yours."
+
+He ran to the young girl's room. "Hurrah!" cried he; "I have nothing
+to do all day but to go to the mountain after a horse."
+
+"Very well," said Finette. "How will you set to work to ride him?"
+
+"A fine question," returned Yvon. "As if it was a difficult thing to
+ride a horse! I fancy that I have ridden worse ones than this."
+
+"It is not so easy as you think," replied Finette; "but I will tell
+you what to do. Take the bit that hangs behind the stable door, and,
+when the animal rushes toward you breathing fire and smoke from his
+nostrils, force it straight between his teeth; he will instantly
+become as gentle as a lamb, and you can do what you please with him."
+
+"I will obey," said Yvon; upon which he sat down by the side of
+Finette and began to talk with her. They talked of everything; but,
+however far their fancy strayed, they always came back to the point
+that they were promised to each other and that they must escape from
+the giant. Time passes quickly in this kind of talk. The evening drew
+nigh. Yvon had forgotten the horse and the mountain, and Finette was
+obliged to send him away, advising him to bring back the animal before
+his master's arrival.
+
+Yvon took down the bit that was hidden behind the stable door and
+hastened to the mountain, when, lo! a horse almost as large as an
+elephant rushed toward him at full gallop, breathing fire and smoke
+from his nostrils. Yvon firmly awaited the huge animal, and, the
+moment he opened his enormous jaws, thrust between them the bit; when,
+lo! the horse instantly became as gentle as a lamb. Yvon made him
+kneel down, sprang on his back, and tranquilly returned home.
+
+His task finished, Yvon seated himself on the bench before the door of
+the house. As soon as he saw the giant coming, he lolled back in his
+seat, crossed his legs, and began to sing one of his native airs.
+
+"Have you brought back the horse?" asked the giant, with a frown.
+
+"Yes, master," answered Yvon, without taking the trouble to move. "He
+is a fine animal and does you credit. He is gentle, well trained, and
+as quiet as a lamb. He is feeding yonder in the stable."
+
+"I am going to see for myself," howled the giant. He entered the
+stable, grumbling, found everything in order, and came out furious.
+
+"You have seen my Finette," he said; "this trick did not come from
+your own head."
+
+"Oh, master," returned Yvon, opening his mouth and shutting his eyes,
+"it is the same story over again. What is this myfinette? Once for
+all, show me this monster."
+
+"Hold your tongue, fool," returned the giant; "you will see her sooner
+than you will want to."
+
+The third day at dawn the giant gathered his sheep together to lead
+them to the pasture; but, before setting out, he said to Yvon:
+
+"To-day you must go to the bottomless pit to collect my rent. After
+that," continued he, bursting into a laugh, "you may rest all day
+long. You see that I am a good master."
+
+"A good master, so be it," murmured Yvon, "but the task is none the
+less hard. I will go and see my Finette, as the giant says; I have
+great need of her help to get through to-day's business."
+
+When Finette had learned what was the task of the day, "Well," said
+she, "how will you go to work to do it?"
+
+"I don't know," said Yvon, sadly; "I have never been to the bottomless
+pit, and, even if I knew the way there, I should not know what to ask
+for. Tell me what to do."
+
+"Do you see that great rock yonder?" said Finette; "that is one of the
+gates of the bottomless pit. Take this stick, knock three times on the
+stone, and a demon will come out all streaming with flames, who will
+ask you how much you want. Take care to answer, 'No more than I can
+carry.'"
+
+"I will obey," said Yvon; upon which he took a seat by the side of
+Finette and began to talk with her. He would have been there till this
+time if the young girl had not sent him to the great rock, when the
+evening drew nigh, to execute the giant's commands.
+
+On reaching the spot pointed out to him, Yvon found a great block of
+granite. He struck it three times with the stick, when, lo! the rock
+opened and a demon came forth all streaming with flames.
+
+"What do you want?" he cried.
+
+"I have come for the giant's rent," answered Yvon, calmly.
+
+"How much do you want?"
+
+"I never want any more than I can carry," replied the Breton.
+
+"It is well for you that you do not," returned the man in flames.
+"Enter this cavern and you will find what you want."
+
+Yvon entered, and opened his eyes wide. Everywhere he saw nothing but
+gold, silver, diamonds, carbuncles, and emeralds. They were as
+numerous as the sands on the seashore. The young Kerver filled a sack,
+threw it across his shoulder, and tranquilly returned home.
+
+His task finished, our Breton seated himself on the bench before the
+door of the house. As soon as he saw the giant coming he lolled back
+in his seat, crossed his legs, and began to sing one of his native
+airs.
+
+"Have you been to the bottomless pit to collect my rent?" asked the
+giant, with a frown.
+
+"Yes, master," answered Yvon, without taking the trouble to stir. "The
+sack is right there before your eyes; you can count it."
+
+"I am going to see for myself," howled the giant. He untied the
+strings of the sack, which was so full that the gold and silver rolled
+in all directions.
+
+"You have seen my Finette," he cried; "this trick did not come from
+your own head."
+
+"Don't you know but one song?" said Yvon, opening his mouth and
+shutting his eyes. "It is the old story, myfinette, myfinette. Once
+for all, show me this thing."
+
+"Well, well," roared the giant, with fury, "wait till to-morrow and
+you shall make her acquaintance."
+
+"Thank you, master," said Yvon. "It is very good of you; but I see
+from your face that you are laughing at me."
+
+
+III
+
+The next morning the giant went out without giving Yvon any orders,
+which troubled Finette. At noon he returned without his flock,
+complaining of the heat and fatigue, and said to the young girl:
+
+"You will find a child, my servant, at the door. Cut his throat, put
+him into the great pot to boil, and call me when the broth is ready."
+Saying this, he stretched himself on the bed to take a nap, and was
+soon snoring so loudly that it seemed like thunder shaking the
+mountains.
+
+Finette prepared a log of wood, took a large knife, and called Yvon.
+She pricked his little finger; three drops of blood fell on the log.
+
+"That is enough," said Finette; "now help me to fill the pot."
+
+They threw into it all that they could find--old clothes, old shoes,
+old carpets, and everything else. Finette then took Yvon by the hand
+and led him through the three antechambers, where she ran in a mold
+three bullets of gold, two bullets of silver, and one bullet of
+copper, after which they quitted the house and ran toward the sea.
+
+[Illustration: HE WAS SOON SNORING SO LOUDLY THAT IT SEEMED LIKE
+THUNDER SHAKING THE MOUNTAINS]
+
+"_On--the Kerver!_" cried Yvon, as soon as he saw himself in the
+country. "Explain yourself, dear Finette; what farce are we playing
+now?"
+
+"Let us run--let us run!" she cried; "if we do not quit this wretched
+island before night, it is all over with us."
+
+"_On--the Kerver!_" replied Yvon, laughing, "and down with the giant!"
+
+When he had snored a full hour, the giant stretched his limbs, half
+opened one eye, and cried, "Is it ready?"
+
+"It is just beginning to boil," answered the first drop of blood on
+the log.
+
+The giant turned over, and snored louder than ever for an hour or two
+longer. Then he stretched his limbs, half opened one eye, and cried
+out: "Do you hear me? Is it almost ready?"
+
+"It is half done," answered the second drop of blood on the log.
+
+The giant turned over, and slept an hour longer. Then he yawned,
+stretched his great limbs, and cried out, impatiently:
+
+"Isn't it ready yet?"
+
+"It is ready now," answered the third drop of blood on the log.
+
+The giant sat up in bed, rubbed his eyes, and looked around to see who
+had spoken; but it was in vain to look; he saw nobody.
+
+"Finette," howled he, "why isn't the table set?"
+
+There was no answer. The giant, furious, sprang out of bed, seized a
+ladle, which looked like a caldron with a pitchfork for a handle, and
+plunged it into the pot to taste the soup.
+
+"Finette!" howled he, "you haven't salted it. What sort of soup is
+this? I see neither meat nor vegetables."
+
+No; but, in return, he saw his carpet, which had not quite all boiled
+to pieces. At this sight he fell into such a fit of rage that he could
+not keep his feet.
+
+"Villains!" said he, "you have played a fine trick on me; but you
+shall pay for it."
+
+He rushed out with a stick in his hand, and strode along at such a
+rate that in a quarter of an hour he discovered the two fugitives
+still far from the seashore. He uttered such a cry of joy that the
+earth shook for twelve leagues around.
+
+Finette stopped, trembling. Yvon clasped her to his heart.
+
+"_On--the Kerver!_" said he; "the sea is not far off; we shall be
+there before our enemy."
+
+"Here he is! here he is!" cried Finette, pointing to the giant not a
+hundred yards off; "we are lost if this charm does not save us."
+
+She took the copper bullet and threw it on the ground, saying,
+
+    "Copper bullet, save us, pray;
+    Stop the giant on his way."
+
+And behold, the earth cracked apart with a terrific noise, and an
+enormous fissure, a bottomless pit, stopped the giant just as he was
+stretching out his hand to seize his prey.
+
+"Let us fly!" cried Finette, grasping the arm of Yvon, who was gazing
+at the giant with a swaggering air, defying him to come on.
+
+The giant ran backward and forward along the abyss, like a bear in his
+cage, seeking a passage everywhere and finding none; then, with a
+furious jerk, he tore up an immense oak by the roots and flung it
+across the gap. The branches of the oak nearly crushed the children as
+it fell. The giant seated himself astride the huge tree, which bent
+under his weight, and crept slowly along, suspended between heaven and
+earth, entangled as he was among the branches. When he reached the
+other side, Yvon and Finette were already on the shore, with the sea
+rolling before them.
+
+Alas! there was neither bark nor ship. The fugitives were lost. Yvon,
+always brave, picked up stones to attack the giant and to sell his
+life dearly. Finette, trembling with fear, threw one of the silver
+bullets into the sea, saying,
+
+    "Silver bullet, bright and pliant,
+    Save us from this frightful giant."
+
+Scarcely had she spoken the magic words when a beautiful ship rose
+from the waves like a swan spreading its white wings. Yvon and Finette
+plunged into the sea; a rope was thrown them by an invisible hand,
+and when the furious giant reached the shore the ship was receding
+rapidly at full sail, leaving behind it a long furrow of shining foam.
+
+Giants do not like the water. This fact is certified to by old Homer,
+who knew Polyphemus; and the same observation will be found in all
+natural histories worthy of the name. Finette's master resembled
+Polyphemus. He roared with rage when he saw his slaves about to escape
+him. He ran hesitatingly along the shore; he flung huge masses of rock
+after the vessel, which happily fell by the side of it and only made
+great black holes in the water; and, finally, mad with anger, he
+plunged head foremost into the sea and began to swim after the ship
+with frightful speed. At each stroke he advanced forty feet, blowing
+like a whale, and like a whale cleaving the waves. By degrees he
+gained on his enemies; one more effort would bring him within reach of
+the rudder, and already he was stretching out his arm to seize it,
+when Finette threw the second silver bullet into the sea and cried, in
+tears,
+
+    "Silver bullet, bright and pliant,
+    Save us from this frightful giant."
+
+Suddenly from the midst of the foam darted forth a gigantic swordfish,
+with a sword at least twenty feet in length. It rushed straight toward
+the giant, who scarcely had time to dive, chased him under the water,
+pursued him on the top of the waves, followed him closely whichever
+way he turned, and forced him to flee as fast as he could to his
+island, where he finally landed with the greatest difficulty, and fell
+upon the shore dripping, worn out, and conquered.
+
+"_On--the Kerver!_" cried Yvon; "we are saved."
+
+"Not yet," said Finette, trembling. "The giant has a witch for a
+godmother; I fear that she will revenge on me the insult offered to
+her godson. My art tells me, my dear Yvon, that if you quit me a
+single instant until you give me your name in the chapel of the
+Kervers I have everything to dread."
+
+"By the unicorn of my ancestors," cried Yvon, "you have the heart of a
+hare and not of a hero! Am I not here? Am I going to abandon you? Do
+you believe that Providence has saved us from the fangs of that
+monster to wreck us in port?"
+
+He laughed so gaily that Finette laughed in turn at the terror that
+had seized her.
+
+
+IV
+
+The rest of the voyage passed off admirably. An invisible hand seemed
+to impel the ship onward. Twenty days after their departure the boat
+landed Yvon and Finette near Kerver Castle. Once on shore, Yvon turned
+to thank the crew. No one was there. Both boat and ship had vanished
+under the waves, leaving no trace behind but a gull on the wing.
+
+Yvon recognized the spot where he had so often gathered shells and
+chased the crabs to their holes when a child. Half an hour's walk
+would bring him in sight of the towers of the old castle. His heart
+beat; he looked tenderly at Finette and saw, for the first time, that
+her dress was fantastic and unworthy of a woman about to enter the
+noble house of Kerver.
+
+"My dear child," said he, "the baron, my father, is a noble lord,
+accustomed to be treated with respect. I cannot introduce you to him
+in this gipsy dress; neither is it fitting that you should enter our
+great castle on foot like a peasant. Wait for me a few moments, and I
+will bring you a horse and one of my sister's dresses. I wish you to
+be received like a lady of high degree. I wish my father himself to
+meet you on your arrival, and hold it an honor to give you his hand."
+
+"Yvon, Yvon," cried Finette, "do not quit me, I beg you. Once returned
+to your castle, I know that you will forget me."
+
+"Forget you!" exclaimed Yvon. "If any one else were to offer me such
+an insult I would teach him with my sword to suspect a Kerver. Forget
+you, my Finette! You do not know the fidelity of a Breton."
+
+That the Bretons are faithful no one doubts; but that they are still
+more headstrong is a justice that none will deny them. It was useless
+for poor Finette to plead in her most loving tones; she was forced to
+yield. She resigned herself with a heavy heart, and said to Yvon:
+
+"Go without me, then, to your castle, but only stay long enough to
+speak to your friends; then go straight to the stable, and return as
+soon as possible. You will be surrounded by people; act as if you saw
+no one, and, above all, do not eat or drink anything whatever. Should
+you take only a glass of water, evil would come upon us both."
+
+Yvon promised and swore all that Finette asked, but he smiled in his
+heart at this feminine weakness. He was sure of himself; and he
+thought with pride how different a Breton was from those fickle
+Frenchmen whose words, they say, are borne away by the first breath of
+the wind.
+
+On entering the old castle he could scarcely recognize its dark walls.
+All the windows were festooned with leaves and flowers within and
+without; the courtyard was strewn with fragrant grass; on one side was
+spread tables groaning under their weight; on the other, musicians,
+mounted on casks, were playing merry airs. The vassals, dressed in
+their holiday attire, were singing and dancing and dancing and
+singing. It was a great day of rejoicing at the castle. The baron
+himself was smiling. It is true that he had just married his fifth
+daughter to the Knight of Kervalec. This marriage added another
+quartering to the illustrious escutcheon of the Kervers.
+
+Yvon, recognized and welcomed by all the crowd, was instantly
+surrounded by his relatives, who embraced him and shook him by the
+hand. Where had he been? Where did he come from? Had he conquered a
+kingdom, a duchy, or a barony? Had he brought the bride the jewels of
+some queen? Had the fairies protected him? How many rivals had he
+overthrown? All these questions were showered upon him without reply.
+Yvon respectfully kissed his father's hand, hastened to his sisters'
+chamber, took two of their finest dresses, went to the stable, saddled
+a pony, mounted a beautiful Spanish jennet, and was about to quit the
+castle, when he found his relatives, friends, and vassals all standing
+in his way, their glasses in their hands, ready to drink their young
+lord's health and his safe return.
+
+Yvon gracefully thanked them, bowed, and made his way by degrees
+through the crowd, when, just as he was about to cross the drawbridge,
+a fair-haired lady, with a haughty and disdainful air, a stranger to
+him, a sister of the bridegroom, perhaps, approached him, holding a
+pomegranate in her hand.
+
+"My handsome knight," said she, with a singular smile, "you surely
+will not refuse a lady's first request. Taste this pomegranate, I
+entreat you. If you are neither hungry nor thirsty after so long a
+journey, I suppose at least that you have not forgotten the laws of
+politeness."
+
+Yvon dared not refuse this appeal. He was very wrong. Scarcely had he
+tasted the pomegranate when he looked round him like a man waking from
+a dream.
+
+"What am I doing on this horse?" thought he. "What means this pony
+that I am leading? Is not my place in my father's house at my sister's
+wedding? Why should I quit the castle?"
+
+He threw the bridle to one of the grooms, leaped lightly to the
+ground, and offered his hand to the fair-haired lady, who accepted him
+as her attendant on the spot, and gave him her bouquet to hold as a
+special mark of favor.
+
+Before the evening was over there was another betrothed couple in the
+castle. Yvon had pledged his faith to the unknown lady and Finette was
+forgotten.
+
+
+V
+
+Poor Finette, seated on the seashore, waited all day long for Yvon,
+but Yvon did not come. The sun was setting in the fiery waves when
+Finette rose, sighing, and took the way to the castle in her turn. She
+had not walked long in a steep road, bordered with thorn-trees in
+blossom, when she found herself in front of a wretched hut at the door
+of which stood an old woman about to milk her cow. Finette approached
+her and, making a low courtesy, begged a shelter for the night.
+
+The old woman looked at the stranger from head to foot. With her
+buskins trimmed with fur, her full red petticoat, her blue jacket
+edged with jet, and her diadem, Finette looked more like an Egyptian
+princess than a Christian. The old woman frowned and, shaking her fist
+in the face of the poor forsaken girl, "Begone, witch!" she cried;
+"there is no room for you in this honest house."
+
+"My good mother," said Finette, "give me only a corner of the stable."
+
+"Oh," said the old woman, laughing and showing the only tooth she had
+left, which projected from her mouth like a bear's tusk, "so you want
+a corner of the stable, do you! Well, you shall have it if you will
+fill my milk-pail with gold."
+
+"It is a bargain," said Finette, quietly. She opened a leather purse
+which she wore at her belt, took from it a golden bullet, and threw it
+into the milk-pail, saying,
+
+    "Golden bullet, precious treasure,
+    Save me, if it be thy pleasure."
+
+And behold! the pieces of gold began to dance about in the pail; they
+rose higher and higher, flapping about like fish in a net, while the
+old woman, on her knees, gazed with wonder at the sight.
+
+[Illustration: SHE FOUND HERSELF IN FRONT OF A WRETCHED HUT AT THE
+DOOR OF WHICH STOOD AN OLD WOMAN, OF WHOM SHE BEGGED SHELTER FOR THE
+NIGHT]
+
+When the pail was full the old woman rose, put her arm through the
+handle, and said to Finette, "Madam, all is yours, the house, the cow,
+and everything else. Hurrah! I am going to the town to live like a
+lady with nothing to do. Oh dear, how I wish I were only sixty!" And,
+shaking her crutch, without looking backward, she set out on a run
+toward Kerver Castle.
+
+Finette entered the house. It was a wretched hovel, dark, low, damp,
+bad-smelling, and full of dust and spiders' webs--a horrible refuge
+for a woman accustomed to living in the giant's grand castle. Without
+seeming troubled, Finette went to the hearth, on which a few green
+boughs were smoking, took another golden bullet from her purse, and
+threw it into the fire, saying,
+
+    "Golden bullet, precious treasure,
+    Save me, if it be thy pleasure."
+
+The gold melted, bubbled up, and spread all over the house like
+running water, and behold! the whole cottage, the walls, the thatch,
+the wooden rocking-chair, the stool, the chest, the bed, the cow's
+horns--everything, even to the spiders in their webs, was turned to
+gold. The house gleamed in the moonlight, among the trees, like a star
+in the night.
+
+When Finette had milked the cow and drank a little new milk, she threw
+herself on the bed without undressing, and, worn out by the fatigue
+of the day, fell asleep in the midst of her tears.
+
+Old women do not know how to hold their tongues, at least in Brittany.
+Finette's hostess had scarcely reached the village when she hastened
+to the house of the steward. He was an important personage, who had
+more than once made her tremble when she had driven her cow into her
+neighbor's pasture by mistake. The steward listened to the old woman's
+story, shook his head, and said it looked like witchcraft; then he
+mysteriously brought a pair of scales, weighed the guineas, which he
+found to be genuine and of full weight, kept as many of them as he
+could, and advised the owner to tell no one of this strange adventure.
+"If it should come to the ears of the bailiff or the seneschal," said
+he, "the least that would happen to you, mother, would be to lose
+every one of these beautiful bright guineas. Justice is impartial; it
+knows neither favor nor repugnance; it takes the whole."
+
+The old woman thanked the steward for his advice, and promised to
+follow it. She kept her word so well that she only told her story that
+evening to two neighbors, her dearest friends, both of whom swore on
+the heads of their little children to keep it secret. The oath was a
+solemn one, and so well kept that at noon the next day there was not a
+boy of six in the village that did not point his finger at the old
+woman, while the very dogs seemed to bark in their language, "Here is
+the old woman with her guineas!"
+
+A girl that amuses herself by filling milk-pails with gold is not to
+be found every day. Even though she should be something of a witch,
+such a girl would none the less be a treasure in a family. The
+steward, who was a bachelor, made this wise reflection that night on
+going to bed. Before dawn he rose to make his rounds in the direction
+of the stranger's cottage. By the first gleam of day he spied
+something shining in the distance like a light among the woods. On
+reaching the place, he was greatly surprised to find a golden cottage
+instead of the wretched hut that had stood there the day before. But,
+on entering the house, he was much more surprised and delighted to
+find a beautiful young girl, with raven hair, sitting by the window
+and spinning on her distaff with the air of an empress.
+
+Like all men, the steward did himself justice, and knew, at the bottom
+of his heart, that there was not a woman in the world that would not
+be too happy to give him her hand. Without hesitating, therefore, he
+declared to Finette that he had come to marry her. The young girl
+burst out laughing, upon which the steward flew into a passion.
+
+"Take care!" said he, in a terrible voice. "I am the master here. No
+one knows who you are or whence you came. The gold that you gave the
+old woman has raised suspicions. There is magic in this house. If you
+do not accept me for a husband this very instant, I will arrest you,
+and before night, perhaps, a witch will be burned before Kerver
+Castle."
+
+"You are very amiable," said Finette, with a charming grimace; "you
+have a peculiar way of paying court to ladies. Even when they have
+decided not to refuse, a gallant man spares their blushes."
+
+"We Bretons are plain-spoken people," replied the steward; "we go
+straight to the point. Marriage or prison, which do you choose?"
+
+"Oh!" cried Finette, laying down the distaff, "there are the
+firebrands falling all over the room."
+
+"Don't trouble yourself," said the steward; "I will pick them up."
+
+"Lay them carefully on the top of the ashes," returned Finette. "Have
+you the tongs?"
+
+"Yes," said the steward, picking up the crackling coals.
+
+"_Abracadabra!_" cried Finette, rising. "Villain, may the tongs hold
+you, and may you hold the tongs till sunset!"
+
+No sooner said than done. The wicked steward stood there all day with
+the tongs in his hand, picking up and throwing back the burning coals
+that snapped in his face and the hot ashes that flew into his eyes. It
+was useless for him to shout, pray, weep, and blaspheme; no one heard
+him. If Finette had stayed at home, she would doubtless have taken
+pity on him; but after putting the spell upon him, she hastened to
+the seashore, where, forgetting everything else, she watched for Yvon
+in vain.
+
+The moment that the sun set, the tongs fell from the steward's hands.
+He did not stop to finish his errand, but ran as if the devil or
+justice were at his heels. He made such leaps, he uttered such groans,
+he was so blackened, scorched, and benumbed, that every one in the
+village was afraid of him, thinking that he was mad. The boldest tried
+to speak to him, but he fled without answering, and hid himself in his
+house, more ashamed than a wolf that has left his paw in the trap.
+
+At evening, when Finette returned home in despair, instead of the
+steward she found another visitor little less formidable. The bailiff
+had heard the story of the guineas and had also made up his mind to
+marry the stranger. He was not rough, like the steward, but a fat,
+good-natured man that could not speak without bursting into a laugh,
+showing his great yellow teeth, and puffing and blowing like an ox,
+though at heart he was not less obstinate or less threatening than his
+predecessor. Finette entreated the bailiff to leave her alone. He
+laughed, and hinted to her, in a good-natured way, that, by right of
+his office, he had the power to imprison and hang people without
+process of law. She clasped her hands and begged him with tears to go.
+For his only answer, he took a roll of parchment from his pocket,
+wrote on it a contract of marriage, and declared to Finette that,
+should he stay all night, he would not leave the house till she had
+signed the promise.
+
+"Nevertheless," said he, "if you do not like my person, I have another
+parchment here on which I will write an agreement to live apart; and
+if my sight annoys you you have only to shut your eyes."
+
+"Why," said Finette, "I might decide to do as you wish if I were sure
+of finding a good husband in you; but I am afraid."
+
+"Of what, my dear child?" asked the bailiff, smiling, and already as
+proud as a peacock.
+
+"Do you think," said she, with a pettish air, "that a good husband
+would leave that door wide open and not know that his wife was
+freezing with cold?"
+
+"You are right, my dear," said the bailiff; "it was very stupid in me.
+I will go and shut it."
+
+"Have you hold of the knob?" asked Finette.
+
+"Yes, my charmer," answered the happy bailiff; "I am just shutting the
+door."
+
+"_Abracadabra!_" cried Finette. "May you hold the door, villain, and
+may the door hold you till daybreak."
+
+And behold! the door opened and shut, and slammed against the walls
+like an eagle flapping its wings. You may judge what a dance the poor
+captive kept up all night. Never had he tried such a waltz, and I
+imagine that he never wished to dance a second one of the same sort.
+Sometimes the door swung open with him in the street; sometimes it
+flew back and crushed him against the wall. He swung backward and
+forward, screaming, swearing, weeping, and praying, but all in vain;
+the door was deaf, and Finette asleep.
+
+At daybreak his hands unclasped and he fell in the road head foremost.
+Without waiting to finish his errand, he ran as if the Moors were
+after him. He did not even turn round, for fear that the door might be
+at his heels. Fortunately for him, all were still asleep when he
+reached the village, and he could hide himself in bed without any one
+seeing his deplorable plight. This was a great piece of good fortune
+for him, for he was covered with whitewash from head to foot, and so
+pale, haggard, and trembling that he might have been taken for the
+ghost of a miller escaped from the infernal regions.
+
+When Finette opened her eyes she saw by her bedside a tall man dressed
+in black, with a velvet cap and a sword. It was the seneschal of the
+barony of Kerver. He stood with his arms folded, gazing at Finette in
+a way that chilled the very marrow of her bones.
+
+"What is your name, vassal?" said he, in a voice of thunder.
+
+"Finette, at your service, my lord," replied she, trembling.
+
+"Is this house and furniture yours?"
+
+"Yes, my lord, everything, at your service."
+
+"I mean that it shall be at my service," returned the seneschal,
+sternly. "Rise, vassal! I do you the honor to marry you, and to take
+yourself, your person, and your property under my guardianship."
+
+"My lord," returned Finette, "this is much too great an honor for a
+poor girl like me, a stranger, without friends or kindred."
+
+"Be silent, vassal!" replied the seneschal. "I am your lord and
+master; I have nothing to do with your advice. Sign this paper."
+
+"My lord," said Finette, "I don't know how to write."
+
+"Do you think that I do, either?" returned the seneschal, in a voice
+that shook the house. "Do you take me for a clerk? A cross--that is
+the signature of gentlemen."
+
+He made a large cross on the paper, and handed the pen to Finette.
+
+"Sign," said he. "If you are afraid to make a cross, infidel, you pass
+your own death sentence, and I shall take on myself to execute it." He
+drew his heavy sword from the scabbard as he spoke, and threw it on
+the table.
+
+For her only answer, Finette leaped out of the window and ran to the
+stable. The seneschal pursued her thither, but, on attempting to
+enter, an unexpected obstacle stopped him. The frightened cow had
+backed at the sight of the young girl, and stood in the doorway, with
+Finette clinging to her horns and making of her a sort of buckler.
+
+"You shall not escape me, sorceress!" cried the seneschal, and, with a
+grasp like that of Hercules, he seized the cow by the tail and dragged
+her out of the stable.
+
+"_Abracadabra!_" cried Finette. "May the cow's tail hold you, villain,
+and may you hold the cow's tail till you have both been around the
+world together."
+
+And behold! the cow darted off like lightning, dragging the unhappy
+seneschal after her. Nothing stopped the two inseparable comrades;
+they rushed over mountains and valleys, crossed marshes, rivers,
+quagmires, and brakes, glided over the seas without sinking, were
+frozen in Siberia and scorched in Africa, climbed the Himalayas,
+descended Mont Blanc, and at length, after thirty-six hours of a
+journey, the like of which had never been seen, both stopped out of
+breath in the public square of the village.
+
+A seneschal harnessed to a cow's tail is a sight not to be seen every
+day, and all the peasants in the neighborhood crowded together to
+wonder at the spectacle. But, torn as he was by the cactuses of
+Barbary and the thickets of Tartary, the seneschal had lost nothing of
+his haughty air. With a threatening gesture he dispersed the rabble,
+and limped to his house to taste the repose of which he began to feel
+the need.
+
+
+VI
+
+While the steward, the bailiff, and the seneschal were experiencing
+these little unpleasantnesses, of which they did not think it proper
+to boast, preparations were being made for a great event at Kerver
+Castle, namely, the marriage of Yvon and the fair-haired lady. Two
+days had passed in these preparations, and all the friends of the
+family had gathered together for twenty leagues round, when, one fine
+morning Yvon and his bride, with the Baron and Baroness Kerver, took
+their seats in a great carriage adorned with flowers, and set out for
+the celebrated church of St. Maclou.
+
+A hundred knights in full armor, mounted on horses decked with
+ribbons, rode on each side of the betrothed couple, each with his
+vizor raised and his lance at rest in token of honor. By the side of
+each baron, a squire, also on horseback, carried the seigniorial
+banner. At the head of the procession rode the seneschal, with a
+gilded staff in his hand. Behind the carriage gravely walked the
+bailiff, followed by the vassals, while the steward railed at the
+serfs, a noisy and curious rabble.
+
+As they were crossing a brook, a league from the castle, one of the
+traces of the carriage broke, and they were forced to stop. The
+accident repaired, the coachman cracked his whip, and the horses
+started with such force that the new trace broke in three pieces. Six
+times this provoking piece of wood was replaced, and six times it
+broke anew, without drawing the carriage from the hole where it was
+wedged.
+
+Every one had a word of advice to offer; even the peasants, as
+wheelwrights and carpenters, were not the last to make a show of their
+knowledge. This gave the steward courage; he approached the baron,
+took off his cap, and, scratching his head,
+
+"My lord," said he, "in the house that you see shining yonder among
+the trees there lives a woman who does things such as nobody else can
+do. Only persuade her to lend you her tongs, and, in my opinion, they
+will hold till morning."
+
+The baron made a sign, and ten peasants ran to the cottage of Finette,
+who very obligingly lent them her gold tongs. They were put in the
+place of the trace; the coachman cracked his whip, and off went the
+carriage like a feather.
+
+Every one rejoiced, but the joy did not last long. A hundred steps
+farther, lo! the bottom of the carriage gave way; little more, and the
+noble Kerver family would have sunk quite out of sight. The
+wheelwrights and the carpenters set to work at once; they sawed
+planks, nailed them down fast, and in the twinkling of an eye repaired
+the accident. The coachman cracked his whip and the horses started,
+when, behold! half of the carriage was left behind; the Baroness
+Kerver sat motionless by the side of the bride, while Yvon and the
+baron were carried off at full gallop. Here was a new difficulty.
+Three times was the carriage mended, three times it broke anew. There
+was every reason to believe that it was enchanted.
+
+Every one had a word of advice to offer. This gave the bailiff
+courage. He approached the baron and said, in a low tone:
+
+"My lord, in the house that you see shining yonder among the trees
+there lives a woman who does things such as nobody else can do. Only
+persuade her to lend you her door for the bottom of the carriage, and,
+in my opinion, it will hold till morning."
+
+The baron made a sign, and twenty peasants ran to the cottage of
+Finette, who very obligingly lent them her gold door. They put it in
+the bottom of the carriage, where it fitted as if it had been made
+expressly for it. The party took their seats in the carriage, the
+coachman cracked his whip, the church was in sight, and all the
+troubles of the journey seemed ended.
+
+Not at all! Suddenly the horses stopped and refused to draw. There
+were four of them. Six, eight, ten, twenty-four more were put to the
+carriage, but all in vain; it was impossible to stir them. The more
+they were whipped the deeper the wheels sunk into the ground, like the
+coulter of a plow.
+
+What were they to do? To go on foot would have been a disgrace. To
+mount a horse and ride to the church like simple peasants was not the
+custom of the Kervers. They tried to lift the carriage, they pushed
+the wheels, they shook it, they pulled it, but all in vain. Meanwhile
+the day was declining and the hour for the marriage had passed.
+
+Every one had a word of advice to offer. This gave the seneschal
+courage. He approached the baron, alighted from his horse, raised his
+velvet cap, and said:
+
+"My lord, in the house that you see shining yonder among the trees
+there lives a woman who does things such as nobody else can do. Only
+persuade her to lend you her cow to draw the carriage, and, in my
+opinion, she will draw it till morning."
+
+The baron made a sign, and thirty peasants ran to the cottage of
+Finette, who very obligingly lent them her golden-horned cow.
+
+To go to church drawn by a cow was not, perhaps, what the ambitious
+bride had dreamed of, but it was better than to remain unmarried in
+the road. The heifer was harnessed, therefore, before the four horses,
+and everybody looked on anxiously to see what this boasted animal
+would do.
+
+But before the coachman had time to crack his whip, lo! the cow
+started off as if she were about to go around the world anew. Horses,
+carriage, baron, betrothed, coachman, all were hurried away by the
+furious animal. In vain the knights spurred their horses to follow the
+pair; in vain the peasants ran at full speed, taking the cross-road
+and cutting across the meadows. The carriage flew as if it had wings;
+a pigeon could not have followed it.
+
+On reaching the door of the church, the party, a little disturbed by
+this rapid journey, would not have been sorry to alight. Everything
+was ready for the ceremony and the bridal pair had long been expected;
+but, instead of stopping, the cow redoubled her speed. Thirteen times
+she ran round the church like lightning, then suddenly made her way in
+a straight line across the fields to the castle, with such force that
+the whole party were almost shaken to pieces before their arrival.
+
+
+VII
+
+No more marriage was to be thought of for that day; but the tables
+were set and the dinner served, and the Baron Kerver was too noble a
+knight to take leave of his brave Bretons until they had eaten and
+drunk according to custom--that is, from sunset till sunrise, and even
+a little later.
+
+Orders were given for the guests to take their seats. Ninety-six
+tables were ranged in eight rows. In front of them, on a large
+platform covered with velvet, with a canopy in the middle, was a table
+larger than the rest, and loaded with fruit and flowers, to say
+nothing of the roast hares, and the peacocks smoking beneath their
+plumage. At this table the bridal pair were to have been seated in
+full sight, in order that nothing might be lacking to the pleasures
+of the feast, and that the meanest peasant might have the honor of
+saluting them by emptying his cup of hydromel to the honor and
+prosperity of the high and mighty house of Kerver.
+
+The baron seated the hundred knights at his table, and placed their
+squires behind their chairs to serve them. At his right he put the
+bride and Yvon, but he left the seat at his left vacant, and, calling
+a page, "Child," said he, "run to the house of the stranger lady who
+obliged us only too much this morning. It was not her fault if her
+success exceeded her good will. Tell her that the Baron Kerver thanks
+her for her help and invites her to the wedding feast of his son, Lord
+Yvon."
+
+On reaching the golden house, where Finette, in tears, was mourning
+for her beloved, the page bent one knee to the ground and, in the
+baron's name, invited the stranger lady to the castle to do honor to
+the wedding of Lord Yvon.
+
+"Thank your master for me," answered the young girl, proudly, "and
+tell him that if he is too noble to come to my house, I am too noble
+to go to his."
+
+When the page repeated this answer to his master the Baron Kerver
+struck the table such a blow that three plates flew in the air.
+
+"By my honor," said he, "this is spoken like a lady, and for the first
+time I own myself beaten. Quick, saddle my dun mare, and let my
+knights and squires prepare to attend me."
+
+It was with this brilliant train that the baron alighted at the door
+of the golden cottage. He begged Finette's pardon, held the stirrup
+for her, and seated her behind him on his own horse, neither more nor
+less than a duchess in person. Through respect, he did not speak a
+single word to her on the way. On reaching the castle he uncovered his
+head and led her to the seat of honor that he had chosen for her.
+
+The baron's departure had made a great excitement, and his return
+caused still greater surprise. Every one asked who the lady could be
+that the baron treated with such respect. Judging from her costume,
+she was a foreigner. Could she be the Duchess of Normandy or the Queen
+of France? The steward, the bailiff, and the seneschal were appealed
+to. The steward trembled, the bailiff turned pale, and the seneschal
+blushed, but all three were as mute as fishes. The silence of these
+important personages added to the general wonder.
+
+All eyes were fixed on Finette, who felt a deadly chill at her heart,
+for Yvon saw, but did not know her. He cast an indifferent glance at
+her, then began again to talk in a tender tone to the fair-haired
+lady, who smiled disdainfully.
+
+Finette, in despair, took from the purse the golden bullet, her last
+hope. While talking with the baron, who was charmed with her wit, she
+shook the little ball in her hand, and repeated, in a whisper,
+
+    "Golden bullet, precious treasure,
+    Save me, if it be thy pleasure."
+
+And behold! the bullet grew larger and larger, until it became a
+goblet of chased gold, the most beautiful cup that ever graced the
+table of baron or king.
+
+Finette filled the cup herself with spiced wine, and, calling the
+seneschal, who was cowering behind her, she said, in her gentlest
+tones, "My good seneschal, I entreat you to offer this goblet to Lord
+Yvon. I wish to drink his health, and I am sure that he will not
+refuse me this pleasure."
+
+Yvon took the goblet, which the seneschal presented to him on a salver
+of enamel and gold, with a careless hand, bowed to the stranger, drank
+the wine, and, setting the cup on the table before him, turned to the
+fair-haired lady who occupied all his thoughts. The lady seemed
+anxious and vexed. He whispered a few words in her ear that seemed to
+please her, for her eyes sparkled, and she placed her hand again in
+his.
+
+Finette cast down her head and began to weep. All was over.
+
+"Children," cried the baron, in a voice of thunder, "fill your
+glasses. Let us drink to the noble stranger who honors us with her
+presence. To the noble lady of the golden cottage!"
+
+All began to huzzah and drink. Yvon contented himself with raising his
+goblet to a level with his eyes. Suddenly he started and stood mute,
+his mouth open and his eyes fixed, like a man that has a vision.
+
+It was a vision. In the gold of the goblet Yvon saw his past life as
+in a mirror: the giant pursuing him; Finette dragging him along; both
+embarking in the ship that saved them; both landing on the shore of
+Brittany; he quitting her for an instant; she weeping at his
+departure. Where was she? By his side, of course. What other woman
+than Finette could be by the side of Yvon?
+
+He turned toward the fair-haired lady and cried out like a man
+treading on a serpent. Then, staggering as if he were drunk, he rose
+and looked around him with haggard eyes. At the sight of Finette he
+clasped his trembling hands and, dragging himself toward her, fell on
+his knees and exclaimed, "Finette, forgive me!"
+
+To forgive is the height of happiness. Before evening Finette was
+seated by the side of Yvon, both weeping and smiling.
+
+And what became of the fair-haired lady? No one knows. At the cry of
+Yvon she disappeared; but it was said that a wretched old hag was seen
+flying on a broomstick over the castle walls, chased by the dogs; and
+it was the common opinion among the Kervers that the fair-haired lady
+was none other than the witch, the godmother of the giant. I am not
+sure enough of the fact, however, to dare warrant it. It is always
+prudent to believe, without proof, that a woman may be a witch, but it
+is never wise to say so.
+
+What I can say on the word of a historian is that the feast,
+interrupted for a moment, went on gayer than ever. Early the next
+morning they went to the church, where, to the joy of his heart, Yvon
+married Finette, who was no longer afraid of evil spirits; after which
+they ate, drank, and danced for thirty-six hours, without any one
+thinking of resting. The steward's arms were a little heavy, the
+bailiff rubbed his back at times, and the seneschal felt a sort of
+weariness in his limbs, but all three had a weight on their
+consciences which they could not shake off, and which made them
+tremble and flutter, till finally they fell on the ground and were
+carried off. Finette took no other vengeance on them; her only desire
+was to render all happy around her, far and near, who belonged to the
+noble house of Kerver. Her memory still lives in Brittany; and among
+the ruins of the old castle, any one will show you the statue of the
+good lady, with five bullets in her hand.
+
+
+
+
+_The_ Castle _of_ Life
+
+[Illustration:]
+
+
+Once upon a time there lived at Salerno a poor old woman who earned
+her bread by fishing, and whose only comfort and stay in life was her
+grandson, a boy twelve years of age, whose father had been drowned in
+a storm and whose mother had died of grief. Graceful, for this was the
+child's name, loved nobody in the world but his grandmother; he
+followed her to the shore every morning before daybreak to pick up the
+shell-fish or draw the net to the beach, longing for the time when he
+should be strong enough to go to sea himself and brave the waves that
+had swallowed up all his kindred. He was so handsome, so well made,
+and so promising, that no sooner had he entered the town with his
+basket of fish on his head than every one ran after him, and he sold
+the whole before he reached the market.
+
+Unfortunately, the grandmother was very old; she had but one front
+tooth left, her head shook with age, and her eyes were dim. Every
+morning she found it harder to rise than the day before. Feeling that
+she had but a few days longer to live, at night, before Graceful
+wrapped himself in his blanket and lay down on the ground to sleep,
+she always gave him good counsels for him to follow when she was gone;
+she told him what fishermen to avoid, and how, by being good and
+industrious, prudent and resolute, he would make his way in the world
+and finally have a boat and nets of his own. The poor boy paid little
+heed to all this wisdom. As soon as his grandmother began to put on a
+grave air he threw his arms around her neck and cried: "Grandmamma,
+grandmamma, don't leave me. I have hands, I am strong, I shall soon be
+able to work for us both; but if you were not here at night when I
+came home from fishing, what would become of me?"
+
+"My child," said the old woman one day to him, "I shall not leave you
+so much alone as you think; when I am gone you will have two powerful
+protectors whom more than one prince might envy you. A long time ago I
+did a favor to two great ladies, who will not forget you when the time
+comes to call them, which will be very soon."
+
+"Who are these two ladies?" asked Graceful, who had never seen any
+women but fishermen's wives in the hut.
+
+"They are two fairies," replied his grandmother--"two powerful
+fairies--the Fairy of the Woods and the Fairy of the Waters. Listen to
+me, my child; I am going to intrust you with a secret--a secret which
+you must keep as carefully as I have done, and which will give you
+wealth and happiness. Ten years ago, the same year that your father
+died and your mother also left us, I went out one morning before
+daybreak to surprise the crabs asleep in the sand. As I was stooping
+down, hidden by a rock, I saw a kingfisher slowly floating toward the
+beach. The kingfisher is a sacred bird which should always be
+respected; knowing this, I let it alight and did not stir, for fear of
+frightening it. At the same moment I saw a beautiful green adder come
+from a cleft of the mountain and crawl along the sand toward the bird.
+When they were near each other, without either seeming surprised at
+the meeting, the adder coiled itself around the neck of the
+kingfisher, as if tenderly embracing it; they remained thus entwined
+for a few moments, after which they suddenly separated, the adder to
+return to the rock, and the kingfisher to plunge into the waves which
+bore it away.
+
+[Illustration: AT NIGHT THE GRANDMOTHER ALWAYS GAVE HIM GOOD COUNSELS
+FOR HIM TO FOLLOW WHEN SHE WAS GONE]
+
+"Greatly astonished at what I had seen, I returned the next morning at
+the same hour, and at the same hour the kingfisher also alighted on
+the sands and the adder came from its retreat. There was no doubt that
+they were fairies, perhaps enchanted fairies, to whom I could render a
+service. But what was I to do? To show myself would have been to
+displease them and run into danger; it was better to wait for a
+favorable opportunity which chance would doubtless offer. For a whole
+month I lay in ambush, witnessing the same spectacle every morning,
+when one day I saw a huge black cat arrive first at the place of
+meeting and hide itself behind a rock, almost under my hand. A black
+cat could be nothing else than an enchanter, according to what I had
+learned in my childhood, and I resolved to watch him. Scarcely had the
+kingfisher and the adder embraced each other when, behold! the cat
+gathered itself up and sprang upon these innocents. It was my turn to
+throw myself upon the wretch, who already held his victims in his
+murderous claws; I seized him, despite his struggles, although he tore
+my hands in pieces, and without pity, knowing with whom I had to deal,
+I took the knife which I used to open shell-fish, and cut off the
+monster's head, claws, and tail, confidently awaiting the success of
+my devotion.
+
+"I did not wait long; no sooner had I thrown the body of the animal
+into the sea than I saw before me two beautiful ladies, one crowned
+with white plumes, the other with a serpent's skin thrown like a scarf
+across her shoulder. They were, as I have already told you, the Fairy
+of the Waters and the Fairy of the Woods, who, enchanted by a wretched
+genie who had learned their secret, had been forced to remain a
+kingfisher and an adder until freed by some generous hand, and who
+owed me their power and freedom.
+
+"'Ask of us what you will,' said they, 'and your request shall be
+instantly granted.'
+
+"I reflected that I was old, and had suffered too much in life to wish
+to begin it anew, while the day would come, my child, when nothing
+would be too great for your desires; when you wish to be rich,
+noble--a general, a marquis, a prince, perhaps! When that day comes,
+thought I, I can give him everything, and a single moment of such
+happiness will repay me for eighty years of pain and misery. I thanked
+the fairies, therefore, and entreated them to keep their good will
+till the day when I should have need of it. The Fairy of the Waters
+took a small feather from her crown, and the Fairy of the Woods
+detached a scale from her scarf.
+
+"'My good woman,' said they, 'when you wish for us, place this feather
+and this scale in a vessel of pure water and call on us, making a
+wish. Should we be at the end of the world, we will be at your side in
+an instant, ready to pay the debt we owe you.'
+
+"I bowed my head in token of gratitude. When I raised it all had
+vanished; even the wounds and blood had disappeared from my hands, and
+I should have thought that I had been dreaming, had not the scale of
+the serpent and the feather of the kingfisher remained in my hand."
+
+"And where are these treasures, grandmamma?" asked Graceful.
+
+"My child, I have carefully concealed them," answered the old woman,
+"not wishing to show them to you till you were a man and able to make
+use of them; but since death is about to separate us, the moment has
+come to give you these precious talismans. You will find at the back
+of the cupboard a wooden chest hidden under some rags; in the chest is
+a little pasteboard box, wound about with tow; open this box and you
+will find the scale and the feather carefully wrapped in cotton. Take
+care not to break them; handle them respectfully, and I will tell you
+what next to do."
+
+Graceful brought the box to the poor woman, who was no longer able to
+quit her pallet, and she herself took from it the two articles.
+
+"Now," said she, giving them to her grandson, "put a bowlful of water
+in the middle of the room; place the scale and the feather in the
+water, and make a wish--wish for fortune, nobility, wit, power,
+whatever you please; only, as I feel that I am dying, kiss me once
+more, my child, before speaking the words that will separate us
+forever, and receive my last blessing; it will be another talisman to
+bring you happiness."
+
+But, to the old woman's surprise, Graceful did not come near her,
+either to kiss her or to receive her blessing. He quickly placed the
+bowl in the middle of the room, threw the feather and scale into the
+water, and shouted at the top of his voice, "Appear, Fairy of the
+Waters! I wish that my grandmother may live forever. Appear, Fairy of
+the Woods! I wish that my grandmother may live forever."
+
+And behold! the water bubbled, bubbled, bubbled; the bowl grew to a
+great basin, which the walls of the hut could scarcely hold, and from
+the bottom of the basin Graceful saw two beautiful young women rise,
+whom he knew directly from their wands to be fairies. One wore a crown
+of holly leaves mixed with red berries, and diamond ear-rings
+resembling acorns in their cups; she was dressed in a robe of olive
+green, over which a speckled skin was knotted like a scarf across the
+right shoulder--this was the Fairy of the Woods. As to the Fairy of
+the Waters, she wore a garland of reeds on her head, with a white robe
+trimmed with the feathers of aquatic birds, and a blue scarf, which
+now and then rose above her head and fluttered like the sail of a
+ship. Great ladies as they were, they looked smilingly at Graceful,
+who had taken refuge in his grandmother's arms, and trembled with fear
+and admiration.
+
+"Here we are, my child," said the Fairy of the Waters, who spoke
+first, as the eldest. "We have heard what you said, and your wish does
+you honor; but, though we can help you in the plan which you have
+conceived, you alone can execute it. We can, indeed, prolong your
+grandmother's life for some time, but, for her to live forever, you
+must go the Castle of Life, four long days' journey from here, on the
+coast of Sicily. There you will find the Fountain of Immortality. If
+you can accomplish each of these four days' journey without turning
+aside from the road, and, on reaching the castle, can answer three
+questions that will be put to you by an invisible voice, you will
+obtain what you desire. But, my child, reflect well before undertaking
+this adventure, for you will meet more than one danger on the way; and
+if you fail a single time to reach the end of your day's journey you
+will not only miss the object of your pursuit, but you will never quit
+the country, from which none has ever returned."
+
+"I will go, madam," returned Graceful.
+
+"But you are very young, my child," said the Fairy of the Woods, "and
+you do not even know the way."
+
+"No matter," replied Graceful. "I am sure, beautiful ladies, that you
+will not forsake me, and to save my grandmother I would go to the end
+of the world."
+
+"Wait," said the Fairy of the Woods. Then separating the lead from a
+broken window-pane, she placed it in the hollow of her hand.
+
+And behold! the lead began to melt and bubble without seeming to burn
+the fairy, who threw the metal on the hearth, where it cooled in a
+thousand different forms.
+
+"What do you see in all that?" said the fairy to Graceful.
+
+"It seems to me, madam," said he, after looking attentively, "that I
+see a spaniel with a long tail and large ears."
+
+"Call him," said the fairy.
+
+A barking was instantly heard, and forth from the metal sprang a black
+and flame-colored spaniel, which began to gambol and leap around
+Graceful.
+
+"This will be your companion," said the fairy. "His name is Fido. He
+will show you the way; but I warn you that it is for you to direct
+him, and not for him to lead you. If you make him obey, he will serve
+you; if you obey him, he will destroy you."
+
+"And I," said the Fairy of the Waters, "have I nothing to give you, my
+poor Graceful?"
+
+Then, looking around her, the lady saw on the ground a bit of paper,
+which she tossed into the fire with her tiny foot. The paper caught
+fire, and as soon as the blaze had died away thousands of little
+sparks were seen chasing one another about. The fairy watched these
+sparks with a curious eye; then, as the last one was about to go out,
+she blew upon the cinders, when, lo! the chirp of a bird was heard,
+and a swallow rose, which fluttered, terrified, about the room and
+finally alighted on Graceful's shoulder.
+
+"This will be your companion," said the Fairy of the Waters. "Her name
+is Pensive. She will show you the way; but I warn you it is for you to
+direct her, and not for her to lead you. If you make her obey, she
+will serve you; if you obey her, she will destroy you."
+
+"Stir the black ashes," added the good Fairy of the Waters, "and
+perhaps you will find something there."
+
+Graceful obeyed. Under the ashes of the paper he found a vial of rock
+crystal, sparkling like a diamond. This, the fairy said, was to hold
+the water of immortality, which would break any vessel made by the
+hand of man. By the side of the vial Graceful found a dagger with a
+triangular blade--a very different thing from the stiletto of his
+father the fisherman, which he had been forbidden to touch. With this
+weapon he could brave the proudest enemy.
+
+"My sister, you shall not be more generous than I," said the other
+fairy; then, taking a rush from the only chair in the room, she blew
+upon it, when, lo! the rush instantly swelled, and in less time than
+it takes to tell it became a beautiful musket, inlaid with
+mother-of-pearl. A second rush produced a cartridge-box, which
+Graceful slung around his body and which became him marvelously. One
+would have thought him a prince setting out for the chase; he was so
+handsome that his grandmother wept for joy and emotion.
+
+The two fairies vanished; Graceful kissed the good old woman, urging
+her to await his return, and knelt before her to receive her blessing.
+She entreated him to be patient, just, and charitable, and, above all,
+not to wander from the right path. "Not for my sake," added the old
+woman, "for I would gladly welcome death, and I regret the wish that
+you have made, but for your own, my child, that you may return to me
+and that I may not die without your being here to close my eyes."
+
+It was late. Graceful threw himself on the ground, too agitated, it
+seemed, to sleep. But slumber soon overtook him, and he slept soundly
+all night, while his poor grandmother watched the face of her dear
+child lighted by the flickering lamp, and did not weary of mournfully
+admiring him.
+
+
+II
+
+Early in the morning, when dawn was scarcely breaking, the swallow
+began to twitter, and Fido to pull the blankets. "Let us go,
+master--let us go," said the two companions, in their language, which
+Graceful understood by the gift of the fairies; "the tide is already
+rising on the beach, the birds are singing, the flies are humming, and
+the flowers are opening in the sun. Let us go; it is time."
+
+Graceful kissed his grandmother for the last time, and took the road
+to Pæstum, Pensive fluttering to the right and the left in pursuit of
+the flies, and Fido fawning on his young master or running before him.
+
+They had gone two leagues from the town when Graceful saw Fido talking
+with the ants, who were marching in regular troops, carrying all their
+provisions with them.
+
+"Where are you going?" asked he.
+
+"To the Castle of Life," they answered.
+
+A little farther on Pensive encountered the grasshoppers, who had also
+set out on a journey, together with the bees and the butterflies; all
+were going to the Castle of Life, to drink of the Fountain of
+Immortality. They traveled in company, like people following the same
+road. Pensive introduced Graceful to a young butterfly that chatted
+agreeably. Friendship springs up quickly in youth; in an hour the two
+comrades were inseparable.
+
+To go straight forward does not suit the taste of butterflies, and
+Graceful's friend was constantly losing himself among the grass.
+Graceful, who had never been free in his life, nor had seen so many
+flowers and so much sunshine, followed all the windings of his
+companion, and troubled himself no more about the day than if it were
+never to end; but, after a few leagues' journey his new friend began
+to be weary.
+
+"Don't go any farther," said he to Graceful. "See how beautiful is
+this landscape, how fragrant these flowers, and how balmy these
+fields. Let us stay here; this is life."
+
+"Let us go on," said Fido; "the day is long, and we are only at the
+beginning."
+
+"Let us go on," said Pensive; "the sky is clear and the horizon
+unbounded. Let us go on."
+
+Graceful, restored to his senses, reasoned sagely with the butterfly,
+who fluttered constantly to the right and the left, but all in vain.
+"What matters it to me?" said the insect. "Yesterday I was a
+caterpillar, to-night I shall be nothing. I will enjoy to-day." And he
+settled on a full-blown Pæstum rose. The perfume was so strong that
+the poor butterfly was suffocated. Graceful vainly endeavored to
+recall him to life; then, bemoaning his fate, he fastened him with a
+pin to his hat like a cockade.
+
+Toward noon the grasshoppers stopped in turn. "Let us rest," said
+they; "the heat will overpower us if we struggle against the noonday
+sun. It is so pleasant to live in sweet repose! Come, Graceful, we
+will divert you and you shall sing with us."
+
+"Listen to them," said Pensive; "they sing so sweetly!" But Fido would
+not stop; his blood seemed on fire, and he barked so furiously that
+Graceful forgot the grasshoppers to follow his importunate companion.
+
+At evening Graceful met the honey-bee loaded with booty. "Where are
+you going?" said he.
+
+"I am returning home," said the bee; "I shall not quit my hive."
+
+"What!" rejoined Graceful; "industrious as you are, will you do like
+the grasshoppers and renounce your share in immortality?"
+
+"Your castle is too far off," returned the bee. "I have not your
+ambition. My daily labor suffices for me; I care nothing for your
+travels; to me work is life."
+
+Graceful was a little moved at losing so many of his fellow-travelers
+on the first day; but when he thought with what ease he had
+accomplished the first day's journey his heart was filled with joy. He
+caressed Fido, caught the flies which Pensive took from his hand, and
+slept full of hope, dreaming of his grandmother and the two fairies.
+
+
+III
+
+The next morning, at daybreak, Pensive called her young master.
+
+"Let us go," said she; "the tide is already rising on the shore, the
+birds are singing, the bees are humming, and the flowers are opening
+in the sun. Let us go; it is time."
+
+"Wait a moment," said Fido. "The day's journey is not long; before
+noon we shall be in sight of the temples of Pæstum, where we are to
+stop for the night."
+
+"The ants are already on the way," returned Pensive; "the road is
+harder than yesterday, and the weather more uncertain. Let us go."
+
+Graceful had seen his grandmother smiling on him in his dreams, and he
+set out on his way with even greater ardor than the day before. The
+morning was glorious; on the right the blue waves broke with a gentle
+murmur on the strand; on the left, in the distance, the mountains were
+tinged with a roseate hue; the plain was covered with tall grass
+sprinkled with flowers; the road was lined with aloes, jujubes, and
+acanthuses, and before them lay a cloudless horizon. Graceful,
+ravished with hope and pleasure, fancied himself already at the end of
+his journey. Fido bounded over the fields and chased the frightened
+partridges; Pensive soared in the air and sported with the light. All
+at once Graceful saw a beautiful doe in the midst of the reeds,
+looking at him with languishing eyes as if she were calling him. He
+went toward her; she bounded forward, but only a little way. Three
+times she repeated the same trick, as if to allure him on.
+
+"Let us follow her," said Fido. "I will cut off the way and we will
+soon catch her."
+
+"Where is Pensive?" said Graceful.
+
+"What does it matter?" replied Fido; "it is the work of an instant.
+Trust to me--I was born for the chase--and the doe is ours."
+
+Graceful did not let himself be bid twice. While Fido made a circuit
+he ran after the doe, which paused among the trees as if to suffer
+herself to be caught, then bounded forward as soon as the hand of the
+pursuer touched her. "Courage, master!" cried Fido, as he came upon
+her. But with a toss of the head, the doe flung the dog in the air,
+and fled swifter than the wind.
+
+Graceful sprang forward in pursuit. Fido, with burning eyes and
+distended jaws, ran and yelped as if he were mad. They crossed
+ditches, brakes, and hedges, unchecked by nothing. The wearied doe
+lost ground. Graceful redoubled his ardor, and was already stretching
+out his hand to seize his prey when all at once the ground gave way
+beneath his feet and he fell, with his imprudent companion, into a
+pit covered over with leaves. He had not recovered from his fall when
+the doe, approaching the brink, cried, "You are betrayed; I am the
+wife of the King of the Wolves, who is coming to eat you both." Saying
+this, she disappeared.
+
+"Alas! master," said Fido, "the fairy was right in advising you not to
+follow me. We have acted foolishly and I have destroyed you."
+
+"At all events," said Graceful, "we will defend our lives"; and,
+taking his musket, he double-loaded it, in readiness for the King of
+the Wolves; then, somewhat calmed, he examined the deep ditch into
+which he had fallen. It was too high for him to escape from it; in
+this hole he must await his death. Fido understood the look of his
+friend.
+
+"Master," said he, "if you take me in your arms and throw me with all
+your might, perhaps I can reach the top; and, once there, I can help
+you."
+
+Graceful had not much hope. Three times he endeavored to throw Fido,
+and three times the poor animal fell back; finally, at the fourth
+effort, he caught hold of some roots, and aided himself so well with
+his teeth and paws that he escaped from the tomb. He instantly threw
+into the ditch the boughs which he found about the edge.
+
+"Master," said he, "plant these branches in the earth and make
+yourself a ladder. Quick! quick!" he added. "I hear the howls of the
+King of the Wolves."
+
+Graceful was adroit and agile. Anger redoubled his strength; in a
+moment he was outside. Then he secured his dagger in his belt, changed
+the powder in the pan of his musket, and, placing himself behind a
+tree, awaited the enemy with firmness.
+
+Suddenly a frightful cry was heard, and an animal, with tusks like
+those of the wild boar, rushed on him with prodigious bounds. Graceful
+took aim and fired. The bullet hit the mark and the animal fell back
+howling, but instantly sprang forward anew. "Load your musket again!
+Make haste!" cried Fido, springing courageously in the face of the
+monster and seizing his throat with his teeth.
+
+The wolf had only to shake his head to fling the poor dog to the
+ground. He would have swallowed him at one mouthful had not Fido
+glided from his jaws, leaving one of his ears behind. It was
+Graceful's turn to save his companion; he boldly advanced and fired
+his second shot, taking aim at the shoulder. The wolf fell; but,
+rising, with a last effort he threw himself on the hunter, who fell
+under him. On receiving this terrible shock, Graceful thought himself
+lost; but without losing courage, and calling the good fairies to his
+aid, he seized his dagger and thrust it into the heart of the animal,
+which, ready to devour his enemy, straightened his limbs and died.
+
+Graceful rose, covered with blood and froth, and seated himself,
+trembling, upon a fallen tree. Fido crept painfully to his feet,
+without daring to caress him, for he felt how much he was to blame.
+
+"Master," said he, "what will become of us? Night is approaching and
+we are so far from Pæstum!"
+
+"We must go," said the child, and he rose; but he was so weak that he
+was obliged to sit down again. A burning thirst devoured him; he was
+feverish and everything whirled before his eyes. He thought of his
+grandmother, and began to weep. What was poor Graceful's remorse for
+having so soon forgotten such fair promises, and condemned himself to
+die in a country from which there was no return, and all this for the
+bright eyes of a doe! How sadly ended the day so well begun!
+
+Sinister howls were soon heard; the brothers of the King of the Wolves
+were calling him and coming to his aid. Graceful embraced Fido, his
+only friend, and forgave him the imprudence for which they were both
+about to pay with their lives; then loaded his musket, offered up a
+prayer to the good fairies, commended his grandmother to them, and
+prepared to die.
+
+"Graceful! Graceful! where are you?" cried a little voice that could
+be none other than Pensive's, and the swallow alighted on the head of
+her master.
+
+"Courage!" said she; "the wolves are still far off. There is a spring
+close by where you can quench your thirst and stanch your bleeding
+wounds, and I have found a hidden path which will lead us to Pæstum."
+
+Graceful and Fido dragged themselves along to the brook, trembling
+with hope and fear; then entered the obscure path, a little reanimated
+by the soft twittering of Pensive. The sun had set; they walked in the
+twilight for some hours, and, when the moon rose, they were out of
+danger. They had still to journey over a painful and dangerous road
+for those who no longer had the ardor of the morning. There were
+marshes to cross, ditches to leap, and thickets to break through,
+which tore Graceful's face and hands; but at the thought that he could
+still repair his fault and save his grandmother his heart was so light
+that his strength redoubled at every step with his hope. At last,
+after a thousand obstacles, they reached Pæstum just as the stars
+marked midnight.
+
+Graceful threw himself on the pavement of the temple of Neptune, and,
+after thanking Pensive, fell asleep, with Fido at his feet, wounded,
+bleeding, and silent.
+
+
+IV
+
+The sleep was not long. Graceful was up before daybreak, which seemed
+long in coming. On descending the steps of the temple he saw the ants,
+who had raised a heap of sand and were bringing grain from the new
+harvest. The whole republic was in motion. The ants were all going or
+coming, talking to their neighbors, and receiving or giving orders;
+some were dragging wisps of straw, others were carrying bits of wood,
+others conveying away dead flies, and others heaping up provisions; it
+was a complete winter establishment.
+
+"What!" said Graceful to the ants, "are you not going to the Castle of
+Life? Do you renounce immortality?"
+
+"We have worked long enough," answered one of the laborers; "the time
+for harvest has come. The road is long and the future uncertain, and
+we are rich. Let fools count on to-morrow; the wise man uses to-day.
+When a person has hoarded riches honestly it is true philosophy to
+enjoy them."
+
+Fido thought that the ant was right; but, as he no longer dared
+advise, he contented himself with shaking his head as they set out.
+Pensive, on the contrary, said that the ant was a selfish fellow, and
+that, if life were made only for enjoyment, the butterfly was wiser
+than he. At the same time, and with a lighter wing than ever, the
+swallow soared upward to lead the way.
+
+Graceful walked on in silence. Ashamed of the follies of the day
+before, although he still regretted the doe, he resolved that on the
+third day nothing should turn him aside from the road. Fido, with his
+mutilated ear, limped after his master and seemed not less dreamy than
+he. At noon they sought for a shady place in which to rest for a few
+moments. The sun was less scorching than the day before. It seemed as
+if both country and season had changed. The road lay through meadows
+lately mown for the second time, or beautiful vineyards full of
+grapes, and was lined with great fig-trees laden with fruit, in which
+thousands of insects were humming; golden clouds were floating in the
+horizon, the air was soft and gentle, and everything tempted to
+repose.
+
+In the most beautiful of the meadows, by the side of a brook which
+diffused its coolness afar, Graceful saw a herd of buffaloes chewing
+the cud under the shade of the ashes and plane-trees. They were lazily
+stretched on the ground, in a circle around a large bull that seemed
+their chief and king. Graceful approached them, and was received with
+politeness. They invited him by a nod to be seated, and pointed out to
+him great bowls full of milk and cheese. Our traveler admired the
+calmness and gravity of these peaceful and powerful animals, which
+seemed like so many Roman senators in their curule chairs. The gold
+ring which they wore in their noses added still more to the majesty of
+their aspect. Graceful, who felt calmer and more sedate than the day
+before, thought, in spite of himself, how pleasant it would be to live
+in the midst of this peace and plenty; if happiness were anywhere, it
+must surely be found here.
+
+Fido shared his master's opinion. It was the season of the southward
+migration of the quails; the ground was covered with tired birds,
+resting to regain strength before crossing the sea, and Fido had only
+to stoop down to find game worthy of a prince. Satiated with eating,
+he stretched himself at Graceful's feet and slept soundly.
+
+When the buffaloes had finished chewing their cud, Graceful, who had
+hitherto feared to disturb them, entered into conversation with the
+bull, who showed a cultivated mind and wide experience.
+
+"Are you the masters of this rich domain?" asked he.
+
+"No," replied the old buffalo; "we belong, with all the rest, to the
+Fairy Crapaudine, the Queen of the Vermilion Towers, the richest of
+all the fairies."
+
+"What does she require of you?" asked Graceful.
+
+"Nothing, except to wear this gold ring in the nose and to pay her a
+tribute of milk," returned the bull, "or, at most, to give her one of
+our children from time to time to regale her guests. At this price we
+enjoy our plenty in perfect security, and we have no reason to envy
+any on earth, for none are so happy as we."
+
+"Have you never heard of the Castle of Life and the Fountain of
+Immortality?" asked Graceful, who, without knowing why, blushed as he
+put the question.
+
+"There were some old men among our ancestors who still talked of these
+visions," replied the bull; "but we are wiser than our fathers; we
+know that there is no other happiness than to chew the cud and
+sleep."
+
+Graceful rose sadly to resume his journey, and asked what were those
+reddish square towers which he saw in the distance.
+
+"They are the Vermilion Towers," returned the bull; "they bar the way;
+and you must pass through the castle of the Fairy Crapaudine in order
+to continue your road. You will see the fairy, my young friend, and
+she will offer you hospitality and riches. Take my advice and do like
+those that have gone before you, all of whom accepted the favors of
+our mistress, and found that they had done well to abandon their
+dreams in order to live happy."
+
+"And what became of them?" asked Graceful.
+
+"They became buffaloes like us," rejoined the bull, who, not having
+finished his afternoon nap, closed his eyes and fell asleep.
+
+Graceful started and awakened Fido, who rose, grumbling. He called
+Pensive. Pensive did not answer; she was talking with a spider that
+had spun a great web between the branches of an ash-tree, which was
+glittering in the sun, full of flies. "Why take this long journey?"
+said the spider to the swallow. "What is the use of changing your
+climate and putting your life at the mercy of the sea, the weather, or
+a master? Look at me; I depend on nobody, and have everything for
+myself. I am my own mistress; I enjoy my art and genius; I bring the
+world to me; nothing can disturb either my calculations, or a
+serenity which I owe to myself alone."
+
+Graceful called Pensive three times without making her hear, so
+completely was she engrossed in admiration of her new friend. Every
+instant some giddy fly fell into the web, and each time the spider,
+like an attentive hostess, offered the prey to her astonished
+companion, when suddenly a breeze passed--a breeze so light that it
+did not ruffle a feather of the swallow's wing. Pensive looked for the
+spider; the web had been swept away by the winds, and the poor insect
+was clinging by one foot to the last thread, when a bird seized it and
+bore it away.
+
+
+V
+
+Setting out again on their way, they proceeded in silence to the
+palace of Crapaudine. Graceful was introduced with great ceremony by
+two beautiful greyhounds, caparisoned with purple and wearing on their
+necks broad collars sparkling with rubies. After crossing a great
+number of halls, all full of pictures, statues, gold, and silver, and
+coffers overflowing with money and jewels, Graceful and his companions
+entered a circular temple, which was Crapaudine's drawing-room. The
+walls were of lapis-lazuli, and the ceiling, of sky-blue enamel, was
+supported by twelve chiseled pillars of massive gold, with capitals of
+acanthus leaves of white enamel edged with gold. A huge frog, as
+large as a rabbit, was seated in a velvet easy-chair. It was the fairy
+of the place. The charming Crapaudine was draped in a scarlet mantle
+covered with glittering spangles, and wore on her head a ruby diadem
+whose luster lighted up her fat cheeks mottled with green and yellow.
+As soon as she perceived Graceful she extended to him her fingers,
+covered with rings, which the poor boy was obliged respectfully to
+raise to his lips as he bowed.
+
+"My friend," said the fairy to him, in a hoarse voice, which she
+vainly tried to soften, "I was expecting you, and I will not be less
+generous to you than my sisters have been. On the way here you have
+seen but a small part of my riches. This palace, with its pictures,
+its statues, and its coffers full of gold, these vast domains, and
+these innumerable flocks, all may be yours if you wish; it depends
+only on yourself to become the richest and happiest of men."
+
+"What must I do for this?" asked Graceful, greatly excited.
+
+"Less than nothing," replied the fairy; "chop me up into little pieces
+and eat me. It is not a very disagreeable thing to do," added
+Crapaudine, looking at Graceful with eyes redder than usual.
+
+"Can I not season you, at least?" said Graceful, who had been unable
+to look without envy at the beautiful gardens of the fairy.
+
+"No, you must eat me without seasoning; but walk about my palace, see
+and handle all my treasures, and reflect that, by giving me this proof
+of devotion, they will all be yours."
+
+"Master," sighed Fido, in a supplicating voice, "a little courage! We
+are so comfortable here!"
+
+Pensive said nothing, but her silence was consent. As to Graceful, who
+remembered the buffaloes and the gold ring, he distrusted the fairy.
+Crapaudine perceived it.
+
+"Do not think, my dear Graceful, that I wish to deceive you," she
+said. "In offering you all that I possess, I also demand of you a
+service which I will reward as it deserves. When you have done what I
+propose I shall become a young girl, as beautiful as Venus, except
+that my hands and feet will remain like those of a frog, which is very
+little when one is rich. Ten princes, twenty marquises, and thirty
+counts have already begged me to marry them as I am; when I become a
+woman, I will give you the preference, and we will enjoy my vast
+fortune together. Do not blush for your poverty; you have about you a
+treasure that is worth all mine, the vial which my sister gave you."
+Saying this, she stretched out her slimy fingers to seize the
+talisman.
+
+"Never!" cried Graceful, shrinking back, "never! I wish neither repose
+nor fortune; I wish to quit this place and to go to the Castle of
+Life."
+
+"You shall never go there!" exclaimed the fairy, in a rage. The castle
+instantly disappeared, a circle of fire surrounded Graceful, and an
+invisible clock began to strike midnight. At the first stroke the
+child started; at the second, without hesitating, he plunged headlong
+into the flames. To die for his grandmother seemed to him the only
+means of showing his love and repentance.
+
+
+VI
+
+To Graceful's surprise, the flames parted without touching him, and he
+suddenly found himself in a new country, with his two companions by
+his side. This country was no longer Italy, but Russia, the end of the
+earth. He was wandering on a mountain covered with snow. Around him he
+saw nothing but great trees, coated with hoar-frost and dripping water
+from all their branches; a damp and penetrating mist chilled him to
+the bones; the moist earth sank under his feet; and, to crown his
+wretchedness, it was necessary to descend a steep precipice, at the
+bottom of which a torrent was breaking noisily over the rocks.
+Graceful took his dagger and cut a branch from a tree to support his
+faltering steps. Fido, with his tail between his legs, barked feebly;
+and Pensive, her ruffled feathers covered with icicles, clung to her
+master's shoulder. The poor bird was half dead, but she encouraged
+Graceful and did not complain.
+
+When, after infinite pains, he reached the foot of the mountain,
+Graceful found a river filled with enormous icebergs, striking against
+one another and whirling in the current, and this river he must
+cross, without bridge, without boat, and without aid.
+
+"Master," said Fido, "I can go no farther. Accursed be the fairy that
+drew me from nothingness to place me in your service." Saying this, he
+lay down on the ground and would not stir. Graceful vainly tried to
+restore his courage, and called him his companion and friend. All that
+the poor dog could do was to answer his master's caresses for the last
+time by wagging his tail and licking his hands; then his limbs
+stiffened and he expired.
+
+Graceful took Fido on his back in order to carry him to the Castle of
+Life, and boldly climbed one of the icebergs, still followed by
+Pensive. With his staff he pushed this frail bark into the middle of
+the current, which bore it away with frightful rapidity.
+
+"Master," said Pensive, "do you hear the roaring of the waters? We are
+floating toward a whirlpool which will swallow us up! Give me a last
+caress and farewell!"
+
+"No," said Graceful. "Why should the fairies have deceived us? The
+shore may be close by; perhaps the sun is shining behind the clouds.
+Mount, mount, my good Pensive; perchance above the fog you will find
+light and will see the Castle of Life!"
+
+Pensive spread her half-frozen wings, and courageously soared amid the
+cold and mist. Graceful listened for a moment to the sound of her
+flight; then all was silent, while the iceberg pursued its furious
+course through the darkness. Graceful waited a long time; at last,
+when he felt himself alone, hope abandoned him, and he lay down to
+await death on the tottering iceberg. Livid flashes of lightning shot
+through the clouds, horrible bursts of thunder were heard, and the end
+of the world and of time seemed approaching. All at once, in the midst
+of his despair, Graceful heard the cry of the swallow, and Pensive
+fell at his feet. "Master, master," cried she, "you were right. I have
+seen the shore; the dawn is close at hand. Courage!" Saying this, she
+convulsively spread her tired wings and lay motionless and lifeless.
+
+Graceful started up, placed the poor bird that had sacrificed itself
+for him next his heart, and, with superhuman ardor, urged the iceberg
+on to safety or destruction. Suddenly he heard the roaring of the
+breakers. He fell on his knees and closed his eyes, awaiting death.
+
+A wave like a mountain broke over his head and cast him fainting on
+the shore, which no living person had touched before him.
+
+
+VII
+
+When Graceful recovered his senses, the ice, clouds, and darkness had
+disappeared. He was lying on the ground in the midst of a charming
+country, covered with trees bathed in a soft light. In front of him
+was a beautiful castle, from which bubbled a brook that flowed into a
+sea as blue, calm, and transparent as the sky. Graceful looked about
+him; he was alone--alone with the remains of his two companions, which
+the waves had washed on the shore. Exhausted with suffering and
+excitement, he dragged himself to the brook and bent over the water to
+refresh his parched lips, when he shrank back with affright. It was
+not his face that he saw in the water, but that of an old man with
+silvery locks who strongly resembled him. He turned round; there was
+no one behind him. He again drew near the fountain; he saw the old
+man, or rather, doubtless, the old man was himself. "Great fairies,"
+he cried. "I understand you. If it is my life that you wish in
+exchange for that of my grandmother, I joyfully accept the sacrifice."
+And without troubling himself further about his old age and wrinkles,
+he plunged his head into the water and drank eagerly.
+
+On rising, he was astonished to see himself again as he was when he
+left home, only more beautiful, with blacker hair and brighter eyes
+than ever. He picked up his hat, which had fallen near the spring, and
+which a drop of water had touched by chance, when what was his
+surprise to see the butterfly that he had pinned to it fluttering its
+wings and seeking to fly. He gave it its liberty, and ran to the beach
+for Fido and Pensive, then plunged them both into the blessed
+fountain. Pensive flew upward with a joyful cry and disappeared amid
+the turrets of the castle. Fido, shaking the water from both ears,
+ran to the kennels of the palace, where he was met by magnificent
+watch-dogs, which, instead of barking and growling at the new-comer,
+welcomed him joyfully like an old friend. Graceful had at last found
+the Fountain of Immortality, or rather the brook that flowed from
+it--a brook already greatly weakened, and which only gave two or three
+hundred years of life to those that drank of it; but nothing prevented
+them from drinking anew.
+
+Graceful filled his vial with this life-giving water and approached
+the palace. His heart beat, for a last trial remained. So near
+success, he feared the more to fail. He mounted the steps of the
+castle. All was closed and silent; no one was there to receive the
+traveler. When he had reached the last step and was about to knock at
+the door, a voice, rather gentle than harsh, stopped him.
+
+"Have you loved?" said the invisible voice.
+
+"Yes," answered Graceful; "I have loved my grandmother better than any
+one in the world."
+
+The door opened a little way.
+
+"Have you suffered for her whom you have loved?" resumed the voice.
+
+"I have suffered," replied Graceful; "much through my own fault,
+doubtless, but a little for her whom I wished to save."
+
+The door opened half-way and the child caught a glimpse of woods,
+waters, and a sky more beautiful than anything of which he had ever
+dreamed.
+
+"Have you always done your duty?" said the voice, in a harsher tone.
+
+"Alas! no," replied Graceful, falling on his knees; "but when I have
+failed I have been punished by my remorse even more than by the hard
+trials through which I have passed. Forgive me, and punish me as I
+deserve, if I have not yet expiated all my faults; but save her whom I
+love--save my grandmother."
+
+The door instantly opened wide, though Graceful saw no one.
+Intoxicated with joy, he entered a courtyard surrounded with arbors
+embowered in foliage, with a fountain in the midst, spouting from a
+tuft of flowers larger, more beautiful, and more fragrant than any he
+had seen on earth. By the side of the spring stood a woman dressed in
+white, of noble bearing, and seemingly not more than forty years old.
+She advanced to meet Graceful, and smiled on him so sweetly that the
+child felt himself touched to the heart, and his eyes filled with
+tears.
+
+"Don't you know me?" said the woman.
+
+"Oh, grandmother! is it you?" he exclaimed. "How came you in the
+Castle of Life?"
+
+"My child," said she, pressing him to her heart, "He who brought me
+here is an enchanter more powerful than the fairies of the woods and
+the waters. I shall never more return to Salerno. I shall receive my
+reward here for the little good I have done by tasting a happiness
+which time will not destroy."
+
+"And me, grandmother!" cried Graceful, "what shall become of me? After
+seeing you here, how can I return to suffer alone?"
+
+"My dear child," she replied, "no one can live on earth after he has
+caught a glimpse of the celestial delights of this abode. You have
+lived, my dear Graceful; life has nothing more to teach you. You have
+passed in four days through the desert where I languished eighty
+years, and henceforth nothing can separate us."
+
+The door closed, and from that time nothing was heard of Graceful or
+his grandmother. It was in vain that search was made for the palace
+and enchanted fountain; they were never more discovered on earth. But
+if we understood the language of the stars, if we felt what their
+gentle rays tell us every evening, we should long ago have learned
+from them where to look for the Castle of Life and the Fountain of
+Immortality.
+
+
+
+
+Destiny
+
+_A Dalmatian Tale_
+
+[Illustration:]
+
+
+Once upon a time there were two brothers, who lived together in one
+family. One did everything, while the other was an idle fellow who
+troubled himself about nothing but eating and drinking. The harvests
+were always magnificent; they had cows, horses, sheep, pigs, bees, and
+everything else in plenty.
+
+The elder brother, who did everything, said to himself, one day, "Why
+should I work for this idler? It is better for us to separate; I will
+work for myself alone, and he can do as he likes." He said to his
+brother, therefore:
+
+"Brother, it is not just for me to do everything, while you trouble
+yourself about nothing but eating and drinking; we must separate."
+
+His brother tried to dissuade him from his plan, saying:
+
+"Brother, don't do this, we are so well off as we are. You have
+everything in your own hands; what is mine is yours; and you know that
+I am always satisfied with what you do or order done."
+
+The elder, however, persisted in his resolution till the younger was
+forced to yield. "Since it must be so," said he, "I am not angry.
+Divide the property as you like."
+
+The division made, each took his share. The idler hired a drover for
+his cattle, a groom for his horses, a shepherd for his sheep, a
+goatherd for his goats, a swineherd for his hogs, and a keeper for his
+bees, and said to them all, "I intrust my property to you. May God
+have you in His keeping." And he continued to stay at home, with no
+more care than before.
+
+The elder, on the contrary, labored for himself as he had done for the
+common good: he kept his own flocks and had an eye to everything; yet,
+in spite of all this, he found bad luck and misfortune everywhere;
+everything went wrong with him, until at last he was so poor that he
+had not even a pair of shoes, but was forced to go barefoot. He said
+to himself, "I will go to my brother's house and see how affairs are
+prospering with him."
+
+His road lay through a pasture in which a flock of sheep was feeding.
+On approaching them he saw that they had no shepherd. A beautiful
+young girl was seated near them, with her distaff, spinning gold
+thread.
+
+He saluted the young girl and asked her to whom the flock belonged.
+
+"To him to whom I belong belong also these sheep," answered she.
+
+"And who are you?" said he.
+
+"I am your brother's fortune?" she replied.
+
+"And where is my fortune?" he exclaimed, seized with anger and envy.
+
+"Ah! she is far from you," said the young girl.
+
+"Can I find her?" asked he.
+
+"You can," she replied, "if you only look yonder."
+
+On hearing these words, and seeing that the sheep were the finest that
+could be imagined, he had no wish to see the other flocks, but went
+straight to his brother, who, as soon as he saw him, burst into tears,
+moved with pity.
+
+"Where have you been so long?" asked he. And, seeing him clothed in
+rags and barefooted, he gave him a pair of shoes and some money.
+
+After staying three days in his brother's house, the poor man set out
+for home. No sooner had he reached his house than he threw a bag
+across his shoulder, with a piece of bread in it, took a staff in his
+hand, and set out to seek his fortune.
+
+After walking for some time he found himself in a great forest, where
+he saw a wretched old hag asleep under a tree. He gave her a blow on
+the back with his staff to awaken her. She moved with difficulty, and,
+half opening her bleared eyes, said to him, "Thank God that I was
+asleep, for if I had been awake you would not have had those shoes."
+
+"Who are you, then," asked he, "that would have prevented my having
+these shoes?"
+
+"I am your fortune," answered the old woman.
+
+"What! are you my fortune?" cried he, striking his breast. "May God
+exterminate you! Who gave you to me?"
+
+"It was Destiny," replied the old woman.
+
+"Where is Destiny?" he asked.
+
+"Go and find him," said the old woman, lying down to sleep again.
+
+He set out in search of Destiny. After a long, long journey, at length
+he reached a wood, where he found a hermit, of whom he asked the way
+to the abode of Destiny.
+
+"Go straight up yonder mountain and you will find his castle,"
+answered the hermit; "but when you find him take care not to speak to
+him, but only do all that you see him do."
+
+The traveler thanked the hermit and took his way to the mountain. When
+he reached the abode of Destiny he saw a magnificent palace full of
+servants constantly bustling about and doing nothing. As to Destiny,
+he was supping at a table bountifully served. When the stranger saw
+this he also sat down at the table and supped with the master of the
+house. After supper Destiny went to bed, and his guest did the same.
+
+At midnight a terrible noise was heard in the castle, and a voice
+cried, "Destiny, Destiny, such a number of souls have come into the
+world this night; give them something according to thy good pleasure."
+
+And behold! Destiny rose, and opened a golden chest filled with
+shining guineas, which he scattered by handfuls about the room,
+saying, "Such as I am to-day, such shalt thou be all thy life!"
+
+At daybreak the beautiful castle had vanished, and in its place stood
+an ordinary house, in which, however, nothing was wanting. When
+evening came Destiny sat down to supper. His guest did the same, but
+no one spoke a word. Supper over, they went to bed. At midnight a
+terrible noise was heard, and a voice cried, "Destiny, Destiny, such a
+number of souls have come into the world this night; give them
+something according to thy good pleasure."
+
+And behold! Destiny rose, and opened a silver chest, but this time
+there were no guineas in it, but only silver coin, with a few small
+pieces of gold, which Destiny scattered on the floor, saying, "Such as
+I am to-day, such shalt thou be all thy life!"
+
+At daybreak this house had also disappeared, and a smaller one stood
+in its place. The same thing happened every night, and every morning
+the house was smaller, until finally there was nothing but a wretched
+hut. Destiny now took a spade and began to dig the ground. His guest
+did the same, and both worked all day. When night came, Destiny took
+a crust of bread and, breaking it in two, gave half to his companion.
+This was all his supper. When they had eaten it they went to bed.
+
+At midnight a terrible noise was heard, and a voice cried out,
+"Destiny, Destiny, such a number of souls have come into the world
+this night; give them something according to thy good pleasure."
+
+And behold! Destiny rose, and opened a wooden chest filled with
+pebbles mixed with a few copper coins, which he scattered on the
+ground, saying, "Such as I am to-day, such shalt thou be all thy
+life!"
+
+When morning dawned the cabin was changed into a splendid palace, as
+on the first day. Then, for the first time, Destiny spoke to his
+guest. "Why did you come here?" asked he.
+
+The poor man told him the whole story of his wretchedness, and how he
+had come to ask Destiny himself why he had given him such a bad
+fortune.
+
+"You saw what I was the first night, when I scattered guineas, and
+what followed," replied Destiny. "Such as I am on the night that a man
+is born, such will that man be all his life. You were born on a night
+of poverty; you will always be poor. Your brother, on the contrary,
+came into the world on a lucky night; he will always be fortunate.
+But, since you have taken so much trouble to find me, I will tell you
+how to help yourself. Your brother has a daughter by the name of
+Miliza, who is as fortunate as her father. Take her for your wife when
+you return home, but be careful always to say that all that you have
+belongs to her."
+
+The poor man thanked Destiny again and again, and set out for home. As
+soon as he arrived he went straight to his brother's house and said,
+
+"Brother, give me Miliza for a wife; you see that I am all alone in
+the world."
+
+"I am willing," answered his brother; "Miliza is yours."
+
+The bridegroom carried Miliza to his house. He soon became very rich,
+but he always took good care to say, "All that I have belongs to
+Miliza."
+
+One day, however, as he was admiring his wheat, which was the most
+beautiful that ever was seen, a stranger passed by and asked, "Whose
+wheat is this?"
+
+"It is mine," answered he, without thinking. But scarcely had he
+spoken when, behold! the wheat took fire, and the flames spread all
+over the field. Without stopping to put it out, he ran after the
+traveler, crying, "Stop, sir, I was mistaken; it belongs to Miliza, my
+brother's daughter."
+
+The fire went out at once of its own accord. He had learned a good
+lesson which he never forgot, and from that time thenceforth he was
+fortunate, thanks to Miliza.
+
+
+
+
+The Twelve Months
+
+_A Bohemian Tale_
+
+[Illustration:]
+
+
+There was once a woman who was left a widow with two children. The
+elder, who was only her stepdaughter, was named Dobrunka; the younger,
+who was as wicked as her mother, was called Katinka. The mother
+worshiped her daughter, but she hated Dobrunka, simply because she was
+as beautiful as her sister was ugly. Dobrunka did not even know that
+she was pretty, and she could not understand why her stepmother flew
+into a rage at the mere sight of her. The poor child was obliged to do
+all the work of the house; she had to sweep, cook, wash, sew, spin,
+weave, cut the grass, and take care of the cow, while Katinka lived
+like a princess--that is to say, did nothing.
+
+Dobrunka worked with a good will, and took reproaches and blows with
+the gentleness of a lamb; but nothing soothed her stepmother, for
+every day added to the beauty of the elder sister and the ugliness of
+the younger. "They are growing up," thought the mother, "and suitors
+will soon appear, who will refuse my daughter when they see this
+hateful Dobrunka, who grows beautiful on purpose to spite me. I must
+get rid of her, cost what it may."
+
+One day in the middle of January, Katinka took a fancy for some
+violets. She called Dobrunka and said, "Go to the forest and bring me
+a bunch of violets, that I may put them in my bosom and enjoy their
+fragrance."
+
+"Oh, sister, what an idea!" answered Dobrunka; "as if there were any
+violets under the snow!"
+
+"Hold your tongue, stupid fool," returned her sister, "and do as I bid
+you. If you do not go to the forest and bring me back a bunch of
+violets I will beat you to a jelly." Upon this the mother took
+Dobrunka by the arm, put her out of the door, and drew the bolt on
+her.
+
+The poor girl went to the forest weeping bitterly. Everything was
+covered with snow; there was not even a footpath. She lost her way and
+wandered about till, famishing with hunger and perishing with cold,
+she entreated God to take her from this wretched life.
+
+All at once she saw a light in the distance. She went on, climbing
+higher and higher, until at last she reached the top of a huge rock,
+upon which a great fire was built. Around the fire were twelve stones,
+and on each stone sat a motionless figure, wrapped in a large mantle,
+his head covered with a hood which fell over his eyes. Three of these
+mantles were white like the snow, three were green like the grass of
+the meadows, three were golden like the sheaves of ripe wheat, and
+three were purple like the grapes of the vine. These twelve figures,
+gazing at the fire in silence, were the Twelve Months of the year.
+
+Dobrunka knew January by his long white beard. He was the only one
+that had a staff in his hand. The poor girl was terribly frightened.
+She drew near, saying, in a timid voice, "My good sirs, please to let
+me warm myself by your fire; I am freezing with cold."
+
+January nodded his head. "Why have you come here, my child?" he asked.
+"What are you looking for?"
+
+"I am looking for violets," replied Dobrunka.
+
+"This is not the season for them; there are no violets in the time of
+snow," said January, in his gruff voice.
+
+"I know it," replied Dobrunka, sadly; "but my sister and mother will
+beat me to a jelly if I do not bring them some. My good sirs, please
+to tell me where I can find them."
+
+Old January rose, and, turning to a young man in a green mantle, put
+his staff in his hand, and said to him, "Brother March, this is your
+business."
+
+March rose in turn, and stirred the fire with the staff, when, behold!
+the flames rose, the snow melted, the buds put forth on the trees, the
+grass turned green under the bushes, the flowers peeped through the
+verdure, and the violets opened--it was spring.
+
+"Make haste, my child, and gather your violets," said March.
+
+[Illustration: PRETTY DOBRUNKA WAS OBLIGED TO DO ALL THE WORK OF THE
+HOUSE]
+
+Dobrunka gathered a large bouquet, thanked the Twelve Months, and
+joyfully ran home. You can imagine the astonishment of Katinka and the
+stepmother. The fragrance of the violets filled the whole house.
+
+"Where did you find these fine things?" asked Katinka, in a disdainful
+voice.
+
+"Up yonder, on the mountain," answered her sister. "It looked like a
+great blue carpet under the bushes."
+
+Katinka put the bouquet in her bosom and did not even thank the poor
+child.
+
+The next morning the wicked sister, as she sat idling by the stove,
+took a fancy for some strawberries.
+
+"Go to the forest and bring me some strawberries," said she to
+Dobrunka.
+
+"Oh, sister, what an idea! as if there were any strawberries under the
+snow!"
+
+"Hold your tongue, stupid fool, and do as I bid you. If you don't go
+to the forest and bring me back a basket of strawberries, I will beat
+you to a jelly."
+
+The mother took Dobrunka by the arm, put her out of the door, and drew
+the bolt on her.
+
+The poor girl returned to the forest, looking with all her eyes for
+the light that she had seen the day before. She was fortunate enough
+to spy it, and she reached the fire trembling and almost frozen.
+
+The Twelve Months were in their places, motionless and silent.
+
+"My good sirs," said Dobrunka, "please to let me warm myself by your
+fire; I am almost frozen with cold."
+
+"Why have you returned?" asked January. "What are you looking for?"
+
+"I am looking for strawberries," answered she.
+
+"This is not the season for them," returned January, in his gruff
+voice; "there are no strawberries under the snow."
+
+"I know it," replied Dobrunka, sadly; "but my mother and sister will
+beat me to a jelly if I do not bring them some. My good sirs, please
+to tell me where I can find them."
+
+Old January rose and, turning to a man in a golden mantle, he put his
+staff in his hand, saying, "Brother June, this is your business."
+
+June rose in turn, and stirred the fire with the staff, when, behold!
+the flames rose, the snow melted, the earth grew green, the trees were
+covered with leaves, the birds sang and the flowers opened--it was
+summer. Thousands of little white stars enameled the turf, then turned
+to red strawberries, looking, in their green cups, like rubies set in
+emeralds.
+
+"Make haste, my child, and gather your strawberries," said June.
+
+Dobrunka filled her apron, thanked the Twelve Months, and joyfully
+ran home. You may imagine the astonishment of Katinka and the
+stepmother. The fragrance of the strawberries filled the whole house.
+
+"Where did you find these things?" asked Katinka, in a disdainful
+voice.
+
+"Up yonder on the mountain," answered her sister; "there were so many
+of them that they looked like blood poured on the ground."
+
+Katinka and her mother devoured the strawberries without even thanking
+the poor child.
+
+The third day the wicked sister took a fancy for some red apples. The
+same threats, the same insults, and the same violence followed.
+Dobrunka ran to the mountain, and was fortunate enough to find the
+Twelve Months warming themselves, motionless and silent.
+
+"You here again, my child?" said old January, making room for her by
+the fire. Dobrunka told him, with tears, how, if she did not bring
+home some red apples, her mother and sister would beat her to death.
+
+Old January repeated the ceremonies of the day before. "Brother
+September," said he to a gray-bearded man in a purple mantle, "this is
+your business."
+
+September rose and stirred the fire with the staff, when, behold! the
+flames ascended, the snow melted, and the trees put forth a few yellow
+leaves, which fell one by one before the wind--it was autumn. The only
+flowers were a few late pinks, daisies, and immortelles. Dobrunka saw
+but one thing, an apple-tree with its rosy fruit.
+
+"Make haste, my child; shake the tree," said September.
+
+She shook it, and an apple fell; she shook it again, and a second
+apple followed.
+
+"Make haste, Dobrunka, make haste home!" cried September, in an
+imperious voice.
+
+The good child thanked the Twelve Months, and joyfully ran home. You
+may imagine the astonishment of Katinka and the stepmother.
+
+"Red apples in January! Where did you get these apples?" asked
+Katinka.
+
+"Up yonder on the mountain; there is a tree there that is as red with
+them as a cherry-tree in July."
+
+"Why did you bring only two? You ate the rest on the way."
+
+"Oh, sister, I did not touch them; I was only permitted to shake the
+tree twice, and but two apples fell."
+
+"Begone, you fool!" cried Katinka, striking her sister, who ran away
+crying.
+
+The wicked girl tasted one of the apples; she had never eaten anything
+so delicious in her life, neither had her mother. How they regretted
+not having any more!
+
+[Illustration: TURNED OUT BY HER MOTHER, DOBRUNKA WENT UNHAPPILY INTO
+THE FOREST]
+
+"Mother," said Katinka, "give me my fur cloak. I will go to the forest
+and find the tree, and whether I am permitted or not I will shake
+it so hard that all the apples will be ours."
+
+The mother tried to stop her. A spoiled child listens to nothing.
+Katinka wrapped herself in her fur cloak, drew the hood over her head,
+and hastened to the forest.
+
+Everything was covered with snow; there was not even a footpath.
+Katinka lost her way, but she pushed on, spurred by pride and
+covetousness. She spied a light in the distance. She climbed and
+climbed till she reached the place, and found the Twelve Months each
+seated on his stone, motionless and silent. Without asking their
+permission, she approached the fire.
+
+"Why have you come here? What do you want? Where are you going?" asked
+old January, gruffly.
+
+"What matters it to you, old fool?" answered Katinka. "It is none of
+your business where I came from or whither I am going." She plunged
+into the forest. January frowned and raised his staff above his head.
+In the twinkling of an eye the sky was overcast, the fire went out,
+the snow fell, and the wind blew. Katinka could not see the way before
+her. She lost herself, and vainly tried to retrace her steps. The snow
+fell and the wind blew. She called her mother, she cursed her sister,
+she cursed God. The snow fell and the wind blew. Katinka froze, her
+limbs stiffened, and she fell motionless. The snow still fell and the
+wind still blew.
+
+The mother went without ceasing from the window to the door, and from
+the door to the window. The hours passed and Katinka did not return.
+
+"I must go and look for my daughter," said she. "The child has
+forgotten herself with those hateful apples." She took her fur cloak
+and hood, and hastened to the mountain. Everything was covered with
+snow; there was not even a footpath. She plunged into the forest,
+calling her daughter. The snow fell and the wind blew. She walked on
+with feverish anxiety, shouting at the top of her voice. The snow
+still fell and the wind still blew.
+
+Dobrunka waited through the evening and the night, but no one
+returned. In the morning she took her wheel and spun a whole distaff
+full; there was still no news. "What can have happened?" said the
+girl, weeping. The sun was shining through an icy mist and the ground
+was covered with snow. Dobrunka prayed for her mother and sister. They
+did not return; and it was not till spring that a shepherd found the
+two corpses in the forest.
+
+Dobrunka remained the sole mistress of the house, the cow, and the
+garden, to say nothing of a piece of meadow adjoining the house. But
+when a good and pretty girl has a field under her window, the next
+thing that follows is a young farmer who offers her his heart and
+hand. Dobrunka was soon married. The Twelve Months did not abandon
+their child. More than once, when the north wind blew fearfully and
+the windows shook in their frames, old January stopped up all the
+crevices of the house with snow, so that the cold might not enter this
+peaceful abode.
+
+Dobrunka lived to a good old age, always virtuous and happy, having,
+according to the proverb, winter at the door, summer in the barn,
+autumn in the cellar, and spring in the heart.
+
+
+
+
+Swanda the Piper
+
+_A Bohemian Tale_
+
+[Illustration:]
+
+
+Swanda, the Piper, was a jolly companion. Like every true musician, he
+was born with an unquenchable thirst; besides, he was madly fond of
+play, and would have risked his soul at strajak, the favorite game at
+cards in Bohemia. When he had earned a little money he would throw
+aside his pipes, and drink and play with the first comer till he
+returned to his home as light in pocket as when he had left it. But he
+was always so merry, witty, and good-natured that not a drinker ever
+left the table while the piper was there, and his name still lives in
+Bohemia as the prince of good fellows.
+
+One day there was a festival at Mokran, and no merry-making was ever
+complete without the piper. Swanda, after blowing his pipe till
+midnight and earning twenty zwanzigers, determined to amuse himself on
+his own account. Neither prayers nor promises could persuade him to
+go on with his music; he was determined to drink his fill and to
+shuffle the cards at his ease; but, for the first time in his life, he
+found no one to play with him.
+
+Swanda was not the man to quit the inn so long as he had a kreutzer in
+his pocket, and on that day he had many of them. By dint of talking,
+laughing, and drinking he took one of those fixed ideas which are not
+uncommon among those who look too often in the bottom of their glass,
+and determined to play at any price; but all his neighbors refused his
+challenge. Furious at finding no partner, he rose with an unsteady
+step, paid for what he had drank, and left the inn.
+
+"I will go to Drazic," said he; "the schoolmaster and the bailiff
+there are honest people who are not afraid of play, and I shall find
+partners. Hurrah!"
+
+The night was clear and the moon shone like a fish's eye. On reaching
+a cross-road Swanda raised his eyes by chance, and stopped, mute and
+motionless. A flock of ravens were croaking over his head, and in
+front of him rose four posts, standing like pillars, and connected at
+the top by cross-beams, from each of which swung a half-devoured
+corpse. It was a robbers' gallows, a spectacle by no means amusing to
+a less stoical spirit than that of Swanda.
+
+He had not recovered from the first shudder when suddenly there
+appeared before him a man dressed in black, with pale and hollow
+cheeks, and eyes that glittered like carbuncles.
+
+"Where are you going so late, friend Piper?" asked he, in a soft
+voice.
+
+"To Drazic, Mr. Black Coat," answered the intrepid Swanda.
+
+"Would you like to earn something by your music?"
+
+"I am tired of blowing," returned Swanda. "I have some silver in my
+pocket, and wish to amuse myself."
+
+"Who talks to you of silver? It is with gold that we pay."
+
+Saying this, the stranger flashed before his eyes a handful of shining
+ducats. The piper was the son of a thrifty mother; he knew not how to
+resist such an invitation, and followed the black man and his gold.
+
+How the time passed he never could remember. It is true that his head
+was a little heavy. The only thing that he recollected was that the
+black man warned him to accept whatever was offered him, whether gold
+or wine, but never to return thanks except by saying "Good luck,
+brother!"
+
+Without knowing how he had entered, he found himself in a dark room
+where three men, dressed in black like his guide, were playing at
+strajak by no other light than their glittering eyes. On the table
+were piles of gold, and a jug from which each one drank in his turn.
+
+"Brothers," said the black man, "I bring you friend Swanda, whom you
+have long known by reputation. I thought to please you on this
+feast-day by giving you a little music."
+
+"A good idea!" said one of the players. Then, taking the jug, he
+handed it to Swanda, saying, "Here, piper, drink and play."
+
+Swanda had some scruples; but, after all, it is impossible to have
+charcoal without putting your finger into the ashes. The wine, though
+rather warm, was not bad. He replaced the jug on the table, and
+raising his hat, said, "Good luck, brother!" as he had been advised.
+
+He began to play, and never had his music produced such an effect.
+Each note made the players leap for joy. Their eyes shot forth flames;
+they moved about uneasily in their chairs; they staked the ducats by
+handfuls; they shouted and burst into loud fits of laughter without
+stirring a muscle of their pallid faces. The jug passed from hand to
+hand, always full, though replenished by no one.
+
+As soon as Swanda finished an air they handed him the jug, from which
+he never failed to drink deeply, and threw handfuls of gold into his
+hat. "Good luck, brother!" he repeated, astounded at his
+fortune--"good luck!"
+
+The feast lasted a long time. At last, the piper having struck up a
+polka, the black men, in a transport of mirth, quitted the table and
+danced and waltzed with an ardor and frenzy which ill accorded with
+their icy faces. One of the dancers gathered up all the gold that was
+heaped on the table, and, pouring it into Swanda's hat, "Here," said
+he, "take this for the pleasure that you have given us."
+
+"God bless you, my good lords!" said the dazzled piper. Scarcely had
+he spoken when men, room, and cards vanished.
+
+In the morning a peasant on his way to the fields heard the sound of a
+pipe as he approached the cross-road. "It is Swanda," said he. But
+where was the piper? Seated on a corner of the gallows, he was blowing
+with all his might, while the corpses of the robbers danced in the
+wind to his music.
+
+"Halloo, comrade!" cried the peasant. "How long have you been playing
+the cuckoo up there?"
+
+Swanda started, dropped his pipe, opened his eyes, and glided,
+bewildered, down the gallows. His first thought, however, was for his
+ducats. He rummaged his pockets and turned his hat inside out, but all
+in vain; there was not even a kreutzer!
+
+"My friend," said the peasant, making the sign of the cross, "God has
+punished you by giving you the devil for a partner; you love cards too
+well."
+
+"You are right," said Swanda, trembling; "I will never touch them
+again in my life."
+
+[Illustration: HE BEGAN TO PLAY AND NEVER HAD HIS MUSIC PRODUCED SUCH
+AN EFFECT.]
+
+He kept his word; and, to thank Heaven for having preserved him
+from such peril, he took the fatal pipe to which the devil had danced,
+and suspended it as a votive offering in the church of Strakonic, his
+birthplace, where it may be seen to this day. The pipe of Strakonic
+has become a proverb, and it is even said that its sound is heard
+every year at the day and hour when Swanda played for Satan and his
+friends.
+
+
+
+
+_The_ Gold Bread
+
+_A Hungarian Tale_
+
+[Illustration:]
+
+
+Once upon a time there was a widow who had a beautiful daughter. The
+mother was modest and humble; the daughter, Marienka, was pride
+itself. She had suitors from all sides, but none satisfied her; the
+more they tried to please her the more she disdained them.
+
+One night, when the poor mother could not sleep, she took her beads
+and began to pray for her dear child, who gave her more than one care.
+Marienka was asleep by her side. As the mother gazed lovingly at her
+beautiful daughter, Marienka laughed in her sleep.
+
+"What a beautiful dream she must have to laugh in this way!" said the
+mother. Then she finished her prayer, hung her beads on the wall, laid
+her head on the same pillow with her daughter, and fell asleep.
+
+"My dear child," said she in the morning, "what did you dream last
+night that you laughed so?"
+
+"What did I dream, mamma? I dreamed that a nobleman came here for me
+in a copper coach, and that he put a ring on my finger set with a
+stone that sparkled like the stars. And when I entered the church the
+people had eyes for no one but the blessed Virgin and me."
+
+"My daughter, my daughter, that was a proud dream!" said the mother,
+shaking her head. But Marienka went out singing.
+
+The same day a wagon entered the yard. A handsome young farmer in good
+circumstances came to ask Marienka to share a peasant's bread with
+him. The mother was pleased with the suitor, but the proud Marienka
+refused him, saying, "Though you should come in a copper coach, and
+put a ring on my finger set with a stone that sparkled like the stars,
+I would not have you for a husband." And the farmer went away storming
+at Marienka's pride.
+
+The next night the mother waked, took her beads, and prayed still more
+earnestly for her daughter, when, behold! Marienka laughed again as
+she was sleeping.
+
+"I wonder what she is dreaming," said the mother, who prayed, unable
+to sleep.
+
+"My dear child," she said the next morning, "what did you dream last
+night that you laughed aloud?"
+
+"What did I dream, mamma? I dreamed that a nobleman came here for me
+in a silver coach, and that he offered me a golden diadem. And when I
+entered the church the people looked at me more than they did at the
+blessed Virgin."
+
+"Hush! you are blaspheming. Pray, my daughter, pray that you may not
+fall into temptation."
+
+But Marienka ran away to escape her mother's sermon.
+
+The same day a carriage entered the yard. A young lord came to entreat
+Marienka to share a nobleman's bread with him.
+
+"It is a great honor," said the mother; but vanity is blind.
+
+"Though you should come in a silver coach," said Marienka to the new
+suitor, "and should offer me a golden diadem, I would not have you for
+a husband."
+
+"Take care, my child," said the poor mother; "pride is a device of the
+Evil One."
+
+"Mothers never know what they are saying," thought Marienka, and she
+went out shrugging her shoulders.
+
+The third night the mother could not sleep for anxiety. As she lay
+awake, praying for her daughter, behold! Marienka burst into a loud
+fit of laughter.
+
+"Oh!" said the mother, "what can the unhappy child be dreaming now?"
+And she continued to pray till daylight.
+
+"My dear child," said she in the morning, "what did you dream last
+night?"
+
+"You will be angry again if I tell you," answered Marienka.
+
+"No, no," replied the mother. "Tell me."
+
+"I dreamed that a noble lord, with a great train of attendants, came
+to ask me in marriage. He was in a golden coach, and he brought me a
+dress of gold lace. And when I entered the church, the people looked
+at nobody but me."
+
+The mother clasped her hands. Marienka, half dressed, sprang from the
+bed and ran into the next room, to avoid a lecture that was tiresome
+to her.
+
+The same day three coaches entered the yard, one of copper, one of
+silver, and one of gold; the first drawn by two horses, the second by
+four, and the third by eight, all caparisoned with gold and pearls.
+From the copper and silver coaches alighted pages dressed in scarlet
+breeches and green jackets and cloaks, while from the golden coach
+stepped a handsome nobleman all dressed in gold. He entered the house,
+and, bending one knee on the ground, asked the mother for her
+daughter's hand.
+
+"What an honor!" thought the mother.
+
+"My dream has come to pass," said Marienka. "You see, mother, that, as
+usual, I was right and you were wrong."
+
+She ran to her chamber, tied the betrothal knot, and offered it
+smilingly as a pledge of her faith to the handsome lord, who, on his
+side, put a ring on her finger set with a stone that sparkled like the
+stars, and presented her with a golden diadem and a dress of gold
+lace.
+
+The proud girl ran to her room to dress for the ceremony, while the
+mother, still anxious, said to the bridegroom, "My good sir, what
+bread do you offer my daughter?"
+
+"Among us," said he, "the bread is of copper, silver, and gold. She
+can take her choice."
+
+"What does this mean?" thought the mother. But Marienka had no
+anxiety; she returned as beautiful as the sun, took her lover's arm,
+and set out for the church without asking her mother's blessing. The
+poor woman was left to pray alone on the threshold; and when Marienka
+returned and entered the carriage she did not even turn round to look
+at her mother or to bid her a last farewell.
+
+The eight horses set off at a gallop, and did not stop till they
+reached a huge rock in which there was a hole as large as the gate of
+a city. The horses plunged into the darkness, the earth trembled, and
+the rock cracked and crumbled. Marienka seized her husband's hand.
+
+"Don't be alarmed, my fair one; in a moment it will be light."
+
+All at once a thousand lights waved in the air. The dwarfs of the
+mountain, each with a torch in his hand, came to salute their lord,
+the King of the Mines. Marienka learned for the first time her
+husband's name. Whether he was a spirit of good or of evil, at least
+he was so rich that she did not regret her choice.
+
+[Illustration: AS THE MOTHER GAZED LOVINGLY AT HER BEAUTIFUL DAUGHTER,
+MARIENKA LAUGHED IN HER SLEEP]
+
+They emerged from the darkness, and advanced through bleached
+forests and mountains that raised their pale and gloomy summits to the
+skies. Firs, beeches, birches, oaks, rocks, all were of lead. At the
+end of the forest stretched a vast meadow the grass of which was of
+silver; and at the bottom of the meadow was a castle of gold, inlaid
+with diamonds and rubies. The carriage stopped before the door, and
+the King of the Mines offered his hand to his bride, saying, "My fair
+one, all that you see is yours."
+
+Marienka was delighted. But it is impossible to make so long a journey
+without being hungry; and it was with pleasure, therefore, that she
+saw the mountain dwarfs bring in a table, everything on which
+glittered with gold, silver, and precious stones. The dishes were
+marvelous--side-dishes of emeralds, and roasts of gold on silver
+salvers. Every one ate heartily except the bride, who begged her
+husband for a little bread.
+
+"Bring the copper bread," said the King of the Mines.
+
+Marienka could not eat it.
+
+"Bring the silver bread," said he.
+
+Marienka could not eat it.
+
+"Bring the gold bread," said he, at length.
+
+Marienka could not eat it.
+
+"My fair one," said the King of the Mines, "I am very sorry; but what
+can I offer you? We have no other bread."
+
+The bride burst into tears. Her husband laughed aloud; his heart was
+of metal, like his kingdom.
+
+"Weep, if you like," he cried; "it will do you no good. What you
+wished for you possess. Eat the bread that you have chosen."
+
+It was thus that the rich Marienka lived in her castle, dying of
+hunger, and seeking in vain for a root to allay the torture that was
+consuming her. God had humbled her by granting her prayer.
+
+Three days in the year, the Rogation Days, when the ground half opens
+to receive the fruitful rain sent by the Lord, Marienka returns to the
+earth. Dressed in rags, pale and wrinkled, she begs from door to door,
+too happy when any one throws her a few crusts, and when she receives
+as alms from the poor what she lacks in her palace of gold--a little
+bread and a little pity.
+
+
+
+
+The Story _of the Noses_
+
+_A Bohemian Tale_
+
+[Illustration:]
+
+
+At Dewitz, in the neighborhood of Prague, there once lived a rich and
+whimsical old farmer who had a beautiful daughter. The students of
+Prague, of whom there were at that time twenty-five thousand, often
+walked in the direction of Dewitz, and more than one of them offered
+to follow the plow in hopes of becoming the son-in-law of the farmer.
+The first condition that the cunning peasant set on each new servant
+was this: "I engage you," he would say, "for a year--that is, till the
+cuckoo sings the return of spring; but if, from now till then, you say
+once that you are not satisfied, I will cut off the end of your nose.
+I give you the same right over me," he added, laughing. And he did as
+he said. Prague was full of students with the ends of their noses
+glued on, which did not prevent an ugly scar, and, still less, bad
+jokes. To return from the farm disfigured and ridiculed was well
+calculated to cool the warmest passion.
+
+A young man by the name of Coranda, somewhat ungainly in manner, but
+cool, adroit, and cunning, which are not bad aids in making one's
+fortune, took it in his head to try the adventure. The farmer received
+him with his usual good nature, and, the bargain made, sent him to the
+field to work. At breakfast-time the other servants were called, but
+good care was taken to forget Coranda. At dinner it was the same.
+Coranda gave himself no trouble about it. He went to the house, and
+while the farmer's wife was feeding the chickens unhooked an enormous
+ham from the kitchen rafters, took a huge loaf from the cupboard, and
+went back to the fields to dine and take a nap.
+
+"Are you satisfied?" cried the farmer, when he returned at night.
+
+"Perfectly satisfied," said Coranda; "I have dined better than you
+have."
+
+At that instant the farmer's wife came rushing in, crying that her ham
+was gone. Coranda laughed, and the farmer turned pale.
+
+"Are you not satisfied?" asked Coranda.
+
+"A ham is only a ham," answered his master. "Such a trifle does not
+trouble me." But after that time he took good care not to leave the
+student fasting.
+
+Sunday came. The farmer and his wife seated themselves in the wagon to
+go to church, saying to Coranda, "It is your business to cook the
+dinner. Cut up the piece of meat you see yonder, with onions, carrots,
+leeks, and parsley, and boil them all together in the great pot over
+the kitchen fire."
+
+"Very well," answered Coranda.
+
+There was a little pet dog at the farm-house by the name of Parsley.
+Coranda killed him, skinned him, cut him up with the meat and
+vegetables, and put the whole to boil over the kitchen fire. When the
+farmer's wife returned she called her favorite; but, alas! she saw
+nothing but a bloody skin hanging by the window.
+
+"What have you done?" said she to Coranda.
+
+"What you ordered me, mistress. I have boiled the meat, onions,
+carrots, and leeks, and parsley in the bargain."
+
+"Wicked wretch!" cried the farmer, "had you the heart to kill the
+innocent creature that was the joy of the house?"
+
+"Are you not satisfied?" said Coranda, taking his knife from his
+pocket.
+
+"I did not say that," returned the farmer. "A dead dog is nothing but
+a dead dog." But he sighed.
+
+A few days after, the farmer and his wife went to market. Fearing
+their terrible servant, they said to him, "Stay at home and do exactly
+what you see others do."
+
+"Very well," said Coranda.
+
+There was an old shed in the yard the roof of which was falling to
+pieces. The carpenters came to repair it, and began, as usual, by
+tearing down the roof. Coranda took a ladder and mounted the roof of
+the house, which was quite new. Shingles, lath, nails, and tiles, he
+tore off everything, and scattered them all to the winds. When the
+farmer returned the house was open to the sky.
+
+"Villain!" said he, "what new trick have you played me?"
+
+"I have obeyed you, master," answered Coranda. "You told me to do
+exactly what I saw others do. Are you not satisfied?" And he took out
+his knife.
+
+"Satisfied!" returned the farmer; "why should I not be satisfied? A
+few shingles more or less will not ruin me." But he sighed.
+
+Night came, the farmer and his wife said to each other that it was
+high time to get rid of this incarnate demon. As is always the case
+with sensible people, they never did anything without consulting their
+daughter, it being the custom in Bohemia to think that children always
+have more wit than their parents.
+
+"Father," said Helen, "I will hide in the great pear-tree early in the
+morning, and call like the cuckoo. You can tell Coranda that the year
+is up, since the cuckoo is singing; pay him and send him away."
+
+Early in the morning the plaintive cry of the cuckoo was heard through
+the fields. The farmer seemed surprised. "Well, my boy, spring is
+come," said he. "Do you hear the cuckoo singing yonder? I will pay you
+and we will part good friends."
+
+[Illustration: HE RAN TO THE TREE AND SHOOK IT WITH ALL HIS MIGHT,
+WHEN, BEHOLD! A YOUNG GIRL FELL FROM THE BRANCHES]
+
+"A cuckoo!" said Coranda; "that is a bird which I have always wanted
+to see."
+
+He ran to the tree and shook it with all his might, when, behold! a
+young girl fell from the branches, fortunately more frightened than
+hurt.
+
+"Villain!" cried the farmer.
+
+"Are you not satisfied?" said Coranda, opening his knife.
+
+"Wretch! you kill my daughter and you think that I ought to be
+satisfied! I am furious. Begone, if you would not die by my hand!"
+
+"I will go when I have cut off your nose," said Coranda. "I have kept
+my word. Do you keep yours."
+
+"Stop!" cried the farmer, putting his hand before his face. "You will
+surely let me redeem my nose?"
+
+"It depends on what you offer," said Coranda.
+
+"Will you take ten sheep for it?"
+
+"No."
+
+"Ten cows?"
+
+"No; I would rather cut off your nose." And he sharpened his knife on
+the door-step.
+
+"Father," said Helen, "the fault was mine; it belongs to me to repair
+it. Coranda, will you take my hand instead of my father's nose?"
+
+"Yes," replied Coranda.
+
+"I make one condition," said the young girl. "We will make the same
+bargain; the first one of us that is not satisfied after marriage
+shall have his nose cut off by the other."
+
+"Good," replied Coranda. "I would rather it was the tongue; but that
+will come next."
+
+Never was a finer wedding seen at Prague, and never was there a
+happier household. Coranda and the beautiful Helen were a model pair.
+The husband and wife were never heard to complain of each other; they
+loved with drawn swords, and, thanks to their ingenious bargain, kept
+for long years both their love and their noses.
+
+
+
+
+_The Three Citrons_
+
+A Neapolitan Tale
+
+[Illustration: ]
+
+
+Once upon a time there lived a king who was called the King of the
+Vermilion Towers. He had but one son, whom he loved as the apple of
+his eye, and who was the only hope of a royal line about to become
+extinct. The old king's whole ambition was to marry this illustrious
+prince--to find him a princess at once handsome, noble, young, and
+rich. He could think of nothing but this wished-for marriage.
+
+Unhappily, among all the virtues in which the heir to a crown is never
+lacking, Carlino, for that was the young prince's name, had the
+trifling fault of being shyer than a deer. He shook his head and fled
+to the woods at the mere sound of a woman's name, to the great grief
+of his father, who was in despair at seeing his family about to die
+out. But his grief was in vain; nothing touched the heart of Carlino.
+The tears of a father, the prayers of a whole people, the interest of
+the state, nothing could melt this stony heart. Twenty preachers had
+wasted their eloquence and thirty senators their Latin in reasoning
+with him. To be stubborn is one of the privileges of royalty, as
+Carlino had known from his birth, and he would have thought himself
+dishonored by being second to a mule in obstinacy.
+
+But more things often happen in an hour than in a hundred years, and
+no one can say with safety, "This is a road that I shall never
+travel." One morning at breakfast, as Carlino, instead of listening to
+his father's sermon, was amusing himself by watching the flies buzzing
+in the air, he forgot that he had a knife in his hand, and pricked his
+finger in a gesture of impatience. The blood gushed forth and fell
+into a plate of cream that had just been handed to him, where it made
+a curious mixture of white and red. Either by chance or by the
+punishment of Heaven, the prince was instantly seized with the maddest
+caprice that could be imagined.
+
+"Sir," said he to his father, "if I do not soon find a woman as white
+and red as this cream dyed with my blood, I am lost. This wonder must
+exist somewhere. I love her; I am dying for her; I must have her; I
+will have her. To a resolute heart nothing is impossible. If you would
+have me live, let me go in search of her, or before to-morrow I shall
+be dead of loneliness."
+
+The poor King of the Vermilion Towers was thunderstruck at this folly.
+It seemed to him that his palace was crumbling over his head; he
+turned red and pale by turns, stammered, wept, and finally cried, in
+a voice broken with sobs:
+
+"Oh, my child, the staff of my old age, my heart's blood, the life of
+my soul, what an idea have you taken into your head! Have you lost
+your reason? Yesterday you almost made me die of sorrow by refusing to
+marry; to-day you are about to drive me from the world by another
+piece of folly. Whither would you go, unhappy boy? Why leave your
+home, where you have been born and bred? Do you know to what danger
+and suffering the traveler exposes himself? Drive away these perilous
+fancies, and stay with me, my child, if you would not deprive me of
+life and destroy your kingdom and house at one blow."
+
+All these words, and others equally wise, had no more effect than an
+official harangue. Carlino, his eye fixed and his brow bent, listened
+to nothing but his passion. All that was said to him went in at one
+ear and out at the other; it was eloquence cast to the winds.
+
+When the old king, worn out with prayers and tears, perceived that it
+was easier to melt a leaden weathercock on its steeple than a spoiled
+child in pursuit of his whim, he heaved a deep sigh and determined to
+let Carlino go; and giving him counsels to which he scarcely listened,
+several bags filled with guineas, which were rather better received
+than the counsels, and two trusty servants, the good king clasped his
+rebellious son to his heart and bade him adieu, then mounted to the
+top of the great tower to follow the ungrateful boy with his eyes as
+far as he could see. When Carlino at last disappeared in the distance,
+the poor monarch thought that his heart was breaking. He buried his
+face in his hands and wept, not like a child, but like a father. The
+tears of a child are like the summer rain, large drops that are soon
+dried up; the tears of a father are like the autumnal rain, which
+falls slowly and soaks into the ground.
+
+While the king wept, Carlino, mounted on a fine horse, rode on gaily,
+his plume waving in the wind, like a hero about to conquer the world.
+To find what he sought was not an easy task, however, and his journey
+lasted more than one day. He crossed mountains and valleys, traversed
+kingdoms, duchies, earldoms, and baronies, and visited cities,
+villages, castles, and cottages, gazing at all the women, and gazed at
+by them in turn; but all in vain: the treasure that he sought was not
+to be found in old Europe.
+
+At the end of four months he reached Marseilles, resolved to embark
+for the Indies. At the sight of the raging sea, however, his brave and
+faithful servants were seized with an epidemic, called by the
+physicians stay-at-homeativeness in Hebrew, and the headache in the
+feet in Latin. To the great regret of these honest people, they were
+forced to quit their good master and remain quietly on shore, wrapped
+in their warm blankets, while Carlino, embarked on a frail bark,
+braved the winds and waves.
+
+Nothing can stop a heart hurried away by passion. The prince roamed
+over Egypt, India, and China, going from province to province, from
+city to city, from house to house, and from cabin to cabin, everywhere
+seeking the original of the fair image that was engraved on his heart,
+but in vain. He saw women of all colors and shades, brown, blond,
+olive, sandy, white, yellow, red, and black, but he did not see her
+whom he loved.
+
+Always seeking and never finding, Carlino at last reached the end of
+the world. There was nothing more before him but the ocean and the
+sky. His hopes were at an end; his dream had vanished. As he was
+walking despairingly up and down the seashore, he spied an old man
+warming himself in the sun. The prince asked him if there was nothing
+beyond these waves that stretched as far as the eye could reach.
+
+"No," said the old man; "no one has ever discovered anything in this
+shoreless ocean, or, at least, those who have ventured on it have
+never returned to tell the story. I remember, however, having heard
+the old men among us say, when I was a child," he added, "that their
+fathers had told them that yonder, a long, long way off, far beyond
+the horizon, was the Island of the Fates; but woe to the imprudent man
+who approaches these merciless fairies: he is struck with death at
+their sight."
+
+"What does that matter?" cried Carlino. "I would face death itself to
+gain my wishes."
+
+A bark lay by the strand. The prince sprang on board and unfurled the
+sail. The wind, which blew off the shore, hurried forward the frail
+craft, the land disappeared, and Carlino found himself in the midst of
+the ocean. In vain he gazed about him; there was nothing but the
+sea--the sea everywhere; in vain the bark bounded over the foaming
+waves with the speed of lightning, like a steed with mane floating on
+the wind; there was nothing but the sea--the sea everywhere. Billows
+followed billows, the hours passed one after another, the day
+declined, and the solitude and silence seemed to deepen around
+Carlino, when all at once he uttered a cry; he saw a black speck in
+the distance. At the same instant the bark, shooting ahead like an
+arrow, struck upon the sand at the foot of huge rocks, which raised
+their dark summits, notched and worn by time, to the skies. Fate had
+thrown Carlino upon that strand from which none had ever returned.
+
+To climb this wall was not an easy matter; there was neither road nor
+path; and when Carlino, after long efforts, with torn hands and
+wearied limbs, at last succeeded in reaching a level spot, what he
+found was not calculated to reassure him. He saw nothing but glaciers
+piled upon one another--black, damp rocks rising from the midst of the
+snows--not a tree, not a blade of grass, not a bit of moss; it was the
+picture of winter and death. The only sign of life in this desert was
+a wretched hovel, the roof of which was loaded with great stones in
+order to resist the fury of the winds. The prince approached the hut,
+and was about to enter it, when he stopped short, struck with surprise
+and terror at the spectacle which presented itself.
+
+At the end of the room was a great web of cloth, on which were
+pictured all the conditions of life. There were kings, soldiers,
+farmers, and shepherds, with ladies richly dressed, and peasant women
+spinning by their side. At the bottom boys and girls were dancing
+gaily, holding each other by the hand. Before the web walked the
+mistress of the house--an old woman, if the name woman can be given to
+a skeleton with bones scarcely hidden by a skin yellower and more
+transparent than wax. Like a spider ready to pounce upon its prey, the
+old woman, armed with a great pair of shears, peered at all the
+figures with a jealous eye, then suddenly fell upon the web and cut it
+at random, when, lo! a piercing wail rose from it that would have
+moved a heart of stone. The tears of children, the sobs of mothers,
+the despair of lovers, the last murmurs of old age, all human sorrow
+seemed mingled in this wail. At the sound the old woman burst into a
+loud laugh, and her hideous face lighted up with ferocious delight,
+while an invisible hand mended the web, eternally destroyed and
+eternally repaired.
+
+The hag, again opening her shears, was already approaching the web
+anew, when she saw the shadow of Carlino.
+
+"Fly, unhappy man," cried she, without turning round; "I know what
+brings you here, but I can do nothing for you. Go to my sister;
+perhaps she will give you what you desire. She is Life--I am Death."
+
+Carlino did not wait for a second bidding. He rushed onward, too happy
+to escape this scene of horror.
+
+The landscape soon changed. Carlino found himself in a fertile valley.
+On every side were harvests, blossoming fields, vines loaded with
+grapes, and olive-trees full of fruit. In the thick shade of a
+fig-tree, by a running spring, sat a blind woman unrolling the last
+gold and silver thread from a spindle. Around her lay several
+distaffs, full of different kinds of materials ready for
+spinning--flax, hemp, wool, silk, and others.
+
+When she had finished her task the fairy stretched out her trembling
+hand at random, took the first distaff that came, and began to spin.
+
+Carlino bowed respectfully to the lady, and began with emotion to tell
+her the story of his pilgrimage, when the fairy stopped him at the
+first word.
+
+"My child," said she, "I can do nothing for you. I am only a poor
+blind woman that does not even know herself what she is doing. This
+distaff, which I have taken at random, decides the fate of all who are
+born while I am spinning it. Riches or poverty, happiness or
+misfortune, are attached to this thread that I cannot see. The slave
+of destiny, I can create nothing. Go to my other sister; perhaps she
+will give you what you desire. She is Birth; I am Life."
+
+"Thanks, madam," answered Carlino; and with a light heart he ran to
+find the youngest of the Fates. He soon discovered her, fresh and
+smiling as the spring. Everything about her was taking root and
+germinating; the corn was bursting through the earth and putting forth
+its green blades from the brown furrows; the orange-blossoms were
+opening; the buds on the trees were unfolding their pink scales; the
+chickens, scarcely feathered, were running round the anxious hen, and
+the lambs were clinging to their mother. It was the first smile of
+life.
+
+The fairy received the prince with kindness. After listening to him
+without laughing at his folly, she asked him to sup with her, and at
+dessert gave him three citrons, and a beautiful knife with a
+mother-of-pearl handle.
+
+"Carlino," said she, "you can now return to your father's house. The
+prize is gained; you have found what you have been seeking. Go, then,
+and when you have reached your kingdom, stop at the first fountain
+that you see and cut one of these citrons. A fairy will come forth,
+who will ask you for a drink. Give her the water quickly, or she will
+slip through your fingers like quicksilver. If the second escapes you
+in the same way, have an eye to the last; give her a drink instantly,
+and you will have a wife according to your heart."
+
+Intoxicated with joy, the prince kissed again and again the charming
+hand that crowned his wishes. He was more happy than wise, and little
+deserved to succeed; but fairies have their caprices, and Fortune is
+always a fairy.
+
+It was a long distance from the end of the world to the kingdom of the
+Vermilion Towers. Carlino experienced more than one storm and braved
+more than one danger on his way across land and sea, but at last,
+after a long voyage and a thousand trials, he reached his father's
+country with his three citrons, which he had treasured like the apple
+of his eye.
+
+He was not more than two hours' journey from the royal castle when he
+entered a dense forest where he had hunted many a time. A transparent
+fountain, bordered with wild flowers and shaded by the trembling
+leaves of the aspen, invited the traveler to repose. Carlino seated
+himself on a carpet of verdure enameled with daisies, and, taking his
+knife, cut one of the citrons.
+
+All at once a young girl as white as milk and as red as a strawberry
+darted past him like lightning. "Give me a drink!" said she, pausing
+an instant.
+
+"How beautiful she is!" cried the prince, so ravished by her charms
+that he forgot the advice of the Fate. He paid dearly for it; in a
+second the fairy had disappeared. Carlino smote his breast in despair,
+and stood as astonished as a child that sees the running water slip
+through his fingers.
+
+He tried to calm himself, and cut the next citron with a trembling
+hand, but the second fairy was even more beautiful and more fleeting
+than her sister. While Carlino admired her, wonder-struck, in the
+twinkling of an eye she took flight.
+
+This time the prince burst into tears and wept so bitterly that he
+seemed a part of the fountain. He sobbed, tore his hair, and called
+down all the maledictions of Heaven on his head.
+
+"Fool that I am!" he cried; "twice I have let her escape as though my
+hands were tied. Fool that I am, I deserve my fate. When I should have
+run like a greyhound I stood still like a post. A fine piece of
+business! But all is not lost; the third time conquers. I will try the
+magic knife once more, and if it deceives me this time I will use it
+on myself."
+
+He cut the last citron. The third fairy darted forth and said, like
+her companions, "Give me a drink!" But the prince had learned a
+lesson. He instantly gave her the water, when, lo! a beautiful,
+slender young girl, as white as milk, with cheeks like roses, stood
+before him, looking like a freshly opened rosebud. She was a marvel of
+beauty such as the world had never seen, as fresh as a lily and as
+graceful as a swan; her hair was of brighter gold than the sun, her
+clear blue eyes revealed the depths of her heart, her rosy lips seemed
+made only to comfort and charm; in a word, from head to foot she was
+the most enchanting creature that had ever descended from heaven to
+earth. It is a great pity that we have no likeness of her.
+
+At the sight of his bride the prince almost lost his reason from joy
+and surprise. He could not understand how this miracle of freshness
+and beauty had sprung from the bitter rind of a citron.
+
+"Am I asleep?" he cried. "Am I dreaming? If I am the sport of a
+delusion, for pity's sake do not awaken me."
+
+The fairy's smile soon reassured him. She accepted his hand, and was
+the first to ask to repair to the good king of the Vermilion Towers,
+who would be so happy to bless his children.
+
+"My love," answered Carlino, "I am as impatient as you to see my
+father and to prove to him that I was right; but we cannot enter the
+castle arm in arm like two peasants. You must go like a princess; you
+must be received like a queen. Wait for me by this fountain; I will
+run to the palace, and return in two hours with a dress and equipage
+worthy of you." Saying this, he tenderly kissed her hand and left her.
+
+The young girl was afraid, on finding herself alone; the cry of a
+raven, the rustling of the trees, a dead branch broken by the wind,
+everything frightened her. She looked tremblingly about her, and saw
+an old oak by the side of the fountain whose huge trunk offered her a
+shelter. She climbed the tree and hid herself in it, all but her
+lovely face, which, encircled by the foliage, was reflected in the
+transparent fountain as in a clear mirror.
+
+[Illustration: HE INSTANTLY GAVE HER THE WATER, WHEN, LO! A BEAUTIFUL,
+SLENDER YOUNG GIRL STOOD BEFORE HIM]
+
+Now there was a negress, by the name of Lucy, who lived in the
+neighborhood, and who was sent every day by her mistress to the
+fountain for water. Lucy came, as usual, with her pitcher on her
+shoulder, and just as she was about to fill it, she spied the image of
+the fairy in the spring. The fool, who had never seen herself, thought
+that the face was her own. "Poor Lucy!" she cried. "What! you, so
+fresh and beautiful, are forced by your mistress to carry water like a
+beast of burden! No, never!" And in her vanity she dashed the pitcher
+to the ground and returned home.
+
+When her mistress asked her why she had broken the pitcher, the slave
+shrugged her shoulders and said, "The pitcher that goes often to the
+well is soon broken." Upon this her mistress gave her a little wooden
+cask and ordered her to go back immediately and fill it at the
+fountain.
+
+The negress ran to the spring, and, gazing lovingly at the beautiful
+image in the water, sighed and said, "No, I am not an ape, as I am so
+often told; I am more beautiful than my mistress. Mules may carry
+casks--not I!" She dashed the cask on the ground, broke it in a
+thousand pieces, and returned to her mistress, grumbling.
+
+"Where is the cask?" asked her mistress, who was waiting impatiently
+for the water.
+
+"A mule ran against me and knocked it down, and it is all broken to
+pieces."
+
+At these words her mistress lost patience. Seizing a broom, she gave
+the negress one of those lessons that are not soon forgotten; then,
+taking down a leathern bottle that was hanging on the wall, "Run,
+wretched ape," she said; "and if you do not instantly bring this back
+to me full of water, I will beat you within an inch of your life."
+
+The negress took to her heels in terror, and filled the bottle
+obediently; but when it was filled she stopped to look once more in
+the fountain; and seeing the lovely face reflected there, "No!" she
+cried, in a burst of anger--"no, I will not be a water-carrier; no, I
+was not made to serve my mistress like a dog."
+
+Saying this, she took from her hair the great pin that held it, and
+pierced the bottle through and through. The water spouted out in every
+direction. At the sight the fairy in the tree burst into a fit of
+laughter. The negress looked up, saw the beautiful stranger, and
+understood the whole.
+
+"Oh!" said she to herself, "so you are the cause of my beating; no
+matter, you shall pay me well for it." Then, raising her voice, she
+called, in her sweetest tones, "What are you doing up there, lovely
+lady?"
+
+The fairy, who was as good as she was beautiful, tried to comfort the
+slave by talking with her. The acquaintance was soon made; an innocent
+soul is unsuspicious in friendship. The fairy, without distrust, told
+the negress all that had happened to her and the prince, why she was
+alone in the forest, and how she was every instant expecting Carlino
+with a grand equipage to conduct his bride to the king of the
+Vermilion Towers, and to marry her there in the presence of all the
+court.
+
+On hearing this story, the wicked and envious negress conceived an
+abominable idea. "Madame," said she, "if the prince is coming with all
+his suite, you must be ready to meet him. Your hair is all in
+disorder; let me come to you, and I will comb it."
+
+"With pleasure," answered the fairy, with a gracious smile, as she
+stretched out a little white hand, which looked, in Lucy's great black
+paw, like a crystal mirror in an ebony frame.
+
+No sooner had she climbed the tree than the wicked slave untied the
+fairy's hair and began to comb it; then, all at once, taking her great
+hair-pin, she pierced her to the brain. Feeling herself wounded, the
+fairy cried, "Palomba! Palomba!" when she instantly turned to a
+wood-pigeon and flew away. The horrible negress took her victim's
+place, and stretched out her neck among the foliage, looking like a
+statue of jet in a niche of emerald.
+
+Meanwhile the prince, mounted on a magnificent horse, was riding
+thither at full speed, followed by a long cavalcade. Poor Carlino was
+astonished to find a crow where he had left a swan. He almost lost his
+reason, his voice was choked with tears, and he gazed in all
+directions, hoping to see his bride among the foliage. But the
+negress, putting on a suffering air, said to him, casting down her
+eyes, "Look no farther, my prince; a wicked fairy has made me her
+victim, and a wretched fate has changed your lily to charcoal."
+
+Though he cursed the fairies who had played on his credulity, Carlino,
+like a true prince, would not break his word. He gallantly gave his
+hand to Lucy and helped her to descend from the tree, all the while
+heaving sighs that would have melted a heart of stone. When the
+negress was dressed like a princess, and covered with lace and
+diamonds that adorned her as the stars adorn the night, by rendering
+the darkness still more visible, Carlino seated her at his right hand,
+in a magnificent carriage lined with plate-glass and drawn by six
+white horses, and took his way to the palace, as happy as a criminal
+with the rope about his neck.
+
+The old king came to meet them a league from the castle. The wonderful
+stories of his son had turned his brain. In spite of etiquette and
+against the remonstrances of his courtiers, he hastened to admire the
+incomparable beauty of his daughter-in-law. "Upon my word," he
+exclaimed, at the sight of a crow instead of the dove that had been
+promised him--"upon my word, this is too much. I knew that my son was
+mad, but I did not know that he was blind. Is this the spotless lily
+that he has been to the end of the world to seek? Is this the rose
+fresher than the morning dew, the miracle of beauty that has come from
+the rind of a citron? Does he think that I will bear this new insult
+to my gray hairs? Does he think that I will leave to mulatto children
+the empire of the Vermilion Towers, the glorious inheritance of my
+ancestors? This baboon shall never enter my palace."
+
+The prince fell at his father's feet and tried to move him. The prime
+minister, a man of great experience, remonstrated with his master
+that, at court, black often becomes white and white black in the space
+of twenty-four hours; and that there was no reason to be astonished at
+such a very natural metamorphosis. What was the king of the Vermilion
+Towers to do? He was a king and a father, and by this double title
+always accustomed to do the will of others. He yielded and consented
+with a bad grace to this strange union. The court gazette announced to
+the whole kingdom the happy choice that the prince had made, and
+ordered the people to rejoice. The wedding was postponed for a week;
+it was impossible to make the preparations for the ceremony in less
+time than this.
+
+The negress was lodged in a magnificent suite of apartments;
+countesses disputed with one another the honor of putting on her
+slippers; and duchesses obtained, not without difficulty, the glorious
+privilege of handing her her nightgown. The town and castle were
+adorned with flags of all colors; walls were thrown down, yews were
+planted, walks were graveled, old speeches were furbished up, stale
+compliments were newly framed, and poems and sonnets that had done
+duty everywhere were patched up anew. There was but one idea in the
+kingdom--that of thankfulness to the prince for having chosen a wife
+so worthy of him.
+
+The kitchen was not forgotten. Three hundred scullions, a hundred
+cooks, and fifty stewards set to work, under the superintendence of
+the famous Bouchibus, the chief of the royal kitchens. Pigs were
+killed, sheep cut up, capons larded, pigeons plucked, and turkeys
+spitted; it was a universal massacre. It is impossible to have a feast
+worthy of the name without the help of the poultry-yard.
+
+In the midst of this bustle a beautiful wood-pigeon, with blue wings,
+perched on one of the kitchen windows, and cooed, in a plaintive
+voice,
+
+    "Bouchibus, tell me, for you must know, sure,
+    What has Carlino to do with the Moor?"
+
+The great Bouchibus was at first too busy with public affairs to
+attend to the cooing of a pigeon; but after a while he began to be
+astonished at understanding the language of birds, and thought it his
+duty to inform his new mistress of the wonder. The negress did not
+disdain to go to the kitchen. As soon as she heard the song, with a
+cry of affright, she ordered Bouchibus to catch the pigeon and make a
+stew of it.
+
+No sooner said than done. The poor bird suffered itself to be caught
+without resistance. In an instant Bouchibus, armed with his great
+knife, cut off its head and threw it into the garden. Three drops of
+blood fell on the ground; and three days after there sprang from the
+earth a beautiful citron-tree, which grew so fast that before night it
+was in blossom.
+
+The prince, while taking the air in his balcony, chanced to spy a
+citron-tree which he had never seen before. He called the cook and
+asked him who had planted this beautiful tree. The story of Bouchibus
+perplexed him greatly. He at once commanded, under penalty of death,
+that no one should touch the citron-tree, and that the greatest care
+should be taken of it.
+
+The next morning, as soon as he awoke, the prince hastened to the
+garden. There were already three citrons on the tree--three citrons
+exactly like those which the Fate had given him. Carlino gathered
+them, hastened to his apartments, and shut himself up under lock and
+key. With a trembling hand he filled a golden cup, set with rubies,
+which had belonged to his mother, with water, and opened the magic
+knife, which had never left him.
+
+He cut a citron, and the first fairy came forth. Carlino scarcely
+glanced at her, and suffered her to take flight. It was the same with
+the second; but as soon as the third appeared he gave her the cup,
+from which she drank with a smile, and stood before him more graceful
+than ever.
+
+The fairy then told Carlino all that she had suffered from the wicked
+negress. The prince, beside himself with mingled joy and anger,
+laughed and wept, sang and raved. The king, hearing the noise, ran to
+see what was the matter, and you may judge of his surprise. He danced
+about like a madman, with his crown on his head and his scepter in his
+hand. All at once he stopped short, bent his brow, which was a sign
+that a thought had struck him, threw a large veil over the princess
+which covered her from head to foot, and taking her by the hand, led
+her to the dining-room.
+
+It was the hour for breakfast. The ministers and courtiers were ranged
+round a long table, magnificently served, waiting for the entrance of
+the royal family to be seated. The king called the guests one after
+another, and, raising the veil as each approached the fairy, asked:
+
+"What shall be done to the person who sought to destroy this marvel of
+beauty?"
+
+And each one, wonder-struck, answered in his own way. Some said that
+the author of such a crime deserved a hempen cravat; others thought
+that the wretch should be thrown into the water with a stone to his
+neck. Beheading seemed to the old minister too mild a punishment for
+such a villain; he was in favor of flaying him alive, and all present
+applauded his humanity.
+
+When the negress's turn came she approached without suspicion, and did
+not recognize the fairy. "Sire," said she, "a monster capable of
+injuring this charming creature deserves to be roasted alive in an
+oven, and to have his ashes thrown to the winds."
+
+"You have pronounced your own sentence," cried the king of the
+Vermilion Towers. "Wretch, behold your victim and prepare to die. Let
+a funeral pile be built in the square in front of the castle. I will
+give my good people the pleasure of seeing a witch burn; it will
+occupy them for an hour or two."
+
+"Sire," said the young fairy, taking the king's hand, "Your Majesty
+surely will not refuse me a wedding gift?"
+
+"No, indeed, my child," replied the old king. "Ask what you will;
+should it be my crown, I will gladly give it to you."
+
+"Sire," continued the fairy, "grant me this wretched creature's
+pardon. An ignorant and miserable slave, life has taught her nothing
+but hatred and malice; let me render her happy and teach her that the
+only happiness on earth consists in loving others."
+
+"My daughter," said the king, "it is very evident that you are a
+fairy; you know nothing of human justice. Among us, we do not reform
+the wicked, we kill them; it is sooner done. But I have given my word.
+Tame this serpent at your own risk and peril; I am willing."
+
+The fairy raised the negress, who kissed her hands, weeping; then they
+all sat down to the table. The king was so happy that he ate enough
+for four. As for Carlino, who kept his eyes fixed on his bride, he cut
+his thumb five or six times in a fit of absent-mindedness, which each
+time put him in the best humor imaginable. Everything gives us
+pleasure when the heart is happy.
+
+When the old king died, full of years and honor, Carlino and his
+lovely wife ascended the throne in turn. For half a century, if
+history is to be believed, they neither raised the taxes, shed a drop
+of blood, nor caused a tear to fall; and although more than a thousand
+years have passed since then, the good people of the Vermilion Towers
+still sigh at the mention of this distant age, and little children are
+not the only ones to ask when the fairies will reign again.
+
+
+
+
+Story of
+
+Coquerico
+
+_A Spanish Tale_
+
+[Illustration:]
+
+
+Once upon a time there was a handsome hen who lived like a great lady
+in the poultry-yard of a rich farmer, surrounded by a numerous family
+which clucked about her, and none of which clamored more loudly or
+picked up the corn faster with his beak than a poor little deformed
+and crippled chicken. This was precisely the one that the mother loved
+best. It is the way with all mothers; the weakest and most unsightly
+are always their favorites. This misshapen creature had but one eye,
+one wing, and one leg in good condition; it might have been thought
+that Solomon had executed his memorable sentence on Coquerico, for
+that was the name of the wretched chicken, and cut him in two with his
+famous sword. When a person is one-eyed, lame, and one-armed, he may
+reasonably be expected to be modest; but our Castilian ragamuffin was
+prouder than his father, the best spurred, most elegant, bravest, and
+most gallant cock to be seen from Burgos to Madrid. He thought himself
+a phoenix of grace and beauty, and passed the best part of the day
+in admiring himself in the brook. If one of his brothers ran against
+him by accident, he abused him, called him envious and jealous, and
+risked his only remaining eye in battle; if the hens clucked on seeing
+him, he said it was to hide their spite because he did not condescend
+to look at them.
+
+One day, when he was more puffed up with vanity than usual, he
+resolved no longer to remain in such a narrow sphere, but to go out
+into the world, where he would be better appreciated.
+
+"My lady mother," said he, "I am tired of Spain; I am going to Rome to
+see the pope and cardinals."
+
+"What are you thinking of, my poor child!" cried his mother. "Who has
+put such a folly into your head? Never has one of our family been
+known to quit his country, and for this reason we are the honor of our
+race, and are proud of our genealogy. Where will you find a
+poultry-yard like this--mulberry-trees to shade you, a whitewashed
+henroost, a magnificent dunghill, worms and corn everywhere, brothers
+that love you, and three great dogs to guard you from the foxes? Do
+you not think that at Rome itself you will regret the ease and plenty
+of such a life?"
+
+Coquerico shrugged his crippled wing in token of disdain. "You are a
+simple woman, my good mother," said he; "everything is accounted
+worthy of admiration by him who has never quitted his dunghill. But I
+have wit enough to see that my brothers have no ideas and that my
+cousins are nothing but rustics. My genius is stifling in this hole; I
+wish to roam the world and seek my fortune."
+
+"But, my son, have you never looked in the brook?" resumed the poor
+hen. "Don't you know that you lack an eye, a leg, and a wing? To make
+your fortune, you need the eyes of a fox, the legs of a spider, and
+the wings of a vulture. Once outside of these walls, you are lost."
+
+"My good mother," replied Coquerico, "when a hen hatches a duck she is
+always frightened on seeing it run to the water. You know me no
+better. It is my nature to succeed by my wit and talent. I must have a
+public capable of appreciating the charms of my person; my place is
+not among inferior people."
+
+"My son," said the hen, seeing all her counsels useless--"my son,
+listen at least to your mother's last words. If you go to Rome, take
+care to avoid St. Peter's Church; the saint, it is said, dislikes
+cocks, especially when they crow. Shun, moreover, certain personages
+called cooks and scullions; you will know them by their paper caps,
+their tucked-up sleeves, and the great knives which they wear at their
+sides. They are licensed assassins, who track our steps without pity
+and cut our throats without giving us time to cry mercy. And now, my
+child," she added, raising her claw, "receive my blessing. May St.
+James, the patron saint of pilgrims, protect thee!"
+
+Coquerico pretended not to see the tear that trembled in his mother's
+eye, nor did he trouble himself any more about his father, who
+bristled his plumage and seemed about to call him back. Without caring
+for those whom he left behind, he glided through the half-open door
+and, once outside, flapped his only wing and crowed three times, to
+celebrate his freedom--"Cock-a-doodle-doo!"
+
+As he half flew, half hopped over the fields, he came to the bed of a
+brook which had been dried up by the sun. In the middle of the sands,
+however, still trickled a tiny thread of water, so small that it was
+choked by a couple of dead leaves that had fallen into it.
+
+"My friend," exclaimed the streamlet at the sight of our traveler--"my
+friend, you see my weakness; I have not even the strength to carry
+away these leaves which obstruct my passage, much less to make a
+circuit, so completely am I exhausted. With a stroke of your beak you
+can restore me to life. I am not an ingrate; if you oblige me, you may
+count on my gratitude the first rainy day, when the water from heaven
+shall have restored my strength."
+
+"You are jesting," said Coquerico. "Do I look like one whose business
+it is to sweep the brooks? Apply to those of your own sort." And with
+his sound leg, he leaped across the streamlet.
+
+"You will remember me when you least expect it," murmured the brook,
+but with so feeble a voice that it was lost on the proud cock.
+
+A little farther on, Coquerico saw the wind lying breathless on the
+ground.
+
+"Dear Coquerico, come to my aid," it cried; "here on earth we should
+help one another. You see to what I am reduced by the heat of the day;
+I, who in former times uprooted the olive-trees and lashed the waves
+to frenzy, lie here well-nigh slain by the dog-star. I suffered myself
+to be lulled to sleep by the perfume of the roses with which I was
+playing; and, lo! here I am, stretched almost lifeless upon the
+ground. If you will raise me a couple of inches with your beak and fan
+me a little with your wing, I shall have the strength to mount to
+yonder white clouds which I see in the distance, where I shall receive
+aid enough from my family to keep me alive till I gain fresh strength
+from the next whirlwind."
+
+"My lord," answered the spiteful Coquerico, "Your Excellency has more
+than once amused himself by playing tricks at my expense. It is not a
+week since your lordship glided like a traitor behind me and diverted
+himself by opening my tail like a fan and covering me with confusion
+in the face of nations. Have patience, therefore, my worthy friend;
+mockers always have their turn; it does them good to repent and to
+learn to respect those whose birth, wit, and beauty should screen them
+from the jests of a fool." And Coquerico, bristling his plumage,
+crowed three times in his shrillest voice and proudly strutted
+onward.
+
+A little farther on he came to a newly mown field where the farmers
+had piled up the weeds in order to burn them. Coquerico approached a
+smoking heap, hoping to find some stray kernels of corn, and saw a
+little flame which was charring the green stalks without being able to
+set them on fire.
+
+"My good friend," cried the flame to the new-comer, "you are just in
+time to save my life; I am dying for want of air. I cannot imagine
+what has become of my cousin, the wind, who cares for nothing but his
+own amusement. Bring me a few dry straws to rekindle my strength, and
+you will not have obliged an ingrate."
+
+"Wait a moment," said Coquerico, "and I will serve you as you deserve,
+insolent fellow that dares ask my help!" And behold! he leaped on the
+heap of dried weeds, and trampled it down till he smothered both flame
+and smoke; after which he exultingly shouted three times,
+"Cock-a-doodle-doo!" and flapped his wings, as if he had done a great
+deed.
+
+Proudly strutting onward and crowing, Coquerico at last arrived at
+Rome, the place to which all roads lead. Scarcely had he reached the
+city when he hastened to the great Church of St. Peter. Grand and
+beautiful as it was, he did not stop to admire it, but, planting
+himself in front of the main entrance, where he looked like a fly
+among the great columns, he raised himself on tiptoe and began to
+shout, "Cock-a-doodle-doo!" only to enrage the saint and disobey his
+mother.
+
+He had not yet ended his song when one of the pope's guard, who
+chanced to hear him, laid hands on the insolent wretch who dared thus
+to insult the saint, and carried him home in order to roast him for
+supper.
+
+"Quick!" said he to his wife on entering the house, "give me some
+boiling water; here is a sinner to be punished."
+
+"Pardon, pardon, Madame Water!" cried Coquerico. "Oh, good and gentle
+water, the best and purest thing in the world, do not scald me, I pray
+you!"
+
+"Did you have pity on me when I implored your aid, ungrateful wretch?"
+answered the water, boiling with indignation. And with a single gush
+it inundated him from head to foot, and left not a bit of down on his
+body.
+
+The unhappy Coquerico stripped of all his feathers, the soldier took
+him and laid him on the gridiron.
+
+"Oh, fire, do not burn me!" cried he, in an agony of terror. "Oh,
+beautiful and brilliant fire, the brother of the sun and the cousin of
+the diamond, spare an unhappy creature; restrain thy ardor, and soften
+thy flame; do not roast me!"
+
+"Did you have pity on me when I implored your aid, ungrateful wretch?"
+answered the fire, and, fiercely blazing with anger, in an instant it
+burnt Coquerico to a coal.
+
+The soldier, seeing his roast chicken in this deplorable condition,
+took him by the leg and threw him out of the window. The wind bore the
+unhappy fowl to a dunghill, where it left him for a moment.
+
+"Oh, wind," murmured Coquerico, who still breathed, "oh, kindly
+zephyr, protecting breeze, behold me cured of my vain follies. Let me
+rest on the paternal dunghill."
+
+"Let you rest!" roared the wind. "Wait, and I will teach you how I
+treat ingrates." And with one blast it sent him so high in the air
+that, as he fell back, he was transfixed by a steeple.
+
+There St. Peter was awaiting him. With his own hand he nailed him to
+the highest steeple in Rome, where he is still shown to travelers.
+However high placed he may be, all despise him because he turns with
+the slightest wind; black, dried up, stripped of his feathers, and
+beaten by the rain, he is no longer called Coquerico, but Weathercock,
+and thus expiates, and must expiate eternally, his disobedience,
+vanity, and wickedness.
+
+
+
+
+KING BIZARRE and PRINCE CHARMING
+
+OR, THE ART OF GOVERNING MEN
+
+A TALE OF ALL NATIONS
+
+[Illustration:]
+
+
+I
+
+KING BIZARRE AND PRINCE CHARMING
+
+In the kingdom of Wild Oats, a happy country, a land blessed of
+Heaven, where the men are always right and the women never wrong,
+there lived long ago a king who thought of nothing but the happiness
+of his kingdom, and who, it is said, never was dull for lack of
+amusement. Whether he was beloved by his people is doubtful; it is
+certain that the courtiers had little esteem and less love for their
+prince. For this reason, they had given him the surname of King
+Bizarre, the only title by which he is known in history, as is seen in
+the _Great Chronicles of the Kingdoms and Principalities of the World
+Which Have Never Existed_, a learned masterpiece which has
+immortalized the erudition and criticism of the reverend father, Dr.
+Melchisedec de Mentiras y Necedad.
+
+Left a widower after a year's marriage, Bizarre had fixed his whole
+affections on his son and heir, who was the most beautiful child
+imaginable. His complexion was as fresh as a rose; his beautiful hair
+fell in golden curls on his shoulders; add to his clear blue eyes a
+straight nose, a small mouth, and a dimpled chin, and you have the
+portrait of a cherub. At twelve years of age this young marvel danced
+enchantingly, rode like a riding-master, and fenced to perfection. No
+one could have helped being won by his smile and the truly royal
+manner in which he saluted the crowd in passing when he was in good
+humor. For this reason, the voice of the people, which is never
+mistaken, had christened him Prince Charming, and his name always
+clung to him.
+
+Charming was as beautiful as the day; but the sun itself, it is said,
+has spots, and the princes do not disdain to resemble the sun. The
+child dazzled the court with his fine mien; but there were shadows
+here and there which did not escape the piercing eye of love or envy.
+Supple, agile, and adroit in all kinds of bodily exercises, Charming
+had an indolent mind. He lacked application, and had taken a fancy
+that he ought to know everything without studying. It is true that
+governesses, courtiers, and servants had continually repeated to him
+that work was not made for kings, and that a prince always knows
+enough when he lavishes on poets, writers, and artists, with a
+prodigal and disdainful hand, a little of the money which the people
+are too happy to offer him.
+
+These maxims tickled Charming's pride; and at twelve years of age the
+beautiful child, with precocious firmness, had steadily refused to
+learn the alphabet. Three teachers, chosen from the most able and
+patient instructors, a priest, a philosopher, and a colonel, had
+attempted in turn to bend his youthful obstinacy; but the priest had
+wasted his philosophy, the philosopher his tactics, and the colonel
+his Latin. Left master of the field of battle, Charming listened to
+nothing but his caprice, and lived lawless and unconstrained. As
+stubborn as a mule, as irascible as a turkey-cock, as dainty as a cat,
+and as idle as an adder, but an accomplished prince withal, he was the
+pride of the beautiful country of Wild Oats, and the hope and love of
+a people that esteemed nothing in their kings but grace and beauty.
+
+
+II
+
+PAZZA
+
+Notwithstanding he had been brought up at court, King Bizarre was a
+man of sense. Charming's ignorance was far from pleasing to him, and
+he often asked himself with anxiety what would become of his kingdom
+in the hands of a prince whom the basest of flatterers might easily
+deceive. But what was he to do, what means could he employ with a
+child that a worshiped wife had bequeathed to him in dying? Rather
+than see his son weep, Bizarre would have given him his crown; his
+affection rendered him powerless. Love is not blind, whatever the
+poets may say; alas! it would be too happy not to see a jot. It is the
+torment of him who loves to become, despite himself, the slave and
+accomplice of the ingrate who feels himself beloved.
+
+Every day, after the council, the king went to spend the evening with
+the Countess of Castro, an old lady who had dandled him on her knees
+when an infant, and who alone could recall to him the sweet memories
+of his childhood and youth. She was very ugly, and something of a
+witch, it is said; but the world is so wicked that we must never
+believe more than half its scandal. The countess had large features
+and luxuriant gray hair, and it was easy to see that she had been
+beautiful in former times.
+
+One day, when Charming had been more unreasonable than usual, the king
+entered the countess's house with an anxious air, and seating himself
+before the card-table, began to play a game of Patience. It was his
+way of diverting his thoughts and forgetting for a few hours the cares
+of royalty. Scarcely had he ranged sixteen cards in a square when he
+heaved a deep sigh.
+
+"Countess," he cried, "you see before you the most wretched of fathers
+and kings. Despite his natural grace, Charming is every day becoming
+more wilful and vicious. Must I leave such an heir after me, and
+intrust the happiness of my people to a crowned fool?"
+
+"That is the way with Nature," replied the countess; "she always
+distributes her gifts with an impartial hand. Stupidity and beauty go
+hand in hand, and wit and ugliness are seldom separated. I have an
+example of this in my own family. A few days ago a great-grandniece
+was sent to me, a child under ten years old, that has no other
+relative. She is as tawny as a frog, as scraggy as a spider, yet,
+withal, as cunning as an ape, and as learned as a book. Judge for
+yourself, sire; here is my little monster coming to salute you."
+
+Bizarre turned his head and saw a child that answered in every respect
+to the countess's description. With a high, round forehead, black,
+wild-looking eyes, rough hair turned back in the Chinese fashion,
+dull, brown skin, great white teeth, red hands, and long arms, she was
+anything but a beauty. But the chrysalis gives birth to the butterfly.
+Wait a few years, and you will see what pretty women come from these
+frightful little girls of ten.
+
+The little monster approached the king, and courtesied to him with so
+serious an air that Bizarre could not help laughing, though he felt
+little like it.
+
+"Who are you?" asked he, chucking the child under the chin.
+
+"Sire," she answered, gravely, "I am Donna Dolores Rosario Coral
+Concha Balthazara Melchiora Gaspara y Todos Santos, the daughter of
+the noble knight Don Pasquale Bartolomeo Francesco de Asiz y--"
+
+"Enough," said the king. "I did not ask for your genealogy; we are
+witnessing neither your baptism nor your marriage. What are you
+commonly called?"
+
+"Sire," replied she, "I am called Pazza."[1]
+
+[Footnote 1: That is to say, Madcap, in Italian. It appears that a
+very mixed language is spoken in the kingdom of Wild Oats.]
+
+"And why are you called Pazza?"
+
+"Because it is not my name."
+
+"That is strange," said the king.
+
+"No, it is natural," replied the child. "My aunt pretends that I am
+too giddy for any saint to wish to own me for her goddaughter, and
+that is why she has given me a name that can offend no one in
+Paradise."
+
+"Well answered, my child. I see that you are not an ordinary girl. The
+saints in Paradise are not always treated with such consideration.
+Since you know so much, tell me what is a wise man?"
+
+"A wise man, sire, is one who knows what he says when he speaks, and
+what he does when he acts."
+
+"Upon my word," exclaimed the king, "if my wise men were what you
+fancied them, I would make the Academy of Sciences my council of
+state, and would give it my kingdom to govern. What is an ignorant
+man?"
+
+"Sire," returned Pazza, "there are three kinds of ignorant men: he
+who knows nothing, he who talks of what he does not know, and he who
+will learn nothing; all three are fit for nothing but to be burned or
+hung."
+
+"That is a proverb. Do you know what proverbs are called?"
+
+"Yes, sire; they are called the wisdom of nations."
+
+"And why are they called so?"
+
+"Because they are mad; they say whatever you please; they are of all
+colors, to suit all tastes. Proverbs are like bells, which answer yes
+or no according to the humor of their listener."
+
+Upon which, springing with both feet from the ground, Pazza caught a
+fly that was buzzing about the king's nose; then, leaving Bizarre
+astonished, she took her doll and, seating herself on the ground,
+began to rock it in her arms.
+
+"Well, sire," the countess said, "what do you think of this child?"
+
+"She has too much wit," answered the king; "she will not live long."
+
+"Ah, sire," exclaimed Pazza, "you are not complimentary to my aunt;
+she is considerably older than I am."
+
+"Hush, gipsy!" said the old lady, smiling; "don't you know that nobody
+lectures kings?"
+
+"Countess," said Bizarre, "an idea has just struck me, which is so
+strange that I hardly dare tell it to you; yet I have a violent wish
+to carry it out. I can do nothing with my son; reason has no power
+with the stubborn child. Who knows whether folly would not be more
+successful? If I thought so, I would make Pazza Charming's teacher.
+The intractable boy, who rejects all masters, might be defenseless
+before a child. The only objection is that no one will be of my
+opinion; I shall have everybody against me."
+
+"Bah!" said the countess; "everybody is so stupid that it is a proof
+that you are right that you think differently."
+
+
+III
+
+THE FIRST LESSON
+
+In this manner Pazza was intrusted with the instruction of the young
+prince. There was no official appointment; it was not announced in the
+court gazette that the king, with his usual wisdom, had found an
+unparalleled genius at the first attempt, to whom he had confided the
+heart and mind of his child; but the very next morning Charming was
+sent to the countess's house, and was permitted to play with Pazza.
+
+The two children, left alone together, gazed at each other in silence.
+Pazza, being the bolder, was the first to speak.
+
+"What is your name?" asked she.
+
+"Those who know me call me Your Highness," answered Charming, in a
+piqued tone; "those who do not know me call me simply My Lord, and
+everybody says Sir to me; etiquette requires it."
+
+"What is etiquette?" asked Pazza.
+
+"I don't know," replied Charming. "When I want to jump, shout, and
+roll on the ground, I am told that it is contrary to etiquette; then I
+keep still, and yawn for lack of amusement--that is etiquette."
+
+"Since we are here to amuse ourselves," resumed Pazza, "there is no
+etiquette needed; speak to me as if I were your sister, and I will
+speak to you as if you were my brother. I will not call you My Lord."
+
+"But you don't know me," said Charming.
+
+"What does that matter?" returned Pazza; "I will love you, that is
+better. They say that you dance beautifully; teach me to dance, will
+you?"
+
+The ice was broken; Charming took the young girl by the waist, and in
+less than half an hour taught her the last new polka.
+
+"How well you dance!" said he. "You have caught the step directly."
+
+"It is because you are a good teacher," she replied. "Now it is my
+turn to teach you something."
+
+She took a beautiful picture-book, and showed him fine buildings,
+fishes, statesmen, parrots, scholars, curious animals, and flowers,
+all of which greatly amused Charming.
+
+"See," said Pazza, "here is the explanation of all the pictures; read
+it."
+
+"I don't know how to read," replied Charming.
+
+"I will teach you; I will be your little tutor."
+
+"No," replied the stubborn prince, "I do not wish to read. My masters
+tire me."
+
+"Very well; but I am not a master. See, here is an A, a beautiful
+great A; say A."
+
+"No," returned Charming, frowning, "I will never say A."
+
+"Not to please me?"
+
+"No, never. Enough of this; I do not like people to differ from me."
+
+"Sir," said Pazza, "a polite man never refuses ladies anything."
+
+"I would refuse the devil in petticoats," replied the young prince,
+tossing his head. "I am tired of you; let me alone. I don't love you
+any longer. Call me My Lord."
+
+"My Lord Charming, or my charming lord," said Pazza, flushed with
+anger, "you shall read, or I will know the reason why."
+
+"I won't read."
+
+"Will you not? One--two--three!"
+
+"No! no! no!"
+
+Pazza raised her hand, and, lo! the king's son received a box on the
+ear. Pazza had been told that she was witty to the ends of her
+fingers, and had been stupid enough to believe it; it is never right
+to jest with children.
+
+[Illustration: PAZZA, THOUGH SHE LOVED THE PRINCE, WAS A VERY STERN
+SCHOOLMISTRESS]
+
+At this first lesson in reading, Charming turned pale and trembled;
+the blood mounted to his cheeks, his eyes filled with tears, and he
+gazed at his young teacher with a look that made her start; then all
+at once, with a great effort, he regained his self-possession, and
+said, in a tremulous voice, "Pazza, that is A." And the same day and
+at one sitting he learned all the letters of the alphabet; at the end
+of the week he spelled readily, and before the month was ended he read
+with ease.
+
+King Bizarre was delighted. He kissed Pazza on both cheeks; he
+insisted on having her always with him or his son, and made this child
+his friend and counselor, to the great disdain of all the courtiers.
+Charming, still gloomy and silent, learned all that this young mentor
+could teach him, then returned to his former preceptors, whom he
+astonished by his intelligence and docility. He soon knew his grammar
+so well that the priest asked himself one day whether, by chance,
+these definitions, which he had never understood, had not a meaning.
+Charming none the less astonished the philosopher, who taught him
+every evening the opposite of what the priest had taught him in the
+morning. But, of all his masters, the one to whom he listened with the
+least repugnance was the colonel. It is true that Bayonet, for that
+was the colonel's name, was a skilful strategist, and that he could
+say, like the ancient poet, with a slight variation, "I am a man, and
+nothing that pertains to the art of despatching poor human beings is
+indifferent to me." It was he that initiated Charming into the
+mysteries of button gaiters and shoulder-straps; it was he that taught
+his pupil that the noblest study for a prince is the drilling of
+battalions, and that the groundwork of statesmanship is to have
+reviews in order to make war, and to make war in order to have
+reviews.
+
+This was not perhaps altogether according to Bizarre's idea of the art
+of government; but he thought he could correct any errors in the
+future, and besides, he was so rejoiced at Charming's progress that he
+was unwilling in any way to meddle with the admirable work of an
+education so long considered hopeless.
+
+"My child," he often said, "never forget that you owe everything to
+Pazza." As the king spoke thus, Pazza gazed tenderly at the young man.
+Despite all her wit, she was foolish enough to love him. Charming
+contented himself with coldly answering that gratitude was a princely
+virtue, and that Pazza should some day learn that her pupil had
+forgotten nothing.
+
+
+IV
+
+PAZZA'S WEDDING
+
+When Prince Charming had attained his seventeenth year, he went one
+morning in search of King Bizarre, whose health was declining and who
+was very desirous of seeing his son married before his death.
+
+"Father," said he, "I have long reflected on your wise words. You gave
+me life, but Pazza has done still more in awakening my mind and soul.
+I see but one way of paying the debt of my heart; that is, to marry
+the woman to whom I am indebted for what I am. I come to ask you for
+Pazza's hand."
+
+"My dear child," answered Bizarre, "this step does you credit. Pazza
+is not of royal blood; she is not the one whom, in different
+circumstances, I should have chosen for your wife; but her virtues,
+her merit, and, above all, the service which she has rendered us, make
+me forget idle prejudices. Pazza has the soul of a queen; she shall
+mount the throne with you. In the country of Wild Oats, wit and humor
+are held in sufficient estimation to win you forgiveness for what
+fools call a misalliance, and what I call a princely marriage. Happy
+is he who can choose an intelligent wife, capable of understanding and
+loving him! To-morrow your betrothal shall be celebrated, and in two
+years your marriage shall take place."
+
+The marriage occurred more speedily than the king had foreseen.
+Fifteen months after these memorable words, Bizarre expired of languor
+and exhaustion. He had taken the vocation of king in earnest; he fell
+a victim to royalty. The old countess and Pazza wept their friend and
+benefactor, but they were the only mourners. Without being a bad son,
+Charming was engrossed with the cares of the empire; and the court
+expected everything from the new reign, and thought no more about the
+old king, whose eyes were closed in death.
+
+After honoring his father's memory by magnificent obsequies, the young
+prince, thenceforth wholly devoted to love, celebrated his marriage
+with a splendor that charmed the good people of Wild Oats. The taxes
+were doubled, but who could regret money so nobly employed? Men came
+from a hundred leagues round to gaze at the new king, and Pazza, whose
+growing beauty and air of goodness fascinated all hearts, was not less
+admired. There were interminable dinners, harangues longer than the
+dinners, and poems more tedious than the harangues. In a word, it was
+an incomparable festival, which was talked of for six months after.
+
+Evening come, Charming took the hand of his graceful, timid, and
+blushing bride, and with cold politeness led her through the corridors
+of the old castle. All at once Pazza was frightened to find herself in
+a gloomy dungeon, with grated windows and huge bars and locks.
+
+"What is this?" asked she. "It looks like a prison."
+
+"Yes," said the prince, with a terrible look, "it is a prison which
+you will quit only for the grave."
+
+"My dear, you frighten me," said Pazza, smiling. "Am I a criminal
+without knowing it? Have I deserved your displeasure, that you
+threaten me with a dungeon?"
+
+"You have a short memory," replied Charming. "An insult is written on
+sand to the giver; it is inscribed on marble and bronze to the
+receiver."
+
+"Charming," returned the poor child, beginning to be afraid, "you are
+repeating something from those speeches that tired me so much. Can you
+find nothing better to say to me to-day?"
+
+"Wretch!" cried the king, "you no longer remember the box on the ear
+that you gave me seven years ago, but I have not forgotten it. Know
+that if I wished you for my wife, it has been only to have your life
+in my hands and to make you slowly expiate your crime of high
+treason."
+
+"My dear," said Pazza, with a pettish manner, "you may put on your
+Bluebeard airs, but you will not frighten me, I assure you. I know
+you, Charming, and I warn you that if you do not put an end to this
+bad jest, I will not only give you one box on the ear, but three,
+before I forgive you. Make haste and let me go out, or I vow that I
+will keep my word."
+
+"Vow it then, madame," cried the prince, furious at not intimidating
+his victim. "I accept your vow. I vow, too, on my side, that I will
+never acknowledge you as my wife till I have been base enough to
+receive three times an insult which nothing but blood can wash out.
+He laughs well that laughs last. Here, Rachimburg!"
+
+At this terrible name, a jailer with a bushy beard and threatening
+mien entered the room, pushed the queen on a wretched truckle-bed, and
+shut and double-locked the iron door.
+
+If Pazza wept, it was so quietly that no one heard her. Tired of the
+silence, Charming departed, with rage in his heart, resolving that his
+rigor should break the pride that braved him. Vengeance, it is said,
+is the delight of kings.
+
+Two hours later the countess received a note by a sure hand
+acquainting her with the sad fate of her niece. How this note reached
+her is known to me, but I will not betray the secret. If a charitable
+jailer is found by chance, he should be treated with consideration;
+the species is rare, and is daily becoming rarer.
+
+
+V
+
+A TERRIBLE EVENT
+
+The next morning the court gazette announced that the queen had been
+seized with a raging fit of madness on the very night of her wedding,
+and that there was little hope of saving her. There was scarcely a
+courtier, indeed, that had not observed the princess's restless air on
+the evening before, and no one was surprised at her malady. All pitied
+the king, who received with a gloomy and constrained mien the
+expressions of affection which were lavished on him. He was doubtless
+weighed down with grief, but this grief appeared very much lightened
+after the visit of the countess.
+
+The good lady was very sad, and had a great desire to see her poor
+child, but she was so old, and found herself so weak and sensitive,
+that she entreated the king to spare her a heartrending spectacle. She
+threw herself into the arms of Charming, who tenderly embraced her,
+and withdrew, saying that she placed all her hope and trust in the
+love of the king and the talent of the chief physician of the court.
+
+She had scarcely left the room when the physician whispered a few
+words in Charming's ear which called to his face a smile quickly
+repressed. The countess pacified, there was nothing more to fear; the
+vengeance was sure.
+
+Doctor Wieduwillst was a great physician. Born in the country of
+Dreams, he had early quitted his native land to seek his fortune in
+the kingdom of Wild Oats. He was too able a man not to find it. In the
+five years that he had spent in the celebrated University of
+Lugenmaulberg, the medical theory had changed twenty-five times, and,
+thanks to this solid education, the doctor had a firmness of principle
+which nothing could shake. He had the frankness and bluntness of a
+soldier, it was said; he swore at times, even with ladies, a rudeness
+which left him at liberty always to be of the same mind with the
+stronger, and to demand a fee for having no opinion. The queen had
+fallen into his incorruptible hands.
+
+She had been imprisoned for three days, and the town was already
+beginning to talk of something else, when one morning Rachimburg
+abruptly entered the king's apartments with a distracted air, and
+threw himself trembling at his feet.
+
+"Sire," said he, "I bring you my head. The queen has disappeared."
+
+"What do you tell me!" exclaimed the king, turning pale. "The thing is
+impossible; the dungeon is barred on all sides."
+
+"Yes," said the jailer, "the thing is impossible, that is certain; the
+bars are in their places, the walls are whole, and neither the locks
+nor the bolts have been disturbed; but there are witches in the world
+that pass through walls without moving a stone, and who knows but what
+the prisoner is one of them? Was it ever known whence she came?"
+
+The king sent in search of the doctor. He was a strong-minded man and
+had little faith in witches. He sounded the walls, shook the bars, and
+cross-examined the jailer, but all to no purpose. Trusty men were sent
+everywhere through the town, and spies were set on the countess, whom
+the doctor suspected, but all in vain, and after a week the search
+was abandoned. Rachimburg lost his place as jailer, but as he
+possessed the royal secret, as he was needed, and as he thirsted to
+avenge himself, he was made the warden of the royal castle. Furious at
+his bad luck, he exercised his supervision with such strictness that
+in less than three days he arrested Wieduwillst himself half a dozen
+times, and disarmed all suspicion.
+
+At the end of a week some fishermen brought to the court the robe and
+mantle of the queen. The waves had cast on the shore these sad relics,
+covered with sand and sea-foam. That the poor mad woman had drowned
+herself no one doubted on seeing the grief of the king and the tears
+of the countess. The council was assembled. It decided with a
+unanimous voice that the queen was legally dead and that the king was
+legally a widower, and for the interest of the people entreated his
+majesty to abridge a painful mourning and to marry again as soon as
+possible, in order to strengthen the dynasty. This decision was
+transmitted to the king by Wieduwillst, the chief physician to the
+king and president of the royal council, who made so touching a speech
+that the whole court burst into tears, and Charming threw himself into
+the doctor's arms, calling him his cruel friend.
+
+It is unnecessary to say that the funeral of a queen so much lamented
+was magnificent. In the kingdom of Wild Oats everything serves as a
+pretext for ceremony. The pageant was worthy of admiration, but the
+most admirable thing in it was the attitude of the young girls of the
+court. Every one looked at Charming, who was handsomer than ever in
+his mourning dress; every one wept with one eye in honor of the
+princess, and smiled with the other to attract the king. Ah! had
+photography only been invented, what portraits would antiquity have
+transmitted to us--what models for our painters! The passions still
+existed among these good people; their mobile faces were animated by
+love, hatred, and anger; to-day we are all so virtuous and prudent
+that we all wear the same dress, the same hat, and the same
+expression. Civilization is the triumph of morality and the ruin of
+art.
+
+After the description of the funeral ceremonies, which, according to
+etiquette, filled six columns, the court gazette laid down rules for
+the full and the second mourning, blue and pink, which are the
+mourning colors in the kingdom of Wild Oats. The court was required to
+be in deep affliction for three weeks, and to be comforted by degrees
+during the three weeks following; but carnival occurring during the
+period of the second mourning, and respect being had for trade, it was
+determined to give a masked ball at the palace. Tailors and
+dressmakers immediately set to work, invitations were solicited by
+great and small, and men began to intrigue as if the fate of the
+monarchy had been in question.
+
+It was in this solemn manner that they mourned for poor Pazza.
+
+
+VI
+
+THE MASKED BALL
+
+The great day so impatiently expected at length arrived. For six weeks
+the good people of Wild Oats had been in a fever of excitement.
+Nothing more was heard of ministers, senators, generals, magistrates,
+princesses, duchesses, and citizens; for twenty leagues round, clowns,
+harlequins, punchinellos, gipsies, Columbines, and Follies alone were
+to be seen. Politics were silenced, or, rather, the nation was divided
+into two great parties--the conservatives that went to the ball, and
+the opposition that stayed at home.
+
+If the official gazette is to be believed, the festival outshone in
+splendor all others past and to come. The ball was held in the midst
+of the gardens, in a rotunda magnificently decorated. A winding walk,
+shaded by elms and dimly lighted by alabaster lamps, led to a hall
+resplendent with gold, verdure, flowers, and light. An orchestra, half
+concealed in the foliage, breathed forth music, by turns plaintive and
+gay. Add to this the richness of the costumes, the brilliancy of the
+diamonds, the piquancy of the masks, and the charm of intrigue, and
+you will see that it would have needed the soul of an ancient Stoic to
+resist the intoxication of pleasure.
+
+Yet Prince Charming was not amused. Concealed under a blue domino,
+with his face entirely masked, he had addressed himself to the most
+elegant and sprightly women, and had lavishly displayed his wit and
+grace, yet he had met with nothing but indifference and coldness. They
+scarcely listened to him, answered with a yawn, and hastened to quit
+him. All eyes were fixed on a black domino with pink rosettes that
+moved carelessly among the dancers, receiving with the air of a sultan
+the compliments and smiles that every one lavished on him. This domino
+was the Lord Wieduwillst, a great friend of the prince, but still more
+the friend of his own pleasure. In an unguarded moment the doctor had
+said that morning by chance, under the seal of secrecy, and to two
+ladies only, that the prince would wear pink rosettes in his black
+domino. Was it his fault if the ladies had been indiscreet or the
+prince had changed his mind?
+
+While the doctor was enjoying, despite himself, indeed, his unexpected
+triumph, Charming seated himself in a corner of the hall and buried
+his face in his hands. Alone in the midst of the crowd, he abandoned
+himself to reflection, and the image of Pazza rose before him. He had
+no reproaches to make himself; his vengeance was just, yet he felt an
+indescribable remorse. Poor Pazza! no doubt she had been guilty; but
+at least she loved him, she understood him, she listened to him, her
+eyes sparkling with joy. How different from all those fools who had
+not recognized a prince under a domino at the first moment by his wit!
+
+He rose suddenly to quit the hall, when he perceived, a little way
+off, a mask that had also left the crowd and seemed lost in
+contemplation. A half-open domino disclosed a gipsy's dress and a pair
+of slippers with buckles, containing a foot smaller than that of
+Cinderella.
+
+The king approached the stranger, and saw through the velvet mask a
+pair of large black eyes, the melancholy glance of which surprised and
+charmed him.
+
+"Fair mask," said he, "your place is not here. Why are you not among
+the eager and curious crowd that is pressing around the prince to
+dispute his smile and heart? Do you not know that there is a crown to
+be gained there?"
+
+"I make no pretentions," answered the domino, in a grave, sweet voice.
+"In this game of chance one runs the risk of taking the servant for
+the king. I am too proud to expose myself to such a hazard."
+
+"But if I show you the prince?"
+
+"What could I say to him?" replied the stranger. "I could not blame
+him without offense, or praise him without flattery."
+
+"You think much evil of him, then?"
+
+"No, a little evil and much good; but what does it matter?" And,
+opening her fan, the domino relapsed into her reverie.
+
+This indifference surprised Charming. He addressed her with warmth,
+she replied coldly; he prayed her so urgently to listen to him that
+she finally consented to do so, not in the ball-room, where the heat
+was overpowering and the curiosity indiscreet, but in the long
+elm-walk, where a few promenaders were seeking silence and fresh air.
+
+The night was advancing, and the gipsy had already spoken several
+times of retiring, to the great regret of the prince, who vainly
+entreated her to unmask. The stranger made no reply.
+
+"You drive me to despair," cried he, inspired with strange respect and
+admiration for this mysterious figure. "Why this cruel silence?"
+
+"Because I know you, my lord," replied the stranger, with emotion.
+"Your voice, which goes to the heart, your language, your grace, all
+tell me who you are. Let me go, Prince Charming."
+
+"No, madam," cried the prince, delighted at so much wit, "you alone
+have recognized me, you alone have understood me, to you belong my
+heart and kingdom. Throw off that suspicious mask; this very instant
+we will return to the ball-room and I will present to the ignorant
+crowd the woman whom I have had the happiness not to displease. Say
+but one word, and all my people shall be at your feet."
+
+"My lord," replied the stranger, sadly, "permit me to refuse an offer
+which does me honor and the memory of which I shall always preserve. I
+am ambitious, I own; the time has been when I should have been proud
+to share your throne and name; but before all things I am a woman and
+place all my happiness in love. I will not have a divided heart,
+should my rival be only a memory; I am jealous even of the past."
+
+"I have never loved in my life," cried the prince, with a vehemence
+that made the stranger start. "There is a mystery concerning my
+marriage which I can reveal only to my wife; but I swear to you that I
+have never given away my heart; I love now for the first time."
+
+"Show me your hand," said the gipsy, approaching the lamp, "and let me
+see whether you have told the truth."
+
+Charming extended his hand with assurance; the gipsy studied the lines
+and sighed.
+
+"You are right, my lord," said she, "you have never loved. But this
+does not appease my jealousy. Another woman has loved you before me.
+These sacred bonds are not broken by death; the queen still loves
+you--you belong to her. To accept a heart which is no longer at your
+disposal would be sacrilegious and criminal in me. Farewell."
+
+"Madam," said the king, with an ill-assured voice, "you do not know
+what you make me suffer. There are things which I would gladly burn in
+eternal silence, but which you force me to reveal. The queen never
+loved me; ambition alone dictated her conduct."
+
+"That is not so," said the stranger, letting go the prince's hand.
+"The queen loved you."
+
+"No, madam," replied Charming; "my father and I were the victims of a
+detestable intrigue."
+
+"Enough!" said the stranger, whose hands trembled and whose fingers
+worked in a strange manner. "Respect the dead; do not slander them."
+
+"Madam," said the prince, "I assure you, and none ever doubted my
+word, that the queen never loved me. She was a wicked woman."
+
+"Ah!" said the domino.
+
+"Wilful, violent, and jealous."
+
+"If she was jealous, she loved you," interrupted the mask. "Seek for
+proofs which have at least a shadow of probability; do not accuse a
+heart which was wholly yours."
+
+"So far from loving me," said the king, excitedly, "the very night of
+my marriage she dared tell me to my face that she had married me only
+for my crown."
+
+"That is not true," said the gipsy, raising her hand.
+
+"I swear it," replied Charming.
+
+"You lie!" cried the stranger. And, lo! a box on the ear blinded the
+prince; the blow was repeated, and the stranger fled.
+
+The king stepped back furious, and sought the hilt of his sword; but
+men do not go to balls armed as for war; for his sole weapon he found
+a knot of ribbons. He ran after his enemy, but which way had she fled?
+Charming lost himself twenty times in the labyrinth; he met none but
+peaceful dominos walking in couples and scarcely glancing at him as he
+passed. Breathless, distracted, and desperate, he returned to the
+ball-room, where he doubted not that the stranger had taken refuge;
+but how was he to find her?
+
+A brilliant idea crossed the prince's mind; he would order all to
+unmask, and would doubtless see the gipsy, confounded by the king's
+presence and betrayed by her own agitation. He instantly leaped on a
+chair, and exclaimed in a loud voice that caused every one to start:
+
+"Ladies and gentlemen, day is approaching and pleasure is languishing;
+let us revive mirth by a new caprice. Off with the masks! I set the
+example; let all who love me follow it."
+
+He threw off his domino, raised his mask, and appeared in the richest
+and most elegant Spanish costume ever worn by prince. There was a
+general outcry; all eyes were at first turned toward the king, then
+toward the black domino with pink rosettes, who retreated as fast as
+possible with a modesty that was not affected. All unmasked. The
+ladies gathered round the king, who, it was remarked, had the most
+violent fancy for the gipsy costume. Young or old, all the gipsies
+received his homage; he took them by the hand and gazed at them with
+an air which made all the other masks ready to burst with envy, then
+made a sign to the orchestra; the dance recommenced, and the prince
+disappeared.
+
+He hastened again to the elm-walk in search of the traitress who had
+insulted him, doubtless led by vengeance. His blood boiled in his
+veins; he wandered at random, suddenly stopping short, looking,
+listening, and spying in all directions. At the faintest gleam of
+light through the foliage he sprang forward like a madman, laughing
+and weeping at the same time as though distracted.
+
+At the turn of an alley he met Rachimburg advancing toward him
+trembling, with an air of terror.
+
+"Sire," murmured he, in a mysterious voice, "has Your Majesty seen
+it?"
+
+"What?" asked the king.
+
+"The specter; it passed close by me. I am a lost man; I shall die
+to-morrow."
+
+"What specter?" said Charming. "What fool's tale are you telling me?"
+
+"A specter--a domino with flashing eyes, that threw me on my knees and
+boxed my ears twice."
+
+"It is she!" cried the king; "it is she! Why did you let her go?"
+
+"Your Majesty, I had not my pike; but if ever I see her again I will
+knock her down."
+
+"Do no such thing!" returned the king. "If ever she returns, do not
+frighten her; follow her and discover her retreat. But where is she?
+Which way did she go? Lead me; if I find her your fortune is made."
+
+"Sire," said the honest porter, looking at the moon, "if the specter
+is anywhere, it must be up yonder; I saw it, as plainly as I see Your
+Majesty, dissolving in mist. But before taking flight it gave me a
+message for Your Majesty."
+
+"What? Speak quickly!"
+
+"Sire, its words were terrible; I shall never dare repeat them to Your
+Majesty."
+
+"Speak, I order you."
+
+"Sire, the specter said, in a sepulchral voice, 'Tell the king that if
+he marries again he is a dead man. The loved one will return.'"
+
+"Here," said the prince, whose eyes shone with a strange luster, "take
+this purse. Henceforth I attach you to my person; I appoint you my
+first attendant, counting on your devotion and prudence. Let this
+affair remain a secret between us."
+
+"That makes two," murmured Rachimburg, as he departed with a firm
+tread, like a man who neither suffers himself to be cast down by fear
+or dazzled by good fortune. He was a strong-minded man.
+
+The next morning the court gazette contained the following lines, in
+the form of a letter without signature, in the unofficial part of the
+paper:
+
+"A rumor has been spread that the king is thinking of marrying again.
+The king knows what he owes to his people, and is always ready to
+sacrifice himself for the happiness of his subjects. But the people of
+Wild Oats have too much delicacy not to respect a recent affliction.
+The king's whole thoughts are fixed on his beloved wife; he hopes the
+consolation from time that is at present refused him."
+
+This note threw the court and town in agitation. The young girls
+thought the scruples of the prince exaggerated; more than one mother
+shrugged her shoulders, and said that the king had vulgar prejudices
+worthy only of the common people; but at night there was strife in
+every well-ordered household. There was not a wife of any pretensions
+to aristocratic birth that did not quarrel with her unworthy spouse
+and force him to admit that there was but one heart capable of love,
+and but one faithful husband in the whole kingdom, namely, Prince
+Charming.
+
+
+VII
+
+TWO CONSULTATIONS
+
+After so much excitement, the king was seized with a cruel fit of
+tedium. To divert himself, he attempted every kind of pleasure; he
+hunted, he presided over his council, he went to the play and the
+opera, he received all the state corporations with their wives, he
+read a Carthaginian novel, and reviewed the troops half a score of
+times; but all in vain: an inexorable memory, an ever-present image
+left him no rest or peace. The gipsy pursued him even in his dreams;
+he saw her, he talked to her, and she listened to him; but, by some
+unaccountable fatality, as soon as she raised her mask, Pazza's pale,
+sad face always appeared.
+
+The doctor was the only confidant to whom Charming could avow his
+remorse, but at his word Wieduwillst burst into laughter.
+
+"The effect of habit, sire," he said. "Gain time, multiply
+impressions, and all will be effaced."
+
+To procure the prince excitement and to drive away sorrow by a bold
+diversion, the doctor supped every evening alone with His Majesty, and
+poured out intoxication and forgetfulness with a liberal hand.
+Wieduwillst did not spare himself, but wine had little effect on his
+strong brain; he would have defied Bacchus and Silenus together with
+Charming. While the prince, by turn noisy and silent, plunged into the
+extremes of joy and sadness, always restless and never happy,
+Wieduwillst, calm and smiling, directed his thoughts, and through pure
+goodness of soul took upon himself all the fatigue and care of the
+government.
+
+Three decrees had already placed in his hands the police, the courts,
+and the finances. The doctor well understood all the advantages of
+centralization. The way in which he administered the taxes relieved
+him from all personal anxiety for the future. The courts punished
+those who clamored too loudly; the police silenced those who whispered
+too much. Nevertheless, in spite of the ability of these political
+schemes, the people, always ungrateful, did not appreciate their
+happiness. The inhabitants of Wild Oats delight in complaining; the
+pleasure was spoiled for them.
+
+King Bizarre's name was in all hearts and every one regretted the good
+old times when they shouted over the roof-tops that they were gagged.
+
+The doctor was ambitious; he was born for a prime minister. Every
+morning some new ordinance made the people feel that the king was
+nothing and the minister everything. Charming was the only one that
+did not perceive his nothingness. Shut up in his palace, and dying of
+ennui, his sole companion was a page placed near him by the prime
+minister on Rachimburg's recommendation. Frolicsome, chattering, and
+indiscreet, a good musician and capital card-player, Tonto, for that
+was the page's name, amused the king by his pranks; he pleased the
+prime minister no less, but by other virtues. Devoted to his
+benefactor, the good-natured page innocently repeated to him the most
+trifling words of the prince--an easy task, moreover, as the king was
+constantly dreaming and never spoke.
+
+It is a fine thing to have the advantages of power; but appetite comes
+by eating even with ministers. The ambitious doctor began to desire
+both the honors and luster of royalty. Charming's best friend did not
+once think of dethroning him; nations sometimes have foolish
+prejudices and cling to old habits, but nothing was easier than to
+frighten a sick prince and send him afar off in search of a cure that
+would be long coming, while in his absence the doctor would reign as
+his proxy.
+
+Charming was young; he still clung to life, and, moreover, how could
+he resist the tender solicitude of the good doctor? The three most
+renowned physicians of the faculty met one evening in consultation at
+the palace--long Tristram, fat Jocundus, and little Guilleret, three
+celebrated men--three geniuses who had made their fortune, each with
+one idea, which had been the reason why they had never had any more.
+
+After the king had been cross-questioned, looked at, handled,
+auscultated, and turned round again and again, Tristram spoke first,
+in a rude voice.
+
+"Sire," said he, "you must be bled like a peasant, and live without
+any exertion whatever. Your disease is a deficiency of blood, a
+constitutional atony. Nothing but a journey to the Clear Waters can
+cure you. Go quickly, or you are a dead man. You have my opinion."
+
+"Sire," said fat Jocundus, "I fully share the admirable opinion of my
+dear professional brother. You are suffering from superabundant
+vitality. Your disease is a constitutional plethora. Go, drink the
+Clear Waters, and you will be a well man again. You have my opinion."
+
+"Sire," said little Guilleret, "the diagnostic of my masters fills me
+with admiration. I bow before their learning. Like them, I believe
+that you are suffering from disorder of the sympathetic nerves. Your
+disease is a constitutional nervousness. Drink the Clear Waters. Go
+quickly, or you are a dead man. You have my opinion."
+
+A unanimous opinion was drawn up and immediately carried to the court
+gazette by Tonto; and the three doctors rose, bowed to the minister
+and the king, shook hands with one another, and went down-stairs
+quarreling or laughing, I know not which; the chronicle is almost
+illegible, owing to a large blot in this place.
+
+After the three physicians had gone, Wieduwillst read the opinion,
+reflected deeply, and looked at the king. Charming, who had supped a
+little better this evening even than usual, had not once listened to
+the doctors, but sat gazing around him with bloodshot eyes.
+
+[Illustration: THE MOST RENOWNED PHYSICIANS OF THE FACULTY MET ONE
+EVENING IN CONSULTATION AT THE PALACE]
+
+"Sire," said he, "it is the unanimous opinion of these gentlemen that,
+if you wish to be cured, you must go to the Clear Waters and
+abandon the affairs of state. Such a resolution appears to me unworthy
+of Your Royal Majesty. A great prince should sacrifice himself for his
+people, and--"
+
+"Enough," said the king. "Spare me this worn-out moralizing and come
+to the conclusion. You wish me to go, my good friend; you are dying
+for me to do so, for my own interest, of course. Draw up a decree
+placing the regency in your hands, and I will sign it."
+
+"Sire, the decree is here, in your portfolio; a good minister always
+has papers drawn up to suit whatever circumstances may arise. He never
+knows what may happen."
+
+Charming took the pen, carelessly signed the decree without reading
+it, and handed it to the minister, who approached to receive it with a
+smile; then, seized with a new caprice, he drew back the paper and
+read it.
+
+"What!" said he, "no statement of reasons; nothing to assure my people
+of the kindness I bear them! Doctor, you are too modest; to-morrow
+this decree shall be in the gazette, with a statement from the hand of
+your friend and master. Good night; these gentlemen have tired me."
+
+The doctor went out with a light step, erect brow, and sparkling eye,
+prouder and more insolent than ever. Charming sank again into his
+reverie, thinking that, in spite of all, he was not the most unhappy
+of princes, since Heaven had given him such a friend.
+
+All at once the strangest little doctor that had ever been seen in a
+castle entered the king's apartment unannounced. He wore a wig with
+long curls, his snow-white beard fell on his breast, and his eyes were
+so bright and youthful that it seemed as though they must have come
+into the world sixty years after the rest of his body.
+
+"Where are those knaves?" cried he, with a shrill voice, rapping on
+the floor with his cane. "Where are those ignorant fellows, those
+pedants, those ill-bred men that did not wait for me? Ah! so you are
+the patient," said he to the stupefied king. "That is good. Put out
+your tongue. Quick! I am in a hurry."
+
+"Who are you?" asked the king.
+
+"I am Doctor Truth, the greatest doctor in the world, as you will see,
+in spite of my modesty. Ask Wieduwillst, my pupil, who sent for me
+from the Land of Dreams. I cure everybody, even those who are not ill.
+Put out your tongue; that's right. Where is the opinion? Very well.
+Atony--_asinis!_ Plethora--_asini!_ Nervousness--_asinorum!_ Drink the
+Clear Waters--_asininum!_ Do you know what is your disease? It is
+vexation, and even worse."
+
+"Do you see that?" said Charming, terrified.
+
+"Yes, my son, it is written on your tongue. But I will cure you: it
+shall be done by to-morrow noon."
+
+"To-morrow!" said the king. "All my treasures--"
+
+"Silence, my son. What portfolio is that?--the minister's? Good. Sign
+these three papers for me."
+
+"They are blank decrees," said the king. "What do you wish to do with
+them?"
+
+"They are my ordinances. Sign. Well done, my son; be obedient, and
+to-morrow noon you shall be as gay as a lark. First ordinance: If you
+would live at peace, appear at peace; I suppress six regiments. Second
+ordinance: A penny in a peasant's pocket is worth twenty in the king's
+treasury; I suppress one fourth of the taxes. Third ordinance: Liberty
+is like the sunshine--it is the happiness and fortune of the poor; I
+throw open the political prisons and demolish the debtors' prisons.
+You are laughing, my son; it is a good sign when a patient laughs at
+his doctor."
+
+"Yes," said Charming, "I am laughing to think of Wieduwillst's face
+to-morrow on reading these ordinances in the court gazette. Enough of
+these follies, buffoon doctor; give me back the papers and put an end
+to this farce."
+
+"What is this?" said the little man, taking up the decree of the
+regency. "God forgive me! it is an abdication. What are you thinking
+of, Prince Charming? What! the inheritance bequeathed to you by your
+fathers, the people intrusted to you by God, your name, your honor,
+will you throw all these at the feet of an adventurer? Will you let
+yourself be dethroned and duped by a deceiver? Impossible! It does not
+suit me. I oppose it. Do you hear?"
+
+"What insolent fellow addresses his prince in this way?"
+
+"Politeness is not in words. Charming, are you mad? Are you dreaming?
+Are you wholly without heart?"
+
+"This is too much!" cried the king. "Begone, wretch, or I will throw
+you out of the window."
+
+"Begone!" said the little doctor, in a shrill voice. "No, not till I
+have destroyed this mad and stupid document. See, I tear your
+abdication in pieces and trample it under-foot!"
+
+Charming seized the madman and called his guards. No one answered. The
+little man struggled with wonderful strength. With his foot he threw
+the lamp on the ground; but the king, despite the darkness, kept fast
+hold of the sorcerer, who felt his strength failing.
+
+"Let me go!" murmured he; "for Heaven's sake let me go! You know not
+what you are doing. You are breaking my arm."
+
+His words and prayers were useless. Suddenly a shower of blows, dealt
+by a strong hand, fell on the king's ears. Charming let go his hold in
+surprise, and turned to attack his invisible enemy. He found nothing
+but empty space, and, staggering in the darkness, cried loudly for the
+help that did not come. Such a thing could not have happened in a
+minister's house; kings are always worse guarded.
+
+
+VIII
+
+THE END OF A DREAM
+
+At last a door opened and Rachimburg entered, according to etiquette,
+to undress the king. The faithful servant appeared greatly vexed to
+find him without a light, groping along the wall.
+
+"Where is that infernal doctor?" asked Charming, foaming with rage.
+
+"It is more than an hour, sire, since His Excellency quitted the
+palace."
+
+"Who is talking of Wieduwillst?" cried the king. "Which way did the
+villain go that just insulted me?"
+
+Rachimburg looked at the prince with a contrite air, and raised his
+eyes to heaven, sighing.
+
+"A man went out of the door that leads to your rooms," said Charming.
+"How did he enter, and where has he fled?"
+
+"Sire," said Rachimburg, "I have neither quitted my post nor seen any
+one."
+
+"I tell you that a man was in this room a moment ago."
+
+"Sire, Your Majesty is never mistaken; if a man was in this room he
+is still here, unless he has flown through the window or Your Majesty
+has been dreaming."
+
+"Fool, do I look like a man who has been dreaming? Did I overturn this
+lamp? did I tear these papers?"
+
+"Sire, I am nothing but a worm of the earth; God forbid that I should
+contradict my sovereign. Your majesty does not hire me to give him the
+lie. But this year strange dreams are an epidemic. No one knows what
+he may do or suffer in his sleep. Only just now I was overtaken with
+sleep in spite of myself, and if I were not sure that I was dreaming I
+should declare that an invisible hand boxed my ears twice, at which I
+awakened with a start."
+
+"It was the specter!" said the king.
+
+"Your Majesty is right," replied Rachimburg; "I am nothing but a
+simpleton; it was the specter."
+
+"And I did not know her!" resumed Charming. "Nevertheless, it was her
+voice and air. What does this mean? Is it a new insult? Is it a
+warning from heaven? Does some danger threaten me? No matter, I will
+remain in my kingdom. My friend, not a word of all this: take this
+purse and keep the secret."
+
+"That makes the third," murmured the faithful Rachimburg, as he
+undressed the king with a zeal and address which several times made
+His Majesty smile.
+
+So many emotions one after another banished sleep; it was daybreak
+before the prince dozed, and broad daylight before he awoke. In the
+first moment between sleeping and waking Charming fancied that he
+heard a strange noise--bells ringing, cannon firing, and three or four
+bands of music playing each a different air. He was not mistaken; it
+was an infernal hubbub. The king rang. Rachimburg entered, carrying a
+bouquet of flowers.
+
+"Sire," said he, "will His Majesty permit the humblest of his servants
+to be the first to express to him the universal joy? Your people are
+intoxicated with love and gratitude. The taxes lessened, the prisons
+opened, the army reduced! Sire, you are the greatest prince in the
+world; never has earth seen a ruler like you. Show yourself at the
+balcony; answer these cries of 'Hurrah for the king!' Smile on the
+people that bless you."
+
+Rachimburg could not finish; tears choked his voice. He attempted to
+wipe his eyes, but in his excitement he took the gazette from his
+pocket instead of a handkerchief, and began to kiss it like a madman.
+
+Charming took the journal, and vainly attempted, while dressing, to
+collect his ideas. By what chance had these insane ordinances found
+their way into the official journal? Who had sent them? Why did not
+Wieduwillst make his appearance? The prince wished to reflect,
+consult, and question; but the people were under the windows, and
+their majesties were too impatient to wait.
+
+As soon as the king appeared in the balcony he was greeted with
+shouts of enthusiasm, which, despite everything, thrilled his heart.
+Men tossed their caps in the air, women waved their handkerchiefs,
+mothers lifted up their children and made them stretch their innocent
+hands to heaven, and repeat, "Hurrah for the king!" The guns of the
+palace guards were decked with flowers, the drums beat, and the
+officers' swords flashed in the sun. It was a scene of delirious joy.
+Charming was infected by the general emotion; he wept without exactly
+knowing why. At that instant the clock struck noon. The specter was
+right--the prince was cured.
+
+After the crowd it was the turn of the corporations, all of whom, the
+ministers at the head, came to congratulate and thank the king for
+having so well understood the wishes of his faithful counselors. A
+single person was lacking, namely, Wieduwillst. None knew where he had
+hidden his ignorance and spite. A mysterious note received by him that
+morning had occasioned his flight, yet this note contained only the
+words, _The king knows all!_ Who had written this fatal letter? Not
+the prince; he alone, perhaps, in the palace, thought of the minister,
+and wondered at not seeing him by his side.
+
+All at once Tonto entered, pale and haggard. He ran to the king and
+gave him a letter which an officer had brought at full gallop. The
+governor of the province, General Bayonet, sent terrible news; the six
+disbanded regiments had mutinied, headed by Wieduwillst. The rebels
+had proclaimed the downfall of the king, whom they accused of
+abominable crimes, especially of the murder of the queen. Numerous and
+well commanded, they were approaching the city, which was defended
+only by a few doubtful and disaffected regiments. Bayonet entreated
+the king to come instantly and take command; an hour later, and all
+would be lost.
+
+Hurried on by Tonto and Rachimburg, the king secretly quitted the
+palace, followed by a few officers. A proclamation, placarded on all
+the walls of the city and at every corner of the streets, declared
+that there was no truth in the rumors spread by a few malicious
+persons, and that the army had never been more devoted or faithful.
+Upon this there was a universal panic; stocks fell 50 per cent. in
+half an hour, and did not rise again till unofficial news arrived that
+the king had been well received at head-quarters.
+
+
+IX
+
+HEROIC REMEDIES FOR GREAT EVILS
+
+The news was false; the prince had been received with great coldness.
+It was his own fault. Sad, despondent, and abstracted, Charming had
+neither found a jest for the soldiers nor a word of trust for the
+officers. He entered the general's tent and fell into a chair. Tonto
+was little less disheartened.
+
+"Sire," said Bayonet, "permit me to speak to you with the frankness of
+a soldier and the freedom of an old friend. The army is murmuring and
+hesitating; we must secure it, or all is lost. The enemy is in sight;
+we must attack him. Five minutes sometimes decide the fate of empires;
+it is so with us now. Do not wait till it is too late."
+
+"Very well," said the king. "To horse! in an instant I will be with
+you."
+
+Left alone with Tonto and Rachimburg, the king exclaimed, in despair,
+"My good friends, quit a master who can do no more for you. I shall
+not dispute my wretched life with my enemies. Betrayed in friendship
+and treacherously assassinated, I recognize in my misfortune the hand
+of an avenging God. It is in punishment for my crime. I killed the
+queen in my stupid vengeance; the hour has come to expiate my fault,
+and I am ready."
+
+"Sire," said Tonto, trying to smile, "shake off these sad thoughts. If
+the queen were here she would tell you to defend yourself. Believe
+me," he added, twisting his budding mustache, "I am acquainted with
+women! Were they dead, they would still love to avenge themselves.
+Besides, you did not kill the queen; and perhaps she is not so dead as
+you imagine."
+
+"What do you say?" exclaimed the king; "you are losing your reason."
+
+"I say that there are women who die expressly to enrage their
+husbands; why should there not be those that would rise from the dead
+to enrage them still more? Leave the dead, and think of the living who
+love you. You are a king; fight like a king, and, if necessary, fall
+like a king."
+
+"Sire," said Bayonet, entering, sword in hand, "time presses."
+
+"General, to horse!" cried Tonto; "let us go."
+
+Bayonet quitted the room to give the needful orders. When he was gone,
+Charming looked at Tonto and said: "No, I will not go. I do not
+understand my feelings; I abhor myself. I am not afraid of death; I am
+going to kill myself; nevertheless, I will not fight."
+
+"Sire," said Tonto, "in Heaven's name, summon up your courage. To
+horse! Great God!" he exclaimed, wringing his hands, "the prince will
+not listen to me; we are lost. Come!" said he, taking hold of
+Charming's cloak; "up, sire; to horse, unhappy prince! Save your
+kingdom--save your people--save all that love you. Coward! look at me;
+I am nothing but a child, yet I am about to die for you. Fight! do not
+disgrace yourself. If you do not rise I will insult you--I, your
+servant. You are a coward--do you hear? a coward!"
+
+And behold! the insolent page boxed the king's ears.
+
+"S'death!" cried Charming, drawing his sword. "Before dying I will
+have the pleasure of punishing one subject, at least."
+
+But the page had left the tent. With one bound he sprang into the
+saddle and galloped toward the enemy, sword in hand, crying, "The
+king! my friends--the king! Sound the trumpets! Forward!"
+
+Charming, mad with anger, spurred his horse in pursuit of the page:
+like a bull at the sight of a red flag, he rushed forward, head
+downward, caring neither for death nor for danger. Bayonet rushed
+after the king, and the army after the general. It was the finest
+cavalry charge ever known in history.
+
+At the noise of the squadrons, which shook the ground like thunder,
+the enemy, surprised, scarcely had time to form in line of battle. One
+man, however, had recognized the king--the infamous Wieduwillst.
+Charming was alone; wholly absorbed in his vengeance, he saw nothing
+but the page whom he was pursuing. The traitor threw himself on the
+prince, sword in hand, and would have slain him at one stroke had not
+Tonto, plunging his spurs into the flanks of his horse, made the
+animal rear and fall on Wieduwillst. The page received the blow
+intended for his master. He threw up his arms and fell with a loud
+cry; but his fall, at least, was avenged. The king thrust his sword
+into the throat of the treacherous physician, and drew it forth,
+dripping with blood, not without pleasure. Man is decidedly the king
+of wild beasts.
+
+The traitor's death decided the fate of the day. The royal army,
+electrified by the heroism of its leader, soon dispersed the
+straggling battalions. The rebels, having nothing more to hope, sued
+for pardon, and their prayer was granted by the happy and clement
+king.
+
+An hour after quitting the camp where he had wished to die, Charming
+returned in triumph, bringing with him conquerors and conquered, all
+blended in the same ranks, the former loudly protesting their loyalty,
+the latter overpowering them with their enthusiasm. Nothing sharpens
+devotion so much as a little treason.
+
+
+X
+
+IN WHICH WE SEE THAT IT IS WRONG TO JUDGE ACCORDING
+
+TO APPEARANCES, AND THAT TONTO WAS NOT TONTO
+
+The king entered his tent to rest a moment, when the sight of
+Rachimburg reminded him of Tonto.
+
+"Is the page dead?" he asked.
+
+"No, sire," answered Rachimburg; "unfortunately for him, he is still
+living; he is hopeless. I ordered him carried to his aunt's, the
+Countess de Castro's, close by here."
+
+"Is he the countess's nephew?" said the king. "I was never told of
+it."
+
+"Your Majesty has forgotten it," replied Rachimburg, quietly. "The
+poor child is fatally wounded in the shoulder; he cannot recover. It
+would give him great happiness could he see Your Majesty before he
+dies."
+
+"Very well," returned the king; "lead me to him."
+
+On his arrival at the castle Charming was met by the countess, who
+conducted him to a darkened room. The page was stretched, pale and
+bleeding, on a couch; nevertheless, he had strength to raise his head
+and welcome the king.
+
+"What a miracle!" exclaimed Charming. "This is the strangest wound
+that I ever saw in my life: one side of Tonto's mustache is gone!"
+
+"Sire," said the countess, "the blade of the sword probably swept off
+one side. Nothing is so capricious as sword wounds, as every one
+knows."
+
+"How strange!" cried the king. "On one side it is Tonto, my page, my
+insolent subject, and on the other it is--no, I am not mistaken--it is
+you, my good angel and my savior; it is you, my poor Pazza!"
+
+He fell on his knees and seized her hand, which lay on the coverlet.
+
+"Sire," said Pazza, "my days are numbered, but before dying--"
+
+"No, no, Pazza, you shall not die," cried the king, in tears.
+
+"Before dying," she added, casting down her eyes, "I hope that Your
+Majesty will forgive me the box on the ear which I gave you this
+morning in indiscreet zeal--"
+
+"Enough," said the king; "I forgive you. After all, a throne and honor
+were well worth--what I received."
+
+"Alas!" said Pazza, "that is not all."
+
+"What!" exclaimed Charming, "is there anything more?"
+
+"Oh, sire, what have you done?" cried the countess; "my child is
+dying!"
+
+"My Pazza, you must not die!" exclaimed the king. "Speak, and be sure
+that I forgive in advance all you have done. Alas! it is I that have
+need of forgiveness."
+
+"Sire, the little doctor who took the liberty of boxing Your Majesty's
+ears--"
+
+"Was it you that sent him?" asked Charming, with a frown.
+
+"No, sire, I myself was he. Ah, what would I not have done to save my
+king! It was I who, to save Your Majesty from the traitorous knaves
+that surrounded you, took the liberty of boxing your ears--"
+
+"Enough," said Charming; "I forgive you, though the lesson was a harsh
+one."
+
+"Alas! this is not all," said Pazza.
+
+"What, more?" cried the king, rising.
+
+"Oh, aunt, I am dying!" exclaimed Pazza. By dint of care, however, she
+was restored to life; and, turning her languishing eyes toward the
+king, "Sire," said she, "the gipsy girl at the masked ball, who dared
+to box your ears--"
+
+"Was yourself, Pazza?" said charming. "Oh, I forgive you for that; I
+well deserved it. How could I doubt you, who are sincerity itself!
+But, now I think of it, do you remember the rash vow that you made on
+the night of our marriage? You have kept your promise; it is for me to
+keep mine. Pazza, make haste to recover, and return to the castle from
+which happiness fled with you."
+
+"I have a last favor to ask of Your Majesty," said Pazza. "Rachimburg
+was the witness this morning of a scene for which I blush, and of
+which all must remain ignorant. I commend this faithful servant to
+your goodness."
+
+"Rachimburg," said the king, "take this purse, and keep the secret
+under penalty of your head."
+
+"That makes the fourth," whispered Rachimburg to himself; "my fortune
+is made."
+
+In a few moments Pazza was asleep. "Do you think that she will
+recover?" asked Charming, anxiously, of the countess.
+
+"Bah!" said the old lady. "No matter how ill a woman may be, happiness
+will bring her back from the brink of the grave. Kiss the queen, my
+nephew; it will do her more good than all the doctors in the world."
+
+Charming stooped and kissed the sleeping Pazza. An angelic smile
+stole over her features, at the sight of which he wept like a child.
+
+
+XI
+
+A WIFE SHOULD OBEY HER HUSBAND
+
+The countess was right (women are always right--past sixty). A
+fortnight of happiness set Pazza on her feet again, and enabled her to
+make a triumphant entry into the city with the king, her husband. Her
+paleness, and her wounded arm, which she carried in a sling, added to
+her grace and beauty. Charming had eyes for no one but the queen, and
+the people's looks followed the king's.
+
+They were more than an hour in reaching the castle. The magistrates
+had erected not less than three triumphal arches, frowning fortresses,
+defended each by thirty-six deputations and thirty-six speeches. The
+first arch, made of trellis-work, and adorned with leaves and flowers,
+bore the inscription,
+
+             TO THE MOST TENDER AND FAITHFUL OF HUSBANDS
+
+This was intrusted to the keeping of five or six thousand young girls,
+dressed in white, with pink ribbons, representing the spring of the
+year, the hope of the future, welcoming Glory and Beauty.
+
+The second arch, more solidly built, was a frame covered with
+tapestry, surmounted by Justice, with her eyes bandaged and her scales
+in her hand.
+
+On the pedestal of the statue was written,
+
+                          TO THE FATHER OF HIS PEOPLE,
+                         THE BEST AND WISEST OF PRINCES
+
+A host of priests, statesmen, and magistrates, in robes of all colors,
+represented Religion, Wisdom, and Virtue; at least so said these
+venerable and discreet personages, who are never in error.
+
+Last came an immense arch, a true military trophy, bearing as its
+motto,
+
+               TO THE BOLDEST AND MOST VALIANT OF KINGS
+
+Here the army awaited its general, and the queen was saluted by the
+majestic voice of a hundred cannon and two hundred drums--a voice
+before which all human eloquence falters, and which always has the
+last word.
+
+I spare you a description of the dinner, which was interminable, and
+of sixty more speeches from the court gazette, where they had already
+done service two or three times, and wherein they were again deposited
+for the use of future generations. There is nothing so monotonous as
+happiness, and we must be indulgent to those who sing its praises
+officially. In such cases, the ablest is he who says the least.
+
+The long evening, during which the king had lavished his most gracious
+smiles on those whom he despised at the bottom of his heart, was at
+length at an end, and Charming led Pazza, no longer to a dungeon, but
+to a magnificent apartment, where a new surprise awaited her. At the
+bottom of the room was an illuminated transparency, on which were
+written lines so bad that a king alone could have been the author of
+them. These lines, which were published in the official gazette, have
+been handed down to us by one of those indiscreet persons who suffer
+no follies of the past to be lost. Such persons are the rag-pickers of
+history.
+
+    Ye indolent dunces, who rust in your sloth,
+      Too lazy or wilful to learn;
+    Ye courtiers, who crowd round the king, nothing loth
+      By base flattery his favor to earn;
+    Ye doctors, who laugh at us cowards, and sell
+      Long words and wise oracles dear--
+    Beware lest some night a mischievous sprite
+      Should give you a box on the ear.
+
+    And you, ye proud husbands, puffed up with conceit,
+      Who deem yourselves statesmen so wise
+    That the whole world admiringly bows at your feet--
+      Who truth, love, and goodness despise--
+    Beware lest some day your less frivolous wives,
+      Derided by those they held dear,
+    Should start from your side, aroused by just pride,
+      And give you a box on the ear.
+
+"What means this enigma, sire?" asked Pazza.
+
+"It means that I do myself justice," answered the king. "I am nothing
+except through you, dear Pazza; all that I know and all that I think I
+owe to you. Without you I am nothing but a soulless body, fit only for
+follies."
+
+"Pardon me if I contradict Your Majesty," said Pazza.
+
+"Oh," returned the king, "I affect no false modesty; I know very well
+that I have the clearest head of any in my council; my ministers
+themselves are forced to acknowledge it, for they are always of my
+opinion; but with all this there is more wisdom in your little finger
+than in all my royal brain. My resolution, therefore, is fixed. Let my
+court and people celebrate my wisdom, my goodness, and even my valor;
+it is all very well, and I accept the homage. You alone have the right
+to laugh at it, and you will not betray me. But from this day I
+abandon my power to you. The king, my dear Pazza, will be only the
+chief of your subjects, the faithful minister of your will. You shall
+write the piece and I will play it; the applause will be mine,
+according to custom, and I will give it back to you by force of love."
+
+"Do not talk in this way, my dear," said Pazza.
+
+"I know what I am saying," returned the king, warmly. "I wish you to
+rule; I mean that in my empire, as in my house, nothing shall be done
+except by your command; I am the master and the king; I desire and
+order it."
+
+"Sire," said Pazza, "I am your wife and servant; it is my duty to
+obey."
+
+After this, says the chronicle, they lived happily to a good old age,
+beloved by all their subjects; and the people of the kingdom of Wild
+Oats still talk of the good old days of Prince Charming and the
+Princess Pazza.
+
+
+
+THE END
+
+
+
+
+
+End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Laboulaye's Fairy Book, by Various
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+      The Project Gutenberg eBook of Laboulaye's Fairy Book, by Kate Douglas Wiggin
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+<pre>
+
+The Project Gutenberg EBook of Laboulaye's Fairy Book, 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: Laboulaye's Fairy Book
+
+Author: Various
+
+Commentator: Kate Douglas Wiggin
+
+Illustrator: Edward G. McCandlish
+
+Translator: Mary L. Booth
+
+Release Date: August 21, 2008 [EBook #26386]
+
+Language: English
+
+Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1
+
+*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK LABOULAYE'S FAIRY BOOK ***
+
+
+
+
+Produced by Sankar Viswanathan, David Edwards, and the
+Online Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net
+(This file was produced from images generously made
+available by The Internet Archive)
+
+
+
+
+
+
+</pre>
+
+
+
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 600px;"><a name="pic_1" id="pic_1"></a>
+<img src="images/frontis.jpg" width="600" height="742" alt="HE FLUNG HUGE MASSES OF ROCK AFTER THE VESSEL"  />
+<span class="caption">HE FLUNG HUGE MASSES OF ROCK AFTER THE VESSEL</span>
+</div>
+
+<p>&nbsp;</p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 500px;">
+<img class="img1" src="images/titlepage.jpg" width="500" height="584" alt=""  />
+</div>
+<p>&nbsp;</p>
+<h1>
+<i>Laboulaye's</i> <span class="smcap">Fairy Book</span></h1>
+<p>&nbsp;</p>
+
+<h4><i>Illustrated by</i></h4>
+
+<h2>Edward G.<br />
+M<sup>c</sup>Candlish</h2>
+<p>&nbsp;</p>
+<h4><i>Translated by</i></h4>
+
+<h2>Mary L. Booth</h2>
+<p>&nbsp;</p>
+<h4><i>Introduction by</i></h4>
+
+<h3>Kate Douglas Wiggin</h3>
+<p>&nbsp;</p>
+<p>&nbsp;</p>
+<h3><span class="smcap">Harper &amp; Brothers, Publishers, New York</span> <i>and</i> <span class="smcap">London</span></h3>
+<p>&nbsp;</p>
+<p>&nbsp;</p>
+<p>&nbsp;</p>
+<h4><span class="smcap">Laboulaye's Fairy Book</span></h4>
+
+<h4>Copyright, 1866, 1920, by Harper &amp; Brothers
+</h4>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<h2><span class="smcap">Contents</span></h2>
+
+
+<table class="tab1" summary="Contents">
+<tr><td></td><td class="tocpg f1">PAGE</td></tr>
+<tr><td><a href="#INTRODUCTION">INTRODUCTION</a></td>
+<td class="tocpg"><a href="#Page_ix">ix</a></td>
+</tr>
+<tr><td><a href="#On_the_Kerver">YVON AND FINETTE</a></td>
+<td class="tocpg"><a href="#Page_3">3</a></td></tr>
+<tr><td><a href="#The_Castle_of_Life">THE CASTLE OF LIFE</a></td>
+<td class="tocpg"><a href="#Page_46">46</a></td></tr>
+<tr><td><a href="#Destiny">DESTINY</a></td>
+<td class="tocpg"><a href="#Page_79">79</a></td></tr>
+<tr><td><a href="#The_Twelve_Months">THE TWELVE MONTHS</a></td>
+<td class="tocpg"><a href="#Page_86">86</a></td></tr>
+<tr><td><a href="#Swanda_the_Piper">SWANDA, THE PIPER</a></td>
+<td class="tocpg"><a href="#Page_96">96</a></td></tr>
+<tr><td><a href="#The_Gold_Bread">THE GOLD BREAD</a></td>
+<td class="tocpg"><a href="#Page_102">102</a></td></tr>
+<tr><td><a href="#The_Story_of_the_Noses">THE STORY OF THE NOSES</a></td>
+<td class="tocpg"><a href="#Page_109">109</a></td></tr>
+<tr><td><a href="#The_Three_Citrons">THE THREE CITRONS</a></td>
+<td class="tocpg"><a href="#Page_115">115</a></td></tr>
+<tr><td><a href="#Story_of">THE STORY OF COQUERICO</a></td>
+<td class="tocpg"><a href="#Page_137">137</a></td></tr>
+<tr><td><a href="#KING_BIZARRE_and_PRINCE_CHARMING">KING BIZARRE AND PRINCE CHARMING</a></td>
+<td class="tocpg"><a href="#Page_145">145</a></td></tr>
+</table>
+
+
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<h2>ILLUSTRATIONS</h2>
+
+
+
+<table summary="Illustrations">
+<tr><td><a href="#pic_1">HE FLUNG HUGE MASSES OF ROCK AFTER THE VESSEL</a></td>
+<td class="tocpg f1"><i><a href="#pic_1">Frontispiece</a></i></td>
+</tr>
+<tr><td><a href="#pic_2">HE WAS SOON SNORING SO LOUDLY THAT IT SEEMED LIKE THUNDER SHAKING THE MOUNTAINS</a></td>
+<td class="f1"><i>Facing p.</i></td><td class="tocpg"><a href="#Page_16">16</a></td></tr>
+<tr><td><a href="#pic_3">SHE FOUND HERSELF IN FRONT OF A WRETCHED HUT AT THE DOOR OF WHICH STOOD AN OLD WOMAN, OF WHOM SHE BEGGED SHELTER FOR THE NIGHT</a></td>
+<td class="center1">"</td><td class="tocpg"><a href="#Page_26">26</a></td></tr>
+<tr><td><a href="#pic_4">AT NIGHT THE GRANDMOTHER ALWAYS GAVE HIM GOOD COUNSELS FOR HIM TO FOLLOW WHEN SHE WAS GONE</a></td>
+<td class="center">"</td><td class="tocpg"><a href="#Page_48">48</a></td></tr>
+<tr><td><a href="#pic_5">PRETTY DOBRUNKA WAS OBLIGED TO DO ALL THE WORK OF THE HOUSE</a></td>
+<td class="center1">"</td><td class="tocpg"><a href="#Page_88">88</a></td></tr>
+<tr><td><a href="#pic_6">TURNED OUT BY HER MOTHER, DOBRUNKA WENT UNHAPPILY INTO THE FOREST</a></td>
+<td class="center1">"</td><td class="tocpg"><a href="#Page_92">92</a></td></tr>
+<tr><td><a href="#pic_7">HE BEGAN TO PLAY, AND NEVER HAD HIS MUSIC PRODUCED SUCH AN EFFECT</a></td>
+<td class="center1">"</td><td class="tocpg"><a href="#Page_100">100</a></td></tr>
+<tr><td><a href="#pic_8">AS THE MOTHER GAZED LOVINGLY AT HER BEAUTIFUL DAUGHTER, MARIENKA LAUGHED IN HER SLEEP</a></td>
+<td class="center1">"</td><td class="tocpg"><a href="#Page_106">106</a></td></tr>
+<tr><td><a href="#pic_9">HE RAN TO THE TREE AND SHOOK IT WITH ALL HIS MIGHT, WHEN, BEHOLD! A YOUNG GIRL FELL FROM THE BRANCHES</a></td>
+<td class="center1">"</td><td class="tocpg"><a href="#Page_112">112</a></td></tr>
+<tr><td><a href="#pic_10">HE INSTANTLY GAVE HER THE WATER, WHEN, LO! A BEAUTIFUL, SLENDER YOUNG GIRL STOOD BEFORE HIM</a></td>
+<td class="center1">"</td><td class="tocpg"><a href="#Page_126">126</a></td></tr>
+<tr><td><a href="#pic_11">PAZZA, THOUGH SHE LOVED THE PRINCE, WAS A VERY STERN SCHOOLMISTRESS</a></td>
+<td class="center1">"</td><td class="tocpg"><a href="#Page_154">154</a></td></tr>
+<tr><td><a href="#pic_12">THE MOST RENOWNED PHYSICIANS OF THE FACULTY MET ONE EVENING IN CONSULTATION AT THE PALACE</a></td>
+<td class="center1">"</td><td class="tocpg"><a href="#Page_178">178</a></td></tr>
+</table>
+
+
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_ix" id="Page_ix">[ix]</a></span></p>
+<h2><a name="INTRODUCTION" id="INTRODUCTION"></a>INTRODUCTION</h2>
+
+<h3>By KATE DOUGLAS WIGGIN</h3>
+<p>There was once a green book, deliciously thick, with gilt-edged pages
+and the name of the author in gilt script on the front cover.</p>
+
+<p>Like an antique posy ring, it was a "box of jewels, shop of rarities";
+it was a veritable Pandora's box, and if you laid warm, childish hands
+upon it and held it pressed close to your ear, you could hear, as
+Pandora did, soft rustlings, murmurings, flutterings, and whisperings
+from the fairy folk within. For this was a fairy book&mdash;Edouard
+Laboulaye's "Tales," and its heroes and heroines became first the
+daily companions, and then the lifetime possession, of the two little
+girls to whom it belonged.</p>
+
+<p>From the New England village where it was originally given to them, it
+traveled to the far West and its tales were told to countless
+immigrant children of San Francisco, whose great eyes opened wider
+still as they listened, breathless, to stories beloved by their
+ancestors. In later years the green volume journeyed by clumsy,
+rattling stage and rawboned nags to Mexico, and the extraordinary
+adventures of "Yvon<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_x" id="Page_x">[x]</a></span> and Finette," "Carlino," and "Graceful" were
+repeated in freshly learned Spanish, to many a group of brown-cheeked
+little people on the hillsides of Sonora.</p>
+
+<p>And now, long, long afterward, there stands on a shelf above my desk
+the very selfsame worn green volume, read and re-read a hundred times,
+but so tenderly and respectfully that it has kept all its pages and
+both its covers; and on this desk itself are the proofs of a new
+edition with clear, beautiful print and gay pictures by Edward
+McCandlish!</p>
+
+<p>To be asked to write an introduction to this particular book seems
+insufferable patronage; yet one would do it for love of Laboulaye, or
+for the sake of one's own "little past," or to draw one more young
+reader into the charmed circle that will welcome these pages.</p>
+
+<p>The two children who adored Laboulaye's "Tales" possessed many another
+fairy book, so why did this especial volume hold a niche apart in the
+gallery of their hearts?</p>
+
+<p>Partly, perhaps, because of the Gallic wit and vivacity with which the
+tales are told, for children are never too young to appreciate the
+charms of style.</p>
+
+<p>You remember, possibly, the French chef who, being imprisoned with no
+materials save the tools of his trade, and commanded on pain of death
+to produce an omelette, proudly emerged at last, bearing a savory dish
+made out of the sole of his shoe?</p>
+
+<p>Of even such stuff Laboulaye could have concocted a<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_xi" id="Page_xi">[xi]</a></span> delectable tale;
+but with Brittany, Bohemia, Italy, Dalmatia, Hungary, and Spain for
+his storehouses, one has only to taste to know how finely flavored are
+the dishes he sets forth.</p>
+
+<p>In his preface to the first American edition Laboulaye writes a letter
+to Mlle. Gabrielle Laboulaye, aged two! In it he says: "When you throw
+away this book with your doll, do not be too severe with your old
+grandfather for wasting his time on such trifles as fairy stories.
+Experience will teach you that the truest and sweetest things in life
+are not those which we see, but of which we dream." Happy the children
+who have this philosophy set before them early in life.</p>
+
+<p>Like the fairy tales Robert Louis Stevenson remembered, these of
+Laboulaye's have "the golden smell of broom and the shade of pine,"
+and they will come back to the child whenever the Wind of Memory
+blows.</p>
+
+<p>In common with the stories of Charles Perrault, literary parent of the
+fairy tale, Laboulaye's charming narratives have a certain unique
+quality due to the fact that they were intended and collected for the
+author's own children, were told to them round the fireside in the
+evening, and so received at first hand the comment and suggestion of a
+bevy of competent, if somewhat youthful, critics.</p>
+
+<p>It is said that there is a great scarcity of fairy folk in modern
+France; and that, terrified by the thunders of the<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_xii" id="Page_xii">[xii]</a></span> Revolution, they
+left their unhappy country in a body during its stormy years, first
+assembling in grateful concourse around the tomb of Perrault, upon
+whose memory they conferred the boon of immortality.</p>
+
+<p>If this story is true&mdash;and the last reported act of the fairies on
+leaving France makes it appear so&mdash;then we may be sure that a few of
+the more hardy and adventurous fays skipped back again across the
+border and hid themselves in Laboulaye's box of jewels, where they
+give to each gem an even brighter sheen and a more magical luster.</p>
+
+<p class="f2"><span class="smcap">"Quillcote," Hollis, Maine.</span></p>
+
+<p class="f3"><i>August, 1920.</i></p>
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<h2><span class="smcap">Laboulaye's Fairy Book</span></h2>
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_3" id="Page_3">[3]</a></span></p>
+<h2><a name="On_the_Kerver" id="On_the_Kerver"></a>On the Kerver</h2>
+
+<h2><span class="smcap">Yvon</span> <i>and</i> <span class="smcap">Finette</span></h2>
+
+<h3><i>A Tale of Brittany</i></h3>
+<div>
+<img src="images/image_01_01.jpg" width="600" height="223" alt=""  />
+<img class="figleft" src="images/image_01_02.jpg" width="167" height="85" alt=""  />
+</div>
+
+
+<p class="p1">I</p>
+<p>nce upon a time there lived in Brittany a noble lord, who was called
+the Baron Kerver. His manor-house was the most beautiful in the
+province. It was a great Gothic castle, with a groined roof and walls,
+covered with carving, that looked at a distance like a vine climbing
+over an arbor. On the first floor six stained-glass balcony windows
+looked out on each side toward the rising and the setting sun. In the
+morning, when the baron, mounted on his dun mare, went forth into the
+forest, followed by his tall greyhounds, he saw at each window one of
+his daughters, with prayer-book in hand, praying for the house of
+Kerver, and who, with their fair curls, blue eyes, and clasped hands,
+might have been taken for six Madonnas in an azure niche. At evening,
+when the sun declined and the baron returned homeward, after riding
+round his domains, he perceived from afar, in the windows looking<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_4" id="Page_4">[4]</a></span>
+toward the west, six sons, with dark locks and eagle gaze, the hope
+and pride of the family, that might have been taken for six sculptured
+knights at the portal of a church. For ten leagues round, all who
+wished to quote a happy father and a powerful lord named the Baron
+Kerver.</p>
+
+<p>The castle had but twelve windows, and the baron had thirteen
+children. The last, the one that had no place, was a handsome boy of
+sixteen, by the name of Yvon. As usual, he was the best beloved. In
+the morning, at his departure, and at evening, on his return, the
+baron always found Yvon waiting on the threshold to embrace him. With
+his hair falling to his waist, his graceful figure, his wilful air,
+and his bold bearing, Yvon was beloved by all the Bretons. At twelve
+years of age he had bravely attacked and killed a wolf with an ax,
+which had won him the name of <i>Fearless</i>. He deserved the title, for
+never was there a bolder heart.</p>
+
+<p>One day, when the baron had stayed at home, and was amusing himself by
+breaking a lance with his squire, Yvon entered the armory in a
+traveling dress, and, bending one knee to the ground, "My lord and
+father," said he to the baron, "I come to ask your blessing. The house
+of Kerver is rich in knights, and has no need of a child; it is time
+for me to go to seek my fortune. I wish to go to distant countries to
+try my strength and to make myself a name."</p>
+
+<p>"You are right, Fearless," replied the baron, more moved<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_5" id="Page_5">[5]</a></span> than he
+wished to appear. "I will not keep you back; I have no right to do so;
+but you are very young, my child; perhaps it would be better for you
+to stay another year with us."</p>
+
+<p>"I am sixteen, my father; at that age you had already fought one of
+the proudest lords of the country. I have not forgotten that our arms
+are a unicorn ripping up a lion, and our motto. Onward! I do not wish
+the Kervers to blush for their last child."</p>
+
+<p>Yvon received his father's blessing, shook hands with his brothers,
+embraced his sisters, bid adieu to all the weeping vassals, and set
+out with a light heart.</p>
+
+<p>Nothing stopped him on his way. A river appeared, he swam it; a
+mountain, he climbed it; a forest, he made his way through it with the
+sun for a guide. "<i>On&mdash;the Kerver!</i>" he cried, whenever he met with an
+obstacle, and went straight forward in spite of everything.</p>
+
+<p>For three years he had been roaming over the world in search of
+adventures, sometimes conquering, sometimes conquered, always bold and
+gay, when he received an offer to go to fight the heathen of Norway.
+To kill unbelievers and to conquer a kingdom was a double pleasure.
+Yvon enlisted twelve brave comrades, freighted a ship, and hoisted
+from the mainmast a blue standard with the unicorn and motto of the
+Kervers.</p>
+
+<p>The sea was calm, the wind fair, and the night serene.<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_6" id="Page_6">[6]</a></span> Yvon,
+stretched on the deck, watched the stars, and sought the one which
+cast its trembling light on his father's castle. All at once the
+vessel struck upon a rock; a terrible crash was heard; the sails fell
+like tinder; and an enormous wave burst over the deck and swept away
+everything upon it.</p>
+
+<p>"<i>On&mdash;the Kerver!</i>" cried Yvon, as soon as his head appeared above the
+water, and he began to swim as tranquilly as if he had been bathing in
+the lake of the old castle. Happily the moon was rising. Yvon saw, at
+a little distance, a black speck among the silvery waves&mdash;it was land.
+He approached it, not without difficulty, and finally succeeded in
+gaining a foothold. Dripping wet, exhausted with fatigue, and out of
+breath, he dragged himself on the sand, then, without more anxiety,
+said his prayers and went to sleep.</p>
+
+
+<h2>II</h2>
+<p>In the morning, on awaking, Yvon tried to discover in what country he
+had been cast. He saw in the distance a house as large as a church,
+with windows fifty feet in height. He walked a whole day before
+reaching it, and at last found himself in front of an immense door,
+with a knocker so heavy that it was impossible for a man to lift it.</p>
+
+<p>Yvon took a great stone and began to knock. "Come in," cried a voice
+that sounded like the roar of a bull. At the same instant the door
+opened, and the little Breton<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_7" id="Page_7">[7]</a></span> found himself in the presence of a
+giant not less than forty feet in height.</p>
+
+<p>"What is your name, and what do you want here?" said the giant, taking
+up Yvon between his thumb and finger and lifting him from the ground
+so as to see him better.</p>
+
+<p>"My name is Fearless, and I am seeking my fortune," answered Yvon,
+looking at the monster with an air of defiance.</p>
+
+<p>"Well, brave Fearless, your fortune is made," said the giant, in a
+mocking tone. "I am in need of a servant and I will give you the
+place. You can go to work directly. This is the time for leading my
+sheep to the pasture; you may clean the stable while I am gone. I
+shall give you nothing else to do," added he, bursting into a laugh.
+"You see that I am a good master. Do your task, and, above all things,
+don't prowl about the house, or it will cost you your life."</p>
+
+<p>"Certainly I have a good master; the work is not hard," thought Yvon,
+when the giant was gone. "I have plenty of time to sweep the stable.
+What shall I do meanwhile to amuse myself? Shall I look about the
+house? Since I am forbidden to do so, it must be because there is
+something to see."</p>
+
+<p>He entered the first room, and saw a large fireplace in which a great
+pot was hanging, suspended from a hook. The pot was boiling, but there
+was no fire on the hearth.<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_8" id="Page_8">[8]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>"What does this mean?" thought Yvon; "there is some mystery here." He
+cut off a lock of his hair, dipped it into the pot, and took it out
+all coated with copper.</p>
+
+<p>"Oh, oh!" cried he, "this is a new kind of soup; anybody that swallows
+it must have an iron-clad stomach."</p>
+
+<p>He went into the next room; there also a pot was suspended from a
+hook, and boiling without fire. Yvon dipped a lock of hair into it,
+and took it out all coated with silver.</p>
+
+<p>"The broth is not so rich as this in the Kerver kitchen," thought he,
+"but it may have a better taste."</p>
+
+<p>Upon this, he entered the third room. There also a pot was suspended
+from a hook, and boiling without fire. Yvon dipped a lock of hair into
+it, and took it out all coated with gold. It shone so brightly that it
+might have been mistaken for a sunbeam.</p>
+
+<p>"Good!" cried he. "In our country the old women have a saying, 'Everything
+gets worse and worse'; here it is just the contrary&mdash;everything gets
+better and better. What shall I find in the fourth room, I wonder&mdash;diamond
+soup?"</p>
+
+<p>He pushed open the door and saw something rarer than precious stones.
+This was a young woman of such marvelous beauty that Yvon, dazzled,
+fell on his knees at the sight.</p>
+
+<p>"Unfortunate youth!" cried she, in a trembling voice, "what are you
+doing here?"<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_9" id="Page_9">[9]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>"I belong to the house," answered Yvon; "the giant took me into his
+service this morning."</p>
+
+<p>"His service!" repeated the young girl. "May Heaven preserve you from
+it!"</p>
+
+<p>"Why so?" said Yvon. "I have a good master; the work is not hard. The
+stable once swept, my task is finished."</p>
+
+<p>"Yes, and how will you set to work to sweep it?" said the lady. "If
+you sweep it in the usual way, for every forkful of dung that you
+throw out of the door, ten will come in at the window. But I will tell
+you what to do. Turn the fork and sweep with the handle, and the dung
+will instantly fly out of itself."</p>
+
+<p>"I will obey," said Yvon; upon which he sat down by the young girl and
+began to talk with her. She was the daughter of a fairy, whom the
+wretched giant had made his slave. Friendship soon springs up between
+companions in misfortune. Before the end of the day Finette (for that
+was the lady's name) and Yvon had already promised to belong to each
+other if they could escape from their abominable master. The
+difficulty was to find the means.</p>
+
+<p>Time passes quickly in this kind of talk. Evening was approaching when
+Finette sent away her new friend, advising him to sweep the stable
+before the giant came home.</p>
+
+<p>Yvon took down the fork and attempted to use it as he<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_10" id="Page_10">[10]</a></span> had seen it
+done at his father's castle. He soon had enough of it. In less than a
+second there was so much dung in the stable that the poor boy knew not
+which way to turn. He did as Finette had bid him; he turned the fork
+and swept with the handle, when, behold! in the twinkling of an eye
+the stable was as clean as if no cattle had ever entered it.</p>
+
+<p>The task finished, Yvon seated himself on a bench before the door of
+the house. As soon as he saw the giant coming he lolled back in his
+seat, crossed his legs, and began to sing one of his native airs.</p>
+
+<p>"Have you cleaned the stable?" asked the giant, with a frown.</p>
+
+<p>"Everything is ready, master," answered Yvon, without troubling
+himself to move.</p>
+
+<p>"I am going to see for myself," howled the giant. He entered the
+stable grumbling, found everything in order, and came out furious.</p>
+
+<p>"You have seen my Finette," cried he; "this trick did not come from
+your own head."</p>
+
+<p>"What is myfinette?" asked Yvon, opening his mouth and shutting his
+eyes. "Is it one of the animals that you have in this country? Show it
+to me, master."</p>
+
+<p>"Hold your tongue, fool," replied the giant; "you will see her sooner
+than you will want to."</p>
+
+<p>The next morning the giant gathered his sheep together<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_11" id="Page_11">[11]</a></span> to lead them
+to the pasture, but before setting out he ordered Yvon to go in the
+course of the day in search of his horse, which was turned out to
+graze on the mountain. "After that," said he, bursting into a laugh,
+"you can rest all day long. You see that I am a good master. Do your
+task; and, above all things, don't prowl about the house or I will cut
+off your head."</p>
+
+<p>Yvon winked his eye as the giant left. "Yes, you are a good master,"
+said he, between his teeth. "I understand your tricks; but, in spite
+of your threats, I shall go into the house and talk with your Finette.
+It remains to be seen whether she will not be more mine than yours."</p>
+
+<p>He ran to the young girl's room. "Hurrah!" cried he; "I have nothing
+to do all day but to go to the mountain after a horse."</p>
+
+<p>"Very well," said Finette. "How will you set to work to ride him?"</p>
+
+<p>"A fine question," returned Yvon. "As if it was a difficult thing to
+ride a horse! I fancy that I have ridden worse ones than this."</p>
+
+<p>"It is not so easy as you think," replied Finette; "but I will tell
+you what to do. Take the bit that hangs behind the stable door, and,
+when the animal rushes toward you breathing fire and smoke from his
+nostrils, force it straight between his teeth; he will instantly
+become as gentle as a lamb, and you can do what you please with him."<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_12" id="Page_12">[12]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>"I will obey," said Yvon; upon which he sat down by the side of
+Finette and began to talk with her. They talked of everything; but,
+however far their fancy strayed, they always came back to the point
+that they were promised to each other and that they must escape from
+the giant. Time passes quickly in this kind of talk. The evening drew
+nigh. Yvon had forgotten the horse and the mountain, and Finette was
+obliged to send him away, advising him to bring back the animal before
+his master's arrival.</p>
+
+<p>Yvon took down the bit that was hidden behind the stable door and
+hastened to the mountain, when, lo! a horse almost as large as an
+elephant rushed toward him at full gallop, breathing fire and smoke
+from his nostrils. Yvon firmly awaited the huge animal, and, the
+moment he opened his enormous jaws, thrust between them the bit; when,
+lo! the horse instantly became as gentle as a lamb. Yvon made him
+kneel down, sprang on his back, and tranquilly returned home.</p>
+
+<p>His task finished, Yvon seated himself on the bench before the door of
+the house. As soon as he saw the giant coming, he lolled back in his
+seat, crossed his legs, and began to sing one of his native airs.</p>
+
+<p>"Have you brought back the horse?" asked the giant, with a frown.</p>
+
+<p>"Yes, master," answered Yvon, without taking the trouble to move. "He
+is a fine animal and does you<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_13" id="Page_13">[13]</a></span> credit. He is gentle, well trained, and
+as quiet as a lamb. He is feeding yonder in the stable."</p>
+
+<p>"I am going to see for myself," howled the giant. He entered the
+stable, grumbling, found everything in order, and came out furious.</p>
+
+<p>"You have seen my Finette," he said; "this trick did not come from
+your own head."</p>
+
+<p>"Oh, master," returned Yvon, opening his mouth and shutting his eyes,
+"it is the same story over again. What is this myfinette? Once for
+all, show me this monster."</p>
+
+<p>"Hold your tongue, fool," returned the giant; "you will see her sooner
+than you will want to."</p>
+
+<p>The third day at dawn the giant gathered his sheep together to lead
+them to the pasture; but, before setting out, he said to Yvon:</p>
+
+<p>"To-day you must go to the bottomless pit to collect my rent. After
+that," continued he, bursting into a laugh, "you may rest all day
+long. You see that I am a good master."</p>
+
+<p>"A good master, so be it," murmured Yvon, "but the task is none the
+less hard. I will go and see my Finette, as the giant says; I have
+great need of her help to get through to-day's business."</p>
+
+<p>When Finette had learned what was the task of the day, "Well," said
+she, "how will you go to work to do it?"<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_14" id="Page_14">[14]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>"I don't know," said Yvon, sadly; "I have never been to the bottomless
+pit, and, even if I knew the way there, I should not know what to ask
+for. Tell me what to do."</p>
+
+<p>"Do you see that great rock yonder?" said Finette; "that is one of the
+gates of the bottomless pit. Take this stick, knock three times on the
+stone, and a demon will come out all streaming with flames, who will
+ask you how much you want. Take care to answer, 'No more than I can
+carry.'"</p>
+
+<p>"I will obey," said Yvon; upon which he took a seat by the side of
+Finette and began to talk with her. He would have been there till this
+time if the young girl had not sent him to the great rock, when the
+evening drew nigh, to execute the giant's commands.</p>
+
+<p>On reaching the spot pointed out to him, Yvon found a great block of
+granite. He struck it three times with the stick, when, lo! the rock
+opened and a demon came forth all streaming with flames.</p>
+
+<p>"What do you want?" he cried.</p>
+
+<p>"I have come for the giant's rent," answered Yvon, calmly.</p>
+
+<p>"How much do you want?"</p>
+
+<p>"I never want any more than I can carry," replied the Breton.</p>
+
+<p>"It is well for you that you do not," returned the man<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_15" id="Page_15">[15]</a></span> in flames.
+"Enter this cavern and you will find what you want."</p>
+
+<p>Yvon entered, and opened his eyes wide. Everywhere he saw nothing but
+gold, silver, diamonds, carbuncles, and emeralds. They were as
+numerous as the sands on the seashore. The young Kerver filled a sack,
+threw it across his shoulder, and tranquilly returned home.</p>
+
+<p>His task finished, our Breton seated himself on the bench before the
+door of the house. As soon as he saw the giant coming he lolled back
+in his seat, crossed his legs, and began to sing one of his native
+airs.</p>
+
+<p>"Have you been to the bottomless pit to collect my rent?" asked the
+giant, with a frown.</p>
+
+<p>"Yes, master," answered Yvon, without taking the trouble to stir. "The
+sack is right there before your eyes; you can count it."</p>
+
+<p>"I am going to see for myself," howled the giant. He untied the
+strings of the sack, which was so full that the gold and silver rolled
+in all directions.</p>
+
+<p>"You have seen my Finette," he cried; "this trick did not come from
+your own head."</p>
+
+<p>"Don't you know but one song?" said Yvon, opening his mouth and
+shutting his eyes. "It is the old story, myfinette, myfinette. Once
+for all, show me this thing."</p>
+
+<p>"Well, well," roared the giant, with fury, "wait till to-morrow and
+you shall make her acquaintance."<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_16" id="Page_16">[16]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 600px;"><a name="pic_2" id="pic_2"></a>
+<img src="images/image_02.jpg" width="600" height="743" alt="HE WAS SOON SNORING SO LOUDLY THAT IT SEEMED LIKE THUNDER SHAKING THE MOUNTAINS"  />
+<span class="caption">HE WAS SOON SNORING SO LOUDLY THAT IT SEEMED LIKE THUNDER SHAKING THE MOUNTAINS</span>
+</div>
+
+<p>"Thank you, master," said Yvon. "It is very good of you; but I see
+from your face that you are laughing at me."</p>
+
+
+<h2>III</h2>
+<p>The next morning the giant went out without giving Yvon any orders,
+which troubled Finette. At noon he returned without his flock,
+complaining of the heat and fatigue, and said to the young girl:</p>
+
+<p>"You will find a child, my servant, at the door. Cut his throat, put
+him into the great pot to boil, and call me when the broth is ready."
+Saying this, he stretched himself on the bed to take a nap, and was
+soon snoring so loudly that it seemed like thunder shaking the
+mountains.</p>
+
+<p>Finette prepared a log of wood, took a large knife, and called Yvon.
+She pricked his little finger; three drops of blood fell on the log.</p>
+
+<p>"That is enough," said Finette; "now help me to fill the pot."</p>
+
+<p>They threw into it all that they could find&mdash;old clothes, old shoes,
+old carpets, and everything else. Finette then took Yvon by the hand
+and led him through the three antechambers, where she ran in a mold
+three bullets of gold, two bullets of silver, and one bullet of
+copper, after which they quitted the house and ran toward the sea.</p>
+
+<p>"<i>On&mdash;the Kerver!</i>" cried Yvon, as soon as he saw himself <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_17" id="Page_17">[17]</a></span>in the
+country. "Explain yourself, dear Finette; what farce are we playing
+now?"</p>
+
+<p>"Let us run&mdash;let us run!" she cried; "if we do not quit this wretched
+island before night, it is all over with us."</p>
+
+<p>"<i>On&mdash;the Kerver!</i>" replied Yvon, laughing, "and down with the giant!"</p>
+
+<p>When he had snored a full hour, the giant stretched his limbs, half
+opened one eye, and cried, "Is it ready?"</p>
+
+<p>"It is just beginning to boil," answered the first drop of blood on
+the log.</p>
+
+<p>The giant turned over, and snored louder than ever for an hour or two
+longer. Then he stretched his limbs, half opened one eye, and cried
+out: "Do you hear me? Is it almost ready?"</p>
+
+<p>"It is half done," answered the second drop of blood on the log.</p>
+
+<p>The giant turned over, and slept an hour longer. Then he yawned,
+stretched his great limbs, and cried out, impatiently:</p>
+
+<p>"Isn't it ready yet?"</p>
+
+<p>"It is ready now," answered the third drop of blood on the log.</p>
+
+<p>The giant sat up in bed, rubbed his eyes, and looked around to see who
+had spoken; but it was in vain to look; he saw nobody.</p>
+
+<p>"Finette," howled he, "why isn't the table set?"<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_18" id="Page_18">[18]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>There was no answer. The giant, furious, sprang out of bed, seized a
+ladle, which looked like a caldron with a pitchfork for a handle, and
+plunged it into the pot to taste the soup.</p>
+
+<p>"Finette!" howled he, "you haven't salted it. What sort of soup is
+this? I see neither meat nor vegetables."</p>
+
+<p>No; but, in return, he saw his carpet, which had not quite all boiled
+to pieces. At this sight he fell into such a fit of rage that he could
+not keep his feet.</p>
+
+<p>"Villains!" said he, "you have played a fine trick on me; but you
+shall pay for it."</p>
+
+<p>He rushed out with a stick in his hand, and strode along at such a
+rate that in a quarter of an hour he discovered the two fugitives
+still far from the seashore. He uttered such a cry of joy that the
+earth shook for twelve leagues around.</p>
+
+<p>Finette stopped, trembling. Yvon clasped her to his heart.</p>
+
+<p>"<i>On&mdash;the Kerver!</i>" said he; "the sea is not far off; we shall be
+there before our enemy."</p>
+
+<p>"Here he is! here he is!" cried Finette, pointing to the giant not a
+hundred yards off; "we are lost if this charm does not save us."</p>
+
+<p>She took the copper bullet and threw it on the ground, saying,</p>
+
+<div class="poem"><div class="stanza">
+<span class="i0">"Copper bullet, save us, pray;<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Stop the giant on his way."<br /></span>
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_19" id="Page_19">[19]</a></span></div></div>
+
+<p>And behold, the earth cracked apart with a terrific noise, and an
+enormous fissure, a bottomless pit, stopped the giant just as he was
+stretching out his hand to seize his prey.</p>
+
+<p>"Let us fly!" cried Finette, grasping the arm of Yvon, who was gazing
+at the giant with a swaggering air, defying him to come on.</p>
+
+<p>The giant ran backward and forward along the abyss, like a bear in his
+cage, seeking a passage everywhere and finding none; then, with a
+furious jerk, he tore up an immense oak by the roots and flung it
+across the gap. The branches of the oak nearly crushed the children as
+it fell. The giant seated himself astride the huge tree, which bent
+under his weight, and crept slowly along, suspended between heaven and
+earth, entangled as he was among the branches. When he reached the
+other side, Yvon and Finette were already on the shore, with the sea
+rolling before them.</p>
+
+<p>Alas! there was neither bark nor ship. The fugitives were lost. Yvon,
+always brave, picked up stones to attack the giant and to sell his
+life dearly. Finette, trembling with fear, threw one of the silver
+bullets into the sea, saying,</p>
+
+<div class="poem"><div class="stanza">
+<span class="i0">"Silver bullet, bright and pliant,<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Save us from this frightful giant."<br /></span>
+</div></div>
+
+<p>Scarcely had she spoken the magic words when a beautiful ship rose
+from the waves like a swan spreading its white wings. Yvon and Finette
+plunged into the sea; a rope<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_20" id="Page_20">[20]</a></span> was thrown them by an invisible hand,
+and when the furious giant reached the shore the ship was receding
+rapidly at full sail, leaving behind it a long furrow of shining foam.</p>
+
+<p>Giants do not like the water. This fact is certified to by old Homer,
+who knew Polyphemus; and the same observation will be found in all
+natural histories worthy of the name. Finette's master resembled
+Polyphemus. He roared with rage when he saw his slaves about to escape
+him. He ran hesitatingly along the shore; he flung huge masses of rock
+after the vessel, which happily fell by the side of it and only made
+great black holes in the water; and, finally, mad with anger, he
+plunged head foremost into the sea and began to swim after the ship
+with frightful speed. At each stroke he advanced forty feet, blowing
+like a whale, and like a whale cleaving the waves. By degrees he
+gained on his enemies; one more effort would bring him within reach of
+the rudder, and already he was stretching out his arm to seize it,
+when Finette threw the second silver bullet into the sea and cried, in
+tears,</p>
+
+<div class="poem"><div class="stanza">
+<span class="i0">"Silver bullet, bright and pliant,<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Save us from this frightful giant."<br /></span>
+</div></div>
+
+<p>Suddenly from the midst of the foam darted forth a gigantic swordfish,
+with a sword at least twenty feet in length. It rushed straight toward
+the giant, who scarcely had time to dive, chased him under the water,
+pursued him<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_21" id="Page_21">[21]</a></span> on the top of the waves, followed him closely whichever
+way he turned, and forced him to flee as fast as he could to his
+island, where he finally landed with the greatest difficulty, and fell
+upon the shore dripping, worn out, and conquered.</p>
+
+<p>"<i>On&mdash;the Kerver!</i>" cried Yvon; "we are saved."</p>
+
+<p>"Not yet," said Finette, trembling. "The giant has a witch for a
+godmother; I fear that she will revenge on me the insult offered to
+her godson. My art tells me, my dear Yvon, that if you quit me a
+single instant until you give me your name in the chapel of the
+Kervers I have everything to dread."</p>
+
+<p>"By the unicorn of my ancestors," cried Yvon, "you have the heart of a
+hare and not of a hero! Am I not here? Am I going to abandon you? Do
+you believe that Providence has saved us from the fangs of that
+monster to wreck us in port?"</p>
+
+<p>He laughed so gaily that Finette laughed in turn at the terror that
+had seized her.</p>
+
+
+<h2>IV</h2>
+<p>The rest of the voyage passed off admirably. An invisible hand seemed
+to impel the ship onward. Twenty days after their departure the boat
+landed Yvon and Finette near Kerver Castle. Once on shore, Yvon turned
+to thank the crew. No one was there. Both boat and ship had<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_22" id="Page_22">[22]</a></span> vanished
+under the waves, leaving no trace behind but a gull on the wing.</p>
+
+<p>Yvon recognized the spot where he had so often gathered shells and
+chased the crabs to their holes when a child. Half an hour's walk
+would bring him in sight of the towers of the old castle. His heart
+beat; he looked tenderly at Finette and saw, for the first time, that
+her dress was fantastic and unworthy of a woman about to enter the
+noble house of Kerver.</p>
+
+<p>"My dear child," said he, "the baron, my father, is a noble lord,
+accustomed to be treated with respect. I cannot introduce you to him
+in this gipsy dress; neither is it fitting that you should enter our
+great castle on foot like a peasant. Wait for me a few moments, and I
+will bring you a horse and one of my sister's dresses. I wish you to
+be received like a lady of high degree. I wish my father himself to
+meet you on your arrival, and hold it an honor to give you his hand."</p>
+
+<p>"Yvon, Yvon," cried Finette, "do not quit me, I beg you. Once returned
+to your castle, I know that you will forget me."</p>
+
+<p>"Forget you!" exclaimed Yvon. "If any one else were to offer me such
+an insult I would teach him with my sword to suspect a Kerver. Forget
+you, my Finette! You do not know the fidelity of a Breton."</p>
+
+<p>That the Bretons are faithful no one doubts; but that<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_23" id="Page_23">[23]</a></span> they are still
+more headstrong is a justice that none will deny them. It was useless
+for poor Finette to plead in her most loving tones; she was forced to
+yield. She resigned herself with a heavy heart, and said to Yvon:</p>
+
+<p>"Go without me, then, to your castle, but only stay long enough to
+speak to your friends; then go straight to the stable, and return as
+soon as possible. You will be surrounded by people; act as if you saw
+no one, and, above all, do not eat or drink anything whatever. Should
+you take only a glass of water, evil would come upon us both."</p>
+
+<p>Yvon promised and swore all that Finette asked, but he smiled in his
+heart at this feminine weakness. He was sure of himself; and he
+thought with pride how different a Breton was from those fickle
+Frenchmen whose words, they say, are borne away by the first breath of
+the wind.</p>
+
+<p>On entering the old castle he could scarcely recognize its dark walls.
+All the windows were festooned with leaves and flowers within and
+without; the courtyard was strewn with fragrant grass; on one side was
+spread tables groaning under their weight; on the other, musicians,
+mounted on casks, were playing merry airs. The vassals, dressed in
+their holiday attire, were singing and dancing and dancing and
+singing. It was a great day of rejoicing at the castle. The baron
+himself was smiling. It is true that he had just married his fifth
+daughter to the Knight of Kervalec.<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_24" id="Page_24">[24]</a></span> This marriage added another
+quartering to the illustrious escutcheon of the Kervers.</p>
+
+<p>Yvon, recognized and welcomed by all the crowd, was instantly
+surrounded by his relatives, who embraced him and shook him by the
+hand. Where had he been? Where did he come from? Had he conquered a
+kingdom, a duchy, or a barony? Had he brought the bride the jewels of
+some queen? Had the fairies protected him? How many rivals had he
+overthrown? All these questions were showered upon him without reply.
+Yvon respectfully kissed his father's hand, hastened to his sisters'
+chamber, took two of their finest dresses, went to the stable, saddled
+a pony, mounted a beautiful Spanish jennet, and was about to quit the
+castle, when he found his relatives, friends, and vassals all standing
+in his way, their glasses in their hands, ready to drink their young
+lord's health and his safe return.</p>
+
+<p>Yvon gracefully thanked them, bowed, and made his way by degrees
+through the crowd, when, just as he was about to cross the drawbridge,
+a fair-haired lady, with a haughty and disdainful air, a stranger to
+him, a sister of the bridegroom, perhaps, approached him, holding a
+pomegranate in her hand.</p>
+
+<p>"My handsome knight," said she, with a singular smile, "you surely
+will not refuse a lady's first request. Taste this pomegranate, I
+entreat you. If you are neither hungry<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_25" id="Page_25">[25]</a></span> nor thirsty after so long a
+journey, I suppose at least that you have not forgotten the laws of
+politeness."</p>
+
+<p>Yvon dared not refuse this appeal. He was very wrong. Scarcely had he
+tasted the pomegranate when he looked round him like a man waking from
+a dream.</p>
+
+<p>"What am I doing on this horse?" thought he. "What means this pony
+that I am leading? Is not my place in my father's house at my sister's
+wedding? Why should I quit the castle?"</p>
+
+<p>He threw the bridle to one of the grooms, leaped lightly to the
+ground, and offered his hand to the fair-haired lady, who accepted him
+as her attendant on the spot, and gave him her bouquet to hold as a
+special mark of favor.</p>
+
+<p>Before the evening was over there was another betrothed couple in the
+castle. Yvon had pledged his faith to the unknown lady and Finette was
+forgotten.</p>
+
+
+<h2>V</h2>
+<p>Poor Finette, seated on the seashore, waited all day long for Yvon,
+but Yvon did not come. The sun was setting in the fiery waves when
+Finette rose, sighing, and took the way to the castle in her turn. She
+had not walked long in a steep road, bordered with thorn-trees in
+blossom, when she found herself in front of a wretched hut at the door
+of which stood an old woman about to<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_26" id="Page_26">[26]</a></span> milk her cow. Finette approached
+her and, making a low courtesy, begged a shelter for the night.</p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 600px;"><a name="pic_3" id="pic_3"></a>
+<img src="images/image_03.jpg" width="600" height="745" alt="SHE FOUND HERSELF IN FRONT OF A WRETCHED HUT AT THE
+DOOR OF WHICH STOOD AN OLD WOMAN, OF WHOM SHE BEGGED SHELTER FOR THE
+NIGHT"  />
+<span class="caption">SHE FOUND HERSELF IN FRONT OF A WRETCHED HUT AT THE
+DOOR OF WHICH STOOD AN OLD WOMAN, OF WHOM SHE BEGGED SHELTER FOR THE
+NIGHT</span>
+</div>
+
+<p>The old woman looked at the stranger from head to foot. With her
+buskins trimmed with fur, her full red petticoat, her blue jacket
+edged with jet, and her diadem, Finette looked more like an Egyptian
+princess than a Christian. The old woman frowned and, shaking her fist
+in the face of the poor forsaken girl, "Begone, witch!" she cried;
+"there is no room for you in this honest house."</p>
+
+<p>"My good mother," said Finette, "give me only a corner of the stable."</p>
+
+<p>"Oh," said the old woman, laughing and showing the only tooth she had
+left, which projected from her mouth like a bear's tusk, "so you want
+a corner of the stable, do you! Well, you shall have it if you will
+fill my milk-pail with gold."</p>
+
+<p>"It is a bargain," said Finette, quietly. She opened a leather purse
+which she wore at her belt, took from it a golden bullet, and threw it
+into the milk-pail, saying,</p>
+
+<div class="poem"><div class="stanza">
+<span class="i0">"Golden bullet, precious treasure,<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Save me, if it be thy pleasure."<br /></span>
+</div></div>
+
+<p>And behold! the pieces of gold began to dance about in the pail; they
+rose higher and higher, flapping about like fish in a net, while the
+old woman, on her knees, gazed with wonder at the sight.</p>
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_27" id="Page_27">[27]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>When the pail was full the old woman rose, put her arm through the
+handle, and said to Finette, "Madam, all is yours, the house, the cow,
+and everything else. Hurrah! I am going to the town to live like a
+lady with nothing to do. Oh dear, how I wish I were only sixty!" And,
+shaking her crutch, without looking backward, she set out on a run
+toward Kerver Castle.</p>
+
+<p>Finette entered the house. It was a wretched hovel, dark, low, damp,
+bad-smelling, and full of dust and spiders' webs&mdash;a horrible refuge
+for a woman accustomed to living in the giant's grand castle. Without
+seeming troubled, Finette went to the hearth, on which a few green
+boughs were smoking, took another golden bullet from her purse, and
+threw it into the fire, saying,</p>
+
+<div class="poem"><div class="stanza">
+<span class="i0">"Golden bullet, precious treasure,<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Save me, if it be thy pleasure."<br /></span>
+</div></div>
+
+<p>The gold melted, bubbled up, and spread all over the house like
+running water, and behold! the whole cottage, the walls, the thatch,
+the wooden rocking-chair, the stool, the chest, the bed, the cow's
+horns&mdash;everything, even to the spiders in their webs, was turned to
+gold. The house gleamed in the moonlight, among the trees, like a star
+in the night.</p>
+
+<p>When Finette had milked the cow and drank a little new milk, she threw
+herself on the bed without undressing, and,<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_28" id="Page_28">[28]</a></span> worn out by the fatigue
+of the day, fell asleep in the midst of her tears.</p>
+
+<p>Old women do not know how to hold their tongues, at least in Brittany.
+Finette's hostess had scarcely reached the village when she hastened
+to the house of the steward. He was an important personage, who had
+more than once made her tremble when she had driven her cow into her
+neighbor's pasture by mistake. The steward listened to the old woman's
+story, shook his head, and said it looked like witchcraft; then he
+mysteriously brought a pair of scales, weighed the guineas, which he
+found to be genuine and of full weight, kept as many of them as he
+could, and advised the owner to tell no one of this strange adventure.
+"If it should come to the ears of the bailiff or the seneschal," said
+he, "the least that would happen to you, mother, would be to lose
+every one of these beautiful bright guineas. Justice is impartial; it
+knows neither favor nor repugnance; it takes the whole."</p>
+
+<p>The old woman thanked the steward for his advice, and promised to
+follow it. She kept her word so well that she only told her story that
+evening to two neighbors, her dearest friends, both of whom swore on
+the heads of their little children to keep it secret. The oath was a
+solemn one, and so well kept that at noon the next day there was not a
+boy of six in the village that did not point his finger at the old
+woman, while the very dogs seemed to<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_29" id="Page_29">[29]</a></span> bark in their language, "Here is
+the old woman with her guineas!"</p>
+
+<p>A girl that amuses herself by filling milk-pails with gold is not to
+be found every day. Even though she should be something of a witch,
+such a girl would none the less be a treasure in a family. The
+steward, who was a bachelor, made this wise reflection that night on
+going to bed. Before dawn he rose to make his rounds in the direction
+of the stranger's cottage. By the first gleam of day he spied
+something shining in the distance like a light among the woods. On
+reaching the place, he was greatly surprised to find a golden cottage
+instead of the wretched hut that had stood there the day before. But,
+on entering the house, he was much more surprised and delighted to
+find a beautiful young girl, with raven hair, sitting by the window
+and spinning on her distaff with the air of an empress.</p>
+
+<p>Like all men, the steward did himself justice, and knew, at the bottom
+of his heart, that there was not a woman in the world that would not
+be too happy to give him her hand. Without hesitating, therefore, he
+declared to Finette that he had come to marry her. The young girl
+burst out laughing, upon which the steward flew into a passion.</p>
+
+<p>"Take care!" said he, in a terrible voice. "I am the master here. No
+one knows who you are or whence you came. The gold that you gave the
+old woman has raised suspicions. There is magic in this house. If you
+do not accept<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_30" id="Page_30">[30]</a></span> me for a husband this very instant, I will arrest you,
+and before night, perhaps, a witch will be burned before Kerver
+Castle."</p>
+
+<p>"You are very amiable," said Finette, with a charming grimace; "you
+have a peculiar way of paying court to ladies. Even when they have
+decided not to refuse, a gallant man spares their blushes."</p>
+
+<p>"We Bretons are plain-spoken people," replied the steward; "we go
+straight to the point. Marriage or prison, which do you choose?"</p>
+
+<p>"Oh!" cried Finette, laying down the distaff, "there are the
+firebrands falling all over the room."</p>
+
+<p>"Don't trouble yourself," said the steward; "I will pick them up."</p>
+
+<p>"Lay them carefully on the top of the ashes," returned Finette. "Have
+you the tongs?"</p>
+
+<p>"Yes," said the steward, picking up the crackling coals.</p>
+
+<p>"<i>Abracadabra!</i>" cried Finette, rising. "Villain, may the tongs hold
+you, and may you hold the tongs till sunset!"</p>
+
+<p>No sooner said than done. The wicked steward stood there all day with
+the tongs in his hand, picking up and throwing back the burning coals
+that snapped in his face and the hot ashes that flew into his eyes. It
+was useless for him to shout, pray, weep, and blaspheme; no one heard
+him. If Finette had stayed at home, she would doubtless have taken
+pity on him; but after putting the<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_31" id="Page_31">[31]</a></span> spell upon him, she hastened to
+the seashore, where, forgetting everything else, she watched for Yvon
+in vain.</p>
+
+<p>The moment that the sun set, the tongs fell from the steward's hands.
+He did not stop to finish his errand, but ran as if the devil or
+justice were at his heels. He made such leaps, he uttered such groans,
+he was so blackened, scorched, and benumbed, that every one in the
+village was afraid of him, thinking that he was mad. The boldest tried
+to speak to him, but he fled without answering, and hid himself in his
+house, more ashamed than a wolf that has left his paw in the trap.</p>
+
+<p>At evening, when Finette returned home in despair, instead of the
+steward she found another visitor little less formidable. The bailiff
+had heard the story of the guineas and had also made up his mind to
+marry the stranger. He was not rough, like the steward, but a fat,
+good-natured man that could not speak without bursting into a laugh,
+showing his great yellow teeth, and puffing and blowing like an ox,
+though at heart he was not less obstinate or less threatening than his
+predecessor. Finette entreated the bailiff to leave her alone. He
+laughed, and hinted to her, in a good-natured way, that, by right of
+his office, he had the power to imprison and hang people without
+process of law. She clasped her hands and begged him with tears to go.
+For his only answer, he took a roll of parchment from his pocket,
+wrote on it a contract of marriage, and<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_32" id="Page_32">[32]</a></span> declared to Finette that,
+should he stay all night, he would not leave the house till she had
+signed the promise.</p>
+
+<p>"Nevertheless," said he, "if you do not like my person, I have another
+parchment here on which I will write an agreement to live apart; and
+if my sight annoys you you have only to shut your eyes."</p>
+
+<p>"Why," said Finette, "I might decide to do as you wish if I were sure
+of finding a good husband in you; but I am afraid."</p>
+
+<p>"Of what, my dear child?" asked the bailiff, smiling, and already as
+proud as a peacock.</p>
+
+<p>"Do you think," said she, with a pettish air, "that a good husband
+would leave that door wide open and not know that his wife was
+freezing with cold?"</p>
+
+<p>"You are right, my dear," said the bailiff; "it was very stupid in me.
+I will go and shut it."</p>
+
+<p>"Have you hold of the knob?" asked Finette.</p>
+
+<p>"Yes, my charmer," answered the happy bailiff; "I am just shutting the
+door."</p>
+
+<p>"<i>Abracadabra!</i>" cried Finette. "May you hold the door, villain, and
+may the door hold you till daybreak."</p>
+
+<p>And behold! the door opened and shut, and slammed against the walls
+like an eagle flapping its wings. You may judge what a dance the poor
+captive kept up all night. Never had he tried such a waltz, and I
+imagine that he never wished to dance a second one of the same sort.<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_33" id="Page_33">[33]</a></span>
+Sometimes the door swung open with him in the street; sometimes it
+flew back and crushed him against the wall. He swung backward and
+forward, screaming, swearing, weeping, and praying, but all in vain;
+the door was deaf, and Finette asleep.</p>
+
+<p>At daybreak his hands unclasped and he fell in the road head foremost.
+Without waiting to finish his errand, he ran as if the Moors were
+after him. He did not even turn round, for fear that the door might be
+at his heels. Fortunately for him, all were still asleep when he
+reached the village, and he could hide himself in bed without any one
+seeing his deplorable plight. This was a great piece of good fortune
+for him, for he was covered with whitewash from head to foot, and so
+pale, haggard, and trembling that he might have been taken for the
+ghost of a miller escaped from the infernal regions.</p>
+
+<p>When Finette opened her eyes she saw by her bedside a tall man dressed
+in black, with a velvet cap and a sword. It was the seneschal of the
+barony of Kerver. He stood with his arms folded, gazing at Finette in
+a way that chilled the very marrow of her bones.</p>
+
+<p>"What is your name, vassal?" said he, in a voice of thunder.</p>
+
+<p>"Finette, at your service, my lord," replied she, trembling.</p>
+
+<p>"Is this house and furniture yours?"</p>
+
+<p>"Yes, my lord, everything, at your service."<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_34" id="Page_34">[34]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>"I mean that it shall be at my service," returned the seneschal,
+sternly. "Rise, vassal! I do you the honor to marry you, and to take
+yourself, your person, and your property under my guardianship."</p>
+
+<p>"My lord," returned Finette, "this is much too great an honor for a
+poor girl like me, a stranger, without friends or kindred."</p>
+
+<p>"Be silent, vassal!" replied the seneschal. "I am your lord and
+master; I have nothing to do with your advice. Sign this paper."</p>
+
+<p>"My lord," said Finette, "I don't know how to write."</p>
+
+<p>"Do you think that I do, either?" returned the seneschal, in a voice
+that shook the house. "Do you take me for a clerk? A cross&mdash;that is
+the signature of gentlemen."</p>
+
+<p>He made a large cross on the paper, and handed the pen to Finette.</p>
+
+<p>"Sign," said he. "If you are afraid to make a cross, infidel, you pass
+your own death sentence, and I shall take on myself to execute it." He
+drew his heavy sword from the scabbard as he spoke, and threw it on
+the table.</p>
+
+<p>For her only answer, Finette leaped out of the window and ran to the
+stable. The seneschal pursued her thither, but, on attempting to
+enter, an unexpected obstacle stopped him. The frightened cow had
+backed at the sight of the young girl, and stood in the doorway, with
+Finette clinging to her horns and making of her a sort of buckler.<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_35" id="Page_35">[35]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>"You shall not escape me, sorceress!" cried the seneschal, and, with a
+grasp like that of Hercules, he seized the cow by the tail and dragged
+her out of the stable.</p>
+
+<p>"<i>Abracadabra!</i>" cried Finette. "May the cow's tail hold you, villain,
+and may you hold the cow's tail till you have both been around the
+world together."</p>
+
+<p>And behold! the cow darted off like lightning, dragging the unhappy
+seneschal after her. Nothing stopped the two inseparable comrades;
+they rushed over mountains and valleys, crossed marshes, rivers,
+quagmires, and brakes, glided over the seas without sinking, were
+frozen in Siberia and scorched in Africa, climbed the Himalayas,
+descended Mont Blanc, and at length, after thirty-six hours of a
+journey, the like of which had never been seen, both stopped out of
+breath in the public square of the village.</p>
+
+<p>A seneschal harnessed to a cow's tail is a sight not to be seen every
+day, and all the peasants in the neighborhood crowded together to
+wonder at the spectacle. But, torn as he was by the cactuses of
+Barbary and the thickets of Tartary, the seneschal had lost nothing of
+his haughty air. With a threatening gesture he dispersed the rabble,
+and limped to his house to taste the repose of which he began to feel
+the need.</p>
+
+
+<h2>VI</h2>
+<p>While the steward, the bailiff, and the seneschal were experiencing
+these little unpleasantnesses, of which they<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_36" id="Page_36">[36]</a></span> did not think it proper
+to boast, preparations were being made for a great event at Kerver
+Castle, namely, the marriage of Yvon and the fair-haired lady. Two
+days had passed in these preparations, and all the friends of the
+family had gathered together for twenty leagues round, when, one fine
+morning Yvon and his bride, with the Baron and Baroness Kerver, took
+their seats in a great carriage adorned with flowers, and set out for
+the celebrated church of St. Maclou.</p>
+
+<p>A hundred knights in full armor, mounted on horses decked with
+ribbons, rode on each side of the betrothed couple, each with his
+vizor raised and his lance at rest in token of honor. By the side of
+each baron, a squire, also on horseback, carried the seigniorial
+banner. At the head of the procession rode the seneschal, with a
+gilded staff in his hand. Behind the carriage gravely walked the
+bailiff, followed by the vassals, while the steward railed at the
+serfs, a noisy and curious rabble.</p>
+
+<p>As they were crossing a brook, a league from the castle, one of the
+traces of the carriage broke, and they were forced to stop. The
+accident repaired, the coachman cracked his whip, and the horses
+started with such force that the new trace broke in three pieces. Six
+times this provoking piece of wood was replaced, and six times it
+broke anew, without drawing the carriage from the hole where it was
+wedged.<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_37" id="Page_37">[37]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>Every one had a word of advice to offer; even the peasants, as
+wheelwrights and carpenters, were not the last to make a show of their
+knowledge. This gave the steward courage; he approached the baron,
+took off his cap, and, scratching his head,</p>
+
+<p>"My lord," said he, "in the house that you see shining yonder among
+the trees there lives a woman who does things such as nobody else can
+do. Only persuade her to lend you her tongs, and, in my opinion, they
+will hold till morning."</p>
+
+<p>The baron made a sign, and ten peasants ran to the cottage of Finette,
+who very obligingly lent them her gold tongs. They were put in the
+place of the trace; the coachman cracked his whip, and off went the
+carriage like a feather.</p>
+
+<p>Every one rejoiced, but the joy did not last long. A hundred steps
+farther, lo! the bottom of the carriage gave way; little more, and the
+noble Kerver family would have sunk quite out of sight. The
+wheelwrights and the carpenters set to work at once; they sawed
+planks, nailed them down fast, and in the twinkling of an eye repaired
+the accident. The coachman cracked his whip and the horses started,
+when, behold! half of the carriage was left behind; the Baroness
+Kerver sat motionless by the side of the bride, while Yvon and the
+baron were carried off at full gallop. Here was a new difficulty.
+Three times was the carriage<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_38" id="Page_38">[38]</a></span> mended, three times it broke anew. There
+was every reason to believe that it was enchanted.</p>
+
+<p>Every one had a word of advice to offer. This gave the bailiff
+courage. He approached the baron and said, in a low tone:</p>
+
+<p>"My lord, in the house that you see shining yonder among the trees
+there lives a woman who does things such as nobody else can do. Only
+persuade her to lend you her door for the bottom of the carriage, and,
+in my opinion, it will hold till morning."</p>
+
+<p>The baron made a sign, and twenty peasants ran to the cottage of
+Finette, who very obligingly lent them her gold door. They put it in
+the bottom of the carriage, where it fitted as if it had been made
+expressly for it. The party took their seats in the carriage, the
+coachman cracked his whip, the church was in sight, and all the
+troubles of the journey seemed ended.</p>
+
+<p>Not at all! Suddenly the horses stopped and refused to draw. There
+were four of them. Six, eight, ten, twenty-four more were put to the
+carriage, but all in vain; it was impossible to stir them. The more
+they were whipped the deeper the wheels sunk into the ground, like the
+coulter of a plow.</p>
+
+<p>What were they to do? To go on foot would have been a disgrace. To
+mount a horse and ride to the church like simple peasants was not the
+custom of the Kervers. They<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_39" id="Page_39">[39]</a></span> tried to lift the carriage, they pushed
+the wheels, they shook it, they pulled it, but all in vain. Meanwhile
+the day was declining and the hour for the marriage had passed.</p>
+
+<p>Every one had a word of advice to offer. This gave the seneschal
+courage. He approached the baron, alighted from his horse, raised his
+velvet cap, and said:</p>
+
+<p>"My lord, in the house that you see shining yonder among the trees
+there lives a woman who does things such as nobody else can do. Only
+persuade her to lend you her cow to draw the carriage, and, in my
+opinion, she will draw it till morning."</p>
+
+<p>The baron made a sign, and thirty peasants ran to the cottage of
+Finette, who very obligingly lent them her golden-horned cow.</p>
+
+<p>To go to church drawn by a cow was not, perhaps, what the ambitious
+bride had dreamed of, but it was better than to remain unmarried in
+the road. The heifer was harnessed, therefore, before the four horses,
+and everybody looked on anxiously to see what this boasted animal
+would do.</p>
+
+<p>But before the coachman had time to crack his whip, lo! the cow
+started off as if she were about to go around the world anew. Horses,
+carriage, baron, betrothed, coachman, all were hurried away by the
+furious animal. In vain the knights spurred their horses to follow the
+pair; in vain the peasants ran at full speed, taking the cross-road<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_40" id="Page_40">[40]</a></span>
+and cutting across the meadows. The carriage flew as if it had wings;
+a pigeon could not have followed it.</p>
+
+<p>On reaching the door of the church, the party, a little disturbed by
+this rapid journey, would not have been sorry to alight. Everything
+was ready for the ceremony and the bridal pair had long been expected;
+but, instead of stopping, the cow redoubled her speed. Thirteen times
+she ran round the church like lightning, then suddenly made her way in
+a straight line across the fields to the castle, with such force that
+the whole party were almost shaken to pieces before their arrival.</p>
+
+
+<h2>VII</h2>
+<p>No more marriage was to be thought of for that day; but the tables
+were set and the dinner served, and the Baron Kerver was too noble a
+knight to take leave of his brave Bretons until they had eaten and
+drunk according to custom&mdash;that is, from sunset till sunrise, and even
+a little later.</p>
+
+<p>Orders were given for the guests to take their seats. Ninety-six
+tables were ranged in eight rows. In front of them, on a large
+platform covered with velvet, with a canopy in the middle, was a table
+larger than the rest, and loaded with fruit and flowers, to say
+nothing of the roast hares, and the peacocks smoking beneath their
+plumage. At this table the bridal pair were to have been seated in
+full sight, in order that nothing might be lacking to the<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_41" id="Page_41">[41]</a></span> pleasures
+of the feast, and that the meanest peasant might have the honor of
+saluting them by emptying his cup of hydromel to the honor and
+prosperity of the high and mighty house of Kerver.</p>
+
+<p>The baron seated the hundred knights at his table, and placed their
+squires behind their chairs to serve them. At his right he put the
+bride and Yvon, but he left the seat at his left vacant, and, calling
+a page, "Child," said he, "run to the house of the stranger lady who
+obliged us only too much this morning. It was not her fault if her
+success exceeded her good will. Tell her that the Baron Kerver thanks
+her for her help and invites her to the wedding feast of his son, Lord
+Yvon."</p>
+
+<p>On reaching the golden house, where Finette, in tears, was mourning
+for her beloved, the page bent one knee to the ground and, in the
+baron's name, invited the stranger lady to the castle to do honor to
+the wedding of Lord Yvon.</p>
+
+<p>"Thank your master for me," answered the young girl, proudly, "and
+tell him that if he is too noble to come to my house, I am too noble
+to go to his."</p>
+
+<p>When the page repeated this answer to his master the Baron Kerver
+struck the table such a blow that three plates flew in the air.</p>
+
+<p>"By my honor," said he, "this is spoken like a lady, and for the first
+time I own myself beaten. Quick, saddle my<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_42" id="Page_42">[42]</a></span> dun mare, and let my
+knights and squires prepare to attend me."</p>
+
+<p>It was with this brilliant train that the baron alighted at the door
+of the golden cottage. He begged Finette's pardon, held the stirrup
+for her, and seated her behind him on his own horse, neither more nor
+less than a duchess in person. Through respect, he did not speak a
+single word to her on the way. On reaching the castle he uncovered his
+head and led her to the seat of honor that he had chosen for her.</p>
+
+<p>The baron's departure had made a great excitement, and his return
+caused still greater surprise. Every one asked who the lady could be
+that the baron treated with such respect. Judging from her costume,
+she was a foreigner. Could she be the Duchess of Normandy or the Queen
+of France? The steward, the bailiff, and the seneschal were appealed
+to. The steward trembled, the bailiff turned pale, and the seneschal
+blushed, but all three were as mute as fishes. The silence of these
+important personages added to the general wonder.</p>
+
+<p>All eyes were fixed on Finette, who felt a deadly chill at her heart,
+for Yvon saw, but did not know her. He cast an indifferent glance at
+her, then began again to talk in a tender tone to the fair-haired
+lady, who smiled disdainfully.</p>
+
+<p>Finette, in despair, took from the purse the golden bullet, her last
+hope. While talking with the baron, who was<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_43" id="Page_43">[43]</a></span> charmed with her wit, she
+shook the little ball in her hand, and repeated, in a whisper,</p>
+
+<div class="poem"><div class="stanza">
+<span class="i0">"Golden bullet, precious treasure,<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Save me, if it be thy pleasure."<br /></span>
+</div></div>
+
+<p>And behold! the bullet grew larger and larger, until it became a
+goblet of chased gold, the most beautiful cup that ever graced the
+table of baron or king.</p>
+
+<p>Finette filled the cup herself with spiced wine, and, calling the
+seneschal, who was cowering behind her, she said, in her gentlest
+tones, "My good seneschal, I entreat you to offer this goblet to Lord
+Yvon. I wish to drink his health, and I am sure that he will not
+refuse me this pleasure."</p>
+
+<p>Yvon took the goblet, which the seneschal presented to him on a salver
+of enamel and gold, with a careless hand, bowed to the stranger, drank
+the wine, and, setting the cup on the table before him, turned to the
+fair-haired lady who occupied all his thoughts. The lady seemed
+anxious and vexed. He whispered a few words in her ear that seemed to
+please her, for her eyes sparkled, and she placed her hand again in
+his.</p>
+
+<p>Finette cast down her head and began to weep. All was over.</p>
+
+<p>"Children," cried the baron, in a voice of thunder, "fill your
+glasses. Let us drink to the noble stranger who<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_44" id="Page_44">[44]</a></span> honors us with her
+presence. To the noble lady of the golden cottage!"</p>
+
+<p>All began to huzzah and drink. Yvon contented himself with raising his
+goblet to a level with his eyes. Suddenly he started and stood mute,
+his mouth open and his eyes fixed, like a man that has a vision.</p>
+
+<p>It was a vision. In the gold of the goblet Yvon saw his past life as
+in a mirror: the giant pursuing him; Finette dragging him along; both
+embarking in the ship that saved them; both landing on the shore of
+Brittany; he quitting her for an instant; she weeping at his
+departure. Where was she? By his side, of course. What other woman
+than Finette could be by the side of Yvon?</p>
+
+<p>He turned toward the fair-haired lady and cried out like a man
+treading on a serpent. Then, staggering as if he were drunk, he rose
+and looked around him with haggard eyes. At the sight of Finette he
+clasped his trembling hands and, dragging himself toward her, fell on
+his knees and exclaimed, "Finette, forgive me!"</p>
+
+<p>To forgive is the height of happiness. Before evening Finette was
+seated by the side of Yvon, both weeping and smiling.</p>
+
+<p>And what became of the fair-haired lady? No one knows. At the cry of
+Yvon she disappeared; but it was said that a wretched old hag was seen
+flying on a broomstick over the castle walls, chased by the dogs; and
+it was the common<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_45" id="Page_45">[45]</a></span> opinion among the Kervers that the fair-haired lady
+was none other than the witch, the godmother of the giant. I am not
+sure enough of the fact, however, to dare warrant it. It is always
+prudent to believe, without proof, that a woman may be a witch, but it
+is never wise to say so.</p>
+
+<p>What I can say on the word of a historian is that the feast,
+interrupted for a moment, went on gayer than ever. Early the next
+morning they went to the church, where, to the joy of his heart, Yvon
+married Finette, who was no longer afraid of evil spirits; after which
+they ate, drank, and danced for thirty-six hours, without any one
+thinking of resting. The steward's arms were a little heavy, the
+bailiff rubbed his back at times, and the seneschal felt a sort of
+weariness in his limbs, but all three had a weight on their
+consciences which they could not shake off, and which made them
+tremble and flutter, till finally they fell on the ground and were
+carried off. Finette took no other vengeance on them; her only desire
+was to render all happy around her, far and near, who belonged to the
+noble house of Kerver. Her memory still lives in Brittany; and among
+the ruins of the old castle, any one will show you the statue of the
+good lady, with five bullets in her hand.</p>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_46" id="Page_46">[46]</a></span></p>
+<h2><a name="The_Castle_of_Life" id="The_Castle_of_Life"></a><i>The</i> Castle <i>of</i> Life</h2>
+
+<div>
+<img src="images/image_04_01.jpg" width="600" height="288" alt=""  />
+<img class="figleft" src="images/image_04_02.jpg" width="206" height="54" alt=""  />
+</div>
+
+<p>nce upon a time there lived at Salerno a poor old woman who earned
+her bread by fishing, and whose only comfort and stay in life was her
+grandson, a boy twelve years of age, whose father had been drowned in
+a storm and whose mother had died of grief. Graceful, for this was the
+child's name, loved nobody in the world but his grandmother; he
+followed her to the shore every morning before daybreak to pick up the
+shell-fish or draw the net to the beach, longing for the time when he
+should be strong enough to go to sea himself and brave the waves that
+had swallowed up all his kindred. He was so handsome, so well made,
+and so promising, that no sooner had he entered the town with his
+basket of fish on his head than every one ran after him, and he sold
+the whole before he reached the market.<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_47" id="Page_47">[47]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>Unfortunately, the grandmother was very old; she had but one front
+tooth left, her head shook with age, and her eyes were dim. Every
+morning she found it harder to rise than the day before. Feeling that
+she had but a few days longer to live, at night, before Graceful
+wrapped himself in his blanket and lay down on the ground to sleep,
+she always gave him good counsels for him to follow when she was gone;
+she told him what fishermen to avoid, and how, by being good and
+industrious, prudent and resolute, he would make his way in the world
+and finally have a boat and nets of his own. The poor boy paid little
+heed to all this wisdom. As soon as his grandmother began to put on a
+grave air he threw his arms around her neck and cried: "Grandmamma,
+grandmamma, don't leave me. I have hands, I am strong, I shall soon be
+able to work for us both; but if you were not here at night when I
+came home from fishing, what would become of me?"</p>
+
+<p>"My child," said the old woman one day to him, "I shall not leave you
+so much alone as you think; when I am gone you will have two powerful
+protectors whom more than one prince might envy you. A long time ago I
+did a favor to two great ladies, who will not forget you when the time
+comes to call them, which will be very soon."</p>
+
+<p>"Who are these two ladies?" asked Graceful, who had never seen any
+women but fishermen's wives in the hut.</p>
+
+<p>"They are two fairies," replied his grandmother&mdash;"two<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_48" id="Page_48">[48]</a></span> powerful
+fairies&mdash;the Fairy of the Woods and the Fairy of the Waters. Listen to
+me, my child; I am going to intrust you with a secret&mdash;a secret which
+you must keep as carefully as I have done, and which will give you
+wealth and happiness. Ten years ago, the same year that your father
+died and your mother also left us, I went out one morning before
+daybreak to surprise the crabs asleep in the sand. As I was stooping
+down, hidden by a rock, I saw a kingfisher slowly floating toward the
+beach. The kingfisher is a sacred bird which should always be
+respected; knowing this, I let it alight and did not stir, for fear of
+frightening it. At the same moment I saw a beautiful green adder come
+from a cleft of the mountain and crawl along the sand toward the bird.
+When they were near each other, without either seeming surprised at
+the meeting, the adder coiled itself around the neck of the
+kingfisher, as if tenderly embracing it; they remained thus entwined
+for a few moments, after which they suddenly separated, the adder to
+return to the rock, and the kingfisher to plunge into the waves which
+bore it away.</p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 600px;"><a name="pic_4" id="pic_4"></a>
+<img src="images/image_05.jpg" width="600" height="736" alt="AT NIGHT THE GRANDMOTHER ALWAYS GAVE HIM GOOD COUNSELS FOR HIM TO FOLLOW WHEN SHE WAS GONE"  />
+<span class="caption">AT NIGHT THE GRANDMOTHER ALWAYS GAVE HIM GOOD COUNSELS FOR HIM TO FOLLOW WHEN SHE WAS GONE</span>
+</div>
+
+<p>"Greatly astonished at what I had seen, I returned the next morning at
+the same hour, and at the same hour the kingfisher also alighted on
+the sands and the adder came from its retreat. There was no doubt that
+they were fairies, perhaps enchanted fairies, to whom I could render a
+service. But what was I to do? To show myself would have been <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_49" id="Page_49">[49]</a></span>to
+displease them and run into danger; it was better to wait for a
+favorable opportunity which chance would doubtless offer. For a whole
+month I lay in ambush, witnessing the same spectacle every morning,
+when one day I saw a huge black cat arrive first at the place of
+meeting and hide itself behind a rock, almost under my hand. A black
+cat could be nothing else than an enchanter, according to what I had
+learned in my childhood, and I resolved to watch him. Scarcely had the
+kingfisher and the adder embraced each other when, behold! the cat
+gathered itself up and sprang upon these innocents. It was my turn to
+throw myself upon the wretch, who already held his victims in his
+murderous claws; I seized him, despite his struggles, although he tore
+my hands in pieces, and without pity, knowing with whom I had to deal,
+I took the knife which I used to open shell-fish, and cut off the
+monster's head, claws, and tail, confidently awaiting the success of
+my devotion.</p>
+
+<p>"I did not wait long; no sooner had I thrown the body of the animal
+into the sea than I saw before me two beautiful ladies, one crowned
+with white plumes, the other with a serpent's skin thrown like a scarf
+across her shoulder. They were, as I have already told you, the Fairy
+of the Waters and the Fairy of the Woods, who, enchanted by a wretched
+genie who had learned their secret, had been forced to remain a
+kingfisher and an adder until freed by some generous hand, and who
+owed me their power and freedom.<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_50" id="Page_50">[50]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>"'Ask of us what you will,' said they, 'and your request shall be
+instantly granted.'</p>
+
+<p>"I reflected that I was old, and had suffered too much in life to wish
+to begin it anew, while the day would come, my child, when nothing
+would be too great for your desires; when you wish to be rich,
+noble&mdash;a general, a marquis, a prince, perhaps! When that day comes,
+thought I, I can give him everything, and a single moment of such
+happiness will repay me for eighty years of pain and misery. I thanked
+the fairies, therefore, and entreated them to keep their good will
+till the day when I should have need of it. The Fairy of the Waters
+took a small feather from her crown, and the Fairy of the Woods
+detached a scale from her scarf.</p>
+
+<p>"'My good woman,' said they, 'when you wish for us, place this feather
+and this scale in a vessel of pure water and call on us, making a
+wish. Should we be at the end of the world, we will be at your side in
+an instant, ready to pay the debt we owe you.'</p>
+
+<p>"I bowed my head in token of gratitude. When I raised it all had
+vanished; even the wounds and blood had disappeared from my hands, and
+I should have thought that I had been dreaming, had not the scale of
+the serpent and the feather of the kingfisher remained in my hand."</p>
+
+<p>"And where are these treasures, grandmamma?" asked Graceful.</p>
+
+<p>"My child, I have carefully concealed them," answered<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_51" id="Page_51">[51]</a></span> the old woman,
+"not wishing to show them to you till you were a man and able to make
+use of them; but since death is about to separate us, the moment has
+come to give you these precious talismans. You will find at the back
+of the cupboard a wooden chest hidden under some rags; in the chest is
+a little pasteboard box, wound about with tow; open this box and you
+will find the scale and the feather carefully wrapped in cotton. Take
+care not to break them; handle them respectfully, and I will tell you
+what next to do."</p>
+
+<p>Graceful brought the box to the poor woman, who was no longer able to
+quit her pallet, and she herself took from it the two articles.</p>
+
+<p>"Now," said she, giving them to her grandson, "put a bowlful of water
+in the middle of the room; place the scale and the feather in the
+water, and make a wish&mdash;wish for fortune, nobility, wit, power,
+whatever you please; only, as I feel that I am dying, kiss me once
+more, my child, before speaking the words that will separate us
+forever, and receive my last blessing; it will be another talisman to
+bring you happiness."</p>
+
+<p>But, to the old woman's surprise, Graceful did not come near her,
+either to kiss her or to receive her blessing. He quickly placed the
+bowl in the middle of the room, threw the feather and scale into the
+water, and shouted at the top of his voice, "Appear, Fairy of the
+Waters! I wish<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_52" id="Page_52">[52]</a></span> that my grandmother may live forever. Appear, Fairy of
+the Woods! I wish that my grandmother may live forever."</p>
+
+<p>And behold! the water bubbled, bubbled, bubbled; the bowl grew to a
+great basin, which the walls of the hut could scarcely hold, and from
+the bottom of the basin Graceful saw two beautiful young women rise,
+whom he knew directly from their wands to be fairies. One wore a crown
+of holly leaves mixed with red berries, and diamond ear-rings
+resembling acorns in their cups; she was dressed in a robe of olive
+green, over which a speckled skin was knotted like a scarf across the
+right shoulder&mdash;this was the Fairy of the Woods. As to the Fairy of
+the Waters, she wore a garland of reeds on her head, with a white robe
+trimmed with the feathers of aquatic birds, and a blue scarf, which
+now and then rose above her head and fluttered like the sail of a
+ship. Great ladies as they were, they looked smilingly at Graceful,
+who had taken refuge in his grandmother's arms, and trembled with fear
+and admiration.</p>
+
+<p>"Here we are, my child," said the Fairy of the Waters, who spoke
+first, as the eldest. "We have heard what you said, and your wish does
+you honor; but, though we can help you in the plan which you have
+conceived, you alone can execute it. We can, indeed, prolong your
+grandmother's life for some time, but, for her to live forever, you
+must go the Castle of Life, four long days' journey from here, on the
+coast of Sicily. There you will find the<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_53" id="Page_53">[53]</a></span> Fountain of Immortality. If
+you can accomplish each of these four days' journey without turning
+aside from the road, and, on reaching the castle, can answer three
+questions that will be put to you by an invisible voice, you will
+obtain what you desire. But, my child, reflect well before undertaking
+this adventure, for you will meet more than one danger on the way; and
+if you fail a single time to reach the end of your day's journey you
+will not only miss the object of your pursuit, but you will never quit
+the country, from which none has ever returned."</p>
+
+<p>"I will go, madam," returned Graceful.</p>
+
+<p>"But you are very young, my child," said the Fairy of the Woods, "and
+you do not even know the way."</p>
+
+<p>"No matter," replied Graceful. "I am sure, beautiful ladies, that you
+will not forsake me, and to save my grandmother I would go to the end
+of the world."</p>
+
+<p>"Wait," said the Fairy of the Woods. Then separating the lead from a
+broken window-pane, she placed it in the hollow of her hand.</p>
+
+<p>And behold! the lead began to melt and bubble without seeming to burn
+the fairy, who threw the metal on the hearth, where it cooled in a
+thousand different forms.</p>
+
+<p>"What do you see in all that?" said the fairy to Graceful.</p>
+
+<p>"It seems to me, madam," said he, after looking attentively, "that I
+see a spaniel with a long tail and large ears."</p>
+
+<p>"Call him," said the fairy.<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_54" id="Page_54">[54]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>A barking was instantly heard, and forth from the metal sprang a black
+and flame-colored spaniel, which began to gambol and leap around
+Graceful.</p>
+
+<p>"This will be your companion," said the fairy. "His name is Fido. He
+will show you the way; but I warn you that it is for you to direct
+him, and not for him to lead you. If you make him obey, he will serve
+you; if you obey him, he will destroy you."</p>
+
+<p>"And I," said the Fairy of the Waters, "have I nothing to give you, my
+poor Graceful?"</p>
+
+<p>Then, looking around her, the lady saw on the ground a bit of paper,
+which she tossed into the fire with her tiny foot. The paper caught
+fire, and as soon as the blaze had died away thousands of little
+sparks were seen chasing one another about. The fairy watched these
+sparks with a curious eye; then, as the last one was about to go out,
+she blew upon the cinders, when, lo! the chirp of a bird was heard,
+and a swallow rose, which fluttered, terrified, about the room and
+finally alighted on Graceful's shoulder.</p>
+
+<p>"This will be your companion," said the Fairy of the Waters. "Her name
+is Pensive. She will show you the way; but I warn you it is for you to
+direct her, and not for her to lead you. If you make her obey, she
+will serve you; if you obey her, she will destroy you."</p>
+
+<p>"Stir the black ashes," added the good Fairy of the Waters, "and
+perhaps you will find something there."<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_55" id="Page_55">[55]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>Graceful obeyed. Under the ashes of the paper he found a vial of rock
+crystal, sparkling like a diamond. This, the fairy said, was to hold
+the water of immortality, which would break any vessel made by the
+hand of man. By the side of the vial Graceful found a dagger with a
+triangular blade&mdash;a very different thing from the stiletto of his
+father the fisherman, which he had been forbidden to touch. With this
+weapon he could brave the proudest enemy.</p>
+
+<p>"My sister, you shall not be more generous than I," said the other
+fairy; then, taking a rush from the only chair in the room, she blew
+upon it, when, lo! the rush instantly swelled, and in less time than
+it takes to tell it became a beautiful musket, inlaid with
+mother-of-pearl. A second rush produced a cartridge-box, which
+Graceful slung around his body and which became him marvelously. One
+would have thought him a prince setting out for the chase; he was so
+handsome that his grandmother wept for joy and emotion.</p>
+
+<p>The two fairies vanished; Graceful kissed the good old woman, urging
+her to await his return, and knelt before her to receive her blessing.
+She entreated him to be patient, just, and charitable, and, above all,
+not to wander from the right path. "Not for my sake," added the old
+woman, "for I would gladly welcome death, and I regret the wish that
+you have made, but for your own, my child, that you may return to me
+and that I may not die without your being here to close my eyes."<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_56" id="Page_56">[56]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>It was late. Graceful threw himself on the ground, too agitated, it
+seemed, to sleep. But slumber soon overtook him, and he slept soundly
+all night, while his poor grandmother watched the face of her dear
+child lighted by the flickering lamp, and did not weary of mournfully
+admiring him.</p>
+
+
+<h2>II</h2>
+<p>Early in the morning, when dawn was scarcely breaking, the swallow
+began to twitter, and Fido to pull the blankets. "Let us go,
+master&mdash;let us go," said the two companions, in their language, which
+Graceful understood by the gift of the fairies; "the tide is already
+rising on the beach, the birds are singing, the flies are humming, and
+the flowers are opening in the sun. Let us go; it is time."</p>
+
+<p>Graceful kissed his grandmother for the last time, and took the road
+to P&aelig;stum, Pensive fluttering to the right and the left in pursuit of
+the flies, and Fido fawning on his young master or running before him.</p>
+
+<p>They had gone two leagues from the town when Graceful saw Fido talking
+with the ants, who were marching in regular troops, carrying all their
+provisions with them.</p>
+
+<p>"Where are you going?" asked he.</p>
+
+<p>"To the Castle of Life," they answered.</p>
+
+<p>A little farther on Pensive encountered the grasshoppers, who had also
+set out on a journey, together with the bees and the butterflies; all
+were going to the Castle of Life,<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_57" id="Page_57">[57]</a></span> to drink of the Fountain of
+Immortality. They traveled in company, like people following the same
+road. Pensive introduced Graceful to a young butterfly that chatted
+agreeably. Friendship springs up quickly in youth; in an hour the two
+comrades were inseparable.</p>
+
+<p>To go straight forward does not suit the taste of butterflies, and
+Graceful's friend was constantly losing himself among the grass.
+Graceful, who had never been free in his life, nor had seen so many
+flowers and so much sunshine, followed all the windings of his
+companion, and troubled himself no more about the day than if it were
+never to end; but, after a few leagues' journey his new friend began
+to be weary.</p>
+
+<p>"Don't go any farther," said he to Graceful. "See how beautiful is
+this landscape, how fragrant these flowers, and how balmy these
+fields. Let us stay here; this is life."</p>
+
+<p>"Let us go on," said Fido; "the day is long, and we are only at the
+beginning."</p>
+
+<p>"Let us go on," said Pensive; "the sky is clear and the horizon
+unbounded. Let us go on."</p>
+
+<p>Graceful, restored to his senses, reasoned sagely with the butterfly,
+who fluttered constantly to the right and the left, but all in vain.
+"What matters it to me?" said the insect. "Yesterday I was a
+caterpillar, to-night I shall be nothing. I will enjoy to-day." And he
+settled on a full-blown P&aelig;stum rose. The perfume was so strong that
+the poor<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_58" id="Page_58">[58]</a></span> butterfly was suffocated. Graceful vainly endeavored to
+recall him to life; then, bemoaning his fate, he fastened him with a
+pin to his hat like a cockade.</p>
+
+<p>Toward noon the grasshoppers stopped in turn. "Let us rest," said
+they; "the heat will overpower us if we struggle against the noonday
+sun. It is so pleasant to live in sweet repose! Come, Graceful, we
+will divert you and you shall sing with us."</p>
+
+<p>"Listen to them," said Pensive; "they sing so sweetly!" But Fido would
+not stop; his blood seemed on fire, and he barked so furiously that
+Graceful forgot the grasshoppers to follow his importunate companion.</p>
+
+<p>At evening Graceful met the honey-bee loaded with booty. "Where are
+you going?" said he.</p>
+
+<p>"I am returning home," said the bee; "I shall not quit my hive."</p>
+
+<p>"What!" rejoined Graceful; "industrious as you are, will you do like
+the grasshoppers and renounce your share in immortality?"</p>
+
+<p>"Your castle is too far off," returned the bee. "I have not your
+ambition. My daily labor suffices for me; I care nothing for your
+travels; to me work is life."</p>
+
+<p>Graceful was a little moved at losing so many of his fellow-travelers
+on the first day; but when he thought with what ease he had
+accomplished the first day's journey his heart was filled with joy. He
+caressed Fido, caught<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_59" id="Page_59">[59]</a></span> the flies which Pensive took from his hand, and
+slept full of hope, dreaming of his grandmother and the two fairies.</p>
+
+
+<h2>III</h2>
+<p>The next morning, at daybreak, Pensive called her young master.</p>
+
+<p>"Let us go," said she; "the tide is already rising on the shore, the
+birds are singing, the bees are humming, and the flowers are opening
+in the sun. Let us go; it is time."</p>
+
+<p>"Wait a moment," said Fido. "The day's journey is not long; before
+noon we shall be in sight of the temples of P&aelig;stum, where we are to
+stop for the night."</p>
+
+<p>"The ants are already on the way," returned Pensive; "the road is
+harder than yesterday, and the weather more uncertain. Let us go."</p>
+
+<p>Graceful had seen his grandmother smiling on him in his dreams, and he
+set out on his way with even greater ardor than the day before. The
+morning was glorious; on the right the blue waves broke with a gentle
+murmur on the strand; on the left, in the distance, the mountains were
+tinged with a roseate hue; the plain was covered with tall grass
+sprinkled with flowers; the road was lined with aloes, jujubes, and
+acanthuses, and before them lay a cloudless horizon. Graceful,
+ravished with hope and pleasure, fancied himself already at the end of
+his journey. Fido bounded over the fields and chased the frightened
+partridges; Pensive<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_60" id="Page_60">[60]</a></span> soared in the air and sported with the light. All
+at once Graceful saw a beautiful doe in the midst of the reeds,
+looking at him with languishing eyes as if she were calling him. He
+went toward her; she bounded forward, but only a little way. Three
+times she repeated the same trick, as if to allure him on.</p>
+
+<p>"Let us follow her," said Fido. "I will cut off the way and we will
+soon catch her."</p>
+
+<p>"Where is Pensive?" said Graceful.</p>
+
+<p>"What does it matter?" replied Fido; "it is the work of an instant.
+Trust to me&mdash;I was born for the chase&mdash;and the doe is ours."</p>
+
+<p>Graceful did not let himself be bid twice. While Fido made a circuit
+he ran after the doe, which paused among the trees as if to suffer
+herself to be caught, then bounded forward as soon as the hand of the
+pursuer touched her. "Courage, master!" cried Fido, as he came upon
+her. But with a toss of the head, the doe flung the dog in the air,
+and fled swifter than the wind.</p>
+
+<p>Graceful sprang forward in pursuit. Fido, with burning eyes and
+distended jaws, ran and yelped as if he were mad. They crossed
+ditches, brakes, and hedges, unchecked by nothing. The wearied doe
+lost ground. Graceful redoubled his ardor, and was already stretching
+out his hand to seize his prey when all at once the ground gave way
+beneath his feet and he fell, with his imprudent companion,<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_61" id="Page_61">[61]</a></span> into a
+pit covered over with leaves. He had not recovered from his fall when
+the doe, approaching the brink, cried, "You are betrayed; I am the
+wife of the King of the Wolves, who is coming to eat you both." Saying
+this, she disappeared.</p>
+
+<p>"Alas! master," said Fido, "the fairy was right in advising you not to
+follow me. We have acted foolishly and I have destroyed you."</p>
+
+<p>"At all events," said Graceful, "we will defend our lives"; and,
+taking his musket, he double-loaded it, in readiness for the King of
+the Wolves; then, somewhat calmed, he examined the deep ditch into
+which he had fallen. It was too high for him to escape from it; in
+this hole he must await his death. Fido understood the look of his
+friend.</p>
+
+<p>"Master," said he, "if you take me in your arms and throw me with all
+your might, perhaps I can reach the top; and, once there, I can help
+you."</p>
+
+<p>Graceful had not much hope. Three times he endeavored to throw Fido,
+and three times the poor animal fell back; finally, at the fourth
+effort, he caught hold of some roots, and aided himself so well with
+his teeth and paws that he escaped from the tomb. He instantly threw
+into the ditch the boughs which he found about the edge.</p>
+
+<p>"Master," said he, "plant these branches in the earth and make
+yourself a ladder. Quick! quick!" he added. "I hear the howls of the
+King of the Wolves."<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_62" id="Page_62">[62]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>Graceful was adroit and agile. Anger redoubled his strength; in a
+moment he was outside. Then he secured his dagger in his belt, changed
+the powder in the pan of his musket, and, placing himself behind a
+tree, awaited the enemy with firmness.</p>
+
+<p>Suddenly a frightful cry was heard, and an animal, with tusks like
+those of the wild boar, rushed on him with prodigious bounds. Graceful
+took aim and fired. The bullet hit the mark and the animal fell back
+howling, but instantly sprang forward anew. "Load your musket again!
+Make haste!" cried Fido, springing courageously in the face of the
+monster and seizing his throat with his teeth.</p>
+
+<p>The wolf had only to shake his head to fling the poor dog to the
+ground. He would have swallowed him at one mouthful had not Fido
+glided from his jaws, leaving one of his ears behind. It was
+Graceful's turn to save his companion; he boldly advanced and fired
+his second shot, taking aim at the shoulder. The wolf fell; but,
+rising, with a last effort he threw himself on the hunter, who fell
+under him. On receiving this terrible shock, Graceful thought himself
+lost; but without losing courage, and calling the good fairies to his
+aid, he seized his dagger and thrust it into the heart of the animal,
+which, ready to devour his enemy, straightened his limbs and died.</p>
+
+<p>Graceful rose, covered with blood and froth, and seated himself,
+trembling, upon a fallen tree. Fido crept painfully<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_63" id="Page_63">[63]</a></span> to his feet,
+without daring to caress him, for he felt how much he was to blame.</p>
+
+<p>"Master," said he, "what will become of us? Night is approaching and
+we are so far from P&aelig;stum!"</p>
+
+<p>"We must go," said the child, and he rose; but he was so weak that he
+was obliged to sit down again. A burning thirst devoured him; he was
+feverish and everything whirled before his eyes. He thought of his
+grandmother, and began to weep. What was poor Graceful's remorse for
+having so soon forgotten such fair promises, and condemned himself to
+die in a country from which there was no return, and all this for the
+bright eyes of a doe! How sadly ended the day so well begun!</p>
+
+<p>Sinister howls were soon heard; the brothers of the King of the Wolves
+were calling him and coming to his aid. Graceful embraced Fido, his
+only friend, and forgave him the imprudence for which they were both
+about to pay with their lives; then loaded his musket, offered up a
+prayer to the good fairies, commended his grandmother to them, and
+prepared to die.</p>
+
+<p>"Graceful! Graceful! where are you?" cried a little voice that could
+be none other than Pensive's, and the swallow alighted on the head of
+her master.</p>
+
+<p>"Courage!" said she; "the wolves are still far off. There is a spring
+close by where you can quench your thirst and<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_64" id="Page_64">[64]</a></span> stanch your bleeding
+wounds, and I have found a hidden path which will lead us to P&aelig;stum."</p>
+
+<p>Graceful and Fido dragged themselves along to the brook, trembling
+with hope and fear; then entered the obscure path, a little reanimated
+by the soft twittering of Pensive. The sun had set; they walked in the
+twilight for some hours, and, when the moon rose, they were out of
+danger. They had still to journey over a painful and dangerous road
+for those who no longer had the ardor of the morning. There were
+marshes to cross, ditches to leap, and thickets to break through,
+which tore Graceful's face and hands; but at the thought that he could
+still repair his fault and save his grandmother his heart was so light
+that his strength redoubled at every step with his hope. At last,
+after a thousand obstacles, they reached P&aelig;stum just as the stars
+marked midnight.</p>
+
+<p>Graceful threw himself on the pavement of the temple of Neptune, and,
+after thanking Pensive, fell asleep, with Fido at his feet, wounded,
+bleeding, and silent.</p>
+
+
+<h2>IV</h2>
+<p>The sleep was not long. Graceful was up before daybreak, which seemed
+long in coming. On descending the steps of the temple he saw the ants,
+who had raised a heap of sand and were bringing grain from the new
+harvest. The whole republic was in motion. The ants were all going or<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_65" id="Page_65">[65]</a></span>
+coming, talking to their neighbors, and receiving or giving orders;
+some were dragging wisps of straw, others were carrying bits of wood,
+others conveying away dead flies, and others heaping up provisions; it
+was a complete winter establishment.</p>
+
+<p>"What!" said Graceful to the ants, "are you not going to the Castle of
+Life? Do you renounce immortality?"</p>
+
+<p>"We have worked long enough," answered one of the laborers; "the time
+for harvest has come. The road is long and the future uncertain, and
+we are rich. Let fools count on to-morrow; the wise man uses to-day.
+When a person has hoarded riches honestly it is true philosophy to
+enjoy them."</p>
+
+<p>Fido thought that the ant was right; but, as he no longer dared
+advise, he contented himself with shaking his head as they set out.
+Pensive, on the contrary, said that the ant was a selfish fellow, and
+that, if life were made only for enjoyment, the butterfly was wiser
+than he. At the same time, and with a lighter wing than ever, the
+swallow soared upward to lead the way.</p>
+
+<p>Graceful walked on in silence. Ashamed of the follies of the day
+before, although he still regretted the doe, he resolved that on the
+third day nothing should turn him aside from the road. Fido, with his
+mutilated ear, limped after his master and seemed not less dreamy than
+he. At noon they sought for a shady place in which to rest for a few
+moments. The sun was less scorching than the day<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_66" id="Page_66">[66]</a></span> before. It seemed as
+if both country and season had changed. The road lay through meadows
+lately mown for the second time, or beautiful vineyards full of
+grapes, and was lined with great fig-trees laden with fruit, in which
+thousands of insects were humming; golden clouds were floating in the
+horizon, the air was soft and gentle, and everything tempted to
+repose.</p>
+
+<p>In the most beautiful of the meadows, by the side of a brook which
+diffused its coolness afar, Graceful saw a herd of buffaloes chewing
+the cud under the shade of the ashes and plane-trees. They were lazily
+stretched on the ground, in a circle around a large bull that seemed
+their chief and king. Graceful approached them, and was received with
+politeness. They invited him by a nod to be seated, and pointed out to
+him great bowls full of milk and cheese. Our traveler admired the
+calmness and gravity of these peaceful and powerful animals, which
+seemed like so many Roman senators in their curule chairs. The gold
+ring which they wore in their noses added still more to the majesty of
+their aspect. Graceful, who felt calmer and more sedate than the day
+before, thought, in spite of himself, how pleasant it would be to live
+in the midst of this peace and plenty; if happiness were anywhere, it
+must surely be found here.</p>
+
+<p>Fido shared his master's opinion. It was the season of the southward
+migration of the quails; the ground was covered<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_67" id="Page_67">[67]</a></span> with tired birds,
+resting to regain strength before crossing the sea, and Fido had only
+to stoop down to find game worthy of a prince. Satiated with eating,
+he stretched himself at Graceful's feet and slept soundly.</p>
+
+<p>When the buffaloes had finished chewing their cud, Graceful, who had
+hitherto feared to disturb them, entered into conversation with the
+bull, who showed a cultivated mind and wide experience.</p>
+
+<p>"Are you the masters of this rich domain?" asked he.</p>
+
+<p>"No," replied the old buffalo; "we belong, with all the rest, to the
+Fairy Crapaudine, the Queen of the Vermilion Towers, the richest of
+all the fairies."</p>
+
+<p>"What does she require of you?" asked Graceful.</p>
+
+<p>"Nothing, except to wear this gold ring in the nose and to pay her a
+tribute of milk," returned the bull, "or, at most, to give her one of
+our children from time to time to regale her guests. At this price we
+enjoy our plenty in perfect security, and we have no reason to envy
+any on earth, for none are so happy as we."</p>
+
+<p>"Have you never heard of the Castle of Life and the Fountain of
+Immortality?" asked Graceful, who, without knowing why, blushed as he
+put the question.</p>
+
+<p>"There were some old men among our ancestors who still talked of these
+visions," replied the bull; "but we are wiser than our fathers; we
+know that there is no other happiness than to chew the cud and
+sleep."<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_68" id="Page_68">[68]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>Graceful rose sadly to resume his journey, and asked what were those
+reddish square towers which he saw in the distance.</p>
+
+<p>"They are the Vermilion Towers," returned the bull; "they bar the way;
+and you must pass through the castle of the Fairy Crapaudine in order
+to continue your road. You will see the fairy, my young friend, and
+she will offer you hospitality and riches. Take my advice and do like
+those that have gone before you, all of whom accepted the favors of
+our mistress, and found that they had done well to abandon their
+dreams in order to live happy."</p>
+
+<p>"And what became of them?" asked Graceful.</p>
+
+<p>"They became buffaloes like us," rejoined the bull, who, not having
+finished his afternoon nap, closed his eyes and fell asleep.</p>
+
+<p>Graceful started and awakened Fido, who rose, grumbling. He called
+Pensive. Pensive did not answer; she was talking with a spider that
+had spun a great web between the branches of an ash-tree, which was
+glittering in the sun, full of flies. "Why take this long journey?"
+said the spider to the swallow. "What is the use of changing your
+climate and putting your life at the mercy of the sea, the weather, or
+a master? Look at me; I depend on nobody, and have everything for
+myself. I am my own mistress; I enjoy my art and genius; I bring the
+world to me; nothing can<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_69" id="Page_69">[69]</a></span> disturb either my calculations, or a
+serenity which I owe to myself alone."</p>
+
+<p>Graceful called Pensive three times without making her hear, so
+completely was she engrossed in admiration of her new friend. Every
+instant some giddy fly fell into the web, and each time the spider,
+like an attentive hostess, offered the prey to her astonished
+companion, when suddenly a breeze passed&mdash;a breeze so light that it
+did not ruffle a feather of the swallow's wing. Pensive looked for the
+spider; the web had been swept away by the winds, and the poor insect
+was clinging by one foot to the last thread, when a bird seized it and
+bore it away.</p>
+
+
+<h2>V</h2>
+<p>Setting out again on their way, they proceeded in silence to the
+palace of Crapaudine. Graceful was introduced with great ceremony by
+two beautiful greyhounds, caparisoned with purple and wearing on their
+necks broad collars sparkling with rubies. After crossing a great
+number of halls, all full of pictures, statues, gold, and silver, and
+coffers overflowing with money and jewels, Graceful and his companions
+entered a circular temple, which was Crapaudine's drawing-room. The
+walls were of lapis-lazuli, and the ceiling, of sky-blue enamel, was
+supported by twelve chiseled pillars of massive gold, with capitals of
+acanthus leaves of white enamel edged with gold. A huge frog,<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_70" id="Page_70">[70]</a></span> as
+large as a rabbit, was seated in a velvet easy-chair. It was the fairy
+of the place. The charming Crapaudine was draped in a scarlet mantle
+covered with glittering spangles, and wore on her head a ruby diadem
+whose luster lighted up her fat cheeks mottled with green and yellow.
+As soon as she perceived Graceful she extended to him her fingers,
+covered with rings, which the poor boy was obliged respectfully to
+raise to his lips as he bowed.</p>
+
+<p>"My friend," said the fairy to him, in a hoarse voice, which she
+vainly tried to soften, "I was expecting you, and I will not be less
+generous to you than my sisters have been. On the way here you have
+seen but a small part of my riches. This palace, with its pictures,
+its statues, and its coffers full of gold, these vast domains, and
+these innumerable flocks, all may be yours if you wish; it depends
+only on yourself to become the richest and happiest of men."</p>
+
+<p>"What must I do for this?" asked Graceful, greatly excited.</p>
+
+<p>"Less than nothing," replied the fairy; "chop me up into little pieces
+and eat me. It is not a very disagreeable thing to do," added
+Crapaudine, looking at Graceful with eyes redder than usual.</p>
+
+<p>"Can I not season you, at least?" said Graceful, who had been unable
+to look without envy at the beautiful gardens of the fairy.</p>
+
+<p>"No, you must eat me without seasoning; but walk about<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_71" id="Page_71">[71]</a></span> my palace, see
+and handle all my treasures, and reflect that, by giving me this proof
+of devotion, they will all be yours."</p>
+
+<p>"Master," sighed Fido, in a supplicating voice, "a little courage! We
+are so comfortable here!"</p>
+
+<p>Pensive said nothing, but her silence was consent. As to Graceful, who
+remembered the buffaloes and the gold ring, he distrusted the fairy.
+Crapaudine perceived it.</p>
+
+<p>"Do not think, my dear Graceful, that I wish to deceive you," she
+said. "In offering you all that I possess, I also demand of you a
+service which I will reward as it deserves. When you have done what I
+propose I shall become a young girl, as beautiful as Venus, except
+that my hands and feet will remain like those of a frog, which is very
+little when one is rich. Ten princes, twenty marquises, and thirty
+counts have already begged me to marry them as I am; when I become a
+woman, I will give you the preference, and we will enjoy my vast
+fortune together. Do not blush for your poverty; you have about you a
+treasure that is worth all mine, the vial which my sister gave you."
+Saying this, she stretched out her slimy fingers to seize the
+talisman.</p>
+
+<p>"Never!" cried Graceful, shrinking back, "never! I wish neither repose
+nor fortune; I wish to quit this place and to go to the Castle of
+Life."</p>
+
+<p>"You shall never go there!" exclaimed the fairy, in a rage. The castle
+instantly disappeared, a circle of fire surrounded Graceful, and an
+invisible clock began to strike<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_72" id="Page_72">[72]</a></span> midnight. At the first stroke the
+child started; at the second, without hesitating, he plunged headlong
+into the flames. To die for his grandmother seemed to him the only
+means of showing his love and repentance.</p>
+
+
+<h2>VI</h2>
+<p>To Graceful's surprise, the flames parted without touching him, and he
+suddenly found himself in a new country, with his two companions by
+his side. This country was no longer Italy, but Russia, the end of the
+earth. He was wandering on a mountain covered with snow. Around him he
+saw nothing but great trees, coated with hoar-frost and dripping water
+from all their branches; a damp and penetrating mist chilled him to
+the bones; the moist earth sank under his feet; and, to crown his
+wretchedness, it was necessary to descend a steep precipice, at the
+bottom of which a torrent was breaking noisily over the rocks.
+Graceful took his dagger and cut a branch from a tree to support his
+faltering steps. Fido, with his tail between his legs, barked feebly;
+and Pensive, her ruffled feathers covered with icicles, clung to her
+master's shoulder. The poor bird was half dead, but she encouraged
+Graceful and did not complain.</p>
+
+<p>When, after infinite pains, he reached the foot of the mountain,
+Graceful found a river filled with enormous icebergs, striking against
+one another and whirling in the<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_73" id="Page_73">[73]</a></span> current, and this river he must
+cross, without bridge, without boat, and without aid.</p>
+
+<p>"Master," said Fido, "I can go no farther. Accursed be the fairy that
+drew me from nothingness to place me in your service." Saying this, he
+lay down on the ground and would not stir. Graceful vainly tried to
+restore his courage, and called him his companion and friend. All that
+the poor dog could do was to answer his master's caresses for the last
+time by wagging his tail and licking his hands; then his limbs
+stiffened and he expired.</p>
+
+<p>Graceful took Fido on his back in order to carry him to the Castle of
+Life, and boldly climbed one of the icebergs, still followed by
+Pensive. With his staff he pushed this frail bark into the middle of
+the current, which bore it away with frightful rapidity.</p>
+
+<p>"Master," said Pensive, "do you hear the roaring of the waters? We are
+floating toward a whirlpool which will swallow us up! Give me a last
+caress and farewell!"</p>
+
+<p>"No," said Graceful. "Why should the fairies have deceived us? The
+shore may be close by; perhaps the sun is shining behind the clouds.
+Mount, mount, my good Pensive; perchance above the fog you will find
+light and will see the Castle of Life!"</p>
+
+<p>Pensive spread her half-frozen wings, and courageously soared amid the
+cold and mist. Graceful listened for a moment to the sound of her
+flight; then all was silent, while<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_74" id="Page_74">[74]</a></span> the iceberg pursued its furious
+course through the darkness. Graceful waited a long time; at last,
+when he felt himself alone, hope abandoned him, and he lay down to
+await death on the tottering iceberg. Livid flashes of lightning shot
+through the clouds, horrible bursts of thunder were heard, and the end
+of the world and of time seemed approaching. All at once, in the midst
+of his despair, Graceful heard the cry of the swallow, and Pensive
+fell at his feet. "Master, master," cried she, "you were right. I have
+seen the shore; the dawn is close at hand. Courage!" Saying this, she
+convulsively spread her tired wings and lay motionless and lifeless.</p>
+
+<p>Graceful started up, placed the poor bird that had sacrificed itself
+for him next his heart, and, with superhuman ardor, urged the iceberg
+on to safety or destruction. Suddenly he heard the roaring of the
+breakers. He fell on his knees and closed his eyes, awaiting death.</p>
+
+<p>A wave like a mountain broke over his head and cast him fainting on
+the shore, which no living person had touched before him.</p>
+
+
+<h2>VII</h2>
+<p>When Graceful recovered his senses, the ice, clouds, and darkness had
+disappeared. He was lying on the ground in the midst of a charming
+country, covered with trees bathed in a soft light. In front of him
+was a beautiful castle, from which bubbled a brook that flowed into a
+sea as blue, calm,<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_75" id="Page_75">[75]</a></span> and transparent as the sky. Graceful looked about
+him; he was alone&mdash;alone with the remains of his two companions, which
+the waves had washed on the shore. Exhausted with suffering and
+excitement, he dragged himself to the brook and bent over the water to
+refresh his parched lips, when he shrank back with affright. It was
+not his face that he saw in the water, but that of an old man with
+silvery locks who strongly resembled him. He turned round; there was
+no one behind him. He again drew near the fountain; he saw the old
+man, or rather, doubtless, the old man was himself. "Great fairies,"
+he cried. "I understand you. If it is my life that you wish in
+exchange for that of my grandmother, I joyfully accept the sacrifice."
+And without troubling himself further about his old age and wrinkles,
+he plunged his head into the water and drank eagerly.</p>
+
+<p>On rising, he was astonished to see himself again as he was when he
+left home, only more beautiful, with blacker hair and brighter eyes
+than ever. He picked up his hat, which had fallen near the spring, and
+which a drop of water had touched by chance, when what was his
+surprise to see the butterfly that he had pinned to it fluttering its
+wings and seeking to fly. He gave it its liberty, and ran to the beach
+for Fido and Pensive, then plunged them both into the blessed
+fountain. Pensive flew upward with a joyful cry and disappeared amid
+the turrets of the castle. Fido,<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_76" id="Page_76">[76]</a></span> shaking the water from both ears,
+ran to the kennels of the palace, where he was met by magnificent
+watch-dogs, which, instead of barking and growling at the new-comer,
+welcomed him joyfully like an old friend. Graceful had at last found
+the Fountain of Immortality, or rather the brook that flowed from
+it&mdash;a brook already greatly weakened, and which only gave two or three
+hundred years of life to those that drank of it; but nothing prevented
+them from drinking anew.</p>
+
+<p>Graceful filled his vial with this life-giving water and approached
+the palace. His heart beat, for a last trial remained. So near
+success, he feared the more to fail. He mounted the steps of the
+castle. All was closed and silent; no one was there to receive the
+traveler. When he had reached the last step and was about to knock at
+the door, a voice, rather gentle than harsh, stopped him.</p>
+
+<p>"Have you loved?" said the invisible voice.</p>
+
+<p>"Yes," answered Graceful; "I have loved my grandmother better than any
+one in the world."</p>
+
+<p>The door opened a little way.</p>
+
+<p>"Have you suffered for her whom you have loved?" resumed the voice.</p>
+
+<p>"I have suffered," replied Graceful; "much through my own fault,
+doubtless, but a little for her whom I wished to save."</p>
+
+<p>The door opened half-way and the child caught a glimpse<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_77" id="Page_77">[77]</a></span> of woods,
+waters, and a sky more beautiful than anything of which he had ever
+dreamed.</p>
+
+<p>"Have you always done your duty?" said the voice, in a harsher tone.</p>
+
+<p>"Alas! no," replied Graceful, falling on his knees; "but when I have
+failed I have been punished by my remorse even more than by the hard
+trials through which I have passed. Forgive me, and punish me as I
+deserve, if I have not yet expiated all my faults; but save her whom I
+love&mdash;save my grandmother."</p>
+
+<p>The door instantly opened wide, though Graceful saw no one.
+Intoxicated with joy, he entered a courtyard surrounded with arbors
+embowered in foliage, with a fountain in the midst, spouting from a
+tuft of flowers larger, more beautiful, and more fragrant than any he
+had seen on earth. By the side of the spring stood a woman dressed in
+white, of noble bearing, and seemingly not more than forty years old.
+She advanced to meet Graceful, and smiled on him so sweetly that the
+child felt himself touched to the heart, and his eyes filled with
+tears.</p>
+
+<p>"Don't you know me?" said the woman.</p>
+
+<p>"Oh, grandmother! is it you?" he exclaimed. "How came you in the
+Castle of Life?"</p>
+
+<p>"My child," said she, pressing him to her heart, "He who brought me
+here is an enchanter more powerful than the fairies of the woods and
+the waters. I shall never<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_78" id="Page_78">[78]</a></span> more return to Salerno. I shall receive my
+reward here for the little good I have done by tasting a happiness
+which time will not destroy."</p>
+
+<p>"And me, grandmother!" cried Graceful, "what shall become of me? After
+seeing you here, how can I return to suffer alone?"</p>
+
+<p>"My dear child," she replied, "no one can live on earth after he has
+caught a glimpse of the celestial delights of this abode. You have
+lived, my dear Graceful; life has nothing more to teach you. You have
+passed in four days through the desert where I languished eighty
+years, and henceforth nothing can separate us."</p>
+
+<p>The door closed, and from that time nothing was heard of Graceful or
+his grandmother. It was in vain that search was made for the palace
+and enchanted fountain; they were never more discovered on earth. But
+if we understood the language of the stars, if we felt what their
+gentle rays tell us every evening, we should long ago have learned
+from them where to look for the Castle of Life and the Fountain of
+Immortality.</p>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_79" id="Page_79">[79]</a></span></p>
+<h2><a name="Destiny" id="Destiny"></a>Destiny</h2>
+
+<h3><i>A Dalmatian Tale</i></h3>
+<div>
+<img src="images/image_06_01.jpg" width="600" height="209" alt=""  />
+<img class="figleft" src="images/image_06_02.jpg" width="89" height="79" alt=""  />
+</div>
+
+
+<p>nce upon a time there were two brothers, who lived together in one
+family. One did everything, while the other was an idle fellow who
+troubled himself about nothing but eating and drinking. The harvests
+were always magnificent; they had cows, horses, sheep, pigs, bees, and
+everything else in plenty.</p>
+
+<p>The elder brother, who did everything, said to himself, one day, "Why
+should I work for this idler? It is better for us to separate; I will
+work for myself alone, and he can do as he likes." He said to his
+brother, therefore:</p>
+
+<p>"Brother, it is not just for me to do everything, while you trouble
+yourself about nothing but eating and drinking; we must separate."</p>
+
+<p>His brother tried to dissuade him from his plan, saying:</p>
+
+<p>"Brother, don't do this, we are so well off as we are. You have
+everything in your own hands; what is mine is yours; and you know that
+I am always satisfied with what you do or order done."<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_80" id="Page_80">[80]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>The elder, however, persisted in his resolution till the younger was
+forced to yield. "Since it must be so," said he, "I am not angry.
+Divide the property as you like."</p>
+
+<p>The division made, each took his share. The idler hired a drover for
+his cattle, a groom for his horses, a shepherd for his sheep, a
+goatherd for his goats, a swineherd for his hogs, and a keeper for his
+bees, and said to them all, "I intrust my property to you. May God
+have you in His keeping." And he continued to stay at home, with no
+more care than before.</p>
+
+<p>The elder, on the contrary, labored for himself as he had done for the
+common good: he kept his own flocks and had an eye to everything; yet,
+in spite of all this, he found bad luck and misfortune everywhere;
+everything went wrong with him, until at last he was so poor that he
+had not even a pair of shoes, but was forced to go barefoot. He said
+to himself, "I will go to my brother's house and see how affairs are
+prospering with him."</p>
+
+<p>His road lay through a pasture in which a flock of sheep was feeding.
+On approaching them he saw that they had no shepherd. A beautiful
+young girl was seated near them, with her distaff, spinning gold
+thread.</p>
+
+<p>He saluted the young girl and asked her to whom the flock belonged.</p>
+
+<p>"To him to whom I belong belong also these sheep," answered she.<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_81" id="Page_81">[81]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>"And who are you?" said he.</p>
+
+<p>"I am your brother's fortune?" she replied.</p>
+
+<p>"And where is my fortune?" he exclaimed, seized with anger and envy.</p>
+
+<p>"Ah! she is far from you," said the young girl.</p>
+
+<p>"Can I find her?" asked he.</p>
+
+<p>"You can," she replied, "if you only look yonder."</p>
+
+<p>On hearing these words, and seeing that the sheep were the finest that
+could be imagined, he had no wish to see the other flocks, but went
+straight to his brother, who, as soon as he saw him, burst into tears,
+moved with pity.</p>
+
+<p>"Where have you been so long?" asked he. And, seeing him clothed in
+rags and barefooted, he gave him a pair of shoes and some money.</p>
+
+<p>After staying three days in his brother's house, the poor man set out
+for home. No sooner had he reached his house than he threw a bag
+across his shoulder, with a piece of bread in it, took a staff in his
+hand, and set out to seek his fortune.</p>
+
+<p>After walking for some time he found himself in a great forest, where
+he saw a wretched old hag asleep under a tree. He gave her a blow on
+the back with his staff to awaken her. She moved with difficulty, and,
+half opening her bleared eyes, said to him, "Thank God that I was
+asleep, for if I had been awake you would not have had those shoes."<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_82" id="Page_82">[82]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>"Who are you, then," asked he, "that would have prevented my having
+these shoes?"</p>
+
+<p>"I am your fortune," answered the old woman.</p>
+
+<p>"What! are you my fortune?" cried he, striking his breast. "May God
+exterminate you! Who gave you to me?"</p>
+
+<p>"It was Destiny," replied the old woman.</p>
+
+<p>"Where is Destiny?" he asked.</p>
+
+<p>"Go and find him," said the old woman, lying down to sleep again.</p>
+
+<p>He set out in search of Destiny. After a long, long journey, at length
+he reached a wood, where he found a hermit, of whom he asked the way
+to the abode of Destiny.</p>
+
+<p>"Go straight up yonder mountain and you will find his castle,"
+answered the hermit; "but when you find him take care not to speak to
+him, but only do all that you see him do."</p>
+
+<p>The traveler thanked the hermit and took his way to the mountain. When
+he reached the abode of Destiny he saw a magnificent palace full of
+servants constantly bustling about and doing nothing. As to Destiny,
+he was supping at a table bountifully served. When the stranger saw
+this he also sat down at the table and supped with the master of the
+house. After supper Destiny went to bed, and his guest did the same.</p>
+
+<p>At midnight a terrible noise was heard in the castle, and a<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_83" id="Page_83">[83]</a></span> voice
+cried, "Destiny, Destiny, such a number of souls have come into the
+world this night; give them something according to thy good pleasure."</p>
+
+<p>And behold! Destiny rose, and opened a golden chest filled with
+shining guineas, which he scattered by handfuls about the room,
+saying, "Such as I am to-day, such shalt thou be all thy life!"</p>
+
+<p>At daybreak the beautiful castle had vanished, and in its place stood
+an ordinary house, in which, however, nothing was wanting. When
+evening came Destiny sat down to supper. His guest did the same, but
+no one spoke a word. Supper over, they went to bed. At midnight a
+terrible noise was heard, and a voice cried, "Destiny, Destiny, such a
+number of souls have come into the world this night; give them
+something according to thy good pleasure."</p>
+
+<p>And behold! Destiny rose, and opened a silver chest, but this time
+there were no guineas in it, but only silver coin, with a few small
+pieces of gold, which Destiny scattered on the floor, saying, "Such as
+I am to-day, such shalt thou be all thy life!"</p>
+
+<p>At daybreak this house had also disappeared, and a smaller one stood
+in its place. The same thing happened every night, and every morning
+the house was smaller, until finally there was nothing but a wretched
+hut. Destiny now took a spade and began to dig the ground. His guest
+did the same, and both worked all day. When night came,<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_84" id="Page_84">[84]</a></span> Destiny took
+a crust of bread and, breaking it in two, gave half to his companion.
+This was all his supper. When they had eaten it they went to bed.</p>
+
+<p>At midnight a terrible noise was heard, and a voice cried out,
+"Destiny, Destiny, such a number of souls have come into the world
+this night; give them something according to thy good pleasure."</p>
+
+<p>And behold! Destiny rose, and opened a wooden chest filled with
+pebbles mixed with a few copper coins, which he scattered on the
+ground, saying, "Such as I am to-day, such shalt thou be all thy
+life!"</p>
+
+<p>When morning dawned the cabin was changed into a splendid palace, as
+on the first day. Then, for the first time, Destiny spoke to his
+guest. "Why did you come here?" asked he.</p>
+
+<p>The poor man told him the whole story of his wretchedness, and how he
+had come to ask Destiny himself why he had given him such a bad
+fortune.</p>
+
+<p>"You saw what I was the first night, when I scattered guineas, and
+what followed," replied Destiny. "Such as I am on the night that a man
+is born, such will that man be all his life. You were born on a night
+of poverty; you will always be poor. Your brother, on the contrary,
+came into the world on a lucky night; he will always be fortunate.
+But, since you have taken so much trouble to find me, I will tell you
+how to help yourself. Your brother has a<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_85" id="Page_85">[85]</a></span> daughter by the name of
+Miliza, who is as fortunate as her father. Take her for your wife when
+you return home, but be careful always to say that all that you have
+belongs to her."</p>
+
+<p>The poor man thanked Destiny again and again, and set out for home. As
+soon as he arrived he went straight to his brother's house and said,</p>
+
+<p>"Brother, give me Miliza for a wife; you see that I am all alone in
+the world."</p>
+
+<p>"I am willing," answered his brother; "Miliza is yours."</p>
+
+<p>The bridegroom carried Miliza to his house. He soon became very rich,
+but he always took good care to say, "All that I have belongs to
+Miliza."</p>
+
+<p>One day, however, as he was admiring his wheat, which was the most
+beautiful that ever was seen, a stranger passed by and asked, "Whose
+wheat is this?"</p>
+
+<p>"It is mine," answered he, without thinking. But scarcely had he
+spoken when, behold! the wheat took fire, and the flames spread all
+over the field. Without stopping to put it out, he ran after the
+traveler, crying, "Stop, sir, I was mistaken; it belongs to Miliza, my
+brother's daughter."</p>
+
+<p>The fire went out at once of its own accord. He had learned a good
+lesson which he never forgot, and from that time thenceforth he was
+fortunate, thanks to Miliza.</p>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_86" id="Page_86">[86]</a></span></p>
+<h2><a name="The_Twelve_Months" id="The_Twelve_Months"></a>The Twelve Months</h2>
+
+<h3><i>A Bohemian Tale</i></h3>
+<div>
+<img src="images/image_07_01.jpg" width="600" height="193" alt=""  />
+<img class="figleft" src="images/image_07_02.jpg" width="81" height="30" alt=""  />
+</div>
+
+
+<p>here was once a woman who was left a widow with two children. The
+elder, who was only her stepdaughter, was named Dobrunka; the younger,
+who was as wicked as her mother, was called Katinka. The mother
+worshiped her daughter, but she hated Dobrunka, simply because she was
+as beautiful as her sister was ugly. Dobrunka did not even know that
+she was pretty, and she could not understand why her stepmother flew
+into a rage at the mere sight of her. The poor child was obliged to do
+all the work of the house; she had to sweep, cook, wash, sew, spin,
+weave, cut the grass, and take care of the cow, while Katinka lived
+like a princess&mdash;that is to say, did nothing.</p>
+
+<p>Dobrunka worked with a good will, and took reproaches and blows with
+the gentleness of a lamb; but nothing soothed her stepmother, for
+every day added to the beauty of the elder sister and the ugliness of
+the younger. "They are growing up," thought the mother, "and suitors
+will soon appear, who will refuse my daughter when they see<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_87" id="Page_87">[87]</a></span> this
+hateful Dobrunka, who grows beautiful on purpose to spite me. I must
+get rid of her, cost what it may."</p>
+
+<p>One day in the middle of January, Katinka took a fancy for some
+violets. She called Dobrunka and said, "Go to the forest and bring me
+a bunch of violets, that I may put them in my bosom and enjoy their
+fragrance."</p>
+
+<p>"Oh, sister, what an idea!" answered Dobrunka; "as if there were any
+violets under the snow!"</p>
+
+<p>"Hold your tongue, stupid fool," returned her sister, "and do as I bid
+you. If you do not go to the forest and bring me back a bunch of
+violets I will beat you to a jelly." Upon this the mother took
+Dobrunka by the arm, put her out of the door, and drew the bolt on
+her.</p>
+
+<p>The poor girl went to the forest weeping bitterly. Everything was
+covered with snow; there was not even a footpath. She lost her way and
+wandered about till, famishing with hunger and perishing with cold,
+she entreated God to take her from this wretched life.</p>
+
+<p>All at once she saw a light in the distance. She went on, climbing
+higher and higher, until at last she reached the top of a huge rock,
+upon which a great fire was built. Around the fire were twelve stones,
+and on each stone sat a motionless figure, wrapped in a large mantle,
+his head covered with a hood which fell over his eyes. Three of these
+mantles were white like the snow, three were green like the grass of
+the meadows, three were golden like the sheaves of ripe<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_88" id="Page_88">[88]</a></span> wheat, and
+three were purple like the grapes of the vine. These twelve figures,
+gazing at the fire in silence, were the Twelve Months of the year.</p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 600px;"><a name="pic_5" id="pic_5"></a>
+<img src="images/image_08.jpg" width="600" height="488" alt="PRETTY DOBRUNKA WAS OBLIGED TO DO ALL THE WORK OF THE
+HOUSE"  />
+<span class="caption">PRETTY DOBRUNKA WAS OBLIGED TO DO ALL THE WORK OF THE
+HOUSE</span>
+</div>
+
+<p>Dobrunka knew January by his long white beard. He was the only one
+that had a staff in his hand. The poor girl was terribly frightened.
+She drew near, saying, in a timid voice, "My good sirs, please to let
+me warm myself by your fire; I am freezing with cold."</p>
+
+<p>January nodded his head. "Why have you come here, my child?" he asked.
+"What are you looking for?"</p>
+
+<p>"I am looking for violets," replied Dobrunka.</p>
+
+<p>"This is not the season for them; there are no violets in the time of
+snow," said January, in his gruff voice.</p>
+
+<p>"I know it," replied Dobrunka, sadly; "but my sister and mother will
+beat me to a jelly if I do not bring them some. My good sirs, please
+to tell me where I can find them."</p>
+
+<p>Old January rose, and, turning to a young man in a green mantle, put
+his staff in his hand, and said to him, "Brother March, this is your
+business."</p>
+
+<p>March rose in turn, and stirred the fire with the staff, when, behold!
+the flames rose, the snow melted, the buds put forth on the trees, the
+grass turned green under the bushes, the flowers peeped through the
+verdure, and the violets opened&mdash;it was spring.</p>
+
+<p>"Make haste, my child, and gather your violets," said March.</p>
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_89" id="Page_89">[89]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>Dobrunka gathered a large bouquet, thanked the Twelve Months, and
+joyfully ran home. You can imagine the astonishment of Katinka and the
+stepmother. The fragrance of the violets filled the whole house.</p>
+
+<p>"Where did you find these fine things?" asked Katinka, in a disdainful
+voice.</p>
+
+<p>"Up yonder, on the mountain," answered her sister. "It looked like a
+great blue carpet under the bushes."</p>
+
+<p>Katinka put the bouquet in her bosom and did not even thank the poor
+child.</p>
+
+<p>The next morning the wicked sister, as she sat idling by the stove,
+took a fancy for some strawberries.</p>
+
+<p>"Go to the forest and bring me some strawberries," said she to
+Dobrunka.</p>
+
+<p>"Oh, sister, what an idea! as if there were any strawberries under the
+snow!"</p>
+
+<p>"Hold your tongue, stupid fool, and do as I bid you. If you don't go
+to the forest and bring me back a basket of strawberries, I will beat
+you to a jelly."</p>
+
+<p>The mother took Dobrunka by the arm, put her out of the door, and drew
+the bolt on her.</p>
+
+<p>The poor girl returned to the forest, looking with all her eyes for
+the light that she had seen the day before. She was fortunate enough
+to spy it, and she reached the fire trembling and almost frozen.<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_90" id="Page_90">[90]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>The Twelve Months were in their places, motionless and silent.</p>
+
+<p>"My good sirs," said Dobrunka, "please to let me warm myself by your
+fire; I am almost frozen with cold."</p>
+
+<p>"Why have you returned?" asked January. "What are you looking for?"</p>
+
+<p>"I am looking for strawberries," answered she.</p>
+
+<p>"This is not the season for them," returned January, in his gruff
+voice; "there are no strawberries under the snow."</p>
+
+<p>"I know it," replied Dobrunka, sadly; "but my mother and sister will
+beat me to a jelly if I do not bring them some. My good sirs, please
+to tell me where I can find them."</p>
+
+<p>Old January rose and, turning to a man in a golden mantle, he put his
+staff in his hand, saying, "Brother June, this is your business."</p>
+
+<p>June rose in turn, and stirred the fire with the staff, when, behold!
+the flames rose, the snow melted, the earth grew green, the trees were
+covered with leaves, the birds sang and the flowers opened&mdash;it was
+summer. Thousands of little white stars enameled the turf, then turned
+to red strawberries, looking, in their green cups, like rubies set in
+emeralds.</p>
+
+<p>"Make haste, my child, and gather your strawberries," said June.</p>
+
+<p>Dobrunka filled her apron, thanked the Twelve Months,<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_91" id="Page_91">[91]</a></span> and joyfully
+ran home. You may imagine the astonishment of Katinka and the
+stepmother. The fragrance of the strawberries filled the whole house.</p>
+
+<p>"Where did you find these things?" asked Katinka, in a disdainful
+voice.</p>
+
+<p>"Up yonder on the mountain," answered her sister; "there were so many
+of them that they looked like blood poured on the ground."</p>
+
+<p>Katinka and her mother devoured the strawberries without even thanking
+the poor child.</p>
+
+<p>The third day the wicked sister took a fancy for some red apples. The
+same threats, the same insults, and the same violence followed.
+Dobrunka ran to the mountain, and was fortunate enough to find the
+Twelve Months warming themselves, motionless and silent.</p>
+
+<p>"You here again, my child?" said old January, making room for her by
+the fire. Dobrunka told him, with tears, how, if she did not bring
+home some red apples, her mother and sister would beat her to death.</p>
+
+<p>Old January repeated the ceremonies of the day before. "Brother
+September," said he to a gray-bearded man in a purple mantle, "this is
+your business."</p>
+
+<p>September rose and stirred the fire with the staff, when, behold! the
+flames ascended, the snow melted, and the trees put forth a few yellow
+leaves, which fell one by one before the wind&mdash;it was autumn. The only
+flowers were<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_92" id="Page_92">[92]</a></span> a few late pinks, daisies, and immortelles. Dobrunka saw
+but one thing, an apple-tree with its rosy fruit.</p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 600px;"><a name="pic_6" id="pic_6"></a>
+<img src="images/image_09.jpg" width="600" height="740" alt="TURNED OUT BY HER MOTHER, DOBRUNKA WENT UNHAPPILY INTO
+THE FOREST"  />
+<span class="caption">TURNED OUT BY HER MOTHER, DOBRUNKA WENT UNHAPPILY INTO
+THE FOREST</span>
+</div>
+
+<p>"Make haste, my child; shake the tree," said September.</p>
+
+<p>She shook it, and an apple fell; she shook it again, and a second
+apple followed.</p>
+
+<p>"Make haste, Dobrunka, make haste home!" cried September, in an
+imperious voice.</p>
+
+<p>The good child thanked the Twelve Months, and joyfully ran home. You
+may imagine the astonishment of Katinka and the stepmother.</p>
+
+<p>"Red apples in January! Where did you get these apples?" asked
+Katinka.</p>
+
+<p>"Up yonder on the mountain; there is a tree there that is as red with
+them as a cherry-tree in July."</p>
+
+<p>"Why did you bring only two? You ate the rest on the way."</p>
+
+<p>"Oh, sister, I did not touch them; I was only permitted to shake the
+tree twice, and but two apples fell."</p>
+
+<p>"Begone, you fool!" cried Katinka, striking her sister, who ran away
+crying.</p>
+
+<p>The wicked girl tasted one of the apples; she had never eaten anything
+so delicious in her life, neither had her mother. How they regretted
+not having any more!</p>
+
+<p>"Mother," said Katinka, "give me my fur cloak. I will go to the forest
+and find the tree, and whether I am <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_93" id="Page_93">[93]</a></span>permitted or not I will shake
+it so hard that all the apples will be ours."</p>
+
+<p>The mother tried to stop her. A spoiled child listens to nothing.
+Katinka wrapped herself in her fur cloak, drew the hood over her head,
+and hastened to the forest.</p>
+
+<p>Everything was covered with snow; there was not even a footpath.
+Katinka lost her way, but she pushed on, spurred by pride and
+covetousness. She spied a light in the distance. She climbed and
+climbed till she reached the place, and found the Twelve Months each
+seated on his stone, motionless and silent. Without asking their
+permission, she approached the fire.</p>
+
+<p>"Why have you come here? What do you want? Where are you going?" asked
+old January, gruffly.</p>
+
+<p>"What matters it to you, old fool?" answered Katinka. "It is none of
+your business where I came from or whither I am going." She plunged
+into the forest. January frowned and raised his staff above his head.
+In the twinkling of an eye the sky was overcast, the fire went out,
+the snow fell, and the wind blew. Katinka could not see the way before
+her. She lost herself, and vainly tried to retrace her steps. The snow
+fell and the wind blew. She called her mother, she cursed her sister,
+she cursed God. The snow fell and the wind blew. Katinka froze, her
+limbs stiffened, and she fell motionless. The snow still fell and the
+wind still blew.<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_94" id="Page_94">[94]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>The mother went without ceasing from the window to the door, and from
+the door to the window. The hours passed and Katinka did not return.</p>
+
+<p>"I must go and look for my daughter," said she. "The child has
+forgotten herself with those hateful apples." She took her fur cloak
+and hood, and hastened to the mountain. Everything was covered with
+snow; there was not even a footpath. She plunged into the forest,
+calling her daughter. The snow fell and the wind blew. She walked on
+with feverish anxiety, shouting at the top of her voice. The snow
+still fell and the wind still blew.</p>
+
+<p>Dobrunka waited through the evening and the night, but no one
+returned. In the morning she took her wheel and spun a whole distaff
+full; there was still no news. "What can have happened?" said the
+girl, weeping. The sun was shining through an icy mist and the ground
+was covered with snow. Dobrunka prayed for her mother and sister. They
+did not return; and it was not till spring that a shepherd found the
+two corpses in the forest.</p>
+
+<p>Dobrunka remained the sole mistress of the house, the cow, and the
+garden, to say nothing of a piece of meadow adjoining the house. But
+when a good and pretty girl has a field under her window, the next
+thing that follows is a young farmer who offers her his heart and
+hand. Dobrunka was soon married. The Twelve Months did not abandon
+their child. More than once, when the north<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_95" id="Page_95">[95]</a></span> wind blew fearfully and
+the windows shook in their frames, old January stopped up all the
+crevices of the house with snow, so that the cold might not enter this
+peaceful abode.</p>
+
+<p>Dobrunka lived to a good old age, always virtuous and happy, having,
+according to the proverb, winter at the door, summer in the barn,
+autumn in the cellar, and spring in the heart.</p>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_96" id="Page_96">[96]</a></span></p>
+<h2><a name="Swanda_the_Piper" id="Swanda_the_Piper"></a>Swanda the Piper</h2>
+
+<h3><i>A Bohemian Tale</i></h3>
+
+<div>
+<img src="images/image_10_01.jpg" width="600" height="271" alt=""  />
+<img class="figleft" src="images/image_10_02.jpg" width="122" height="67" alt=""  />
+</div>
+
+
+<p>wanda, the Piper, was a jolly companion. Like every true musician, he
+was born with an unquenchable thirst; besides, he was madly fond of
+play, and would have risked his soul at strajak, the favorite game at
+cards in Bohemia. When he had earned a little money he would throw
+aside his pipes, and drink and play with the first comer till he
+returned to his home as light in pocket as when he had left it. But he
+was always so merry, witty, and good-natured that not a drinker ever
+left the table while the piper was there, and his name still lives in
+Bohemia as the prince of good fellows.</p>
+
+<p>One day there was a festival at Mokran, and no merry-making was ever
+complete without the piper. Swanda, after blowing his pipe till
+midnight and earning twenty zwanzigers, determined to amuse himself on
+his own account. Neither prayers nor promises could persuade him to
+go<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_97" id="Page_97">[97]</a></span> on with his music; he was determined to drink his fill and to
+shuffle the cards at his ease; but, for the first time in his life, he
+found no one to play with him.</p>
+
+<p>Swanda was not the man to quit the inn so long as he had a kreutzer in
+his pocket, and on that day he had many of them. By dint of talking,
+laughing, and drinking he took one of those fixed ideas which are not
+uncommon among those who look too often in the bottom of their glass,
+and determined to play at any price; but all his neighbors refused his
+challenge. Furious at finding no partner, he rose with an unsteady
+step, paid for what he had drank, and left the inn.</p>
+
+<p>"I will go to Drazic," said he; "the schoolmaster and the bailiff
+there are honest people who are not afraid of play, and I shall find
+partners. Hurrah!"</p>
+
+<p>The night was clear and the moon shone like a fish's eye. On reaching
+a cross-road Swanda raised his eyes by chance, and stopped, mute and
+motionless. A flock of ravens were croaking over his head, and in
+front of him rose four posts, standing like pillars, and connected at
+the top by cross-beams, from each of which swung a half-devoured
+corpse. It was a robbers' gallows, a spectacle by no means amusing to
+a less stoical spirit than that of Swanda.</p>
+
+<p>He had not recovered from the first shudder when suddenly there
+appeared before him a man dressed in black,<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_98" id="Page_98">[98]</a></span> with pale and hollow
+cheeks, and eyes that glittered like carbuncles.</p>
+
+<p>"Where are you going so late, friend Piper?" asked he, in a soft
+voice.</p>
+
+<p>"To Drazic, Mr. Black Coat," answered the intrepid Swanda.</p>
+
+<p>"Would you like to earn something by your music?"</p>
+
+<p>"I am tired of blowing," returned Swanda. "I have some silver in my
+pocket, and wish to amuse myself."</p>
+
+<p>"Who talks to you of silver? It is with gold that we pay."</p>
+
+<p>Saying this, the stranger flashed before his eyes a handful of shining
+ducats. The piper was the son of a thrifty mother; he knew not how to
+resist such an invitation, and followed the black man and his gold.</p>
+
+<p>How the time passed he never could remember. It is true that his head
+was a little heavy. The only thing that he recollected was that the
+black man warned him to accept whatever was offered him, whether gold
+or wine, but never to return thanks except by saying "Good luck,
+brother!"</p>
+
+<p>Without knowing how he had entered, he found himself in a dark room
+where three men, dressed in black like his guide, were playing at
+strajak by no other light than their glittering eyes. On the table
+were piles of gold, and a jug from which each one drank in his turn.<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_99" id="Page_99">[99]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>"Brothers," said the black man, "I bring you friend Swanda, whom you
+have long known by reputation. I thought to please you on this
+feast-day by giving you a little music."</p>
+
+<p>"A good idea!" said one of the players. Then, taking the jug, he
+handed it to Swanda, saying, "Here, piper, drink and play."</p>
+
+<p>Swanda had some scruples; but, after all, it is impossible to have
+charcoal without putting your finger into the ashes. The wine, though
+rather warm, was not bad. He replaced the jug on the table, and
+raising his hat, said, "Good luck, brother!" as he had been advised.</p>
+
+<p>He began to play, and never had his music produced such an effect.
+Each note made the players leap for joy. Their eyes shot forth flames;
+they moved about uneasily in their chairs; they staked the ducats by
+handfuls; they shouted and burst into loud fits of laughter without
+stirring a muscle of their pallid faces. The jug passed from hand to
+hand, always full, though replenished by no one.</p>
+
+<p>As soon as Swanda finished an air they handed him the jug, from which
+he never failed to drink deeply, and threw handfuls of gold into his
+hat. "Good luck, brother!" he repeated, astounded at his
+fortune&mdash;"good luck!"</p>
+
+<p>The feast lasted a long time. At last, the piper having struck up a
+polka, the black men, in a transport of mirth, quitted the table and
+danced and waltzed with an ardor<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_100" id="Page_100">[100]</a></span> and frenzy which ill accorded with
+their icy faces. One of the dancers gathered up all the gold that was
+heaped on the table, and, pouring it into Swanda's hat, "Here," said
+he, "take this for the pleasure that you have given us."</p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 600px;"><a name="pic_7" id="pic_7"></a>
+<img src="images/image_11.jpg" width="600" height="489" alt="HE BEGAN TO PLAY AND NEVER HAD HIS MUSIC PRODUCED SUCH AN EFFECT"  />
+<span class="caption">HE BEGAN TO PLAY AND NEVER HAD HIS MUSIC PRODUCED SUCH AN EFFECT</span>
+</div>
+
+
+<p>"God bless you, my good lords!" said the dazzled piper. Scarcely had
+he spoken when men, room, and cards vanished.</p>
+
+<p>In the morning a peasant on his way to the fields heard the sound of a
+pipe as he approached the cross-road. "It is Swanda," said he. But
+where was the piper? Seated on a corner of the gallows, he was blowing
+with all his might, while the corpses of the robbers danced in the
+wind to his music.</p>
+
+<p>"Halloo, comrade!" cried the peasant. "How long have you been playing
+the cuckoo up there?"</p>
+
+<p>Swanda started, dropped his pipe, opened his eyes, and glided,
+bewildered, down the gallows. His first thought, however, was for his
+ducats. He rummaged his pockets and turned his hat inside out, but all
+in vain; there was not even a kreutzer!</p>
+
+<p>"My friend," said the peasant, making the sign of the cross, "God has
+punished you by giving you the devil for a partner; you love cards too
+well."</p>
+
+<p>"You are right," said Swanda, trembling; "I will never touch them
+again in my life."</p>
+
+<p>He kept his word; and, to thank Heaven for having <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_101" id="Page_101">[101]</a></span>preserved him
+from such peril, he took the fatal pipe to which the devil had danced,
+and suspended it as a votive offering in the church of Strakonic, his
+birthplace, where it may be seen to this day. The pipe of Strakonic
+has become a proverb, and it is even said that its sound is heard
+every year at the day and hour when Swanda played for Satan and his
+friends.</p>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_102" id="Page_102">[102]</a></span></p>
+<h2><a name="The_Gold_Bread" id="The_Gold_Bread"></a><i>The</i> Gold Bread</h2>
+
+<h3><i>A Hungarian Tale</i></h3>
+
+<div>
+<img src="images/image_12_01.jpg" width="600" height="262" alt=""  />
+<img class="figleft" src="images/image_12_02.jpg" width="90" height="59" alt=""  />
+</div>
+
+
+<p>nce upon a time there was a widow who had a beautiful daughter. The
+mother was modest and humble; the daughter, Marienka, was pride
+itself. She had suitors from all sides, but none satisfied her; the
+more they tried to please her the more she disdained them.</p>
+
+<p>One night, when the poor mother could not sleep, she took her beads
+and began to pray for her dear child, who gave her more than one care.
+Marienka was asleep by her side. As the mother gazed lovingly at her
+beautiful daughter, Marienka laughed in her sleep.</p>
+
+<p>"What a beautiful dream she must have to laugh in this way!" said the
+mother. Then she finished her prayer, hung her beads on the wall, laid
+her head on the same pillow with her daughter, and fell asleep.</p>
+
+<p>"My dear child," said she in the morning, "what did you dream last
+night that you laughed so?"<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_103" id="Page_103">[103]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>"What did I dream, mamma? I dreamed that a nobleman came here for me
+in a copper coach, and that he put a ring on my finger set with a
+stone that sparkled like the stars. And when I entered the church the
+people had eyes for no one but the blessed Virgin and me."</p>
+
+<p>"My daughter, my daughter, that was a proud dream!" said the mother,
+shaking her head. But Marienka went out singing.</p>
+
+<p>The same day a wagon entered the yard. A handsome young farmer in good
+circumstances came to ask Marienka to share a peasant's bread with
+him. The mother was pleased with the suitor, but the proud Marienka
+refused him, saying, "Though you should come in a copper coach, and
+put a ring on my finger set with a stone that sparkled like the stars,
+I would not have you for a husband." And the farmer went away storming
+at Marienka's pride.</p>
+
+<p>The next night the mother waked, took her beads, and prayed still more
+earnestly for her daughter, when, behold! Marienka laughed again as
+she was sleeping.</p>
+
+<p>"I wonder what she is dreaming," said the mother, who prayed, unable
+to sleep.</p>
+
+<p>"My dear child," she said the next morning, "what did you dream last
+night that you laughed aloud?"</p>
+
+<p>"What did I dream, mamma? I dreamed that a nobleman came here for me
+in a silver coach, and that he offered me a golden diadem. And when I
+entered the church the<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_104" id="Page_104">[104]</a></span> people looked at me more than they did at the
+blessed Virgin."</p>
+
+<p>"Hush! you are blaspheming. Pray, my daughter, pray that you may not
+fall into temptation."</p>
+
+<p>But Marienka ran away to escape her mother's sermon.</p>
+
+<p>The same day a carriage entered the yard. A young lord came to entreat
+Marienka to share a nobleman's bread with him.</p>
+
+<p>"It is a great honor," said the mother; but vanity is blind.</p>
+
+<p>"Though you should come in a silver coach," said Marienka to the new
+suitor, "and should offer me a golden diadem, I would not have you for
+a husband."</p>
+
+<p>"Take care, my child," said the poor mother; "pride is a device of the
+Evil One."</p>
+
+<p>"Mothers never know what they are saying," thought Marienka, and she
+went out shrugging her shoulders.</p>
+
+<p>The third night the mother could not sleep for anxiety. As she lay
+awake, praying for her daughter, behold! Marienka burst into a loud
+fit of laughter.</p>
+
+<p>"Oh!" said the mother, "what can the unhappy child be dreaming now?"
+And she continued to pray till daylight.</p>
+
+<p>"My dear child," said she in the morning, "what did you dream last
+night?"</p>
+
+<p>"You will be angry again if I tell you," answered Marienka.<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_105" id="Page_105">[105]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>"No, no," replied the mother. "Tell me."</p>
+
+<p>"I dreamed that a noble lord, with a great train of attendants, came
+to ask me in marriage. He was in a golden coach, and he brought me a
+dress of gold lace. And when I entered the church, the people looked
+at nobody but me."</p>
+
+<p>The mother clasped her hands. Marienka, half dressed, sprang from the
+bed and ran into the next room, to avoid a lecture that was tiresome
+to her.</p>
+
+<p>The same day three coaches entered the yard, one of copper, one of
+silver, and one of gold; the first drawn by two horses, the second by
+four, and the third by eight, all caparisoned with gold and pearls.
+From the copper and silver coaches alighted pages dressed in scarlet
+breeches and green jackets and cloaks, while from the golden coach
+stepped a handsome nobleman all dressed in gold. He entered the house,
+and, bending one knee on the ground, asked the mother for her
+daughter's hand.</p>
+
+<p>"What an honor!" thought the mother.</p>
+
+<p>"My dream has come to pass," said Marienka. "You see, mother, that, as
+usual, I was right and you were wrong."</p>
+
+<p>She ran to her chamber, tied the betrothal knot, and offered it
+smilingly as a pledge of her faith to the handsome lord, who, on his
+side, put a ring on her finger set with a stone that sparkled like the
+stars, and presented her with a golden diadem and a dress of gold
+lace.<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_106" id="Page_106">[106]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 600px;"><a name="pic_8" id="pic_8"></a>
+<img src="images/image_13.jpg" width="600" height="739" alt="AS THE MOTHER GAZED LOVINGLY AT HER BEAUTIFUL DAUGHTER, MARIENKA LAUGHED IN HER SLEEP"  />
+<span class="caption">AS THE MOTHER GAZED LOVINGLY AT HER BEAUTIFUL DAUGHTER, MARIENKA LAUGHED IN HER SLEEP</span>
+</div>
+
+<p>The proud girl ran to her room to dress for the ceremony, while the
+mother, still anxious, said to the bridegroom, "My good sir, what
+bread do you offer my daughter?"</p>
+
+<p>"Among us," said he, "the bread is of copper, silver, and gold. She
+can take her choice."</p>
+
+<p>"What does this mean?" thought the mother. But Marienka had no
+anxiety; she returned as beautiful as the sun, took her lover's arm,
+and set out for the church without asking her mother's blessing. The
+poor woman was left to pray alone on the threshold; and when Marienka
+returned and entered the carriage she did not even turn round to look
+at her mother or to bid her a last farewell.</p>
+
+<p>The eight horses set off at a gallop, and did not stop till they
+reached a huge rock in which there was a hole as large as the gate of
+a city. The horses plunged into the darkness, the earth trembled, and
+the rock cracked and crumbled. Marienka seized her husband's hand.</p>
+
+<p>"Don't be alarmed, my fair one; in a moment it will be light."</p>
+
+<p>All at once a thousand lights waved in the air. The dwarfs of the
+mountain, each with a torch in his hand, came to salute their lord,
+the King of the Mines. Marienka learned for the first time her
+husband's name. Whether he was a spirit of good or of evil, at least
+he was so rich that she did not regret her choice.</p>
+
+<p>They emerged from the darkness, and advanced through <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_107" id="Page_107">[107]</a></span>bleached
+forests and mountains that raised their pale and gloomy summits to the
+skies. Firs, beeches, birches, oaks, rocks, all were of lead. At the
+end of the forest stretched a vast meadow the grass of which was of
+silver; and at the bottom of the meadow was a castle of gold, inlaid
+with diamonds and rubies. The carriage stopped before the door, and
+the King of the Mines offered his hand to his bride, saying, "My fair
+one, all that you see is yours."</p>
+
+<p>Marienka was delighted. But it is impossible to make so long a journey
+without being hungry; and it was with pleasure, therefore, that she
+saw the mountain dwarfs bring in a table, everything on which
+glittered with gold, silver, and precious stones. The dishes were
+marvelous&mdash;side-dishes of emeralds, and roasts of gold on silver
+salvers. Every one ate heartily except the bride, who begged her
+husband for a little bread.</p>
+
+<p>"Bring the copper bread," said the King of the Mines.</p>
+
+<p>Marienka could not eat it.</p>
+
+<p>"Bring the silver bread," said he.</p>
+
+<p>Marienka could not eat it.</p>
+
+<p>"Bring the gold bread," said he, at length.</p>
+
+<p>Marienka could not eat it.</p>
+
+<p>"My fair one," said the King of the Mines, "I am very sorry; but what
+can I offer you? We have no other bread."</p>
+
+<p>The bride burst into tears. Her husband laughed aloud; his heart was
+of metal, like his kingdom.<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_108" id="Page_108">[108]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>"Weep, if you like," he cried; "it will do you no good. What you
+wished for you possess. Eat the bread that you have chosen."</p>
+
+<p>It was thus that the rich Marienka lived in her castle, dying of
+hunger, and seeking in vain for a root to allay the torture that was
+consuming her. God had humbled her by granting her prayer.</p>
+
+<p>Three days in the year, the Rogation Days, when the ground half opens
+to receive the fruitful rain sent by the Lord, Marienka returns to the
+earth. Dressed in rags, pale and wrinkled, she begs from door to door,
+too happy when any one throws her a few crusts, and when she receives
+as alms from the poor what she lacks in her palace of gold&mdash;a little
+bread and a little pity.</p>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_109" id="Page_109">[109]</a></span></p>
+<h2><a name="The_Story_of_the_Noses" id="The_Story_of_the_Noses"></a>The Story <i>of the Noses</i></h2>
+
+<h3><i>A Bohemian Tale</i></h3>
+
+<div>
+<img src="images/image_14_01.jpg" width="600" height="192" alt=""  />
+<img class="figleft" src="images/image_14_02.jpg" width="86" height="57" alt=""  />
+</div>
+
+
+<p>t Dewitz, in the neighborhood of Prague, there once lived a rich and
+whimsical old farmer who had a beautiful daughter. The students of
+Prague, of whom there were at that time twenty-five thousand, often
+walked in the direction of Dewitz, and more than one of them offered
+to follow the plow in hopes of becoming the son-in-law of the farmer.
+The first condition that the cunning peasant set on each new servant
+was this: "I engage you," he would say, "for a year&mdash;that is, till the
+cuckoo sings the return of spring; but if, from now till then, you say
+once that you are not satisfied, I will cut off the end of your nose.
+I give you the same right over me," he added, laughing. And he did as
+he said. Prague was full of students with the ends of their noses
+glued on, which did not prevent an ugly scar, and, still less, bad
+jokes. To return from the farm disfigured and ridiculed was well
+calculated to cool the warmest passion.</p>
+
+<p>A young man by the name of Coranda, somewhat ungainly in manner, but
+cool, adroit, and cunning, which<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_110" id="Page_110">[110]</a></span> are not bad aids in making one's
+fortune, took it in his head to try the adventure. The farmer received
+him with his usual good nature, and, the bargain made, sent him to the
+field to work. At breakfast-time the other servants were called, but
+good care was taken to forget Coranda. At dinner it was the same.
+Coranda gave himself no trouble about it. He went to the house, and
+while the farmer's wife was feeding the chickens unhooked an enormous
+ham from the kitchen rafters, took a huge loaf from the cupboard, and
+went back to the fields to dine and take a nap.</p>
+
+<p>"Are you satisfied?" cried the farmer, when he returned at night.</p>
+
+<p>"Perfectly satisfied," said Coranda; "I have dined better than you
+have."</p>
+
+<p>At that instant the farmer's wife came rushing in, crying that her ham
+was gone. Coranda laughed, and the farmer turned pale.</p>
+
+<p>"Are you not satisfied?" asked Coranda.</p>
+
+<p>"A ham is only a ham," answered his master. "Such a trifle does not
+trouble me." But after that time he took good care not to leave the
+student fasting.</p>
+
+<p>Sunday came. The farmer and his wife seated themselves in the wagon to
+go to church, saying to Coranda, "It is your business to cook the
+dinner. Cut up the piece of meat you see yonder, with onions, carrots,
+leeks, and<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_111" id="Page_111">[111]</a></span> parsley, and boil them all together in the great pot over
+the kitchen fire."</p>
+
+<p>"Very well," answered Coranda.</p>
+
+<p>There was a little pet dog at the farm-house by the name of Parsley.
+Coranda killed him, skinned him, cut him up with the meat and
+vegetables, and put the whole to boil over the kitchen fire. When the
+farmer's wife returned she called her favorite; but, alas! she saw
+nothing but a bloody skin hanging by the window.</p>
+
+<p>"What have you done?" said she to Coranda.</p>
+
+<p>"What you ordered me, mistress. I have boiled the meat, onions,
+carrots, and leeks, and parsley in the bargain."</p>
+
+<p>"Wicked wretch!" cried the farmer, "had you the heart to kill the
+innocent creature that was the joy of the house?"</p>
+
+<p>"Are you not satisfied?" said Coranda, taking his knife from his
+pocket.</p>
+
+<p>"I did not say that," returned the farmer. "A dead dog is nothing but
+a dead dog." But he sighed.</p>
+
+<p>A few days after, the farmer and his wife went to market. Fearing
+their terrible servant, they said to him, "Stay at home and do exactly
+what you see others do."</p>
+
+<p>"Very well," said Coranda.</p>
+
+<p>There was an old shed in the yard the roof of which was falling to
+pieces. The carpenters came to repair it, and began, as usual, by
+tearing down the roof. Coranda took a ladder and mounted the roof of
+the house, which was<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_112" id="Page_112">[112]</a></span> quite new. Shingles, lath, nails, and tiles, he
+tore off everything, and scattered them all to the winds. When the
+farmer returned the house was open to the sky.</p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 600px;"><a name="pic_9" id="pic_9"></a>
+<img src="images/image_15.jpg" width="600" height="734" alt="HE RAN TO THE TREE AND SHOOK IT WITH ALL HIS MIGHT, WHEN, BEHOLD! A YOUNG GIRL FELL FROM THE BRANCHES"  />
+<span class="caption">HE RAN TO THE TREE AND SHOOK IT WITH ALL HIS MIGHT, WHEN, BEHOLD! A YOUNG GIRL FELL FROM THE BRANCHES</span>
+</div>
+
+<p>"Villain!" said he, "what new trick have you played me?"</p>
+
+<p>"I have obeyed you, master," answered Coranda. "You told me to do
+exactly what I saw others do. Are you not satisfied?" And he took out
+his knife.</p>
+
+<p>"Satisfied!" returned the farmer; "why should I not be satisfied? A
+few shingles more or less will not ruin me." But he sighed.</p>
+
+<p>Night came, the farmer and his wife said to each other that it was
+high time to get rid of this incarnate demon. As is always the case
+with sensible people, they never did anything without consulting their
+daughter, it being the custom in Bohemia to think that children always
+have more wit than their parents.</p>
+
+<p>"Father," said Helen, "I will hide in the great pear-tree early in the
+morning, and call like the cuckoo. You can tell Coranda that the year
+is up, since the cuckoo is singing; pay him and send him away."</p>
+
+<p>Early in the morning the plaintive cry of the cuckoo was heard through
+the fields. The farmer seemed surprised. "Well, my boy, spring is
+come," said he. "Do you hear the cuckoo singing yonder? I will pay you
+and we will part good friends."</p>
+
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_113" id="Page_113">[113]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>"A cuckoo!" said Coranda; "that is a bird which I have always wanted
+to see."</p>
+
+<p>He ran to the tree and shook it with all his might, when, behold! a
+young girl fell from the branches, fortunately more frightened than
+hurt.</p>
+
+<p>"Villain!" cried the farmer.</p>
+
+<p>"Are you not satisfied?" said Coranda, opening his knife.</p>
+
+<p>"Wretch! you kill my daughter and you think that I ought to be
+satisfied! I am furious. Begone, if you would not die by my hand!"</p>
+
+<p>"I will go when I have cut off your nose," said Coranda. "I have kept
+my word. Do you keep yours."</p>
+
+<p>"Stop!" cried the farmer, putting his hand before his face. "You will
+surely let me redeem my nose?"</p>
+
+<p>"It depends on what you offer," said Coranda.</p>
+
+<p>"Will you take ten sheep for it?"</p>
+
+<p>"No."</p>
+
+<p>"Ten cows?"</p>
+
+<p>"No; I would rather cut off your nose." And he sharpened his knife on
+the door-step.</p>
+
+<p>"Father," said Helen, "the fault was mine; it belongs to me to repair
+it. Coranda, will you take my hand instead of my father's nose?"</p>
+
+<p>"Yes," replied Coranda.</p>
+
+<p>"I make one condition," said the young girl. "We will make the same
+bargain; the first one of us that is not<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_114" id="Page_114">[114]</a></span> satisfied after marriage
+shall have his nose cut off by the other."</p>
+
+<p>"Good," replied Coranda. "I would rather it was the tongue; but that
+will come next."</p>
+
+<p>Never was a finer wedding seen at Prague, and never was there a
+happier household. Coranda and the beautiful Helen were a model pair.
+The husband and wife were never heard to complain of each other; they
+loved with drawn swords, and, thanks to their ingenious bargain, kept
+for long years both their love and their noses.</p>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_115" id="Page_115">[115]</a></span></p>
+<h2><a name="The_Three_Citrons" id="The_Three_Citrons"></a>The Three Citrons</h2>
+
+<h3><i>A Neapolitan Tale</i></h3>
+
+<div>
+<img src="images/image_16_01.jpg" width="600" height="226" alt=""  />
+<img class="figleft" src="images/image_16_02.jpg" width="83" height="67" alt=""  />
+</div>
+
+
+<p>nce upon a time there lived a king who was called the King of the
+Vermilion Towers. He had but one son, whom he loved as the apple of
+his eye, and who was the only hope of a royal line about to become
+extinct. The old king's whole ambition was to marry this illustrious
+prince&mdash;to find him a princess at once handsome, noble, young, and
+rich. He could think of nothing but this wished-for marriage.</p>
+
+<p>Unhappily, among all the virtues in which the heir to a crown is never
+lacking, Carlino, for that was the young prince's name, had the
+trifling fault of being shyer than a deer. He shook his head and fled
+to the woods at the mere sound of a woman's name, to the great grief
+of his father, who was in despair at seeing his family about to die
+out. But his grief was in vain; nothing touched the heart of Carlino.
+The tears of a father, the prayers of a whole people, the interest of
+the state, nothing could melt this stony heart. Twenty preachers had
+wasted their eloquence<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_116" id="Page_116">[116]</a></span> and thirty senators their Latin in reasoning
+with him. To be stubborn is one of the privileges of royalty, as
+Carlino had known from his birth, and he would have thought himself
+dishonored by being second to a mule in obstinacy.</p>
+
+<p>But more things often happen in an hour than in a hundred years, and
+no one can say with safety, "This is a road that I shall never
+travel." One morning at breakfast, as Carlino, instead of listening to
+his father's sermon, was amusing himself by watching the flies buzzing
+in the air, he forgot that he had a knife in his hand, and pricked his
+finger in a gesture of impatience. The blood gushed forth and fell
+into a plate of cream that had just been handed to him, where it made
+a curious mixture of white and red. Either by chance or by the
+punishment of Heaven, the prince was instantly seized with the maddest
+caprice that could be imagined.</p>
+
+<p>"Sir," said he to his father, "if I do not soon find a woman as white
+and red as this cream dyed with my blood, I am lost. This wonder must
+exist somewhere. I love her; I am dying for her; I must have her; I
+will have her. To a resolute heart nothing is impossible. If you would
+have me live, let me go in search of her, or before to-morrow I shall
+be dead of loneliness."</p>
+
+<p>The poor King of the Vermilion Towers was thunderstruck at this folly.
+It seemed to him that his palace was crumbling over his head; he
+turned red and pale by turns,<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_117" id="Page_117">[117]</a></span> stammered, wept, and finally cried, in
+a voice broken with sobs:</p>
+
+<p>"Oh, my child, the staff of my old age, my heart's blood, the life of
+my soul, what an idea have you taken into your head! Have you lost
+your reason? Yesterday you almost made me die of sorrow by refusing to
+marry; to-day you are about to drive me from the world by another
+piece of folly. Whither would you go, unhappy boy? Why leave your
+home, where you have been born and bred? Do you know to what danger
+and suffering the traveler exposes himself? Drive away these perilous
+fancies, and stay with me, my child, if you would not deprive me of
+life and destroy your kingdom and house at one blow."</p>
+
+<p>All these words, and others equally wise, had no more effect than an
+official harangue. Carlino, his eye fixed and his brow bent, listened
+to nothing but his passion. All that was said to him went in at one
+ear and out at the other; it was eloquence cast to the winds.</p>
+
+<p>When the old king, worn out with prayers and tears, perceived that it
+was easier to melt a leaden weathercock on its steeple than a spoiled
+child in pursuit of his whim, he heaved a deep sigh and determined to
+let Carlino go; and giving him counsels to which he scarcely listened,
+several bags filled with guineas, which were rather better received
+than the counsels, and two trusty servants, the good king clasped his
+rebellious son to his heart and bade him adieu,<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_118" id="Page_118">[118]</a></span> then mounted to the
+top of the great tower to follow the ungrateful boy with his eyes as
+far as he could see. When Carlino at last disappeared in the distance,
+the poor monarch thought that his heart was breaking. He buried his
+face in his hands and wept, not like a child, but like a father. The
+tears of a child are like the summer rain, large drops that are soon
+dried up; the tears of a father are like the autumnal rain, which
+falls slowly and soaks into the ground.</p>
+
+<p>While the king wept, Carlino, mounted on a fine horse, rode on gaily,
+his plume waving in the wind, like a hero about to conquer the world.
+To find what he sought was not an easy task, however, and his journey
+lasted more than one day. He crossed mountains and valleys, traversed
+kingdoms, duchies, earldoms, and baronies, and visited cities,
+villages, castles, and cottages, gazing at all the women, and gazed at
+by them in turn; but all in vain: the treasure that he sought was not
+to be found in old Europe.</p>
+
+<p>At the end of four months he reached Marseilles, resolved to embark
+for the Indies. At the sight of the raging sea, however, his brave and
+faithful servants were seized with an epidemic, called by the
+physicians stay-at-homeativeness in Hebrew, and the headache in the
+feet in Latin. To the great regret of these honest people, they were
+forced to quit their good master and remain quietly on shore, wrapped
+in their warm blankets, while Carlino, embarked on a frail bark,
+braved the winds and waves.<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_119" id="Page_119">[119]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>Nothing can stop a heart hurried away by passion. The prince roamed
+over Egypt, India, and China, going from province to province, from
+city to city, from house to house, and from cabin to cabin, everywhere
+seeking the original of the fair image that was engraved on his heart,
+but in vain. He saw women of all colors and shades, brown, blond,
+olive, sandy, white, yellow, red, and black, but he did not see her
+whom he loved.</p>
+
+<p>Always seeking and never finding, Carlino at last reached the end of
+the world. There was nothing more before him but the ocean and the
+sky. His hopes were at an end; his dream had vanished. As he was
+walking despairingly up and down the seashore, he spied an old man
+warming himself in the sun. The prince asked him if there was nothing
+beyond these waves that stretched as far as the eye could reach.</p>
+
+<p>"No," said the old man; "no one has ever discovered anything in this
+shoreless ocean, or, at least, those who have ventured on it have
+never returned to tell the story. I remember, however, having heard
+the old men among us say, when I was a child," he added, "that their
+fathers had told them that yonder, a long, long way off, far beyond
+the horizon, was the Island of the Fates; but woe to the imprudent man
+who approaches these merciless fairies: he is struck with death at
+their sight."</p>
+
+<p>"What does that matter?" cried Carlino. "I would face death itself to
+gain my wishes."<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_120" id="Page_120">[120]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>A bark lay by the strand. The prince sprang on board and unfurled the
+sail. The wind, which blew off the shore, hurried forward the frail
+craft, the land disappeared, and Carlino found himself in the midst of
+the ocean. In vain he gazed about him; there was nothing but the
+sea&mdash;the sea everywhere; in vain the bark bounded over the foaming
+waves with the speed of lightning, like a steed with mane floating on
+the wind; there was nothing but the sea&mdash;the sea everywhere. Billows
+followed billows, the hours passed one after another, the day
+declined, and the solitude and silence seemed to deepen around
+Carlino, when all at once he uttered a cry; he saw a black speck in
+the distance. At the same instant the bark, shooting ahead like an
+arrow, struck upon the sand at the foot of huge rocks, which raised
+their dark summits, notched and worn by time, to the skies. Fate had
+thrown Carlino upon that strand from which none had ever returned.</p>
+
+<p>To climb this wall was not an easy matter; there was neither road nor
+path; and when Carlino, after long efforts, with torn hands and
+wearied limbs, at last succeeded in reaching a level spot, what he
+found was not calculated to reassure him. He saw nothing but glaciers
+piled upon one another&mdash;black, damp rocks rising from the midst of the
+snows&mdash;not a tree, not a blade of grass, not a bit of moss; it was the
+picture of winter and death. The only sign of life in this desert was
+a wretched hovel, the roof of which<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_121" id="Page_121">[121]</a></span> was loaded with great stones in
+order to resist the fury of the winds. The prince approached the hut,
+and was about to enter it, when he stopped short, struck with surprise
+and terror at the spectacle which presented itself.</p>
+
+<p>At the end of the room was a great web of cloth, on which were
+pictured all the conditions of life. There were kings, soldiers,
+farmers, and shepherds, with ladies richly dressed, and peasant women
+spinning by their side. At the bottom boys and girls were dancing
+gaily, holding each other by the hand. Before the web walked the
+mistress of the house&mdash;an old woman, if the name woman can be given to
+a skeleton with bones scarcely hidden by a skin yellower and more
+transparent than wax. Like a spider ready to pounce upon its prey, the
+old woman, armed with a great pair of shears, peered at all the
+figures with a jealous eye, then suddenly fell upon the web and cut it
+at random, when, lo! a piercing wail rose from it that would have
+moved a heart of stone. The tears of children, the sobs of mothers,
+the despair of lovers, the last murmurs of old age, all human sorrow
+seemed mingled in this wail. At the sound the old woman burst into a
+loud laugh, and her hideous face lighted up with ferocious delight,
+while an invisible hand mended the web, eternally destroyed and
+eternally repaired.</p>
+
+<p>The hag, again opening her shears, was already approaching the web
+anew, when she saw the shadow of Carlino.</p>
+
+<p>"Fly, unhappy man," cried she, without turning round;<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_122" id="Page_122">[122]</a></span> "I know what
+brings you here, but I can do nothing for you. Go to my sister;
+perhaps she will give you what you desire. She is Life&mdash;I am Death."</p>
+
+<p>Carlino did not wait for a second bidding. He rushed onward, too happy
+to escape this scene of horror.</p>
+
+<p>The landscape soon changed. Carlino found himself in a fertile valley.
+On every side were harvests, blossoming fields, vines loaded with
+grapes, and olive-trees full of fruit. In the thick shade of a
+fig-tree, by a running spring, sat a blind woman unrolling the last
+gold and silver thread from a spindle. Around her lay several
+distaffs, full of different kinds of materials ready for
+spinning&mdash;flax, hemp, wool, silk, and others.</p>
+
+<p>When she had finished her task the fairy stretched out her trembling
+hand at random, took the first distaff that came, and began to spin.</p>
+
+<p>Carlino bowed respectfully to the lady, and began with emotion to tell
+her the story of his pilgrimage, when the fairy stopped him at the
+first word.</p>
+
+<p>"My child," said she, "I can do nothing for you. I am only a poor
+blind woman that does not even know herself what she is doing. This
+distaff, which I have taken at random, decides the fate of all who are
+born while I am spinning it. Riches or poverty, happiness or
+misfortune, are attached to this thread that I cannot see. The slave
+of destiny, I can create nothing. Go to my other sister;<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_123" id="Page_123">[123]</a></span> perhaps she
+will give you what you desire. She is Birth; I am Life."</p>
+
+<p>"Thanks, madam," answered Carlino; and with a light heart he ran to
+find the youngest of the Fates. He soon discovered her, fresh and
+smiling as the spring. Everything about her was taking root and
+germinating; the corn was bursting through the earth and putting forth
+its green blades from the brown furrows; the orange-blossoms were
+opening; the buds on the trees were unfolding their pink scales; the
+chickens, scarcely feathered, were running round the anxious hen, and
+the lambs were clinging to their mother. It was the first smile of
+life.</p>
+
+<p>The fairy received the prince with kindness. After listening to him
+without laughing at his folly, she asked him to sup with her, and at
+dessert gave him three citrons, and a beautiful knife with a
+mother-of-pearl handle.</p>
+
+<p>"Carlino," said she, "you can now return to your father's house. The
+prize is gained; you have found what you have been seeking. Go, then,
+and when you have reached your kingdom, stop at the first fountain
+that you see and cut one of these citrons. A fairy will come forth,
+who will ask you for a drink. Give her the water quickly, or she will
+slip through your fingers like quicksilver. If the second escapes you
+in the same way, have an eye to the last; give her a drink instantly,
+and you will have a wife according to your heart."<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_124" id="Page_124">[124]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>Intoxicated with joy, the prince kissed again and again the charming
+hand that crowned his wishes. He was more happy than wise, and little
+deserved to succeed; but fairies have their caprices, and Fortune is
+always a fairy.</p>
+
+<p>It was a long distance from the end of the world to the kingdom of the
+Vermilion Towers. Carlino experienced more than one storm and braved
+more than one danger on his way across land and sea, but at last,
+after a long voyage and a thousand trials, he reached his father's
+country with his three citrons, which he had treasured like the apple
+of his eye.</p>
+
+<p>He was not more than two hours' journey from the royal castle when he
+entered a dense forest where he had hunted many a time. A transparent
+fountain, bordered with wild flowers and shaded by the trembling
+leaves of the aspen, invited the traveler to repose. Carlino seated
+himself on a carpet of verdure enameled with daisies, and, taking his
+knife, cut one of the citrons.</p>
+
+<p>All at once a young girl as white as milk and as red as a strawberry
+darted past him like lightning. "Give me a drink!" said she, pausing
+an instant.</p>
+
+<p>"How beautiful she is!" cried the prince, so ravished by her charms
+that he forgot the advice of the Fate. He paid dearly for it; in a
+second the fairy had disappeared. Carlino smote his breast in despair,
+and stood as astonished as a child that sees the running water slip
+through his fingers.<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_125" id="Page_125">[125]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>He tried to calm himself, and cut the next citron with a trembling
+hand, but the second fairy was even more beautiful and more fleeting
+than her sister. While Carlino admired her, wonder-struck, in the
+twinkling of an eye she took flight.</p>
+
+<p>This time the prince burst into tears and wept so bitterly that he
+seemed a part of the fountain. He sobbed, tore his hair, and called
+down all the maledictions of Heaven on his head.</p>
+
+<p>"Fool that I am!" he cried; "twice I have let her escape as though my
+hands were tied. Fool that I am, I deserve my fate. When I should have
+run like a greyhound I stood still like a post. A fine piece of
+business! But all is not lost; the third time conquers. I will try the
+magic knife once more, and if it deceives me this time I will use it
+on myself."</p>
+
+<p>He cut the last citron. The third fairy darted forth and said, like
+her companions, "Give me a drink!" But the prince had learned a
+lesson. He instantly gave her the water, when, lo! a beautiful,
+slender young girl, as white as milk, with cheeks like roses, stood
+before him, looking like a freshly opened rosebud. She was a marvel of
+beauty such as the world had never seen, as fresh as a lily and as
+graceful as a swan; her hair was of brighter gold than the sun, her
+clear blue eyes revealed the depths of her heart, her rosy lips seemed
+made only to comfort and charm;<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_126" id="Page_126">[126]</a></span> in a word, from head to foot she was
+the most enchanting creature that had ever descended from heaven to
+earth. It is a great pity that we have no likeness of her.</p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 600px;"><a name="pic_10" id="pic_10"></a>
+<img src="images/image_17.jpg" width="600" height="741" alt="HE INSTANTLY GAVE HER THE WATER, WHEN, LO! A BEAUTIFUL, SLENDER YOUNG GIRL STOOD BEFORE HIM"  />
+<span class="caption">HE INSTANTLY GAVE HER THE WATER, WHEN, LO! A BEAUTIFUL, SLENDER YOUNG GIRL STOOD BEFORE HIM</span>
+</div>
+
+<p>At the sight of his bride the prince almost lost his reason from joy
+and surprise. He could not understand how this miracle of freshness
+and beauty had sprung from the bitter rind of a citron.</p>
+
+<p>"Am I asleep?" he cried. "Am I dreaming? If I am the sport of a
+delusion, for pity's sake do not awaken me."</p>
+
+<p>The fairy's smile soon reassured him. She accepted his hand, and was
+the first to ask to repair to the good king of the Vermilion Towers,
+who would be so happy to bless his children.</p>
+
+<p>"My love," answered Carlino, "I am as impatient as you to see my
+father and to prove to him that I was right; but we cannot enter the
+castle arm in arm like two peasants. You must go like a princess; you
+must be received like a queen. Wait for me by this fountain; I will
+run to the palace, and return in two hours with a dress and equipage
+worthy of you." Saying this, he tenderly kissed her hand and left her.</p>
+
+<p>The young girl was afraid, on finding herself alone; the cry of a
+raven, the rustling of the trees, a dead branch broken by the wind,
+everything frightened her. She looked tremblingly about her, and saw
+an old oak by the side of the fountain whose huge trunk offered her a
+shelter. <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_127" id="Page_127">[127]</a></span>She climbed the tree and hid herself in it, all but her
+lovely face, which, encircled by the foliage, was reflected in the
+transparent fountain as in a clear mirror.</p>
+
+<p>Now there was a negress, by the name of Lucy, who lived in the
+neighborhood, and who was sent every day by her mistress to the
+fountain for water. Lucy came, as usual, with her pitcher on her
+shoulder, and just as she was about to fill it, she spied the image of
+the fairy in the spring. The fool, who had never seen herself, thought
+that the face was her own. "Poor Lucy!" she cried. "What! you, so
+fresh and beautiful, are forced by your mistress to carry water like a
+beast of burden! No, never!" And in her vanity she dashed the pitcher
+to the ground and returned home.</p>
+
+<p>When her mistress asked her why she had broken the pitcher, the slave
+shrugged her shoulders and said, "The pitcher that goes often to the
+well is soon broken." Upon this her mistress gave her a little wooden
+cask and ordered her to go back immediately and fill it at the
+fountain.</p>
+
+<p>The negress ran to the spring, and, gazing lovingly at the beautiful
+image in the water, sighed and said, "No, I am not an ape, as I am so
+often told; I am more beautiful than my mistress. Mules may carry
+casks&mdash;not I!" She dashed the cask on the ground, broke it in a
+thousand pieces, and returned to her mistress, grumbling.<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_128" id="Page_128">[128]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>"Where is the cask?" asked her mistress, who was waiting impatiently
+for the water.</p>
+
+<p>"A mule ran against me and knocked it down, and it is all broken to
+pieces."</p>
+
+<p>At these words her mistress lost patience. Seizing a broom, she gave
+the negress one of those lessons that are not soon forgotten; then,
+taking down a leathern bottle that was hanging on the wall, "Run,
+wretched ape," she said; "and if you do not instantly bring this back
+to me full of water, I will beat you within an inch of your life."</p>
+
+<p>The negress took to her heels in terror, and filled the bottle
+obediently; but when it was filled she stopped to look once more in
+the fountain; and seeing the lovely face reflected there, "No!" she
+cried, in a burst of anger&mdash;"no, I will not be a water-carrier; no, I
+was not made to serve my mistress like a dog."</p>
+
+<p>Saying this, she took from her hair the great pin that held it, and
+pierced the bottle through and through. The water spouted out in every
+direction. At the sight the fairy in the tree burst into a fit of
+laughter. The negress looked up, saw the beautiful stranger, and
+understood the whole.</p>
+
+<p>"Oh!" said she to herself, "so you are the cause of my beating; no
+matter, you shall pay me well for it." Then, raising her voice, she
+called, in her sweetest tones, "What are you doing up there, lovely
+lady?"<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_129" id="Page_129">[129]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>The fairy, who was as good as she was beautiful, tried to comfort the
+slave by talking with her. The acquaintance was soon made; an innocent
+soul is unsuspicious in friendship. The fairy, without distrust, told
+the negress all that had happened to her and the prince, why she was
+alone in the forest, and how she was every instant expecting Carlino
+with a grand equipage to conduct his bride to the king of the
+Vermilion Towers, and to marry her there in the presence of all the
+court.</p>
+
+<p>On hearing this story, the wicked and envious negress conceived an
+abominable idea. "Madame," said she, "if the prince is coming with all
+his suite, you must be ready to meet him. Your hair is all in
+disorder; let me come to you, and I will comb it."</p>
+
+<p>"With pleasure," answered the fairy, with a gracious smile, as she
+stretched out a little white hand, which looked, in Lucy's great black
+paw, like a crystal mirror in an ebony frame.</p>
+
+<p>No sooner had she climbed the tree than the wicked slave untied the
+fairy's hair and began to comb it; then, all at once, taking her great
+hair-pin, she pierced her to the brain. Feeling herself wounded, the
+fairy cried, "Palomba! Palomba!" when she instantly turned to a
+wood-pigeon and flew away. The horrible negress took her victim's
+place, and stretched out her neck among the foliage, looking like a
+statue of jet in a niche of emerald.<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_130" id="Page_130">[130]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>Meanwhile the prince, mounted on a magnificent horse, was riding
+thither at full speed, followed by a long cavalcade. Poor Carlino was
+astonished to find a crow where he had left a swan. He almost lost his
+reason, his voice was choked with tears, and he gazed in all
+directions, hoping to see his bride among the foliage. But the
+negress, putting on a suffering air, said to him, casting down her
+eyes, "Look no farther, my prince; a wicked fairy has made me her
+victim, and a wretched fate has changed your lily to charcoal."</p>
+
+<p>Though he cursed the fairies who had played on his credulity, Carlino,
+like a true prince, would not break his word. He gallantly gave his
+hand to Lucy and helped her to descend from the tree, all the while
+heaving sighs that would have melted a heart of stone. When the
+negress was dressed like a princess, and covered with lace and
+diamonds that adorned her as the stars adorn the night, by rendering
+the darkness still more visible, Carlino seated her at his right hand,
+in a magnificent carriage lined with plate-glass and drawn by six
+white horses, and took his way to the palace, as happy as a criminal
+with the rope about his neck.</p>
+
+<p>The old king came to meet them a league from the castle. The wonderful
+stories of his son had turned his brain. In spite of etiquette and
+against the remonstrances of his courtiers, he hastened to admire the
+incomparable beauty of his daughter-in-law. "Upon my word," he
+exclaimed,<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_131" id="Page_131">[131]</a></span> at the sight of a crow instead of the dove that had been
+promised him&mdash;"upon my word, this is too much. I knew that my son was
+mad, but I did not know that he was blind. Is this the spotless lily
+that he has been to the end of the world to seek? Is this the rose
+fresher than the morning dew, the miracle of beauty that has come from
+the rind of a citron? Does he think that I will bear this new insult
+to my gray hairs? Does he think that I will leave to mulatto children
+the empire of the Vermilion Towers, the glorious inheritance of my
+ancestors? This baboon shall never enter my palace."</p>
+
+<p>The prince fell at his father's feet and tried to move him. The prime
+minister, a man of great experience, remonstrated with his master
+that, at court, black often becomes white and white black in the space
+of twenty-four hours; and that there was no reason to be astonished at
+such a very natural metamorphosis. What was the king of the Vermilion
+Towers to do? He was a king and a father, and by this double title
+always accustomed to do the will of others. He yielded and consented
+with a bad grace to this strange union. The court gazette announced to
+the whole kingdom the happy choice that the prince had made, and
+ordered the people to rejoice. The wedding was postponed for a week;
+it was impossible to make the preparations for the ceremony in less
+time than this.</p>
+
+<p>The negress was lodged in a magnificent suite of apartments;<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_132" id="Page_132">[132]</a></span>
+countesses disputed with one another the honor of putting on her
+slippers; and duchesses obtained, not without difficulty, the glorious
+privilege of handing her her nightgown. The town and castle were
+adorned with flags of all colors; walls were thrown down, yews were
+planted, walks were graveled, old speeches were furbished up, stale
+compliments were newly framed, and poems and sonnets that had done
+duty everywhere were patched up anew. There was but one idea in the
+kingdom&mdash;that of thankfulness to the prince for having chosen a wife
+so worthy of him.</p>
+
+<p>The kitchen was not forgotten. Three hundred scullions, a hundred
+cooks, and fifty stewards set to work, under the superintendence of
+the famous Bouchibus, the chief of the royal kitchens. Pigs were
+killed, sheep cut up, capons larded, pigeons plucked, and turkeys
+spitted; it was a universal massacre. It is impossible to have a feast
+worthy of the name without the help of the poultry-yard.</p>
+
+<p>In the midst of this bustle a beautiful wood-pigeon, with blue wings,
+perched on one of the kitchen windows, and cooed, in a plaintive
+voice,</p>
+
+<div class="poem"><div class="stanza">
+<span class="i0">"Bouchibus, tell me, for you must know, sure,<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">What has Carlino to do with the Moor?"<br /></span>
+</div></div>
+
+<p>The great Bouchibus was at first too busy with public affairs to
+attend to the cooing of a pigeon; but after a<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_133" id="Page_133">[133]</a></span> while he began to be
+astonished at understanding the language of birds, and thought it his
+duty to inform his new mistress of the wonder. The negress did not
+disdain to go to the kitchen. As soon as she heard the song, with a
+cry of affright, she ordered Bouchibus to catch the pigeon and make a
+stew of it.</p>
+
+<p>No sooner said than done. The poor bird suffered itself to be caught
+without resistance. In an instant Bouchibus, armed with his great
+knife, cut off its head and threw it into the garden. Three drops of
+blood fell on the ground; and three days after there sprang from the
+earth a beautiful citron-tree, which grew so fast that before night it
+was in blossom.</p>
+
+<p>The prince, while taking the air in his balcony, chanced to spy a
+citron-tree which he had never seen before. He called the cook and
+asked him who had planted this beautiful tree. The story of Bouchibus
+perplexed him greatly. He at once commanded, under penalty of death,
+that no one should touch the citron-tree, and that the greatest care
+should be taken of it.</p>
+
+<p>The next morning, as soon as he awoke, the prince hastened to the
+garden. There were already three citrons on the tree&mdash;three citrons
+exactly like those which the Fate had given him. Carlino gathered
+them, hastened to his apartments, and shut himself up under lock and
+key. With a trembling hand he filled a golden cup, set with rubies,<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_134" id="Page_134">[134]</a></span>
+which had belonged to his mother, with water, and opened the magic
+knife, which had never left him.</p>
+
+<p>He cut a citron, and the first fairy came forth. Carlino scarcely
+glanced at her, and suffered her to take flight. It was the same with
+the second; but as soon as the third appeared he gave her the cup,
+from which she drank with a smile, and stood before him more graceful
+than ever.</p>
+
+<p>The fairy then told Carlino all that she had suffered from the wicked
+negress. The prince, beside himself with mingled joy and anger,
+laughed and wept, sang and raved. The king, hearing the noise, ran to
+see what was the matter, and you may judge of his surprise. He danced
+about like a madman, with his crown on his head and his scepter in his
+hand. All at once he stopped short, bent his brow, which was a sign
+that a thought had struck him, threw a large veil over the princess
+which covered her from head to foot, and taking her by the hand, led
+her to the dining-room.</p>
+
+<p>It was the hour for breakfast. The ministers and courtiers were ranged
+round a long table, magnificently served, waiting for the entrance of
+the royal family to be seated. The king called the guests one after
+another, and, raising the veil as each approached the fairy, asked:</p>
+
+<p>"What shall be done to the person who sought to destroy this marvel of
+beauty?"</p>
+
+<p>And each one, wonder-struck, answered in his own way. Some said that
+the author of such a crime deserved a<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_135" id="Page_135">[135]</a></span> hempen cravat; others thought
+that the wretch should be thrown into the water with a stone to his
+neck. Beheading seemed to the old minister too mild a punishment for
+such a villain; he was in favor of flaying him alive, and all present
+applauded his humanity.</p>
+
+<p>When the negress's turn came she approached without suspicion, and did
+not recognize the fairy. "Sire," said she, "a monster capable of
+injuring this charming creature deserves to be roasted alive in an
+oven, and to have his ashes thrown to the winds."</p>
+
+<p>"You have pronounced your own sentence," cried the king of the
+Vermilion Towers. "Wretch, behold your victim and prepare to die. Let
+a funeral pile be built in the square in front of the castle. I will
+give my good people the pleasure of seeing a witch burn; it will
+occupy them for an hour or two."</p>
+
+<p>"Sire," said the young fairy, taking the king's hand, "Your Majesty
+surely will not refuse me a wedding gift?"</p>
+
+<p>"No, indeed, my child," replied the old king. "Ask what you will;
+should it be my crown, I will gladly give it to you."</p>
+
+<p>"Sire," continued the fairy, "grant me this wretched creature's
+pardon. An ignorant and miserable slave, life has taught her nothing
+but hatred and malice; let me render her happy and teach her that the
+only happiness on earth consists in loving others."<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_136" id="Page_136">[136]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>"My daughter," said the king, "it is very evident that you are a
+fairy; you know nothing of human justice. Among us, we do not reform
+the wicked, we kill them; it is sooner done. But I have given my word.
+Tame this serpent at your own risk and peril; I am willing."</p>
+
+<p>The fairy raised the negress, who kissed her hands, weeping; then they
+all sat down to the table. The king was so happy that he ate enough
+for four. As for Carlino, who kept his eyes fixed on his bride, he cut
+his thumb five or six times in a fit of absent-mindedness, which each
+time put him in the best humor imaginable. Everything gives us
+pleasure when the heart is happy.</p>
+
+<p>When the old king died, full of years and honor, Carlino and his
+lovely wife ascended the throne in turn. For half a century, if
+history is to be believed, they neither raised the taxes, shed a drop
+of blood, nor caused a tear to fall; and although more than a thousand
+years have passed since then, the good people of the Vermilion Towers
+still sigh at the mention of this distant age, and little children are
+not the only ones to ask when the fairies will reign again.</p>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_137" id="Page_137">[137]</a></span></p>
+<h2><a name="Story_of" id="Story_of"></a>Story of<br />
+Coquerico</h2>
+
+<h3><i>A Spanish Tale</i></h3>
+
+<div>
+<img src="images/image_18_01.jpg" width="600" height="214" alt=""  />
+<img class="figleft" src="images/image_18_02.jpg" width="82" height="80" alt=""  />
+</div>
+
+
+<p>nce upon a time there was a handsome hen who lived like a great lady
+in the poultry-yard of a rich farmer, surrounded by a numerous family
+which clucked about her, and none of which clamored more loudly or
+picked up the corn faster with his beak than a poor little deformed
+and crippled chicken. This was precisely the one that the mother loved
+best. It is the way with all mothers; the weakest and most unsightly
+are always their favorites. This misshapen creature had but one eye,
+one wing, and one leg in good condition; it might have been thought
+that Solomon had executed his memorable sentence on Coquerico, for
+that was the name of the wretched chicken, and cut him in two with his
+famous sword. When a person is one-eyed, lame, and one-armed, he may
+reasonably be expected to be modest; but our Castilian ragamuffin was
+prouder than his father, the best spurred, most elegant, bravest, and
+most gallant cock to be seen from Burgos to Madrid. He thought himself
+a ph&oelig;nix of grace and beauty, and passed the best part of the day
+in admiring<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_138" id="Page_138">[138]</a></span> himself in the brook. If one of his brothers ran against
+him by accident, he abused him, called him envious and jealous, and
+risked his only remaining eye in battle; if the hens clucked on seeing
+him, he said it was to hide their spite because he did not condescend
+to look at them.</p>
+
+<p>One day, when he was more puffed up with vanity than usual, he
+resolved no longer to remain in such a narrow sphere, but to go out
+into the world, where he would be better appreciated.</p>
+
+<p>"My lady mother," said he, "I am tired of Spain; I am going to Rome to
+see the pope and cardinals."</p>
+
+<p>"What are you thinking of, my poor child!" cried his mother. "Who has
+put such a folly into your head? Never has one of our family been
+known to quit his country, and for this reason we are the honor of our
+race, and are proud of our genealogy. Where will you find a
+poultry-yard like this&mdash;mulberry-trees to shade you, a whitewashed
+henroost, a magnificent dunghill, worms and corn everywhere, brothers
+that love you, and three great dogs to guard you from the foxes? Do
+you not think that at Rome itself you will regret the ease and plenty
+of such a life?"</p>
+
+<p>Coquerico shrugged his crippled wing in token of disdain. "You are a
+simple woman, my good mother," said he; "everything is accounted
+worthy of admiration by him who has never quitted his dunghill. But I
+have wit enough to see that my brothers have no ideas and that my<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_139" id="Page_139">[139]</a></span>
+cousins are nothing but rustics. My genius is stifling in this hole; I
+wish to roam the world and seek my fortune."</p>
+
+<p>"But, my son, have you never looked in the brook?" resumed the poor
+hen. "Don't you know that you lack an eye, a leg, and a wing? To make
+your fortune, you need the eyes of a fox, the legs of a spider, and
+the wings of a vulture. Once outside of these walls, you are lost."</p>
+
+<p>"My good mother," replied Coquerico, "when a hen hatches a duck she is
+always frightened on seeing it run to the water. You know me no
+better. It is my nature to succeed by my wit and talent. I must have a
+public capable of appreciating the charms of my person; my place is
+not among inferior people."</p>
+
+<p>"My son," said the hen, seeing all her counsels useless&mdash;"my son,
+listen at least to your mother's last words. If you go to Rome, take
+care to avoid St. Peter's Church; the saint, it is said, dislikes
+cocks, especially when they crow. Shun, moreover, certain personages
+called cooks and scullions; you will know them by their paper caps,
+their tucked-up sleeves, and the great knives which they wear at their
+sides. They are licensed assassins, who track our steps without pity
+and cut our throats without giving us time to cry mercy. And now, my
+child," she added, raising her claw, "receive my blessing. May St.
+James, the patron saint of pilgrims, protect thee!"</p>
+
+<p>Coquerico pretended not to see the tear that trembled in<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_140" id="Page_140">[140]</a></span> his mother's
+eye, nor did he trouble himself any more about his father, who
+bristled his plumage and seemed about to call him back. Without caring
+for those whom he left behind, he glided through the half-open door
+and, once outside, flapped his only wing and crowed three times, to
+celebrate his freedom&mdash;"Cock-a-doodle-doo!"</p>
+
+<p>As he half flew, half hopped over the fields, he came to the bed of a
+brook which had been dried up by the sun. In the middle of the sands,
+however, still trickled a tiny thread of water, so small that it was
+choked by a couple of dead leaves that had fallen into it.</p>
+
+<p>"My friend," exclaimed the streamlet at the sight of our traveler&mdash;"my
+friend, you see my weakness; I have not even the strength to carry
+away these leaves which obstruct my passage, much less to make a
+circuit, so completely am I exhausted. With a stroke of your beak you
+can restore me to life. I am not an ingrate; if you oblige me, you may
+count on my gratitude the first rainy day, when the water from heaven
+shall have restored my strength."</p>
+
+<p>"You are jesting," said Coquerico. "Do I look like one whose business
+it is to sweep the brooks? Apply to those of your own sort." And with
+his sound leg, he leaped across the streamlet.</p>
+
+<p>"You will remember me when you least expect it," murmured the brook,
+but with so feeble a voice that it was lost on the proud cock.<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_141" id="Page_141">[141]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>A little farther on, Coquerico saw the wind lying breathless on the
+ground.</p>
+
+<p>"Dear Coquerico, come to my aid," it cried; "here on earth we should
+help one another. You see to what I am reduced by the heat of the day;
+I, who in former times uprooted the olive-trees and lashed the waves
+to frenzy, lie here well-nigh slain by the dog-star. I suffered myself
+to be lulled to sleep by the perfume of the roses with which I was
+playing; and, lo! here I am, stretched almost lifeless upon the
+ground. If you will raise me a couple of inches with your beak and fan
+me a little with your wing, I shall have the strength to mount to
+yonder white clouds which I see in the distance, where I shall receive
+aid enough from my family to keep me alive till I gain fresh strength
+from the next whirlwind."</p>
+
+<p>"My lord," answered the spiteful Coquerico, "Your Excellency has more
+than once amused himself by playing tricks at my expense. It is not a
+week since your lordship glided like a traitor behind me and diverted
+himself by opening my tail like a fan and covering me with confusion
+in the face of nations. Have patience, therefore, my worthy friend;
+mockers always have their turn; it does them good to repent and to
+learn to respect those whose birth, wit, and beauty should screen them
+from the jests of a fool." And Coquerico, bristling his plumage,
+crowed three times in his shrillest voice and proudly strutted
+onward.<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_142" id="Page_142">[142]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>A little farther on he came to a newly mown field where the farmers
+had piled up the weeds in order to burn them. Coquerico approached a
+smoking heap, hoping to find some stray kernels of corn, and saw a
+little flame which was charring the green stalks without being able to
+set them on fire.</p>
+
+<p>"My good friend," cried the flame to the new-comer, "you are just in
+time to save my life; I am dying for want of air. I cannot imagine
+what has become of my cousin, the wind, who cares for nothing but his
+own amusement. Bring me a few dry straws to rekindle my strength, and
+you will not have obliged an ingrate."</p>
+
+<p>"Wait a moment," said Coquerico, "and I will serve you as you deserve,
+insolent fellow that dares ask my help!" And behold! he leaped on the
+heap of dried weeds, and trampled it down till he smothered both flame
+and smoke; after which he exultingly shouted three times,
+"Cock-a-doodle-doo!" and flapped his wings, as if he had done a great
+deed.</p>
+
+<p>Proudly strutting onward and crowing, Coquerico at last arrived at
+Rome, the place to which all roads lead. Scarcely had he reached the
+city when he hastened to the great Church of St. Peter. Grand and
+beautiful as it was, he did not stop to admire it, but, planting
+himself in front of the main entrance, where he looked like a fly
+among the great columns, he raised himself on tiptoe and began to<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_143" id="Page_143">[143]</a></span>
+shout, "Cock-a-doodle-doo!" only to enrage the saint and disobey his
+mother.</p>
+
+<p>He had not yet ended his song when one of the pope's guard, who
+chanced to hear him, laid hands on the insolent wretch who dared thus
+to insult the saint, and carried him home in order to roast him for
+supper.</p>
+
+<p>"Quick!" said he to his wife on entering the house, "give me some
+boiling water; here is a sinner to be punished."</p>
+
+<p>"Pardon, pardon, Madame Water!" cried Coquerico. "Oh, good and gentle
+water, the best and purest thing in the world, do not scald me, I pray
+you!"</p>
+
+<p>"Did you have pity on me when I implored your aid, ungrateful wretch?"
+answered the water, boiling with indignation. And with a single gush
+it inundated him from head to foot, and left not a bit of down on his
+body.</p>
+
+<p>The unhappy Coquerico stripped of all his feathers, the soldier took
+him and laid him on the gridiron.</p>
+
+<p>"Oh, fire, do not burn me!" cried he, in an agony of terror. "Oh,
+beautiful and brilliant fire, the brother of the sun and the cousin of
+the diamond, spare an unhappy creature; restrain thy ardor, and soften
+thy flame; do not roast me!"</p>
+
+<p>"Did you have pity on me when I implored your aid, ungrateful wretch?"
+answered the fire, and, fiercely blazing with anger, in an instant it
+burnt Coquerico to a coal.</p>
+
+<p>The soldier, seeing his roast chicken in this deplorable<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_144" id="Page_144">[144]</a></span> condition,
+took him by the leg and threw him out of the window. The wind bore the
+unhappy fowl to a dunghill, where it left him for a moment.</p>
+
+<p>"Oh, wind," murmured Coquerico, who still breathed, "oh, kindly
+zephyr, protecting breeze, behold me cured of my vain follies. Let me
+rest on the paternal dunghill."</p>
+
+<p>"Let you rest!" roared the wind. "Wait, and I will teach you how I
+treat ingrates." And with one blast it sent him so high in the air
+that, as he fell back, he was transfixed by a steeple.</p>
+
+<p>There St. Peter was awaiting him. With his own hand he nailed him to
+the highest steeple in Rome, where he is still shown to travelers.
+However high placed he may be, all despise him because he turns with
+the slightest wind; black, dried up, stripped of his feathers, and
+beaten by the rain, he is no longer called Coquerico, but Weathercock,
+and thus expiates, and must expiate eternally, his disobedience,
+vanity, and wickedness.</p>
+
+
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_145" id="Page_145">[145]</a></span></p>
+<h2><a name="KING_BIZARRE_and_PRINCE_CHARMING" id="KING_BIZARRE_and_PRINCE_CHARMING"></a>KING BIZARRE AND PRINCE CHARMING</h2>
+
+<h2>OR, THE ART OF GOVERNING MEN</h2>
+
+<h3>A TALE OF ALL NATIONS</h3>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 600px;">
+<img src="images/image_19.jpg" width="600" height="217" alt=""  />
+</div>
+
+
+<h2>I</h2>
+<h3>KING BIZARRE AND PRINCE CHARMING</h3>
+<div><img class="figleft1" src="images/image_19_1.jpg" width="68" height="75" alt="I"  /></div>
+
+<p>n the kingdom of Wild Oats, a happy country, a land blessed of
+Heaven, where the men are always right and the women never wrong,
+there lived long ago a king who thought of nothing but the happiness
+of his kingdom, and who, it is said, never was dull for lack of
+amusement. Whether he was beloved by his people is doubtful; it is
+certain that the courtiers had little esteem and less love for their
+prince. For this reason, they had given him the surname of King
+Bizarre, the only title by which he is known in history, as is seen in
+the <i>Great Chronicles of the Kingdoms and Principalities of the World
+Which Have Never Existed</i>, a learned masterpiece which has
+immortalized the erudition and criticism of the reverend father, Dr.
+Melchisedec de Mentiras y Necedad.</p>
+
+<p>Left a widower after a year's marriage, Bizarre had fixed<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_146" id="Page_146">[146]</a></span> his whole
+affections on his son and heir, who was the most beautiful child
+imaginable. His complexion was as fresh as a rose; his beautiful hair
+fell in golden curls on his shoulders; add to his clear blue eyes a
+straight nose, a small mouth, and a dimpled chin, and you have the
+portrait of a cherub. At twelve years of age this young marvel danced
+enchantingly, rode like a riding-master, and fenced to perfection. No
+one could have helped being won by his smile and the truly royal
+manner in which he saluted the crowd in passing when he was in good
+humor. For this reason, the voice of the people, which is never
+mistaken, had christened him Prince Charming, and his name always
+clung to him.</p>
+
+<p>Charming was as beautiful as the day; but the sun itself, it is said,
+has spots, and the princes do not disdain to resemble the sun. The
+child dazzled the court with his fine mien; but there were shadows
+here and there which did not escape the piercing eye of love or envy.
+Supple, agile, and adroit in all kinds of bodily exercises, Charming
+had an indolent mind. He lacked application, and had taken a fancy
+that he ought to know everything without studying. It is true that
+governesses, courtiers, and servants had continually repeated to him
+that work was not made for kings, and that a prince always knows
+enough when he lavishes on poets, writers, and artists, with a
+prodigal and disdainful hand, a little of the money which the people
+are too happy to offer him.<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_147" id="Page_147">[147]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>These maxims tickled Charming's pride; and at twelve years of age the
+beautiful child, with precocious firmness, had steadily refused to
+learn the alphabet. Three teachers, chosen from the most able and
+patient instructors, a priest, a philosopher, and a colonel, had
+attempted in turn to bend his youthful obstinacy; but the priest had
+wasted his philosophy, the philosopher his tactics, and the colonel
+his Latin. Left master of the field of battle, Charming listened to
+nothing but his caprice, and lived lawless and unconstrained. As
+stubborn as a mule, as irascible as a turkey-cock, as dainty as a cat,
+and as idle as an adder, but an accomplished prince withal, he was the
+pride of the beautiful country of Wild Oats, and the hope and love of
+a people that esteemed nothing in their kings but grace and beauty.</p>
+
+
+<h2>II</h2>
+<h3>PAZZA</h3>
+<p>Notwithstanding he had been brought up at court, King Bizarre was a
+man of sense. Charming's ignorance was far from pleasing to him, and
+he often asked himself with anxiety what would become of his kingdom
+in the hands of a prince whom the basest of flatterers might easily
+deceive. But what was he to do, what means could he employ with a
+child that a worshiped wife had bequeathed to him in dying? Rather
+than see his son weep, Bizarre would have<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_148" id="Page_148">[148]</a></span> given him his crown; his
+affection rendered him powerless. Love is not blind, whatever the
+poets may say; alas! it would be too happy not to see a jot. It is the
+torment of him who loves to become, despite himself, the slave and
+accomplice of the ingrate who feels himself beloved.</p>
+
+<p>Every day, after the council, the king went to spend the evening with
+the Countess of Castro, an old lady who had dandled him on her knees
+when an infant, and who alone could recall to him the sweet memories
+of his childhood and youth. She was very ugly, and something of a
+witch, it is said; but the world is so wicked that we must never
+believe more than half its scandal. The countess had large features
+and luxuriant gray hair, and it was easy to see that she had been
+beautiful in former times.</p>
+
+<p>One day, when Charming had been more unreasonable than usual, the king
+entered the countess's house with an anxious air, and seating himself
+before the card-table, began to play a game of Patience. It was his
+way of diverting his thoughts and forgetting for a few hours the cares
+of royalty. Scarcely had he ranged sixteen cards in a square when he
+heaved a deep sigh.</p>
+
+<p>"Countess," he cried, "you see before you the most wretched of fathers
+and kings. Despite his natural grace, Charming is every day becoming
+more wilful and vicious. Must I leave such an heir after me, and
+intrust the happiness of my people to a crowned fool?"<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_149" id="Page_149">[149]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>"That is the way with Nature," replied the countess; "she always
+distributes her gifts with an impartial hand. Stupidity and beauty go
+hand in hand, and wit and ugliness are seldom separated. I have an
+example of this in my own family. A few days ago a great-grandniece
+was sent to me, a child under ten years old, that has no other
+relative. She is as tawny as a frog, as scraggy as a spider, yet,
+withal, as cunning as an ape, and as learned as a book. Judge for
+yourself, sire; here is my little monster coming to salute you."</p>
+
+<p>Bizarre turned his head and saw a child that answered in every respect
+to the countess's description. With a high, round forehead, black,
+wild-looking eyes, rough hair turned back in the Chinese fashion,
+dull, brown skin, great white teeth, red hands, and long arms, she was
+anything but a beauty. But the chrysalis gives birth to the butterfly.
+Wait a few years, and you will see what pretty women come from these
+frightful little girls of ten.</p>
+
+<p>The little monster approached the king, and courtesied to him with so
+serious an air that Bizarre could not help laughing, though he felt
+little like it.</p>
+
+<p>"Who are you?" asked he, chucking the child under the chin.</p>
+
+<p>"Sire," she answered, gravely, "I am Donna Dolores Rosario Coral
+Concha Balthazara Melchiora Gaspara y<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_150" id="Page_150">[150]</a></span> Todos Santos, the daughter of
+the noble knight Don Pasquale Bartolomeo Francesco de Asiz y&mdash;"</p>
+
+<p>"Enough," said the king. "I did not ask for your genealogy; we are
+witnessing neither your baptism nor your marriage. What are you
+commonly called?"</p>
+
+<p>"Sire," replied she, "I am called Pazza."<a name="FNanchor_1_1" id="FNanchor_1_1"></a><a href="#Footnote_1_1" class="fnanchor">[1]</a></p>
+
+<div class="footnote"><p><a name="Footnote_1_1" id="Footnote_1_1"></a><a href="#FNanchor_1_1"><span class="label">[1]</span></a> That is to say, Madcap, in Italian. It appears that a
+very mixed language is spoken in the kingdom of Wild Oats.</p></div>
+
+<p>"And why are you called Pazza?"</p>
+
+<p>"Because it is not my name."</p>
+
+<p>"That is strange," said the king.</p>
+
+<p>"No, it is natural," replied the child. "My aunt pretends that I am
+too giddy for any saint to wish to own me for her goddaughter, and
+that is why she has given me a name that can offend no one in
+Paradise."</p>
+
+<p>"Well answered, my child. I see that you are not an ordinary girl. The
+saints in Paradise are not always treated with such consideration.
+Since you know so much, tell me what is a wise man?"</p>
+
+<p>"A wise man, sire, is one who knows what he says when he speaks, and
+what he does when he acts."</p>
+
+<p>"Upon my word," exclaimed the king, "if my wise men were what you
+fancied them, I would make the Academy of Sciences my council of
+state, and would give it my kingdom to govern. What is an ignorant
+man?"</p>
+
+<p>"Sire," returned Pazza, "there are three kinds of ignorant <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_151" id="Page_151">[151]</a></span>men: he
+who knows nothing, he who talks of what he does not know, and he who
+will learn nothing; all three are fit for nothing but to be burned or
+hung."</p>
+
+<p>"That is a proverb. Do you know what proverbs are called?"</p>
+
+<p>"Yes, sire; they are called the wisdom of nations."</p>
+
+<p>"And why are they called so?"</p>
+
+<p>"Because they are mad; they say whatever you please; they are of all
+colors, to suit all tastes. Proverbs are like bells, which answer yes
+or no according to the humor of their listener."</p>
+
+<p>Upon which, springing with both feet from the ground, Pazza caught a
+fly that was buzzing about the king's nose; then, leaving Bizarre
+astonished, she took her doll and, seating herself on the ground,
+began to rock it in her arms.</p>
+
+<p>"Well, sire," the countess said, "what do you think of this child?"</p>
+
+<p>"She has too much wit," answered the king; "she will not live long."</p>
+
+<p>"Ah, sire," exclaimed Pazza, "you are not complimentary to my aunt;
+she is considerably older than I am."</p>
+
+<p>"Hush, gipsy!" said the old lady, smiling; "don't you know that nobody
+lectures kings?"</p>
+
+<p>"Countess," said Bizarre, "an idea has just struck me, which is so
+strange that I hardly dare tell it to you; yet I have a violent wish
+to carry it out. I can do nothing with<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_152" id="Page_152">[152]</a></span> my son; reason has no power
+with the stubborn child. Who knows whether folly would not be more
+successful? If I thought so, I would make Pazza Charming's teacher.
+The intractable boy, who rejects all masters, might be defenseless
+before a child. The only objection is that no one will be of my
+opinion; I shall have everybody against me."</p>
+
+<p>"Bah!" said the countess; "everybody is so stupid that it is a proof
+that you are right that you think differently."</p>
+
+
+<h2>III</h2>
+<h3>THE FIRST LESSON</h3>
+<p>In this manner Pazza was intrusted with the instruction of the young
+prince. There was no official appointment; it was not announced in the
+court gazette that the king, with his usual wisdom, had found an
+unparalleled genius at the first attempt, to whom he had confided the
+heart and mind of his child; but the very next morning Charming was
+sent to the countess's house, and was permitted to play with Pazza.</p>
+
+<p>The two children, left alone together, gazed at each other in silence.
+Pazza, being the bolder, was the first to speak.</p>
+
+<p>"What is your name?" asked she.</p>
+
+<p>"Those who know me call me Your Highness," answered<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_153" id="Page_153">[153]</a></span> Charming, in a
+piqued tone; "those who do not know me call me simply My Lord, and
+everybody says Sir to me; etiquette requires it."</p>
+
+<p>"What is etiquette?" asked Pazza.</p>
+
+<p>"I don't know," replied Charming. "When I want to jump, shout, and
+roll on the ground, I am told that it is contrary to etiquette; then I
+keep still, and yawn for lack of amusement&mdash;that is etiquette."</p>
+
+<p>"Since we are here to amuse ourselves," resumed Pazza, "there is no
+etiquette needed; speak to me as if I were your sister, and I will
+speak to you as if you were my brother. I will not call you My Lord."</p>
+
+<p>"But you don't know me," said Charming.</p>
+
+<p>"What does that matter?" returned Pazza; "I will love you, that is
+better. They say that you dance beautifully; teach me to dance, will
+you?"</p>
+
+<p>The ice was broken; Charming took the young girl by the waist, and in
+less than half an hour taught her the last new polka.</p>
+
+<p>"How well you dance!" said he. "You have caught the step directly."</p>
+
+<p>"It is because you are a good teacher," she replied. "Now it is my
+turn to teach you something."</p>
+
+<p>She took a beautiful picture-book, and showed him fine buildings,
+fishes, statesmen, parrots, scholars, curious animals, and flowers,
+all of which greatly amused Charming.<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_154" id="Page_154">[154]</a></span></p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 600px;"><a name="pic_11" id="pic_11"></a>
+<img src="images/image_20.jpg" width="600" height="741" alt="PAZZA, THOUGH SHE LOVED THE PRINCE, WAS A VERY STERN SCHOOLMISTRESS"  />
+<span class="caption">PAZZA, THOUGH SHE LOVED THE PRINCE, WAS A VERY STERN SCHOOLMISTRESS</span>
+</div>
+
+<p>"See," said Pazza, "here is the explanation of all the pictures; read
+it."</p>
+
+<p>"I don't know how to read," replied Charming.</p>
+
+<p>"I will teach you; I will be your little tutor."</p>
+
+<p>"No," replied the stubborn prince, "I do not wish to read. My masters
+tire me."</p>
+
+<p>"Very well; but I am not a master. See, here is an A, a beautiful
+great A; say A."</p>
+
+<p>"No," returned Charming, frowning, "I will never say A."</p>
+
+<p>"Not to please me?"</p>
+
+<p>"No, never. Enough of this; I do not like people to differ from me."</p>
+
+<p>"Sir," said Pazza, "a polite man never refuses ladies anything."</p>
+
+<p>"I would refuse the devil in petticoats," replied the young prince,
+tossing his head. "I am tired of you; let me alone. I don't love you
+any longer. Call me My Lord."</p>
+
+<p>"My Lord Charming, or my charming lord," said Pazza, flushed with
+anger, "you shall read, or I will know the reason why."</p>
+
+<p>"I won't read."</p>
+
+<p>"Will you not? One&mdash;two&mdash;three!"</p>
+
+<p>"No! no! no!"</p>
+
+<p>Pazza raised her hand, and, lo! the king's son received a box on the
+ear. Pazza had been told that she was witty to <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_155" id="Page_155">[155]</a></span>the ends of her
+fingers, and had been stupid enough to believe it; it is never right
+to jest with children.</p>
+
+<p>At this first lesson in reading, Charming turned pale and trembled;
+the blood mounted to his cheeks, his eyes filled with tears, and he
+gazed at his young teacher with a look that made her start; then all
+at once, with a great effort, he regained his self-possession, and
+said, in a tremulous voice, "Pazza, that is A." And the same day and
+at one sitting he learned all the letters of the alphabet; at the end
+of the week he spelled readily, and before the month was ended he read
+with ease.</p>
+
+<p>King Bizarre was delighted. He kissed Pazza on both cheeks; he
+insisted on having her always with him or his son, and made this child
+his friend and counselor, to the great disdain of all the courtiers.
+Charming, still gloomy and silent, learned all that this young mentor
+could teach him, then returned to his former preceptors, whom he
+astonished by his intelligence and docility. He soon knew his grammar
+so well that the priest asked himself one day whether, by chance,
+these definitions, which he had never understood, had not a meaning.
+Charming none the less astonished the philosopher, who taught him
+every evening the opposite of what the priest had taught him in the
+morning. But, of all his masters, the one to whom he listened with the
+least repugnance was the colonel. It is true that Bayonet, for that
+was the colonel's name, was a skilful<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_156" id="Page_156">[156]</a></span> strategist, and that he could
+say, like the ancient poet, with a slight variation, "I am a man, and
+nothing that pertains to the art of despatching poor human beings is
+indifferent to me." It was he that initiated Charming into the
+mysteries of button gaiters and shoulder-straps; it was he that taught
+his pupil that the noblest study for a prince is the drilling of
+battalions, and that the groundwork of statesmanship is to have
+reviews in order to make war, and to make war in order to have
+reviews.</p>
+
+<p>This was not perhaps altogether according to Bizarre's idea of the art
+of government; but he thought he could correct any errors in the
+future, and besides, he was so rejoiced at Charming's progress that he
+was unwilling in any way to meddle with the admirable work of an
+education so long considered hopeless.</p>
+
+<p>"My child," he often said, "never forget that you owe everything to
+Pazza." As the king spoke thus, Pazza gazed tenderly at the young man.
+Despite all her wit, she was foolish enough to love him. Charming
+contented himself with coldly answering that gratitude was a princely
+virtue, and that Pazza should some day learn that her pupil had
+forgotten nothing.</p>
+
+
+<h2>IV</h2>
+<h3>PAZZA'S WEDDING</h3>
+<p>When Prince Charming had attained his seventeenth year, he went one
+morning in search of King Bizarre, whose<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_157" id="Page_157">[157]</a></span> health was declining and who
+was very desirous of seeing his son married before his death.</p>
+
+<p>"Father," said he, "I have long reflected on your wise words. You gave
+me life, but Pazza has done still more in awakening my mind and soul.
+I see but one way of paying the debt of my heart; that is, to marry
+the woman to whom I am indebted for what I am. I come to ask you for
+Pazza's hand."</p>
+
+<p>"My dear child," answered Bizarre, "this step does you credit. Pazza
+is not of royal blood; she is not the one whom, in different
+circumstances, I should have chosen for your wife; but her virtues,
+her merit, and, above all, the service which she has rendered us, make
+me forget idle prejudices. Pazza has the soul of a queen; she shall
+mount the throne with you. In the country of Wild Oats, wit and humor
+are held in sufficient estimation to win you forgiveness for what
+fools call a misalliance, and what I call a princely marriage. Happy
+is he who can choose an intelligent wife, capable of understanding and
+loving him! To-morrow your betrothal shall be celebrated, and in two
+years your marriage shall take place."</p>
+
+<p>The marriage occurred more speedily than the king had foreseen.
+Fifteen months after these memorable words, Bizarre expired of languor
+and exhaustion. He had taken the vocation of king in earnest; he fell
+a victim to royalty. The old countess and Pazza wept their friend and
+benefactor,<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_158" id="Page_158">[158]</a></span> but they were the only mourners. Without being a bad son,
+Charming was engrossed with the cares of the empire; and the court
+expected everything from the new reign, and thought no more about the
+old king, whose eyes were closed in death.</p>
+
+<p>After honoring his father's memory by magnificent obsequies, the young
+prince, thenceforth wholly devoted to love, celebrated his marriage
+with a splendor that charmed the good people of Wild Oats. The taxes
+were doubled, but who could regret money so nobly employed? Men came
+from a hundred leagues round to gaze at the new king, and Pazza, whose
+growing beauty and air of goodness fascinated all hearts, was not less
+admired. There were interminable dinners, harangues longer than the
+dinners, and poems more tedious than the harangues. In a word, it was
+an incomparable festival, which was talked of for six months after.</p>
+
+<p>Evening come, Charming took the hand of his graceful, timid, and
+blushing bride, and with cold politeness led her through the corridors
+of the old castle. All at once Pazza was frightened to find herself in
+a gloomy dungeon, with grated windows and huge bars and locks.</p>
+
+<p>"What is this?" asked she. "It looks like a prison."</p>
+
+<p>"Yes," said the prince, with a terrible look, "it is a prison which
+you will quit only for the grave."</p>
+
+<p>"My dear, you frighten me," said Pazza, smiling. "Am<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_159" id="Page_159">[159]</a></span> I a criminal
+without knowing it? Have I deserved your displeasure, that you
+threaten me with a dungeon?"</p>
+
+<p>"You have a short memory," replied Charming. "An insult is written on
+sand to the giver; it is inscribed on marble and bronze to the
+receiver."</p>
+
+<p>"Charming," returned the poor child, beginning to be afraid, "you are
+repeating something from those speeches that tired me so much. Can you
+find nothing better to say to me to-day?"</p>
+
+<p>"Wretch!" cried the king, "you no longer remember the box on the ear
+that you gave me seven years ago, but I have not forgotten it. Know
+that if I wished you for my wife, it has been only to have your life
+in my hands and to make you slowly expiate your crime of high
+treason."</p>
+
+<p>"My dear," said Pazza, with a pettish manner, "you may put on your
+Bluebeard airs, but you will not frighten me, I assure you. I know
+you, Charming, and I warn you that if you do not put an end to this
+bad jest, I will not only give you one box on the ear, but three,
+before I forgive you. Make haste and let me go out, or I vow that I
+will keep my word."</p>
+
+<p>"Vow it then, madame," cried the prince, furious at not intimidating
+his victim. "I accept your vow. I vow, too, on my side, that I will
+never acknowledge you as my wife till I have been base enough to
+receive three times an<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_160" id="Page_160">[160]</a></span> insult which nothing but blood can wash out.
+He laughs well that laughs last. Here, Rachimburg!"</p>
+
+<p>At this terrible name, a jailer with a bushy beard and threatening
+mien entered the room, pushed the queen on a wretched truckle-bed, and
+shut and double-locked the iron door.</p>
+
+<p>If Pazza wept, it was so quietly that no one heard her. Tired of the
+silence, Charming departed, with rage in his heart, resolving that his
+rigor should break the pride that braved him. Vengeance, it is said,
+is the delight of kings.</p>
+
+<p>Two hours later the countess received a note by a sure hand
+acquainting her with the sad fate of her niece. How this note reached
+her is known to me, but I will not betray the secret. If a charitable
+jailer is found by chance, he should be treated with consideration;
+the species is rare, and is daily becoming rarer.</p>
+
+
+<h2>V</h2>
+<h3>A TERRIBLE EVENT</h3>
+<p>The next morning the court gazette announced that the queen had been
+seized with a raging fit of madness on the very night of her wedding,
+and that there was little hope of saving her. There was scarcely a
+courtier, indeed, that had not observed the princess's restless air on
+the evening before, and no one was surprised at her malady. All pitied
+the king, who received with a gloomy and constrained<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_161" id="Page_161">[161]</a></span> mien the
+expressions of affection which were lavished on him. He was doubtless
+weighed down with grief, but this grief appeared very much lightened
+after the visit of the countess.</p>
+
+<p>The good lady was very sad, and had a great desire to see her poor
+child, but she was so old, and found herself so weak and sensitive,
+that she entreated the king to spare her a heartrending spectacle. She
+threw herself into the arms of Charming, who tenderly embraced her,
+and withdrew, saying that she placed all her hope and trust in the
+love of the king and the talent of the chief physician of the court.</p>
+
+<p>She had scarcely left the room when the physician whispered a few
+words in Charming's ear which called to his face a smile quickly
+repressed. The countess pacified, there was nothing more to fear; the
+vengeance was sure.</p>
+
+<p>Doctor Wieduwillst was a great physician. Born in the country of
+Dreams, he had early quitted his native land to seek his fortune in
+the kingdom of Wild Oats. He was too able a man not to find it. In the
+five years that he had spent in the celebrated University of
+Lugenmaulberg, the medical theory had changed twenty-five times, and,
+thanks to this solid education, the doctor had a firmness of principle
+which nothing could shake. He had the frankness and bluntness of a
+soldier, it was said; he swore at times, even with ladies, a rudeness
+which left him at liberty<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_162" id="Page_162">[162]</a></span> always to be of the same mind with the
+stronger, and to demand a fee for having no opinion. The queen had
+fallen into his incorruptible hands.</p>
+
+<p>She had been imprisoned for three days, and the town was already
+beginning to talk of something else, when one morning Rachimburg
+abruptly entered the king's apartments with a distracted air, and
+threw himself trembling at his feet.</p>
+
+<p>"Sire," said he, "I bring you my head. The queen has disappeared."</p>
+
+<p>"What do you tell me!" exclaimed the king, turning pale. "The thing is
+impossible; the dungeon is barred on all sides."</p>
+
+<p>"Yes," said the jailer, "the thing is impossible, that is certain; the
+bars are in their places, the walls are whole, and neither the locks
+nor the bolts have been disturbed; but there are witches in the world
+that pass through walls without moving a stone, and who knows but what
+the prisoner is one of them? Was it ever known whence she came?"</p>
+
+<p>The king sent in search of the doctor. He was a strong-minded man and
+had little faith in witches. He sounded the walls, shook the bars, and
+cross-examined the jailer, but all to no purpose. Trusty men were sent
+everywhere through the town, and spies were set on the countess, whom
+the doctor suspected, but all in vain, and after a<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_163" id="Page_163">[163]</a></span> week the search
+was abandoned. Rachimburg lost his place as jailer, but as he
+possessed the royal secret, as he was needed, and as he thirsted to
+avenge himself, he was made the warden of the royal castle. Furious at
+his bad luck, he exercised his supervision with such strictness that
+in less than three days he arrested Wieduwillst himself half a dozen
+times, and disarmed all suspicion.</p>
+
+<p>At the end of a week some fishermen brought to the court the robe and
+mantle of the queen. The waves had cast on the shore these sad relics,
+covered with sand and sea-foam. That the poor mad woman had drowned
+herself no one doubted on seeing the grief of the king and the tears
+of the countess. The council was assembled. It decided with a
+unanimous voice that the queen was legally dead and that the king was
+legally a widower, and for the interest of the people entreated his
+majesty to abridge a painful mourning and to marry again as soon as
+possible, in order to strengthen the dynasty. This decision was
+transmitted to the king by Wieduwillst, the chief physician to the
+king and president of the royal council, who made so touching a speech
+that the whole court burst into tears, and Charming threw himself into
+the doctor's arms, calling him his cruel friend.</p>
+
+<p>It is unnecessary to say that the funeral of a queen so much lamented
+was magnificent. In the kingdom of Wild Oats everything serves as a
+pretext for ceremony. The pageant<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_164" id="Page_164">[164]</a></span> was worthy of admiration, but the
+most admirable thing in it was the attitude of the young girls of the
+court. Every one looked at Charming, who was handsomer than ever in
+his mourning dress; every one wept with one eye in honor of the
+princess, and smiled with the other to attract the king. Ah! had
+photography only been invented, what portraits would antiquity have
+transmitted to us&mdash;what models for our painters! The passions still
+existed among these good people; their mobile faces were animated by
+love, hatred, and anger; to-day we are all so virtuous and prudent
+that we all wear the same dress, the same hat, and the same
+expression. Civilization is the triumph of morality and the ruin of
+art.</p>
+
+<p>After the description of the funeral ceremonies, which, according to
+etiquette, filled six columns, the court gazette laid down rules for
+the full and the second mourning, blue and pink, which are the
+mourning colors in the kingdom of Wild Oats. The court was required to
+be in deep affliction for three weeks, and to be comforted by degrees
+during the three weeks following; but carnival occurring during the
+period of the second mourning, and respect being had for trade, it was
+determined to give a masked ball at the palace. Tailors and
+dressmakers immediately set to work, invitations were solicited by
+great and small, and men began to intrigue as if the fate of the
+monarchy had been in question.<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_165" id="Page_165">[165]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>It was in this solemn manner that they mourned for poor Pazza.</p>
+
+
+<h2>VI</h2>
+<h3>THE MASKED BALL</h3>
+<p>The great day so impatiently expected at length arrived. For six weeks
+the good people of Wild Oats had been in a fever of excitement.
+Nothing more was heard of ministers, senators, generals, magistrates,
+princesses, duchesses, and citizens; for twenty leagues round, clowns,
+harlequins, punchinellos, gipsies, Columbines, and Follies alone were
+to be seen. Politics were silenced, or, rather, the nation was divided
+into two great parties&mdash;the conservatives that went to the ball, and
+the opposition that stayed at home.</p>
+
+<p>If the official gazette is to be believed, the festival outshone in
+splendor all others past and to come. The ball was held in the midst
+of the gardens, in a rotunda magnificently decorated. A winding walk,
+shaded by elms and dimly lighted by alabaster lamps, led to a hall
+resplendent with gold, verdure, flowers, and light. An orchestra, half
+concealed in the foliage, breathed forth music, by turns plaintive and
+gay. Add to this the richness of the costumes, the brilliancy of the
+diamonds, the piquancy of the masks, and the charm of intrigue, and
+you will see that it would have needed the soul of an ancient Stoic to
+resist the intoxication of pleasure.<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_166" id="Page_166">[166]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>Yet Prince Charming was not amused. Concealed under a blue domino,
+with his face entirely masked, he had addressed himself to the most
+elegant and sprightly women, and had lavishly displayed his wit and
+grace, yet he had met with nothing but indifference and coldness. They
+scarcely listened to him, answered with a yawn, and hastened to quit
+him. All eyes were fixed on a black domino with pink rosettes that
+moved carelessly among the dancers, receiving with the air of a sultan
+the compliments and smiles that every one lavished on him. This domino
+was the Lord Wieduwillst, a great friend of the prince, but still more
+the friend of his own pleasure. In an unguarded moment the doctor had
+said that morning by chance, under the seal of secrecy, and to two
+ladies only, that the prince would wear pink rosettes in his black
+domino. Was it his fault if the ladies had been indiscreet or the
+prince had changed his mind?</p>
+
+<p>While the doctor was enjoying, despite himself, indeed, his unexpected
+triumph, Charming seated himself in a corner of the hall and buried
+his face in his hands. Alone in the midst of the crowd, he abandoned
+himself to reflection, and the image of Pazza rose before him. He had
+no reproaches to make himself; his vengeance was just, yet he felt an
+indescribable remorse. Poor Pazza! no doubt she had been guilty; but
+at least she loved him, she understood him, she listened to him, her
+eyes sparkling with joy.<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_167" id="Page_167">[167]</a></span> How different from all those fools who had
+not recognized a prince under a domino at the first moment by his wit!</p>
+
+<p>He rose suddenly to quit the hall, when he perceived, a little way
+off, a mask that had also left the crowd and seemed lost in
+contemplation. A half-open domino disclosed a gipsy's dress and a pair
+of slippers with buckles, containing a foot smaller than that of
+Cinderella.</p>
+
+<p>The king approached the stranger, and saw through the velvet mask a
+pair of large black eyes, the melancholy glance of which surprised and
+charmed him.</p>
+
+<p>"Fair mask," said he, "your place is not here. Why are you not among
+the eager and curious crowd that is pressing around the prince to
+dispute his smile and heart? Do you not know that there is a crown to
+be gained there?"</p>
+
+<p>"I make no pretentions," answered the domino, in a grave, sweet voice.
+"In this game of chance one runs the risk of taking the servant for
+the king. I am too proud to expose myself to such a hazard."</p>
+
+<p>"But if I show you the prince?"</p>
+
+<p>"What could I say to him?" replied the stranger. "I could not blame
+him without offense, or praise him without flattery."</p>
+
+<p>"You think much evil of him, then?"</p>
+
+<p>"No, a little evil and much good; but what does it matter?" And,
+opening her fan, the domino relapsed into her reverie.<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_168" id="Page_168">[168]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>This indifference surprised Charming. He addressed her with warmth,
+she replied coldly; he prayed her so urgently to listen to him that
+she finally consented to do so, not in the ball-room, where the heat
+was overpowering and the curiosity indiscreet, but in the long
+elm-walk, where a few promenaders were seeking silence and fresh air.</p>
+
+<p>The night was advancing, and the gipsy had already spoken several
+times of retiring, to the great regret of the prince, who vainly
+entreated her to unmask. The stranger made no reply.</p>
+
+<p>"You drive me to despair," cried he, inspired with strange respect and
+admiration for this mysterious figure. "Why this cruel silence?"</p>
+
+<p>"Because I know you, my lord," replied the stranger, with emotion.
+"Your voice, which goes to the heart, your language, your grace, all
+tell me who you are. Let me go, Prince Charming."</p>
+
+<p>"No, madam," cried the prince, delighted at so much wit, "you alone
+have recognized me, you alone have understood me, to you belong my
+heart and kingdom. Throw off that suspicious mask; this very instant
+we will return to the ball-room and I will present to the ignorant
+crowd the woman whom I have had the happiness not to displease. Say
+but one word, and all my people shall be at your feet."</p>
+
+<p>"My lord," replied the stranger, sadly, "permit me to<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_169" id="Page_169">[169]</a></span> refuse an offer
+which does me honor and the memory of which I shall always preserve. I
+am ambitious, I own; the time has been when I should have been proud
+to share your throne and name; but before all things I am a woman and
+place all my happiness in love. I will not have a divided heart,
+should my rival be only a memory; I am jealous even of the past."</p>
+
+<p>"I have never loved in my life," cried the prince, with a vehemence
+that made the stranger start. "There is a mystery concerning my
+marriage which I can reveal only to my wife; but I swear to you that I
+have never given away my heart; I love now for the first time."</p>
+
+<p>"Show me your hand," said the gipsy, approaching the lamp, "and let me
+see whether you have told the truth."</p>
+
+<p>Charming extended his hand with assurance; the gipsy studied the lines
+and sighed.</p>
+
+<p>"You are right, my lord," said she, "you have never loved. But this
+does not appease my jealousy. Another woman has loved you before me.
+These sacred bonds are not broken by death; the queen still loves
+you&mdash;you belong to her. To accept a heart which is no longer at your
+disposal would be sacrilegious and criminal in me. Farewell."</p>
+
+<p>"Madam," said the king, with an ill-assured voice, "you do not know
+what you make me suffer. There are things which I would gladly burn in
+eternal silence, but which you<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_170" id="Page_170">[170]</a></span> force me to reveal. The queen never
+loved me; ambition alone dictated her conduct."</p>
+
+<p>"That is not so," said the stranger, letting go the prince's hand.
+"The queen loved you."</p>
+
+<p>"No, madam," replied Charming; "my father and I were the victims of a
+detestable intrigue."</p>
+
+<p>"Enough!" said the stranger, whose hands trembled and whose fingers
+worked in a strange manner. "Respect the dead; do not slander them."</p>
+
+<p>"Madam," said the prince, "I assure you, and none ever doubted my
+word, that the queen never loved me. She was a wicked woman."</p>
+
+<p>"Ah!" said the domino.</p>
+
+<p>"Wilful, violent, and jealous."</p>
+
+<p>"If she was jealous, she loved you," interrupted the mask. "Seek for
+proofs which have at least a shadow of probability; do not accuse a
+heart which was wholly yours."</p>
+
+<p>"So far from loving me," said the king, excitedly, "the very night of
+my marriage she dared tell me to my face that she had married me only
+for my crown."</p>
+
+<p>"That is not true," said the gipsy, raising her hand.</p>
+
+<p>"I swear it," replied Charming.</p>
+
+<p>"You lie!" cried the stranger. And, lo! a box on the ear blinded the
+prince; the blow was repeated, and the stranger fled.</p>
+
+<p>The king stepped back furious, and sought the hilt of his<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_171" id="Page_171">[171]</a></span> sword; but
+men do not go to balls armed as for war; for his sole weapon he found
+a knot of ribbons. He ran after his enemy, but which way had she fled?
+Charming lost himself twenty times in the labyrinth; he met none but
+peaceful dominos walking in couples and scarcely glancing at him as he
+passed. Breathless, distracted, and desperate, he returned to the
+ball-room, where he doubted not that the stranger had taken refuge;
+but how was he to find her?</p>
+
+<p>A brilliant idea crossed the prince's mind; he would order all to
+unmask, and would doubtless see the gipsy, confounded by the king's
+presence and betrayed by her own agitation. He instantly leaped on a
+chair, and exclaimed in a loud voice that caused every one to start:</p>
+
+<p>"Ladies and gentlemen, day is approaching and pleasure is languishing;
+let us revive mirth by a new caprice. Off with the masks! I set the
+example; let all who love me follow it."</p>
+
+<p>He threw off his domino, raised his mask, and appeared in the richest
+and most elegant Spanish costume ever worn by prince. There was a
+general outcry; all eyes were at first turned toward the king, then
+toward the black domino with pink rosettes, who retreated as fast as
+possible with a modesty that was not affected. All unmasked. The
+ladies gathered round the king, who, it was remarked, had the most
+violent fancy for the gipsy costume. Young or old, all the gipsies
+received his homage; he took them by<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_172" id="Page_172">[172]</a></span> the hand and gazed at them with
+an air which made all the other masks ready to burst with envy, then
+made a sign to the orchestra; the dance recommenced, and the prince
+disappeared.</p>
+
+<p>He hastened again to the elm-walk in search of the traitress who had
+insulted him, doubtless led by vengeance. His blood boiled in his
+veins; he wandered at random, suddenly stopping short, looking,
+listening, and spying in all directions. At the faintest gleam of
+light through the foliage he sprang forward like a madman, laughing
+and weeping at the same time as though distracted.</p>
+
+<p>At the turn of an alley he met Rachimburg advancing toward him
+trembling, with an air of terror.</p>
+
+<p>"Sire," murmured he, in a mysterious voice, "has Your Majesty seen
+it?"</p>
+
+<p>"What?" asked the king.</p>
+
+<p>"The specter; it passed close by me. I am a lost man; I shall die
+to-morrow."</p>
+
+<p>"What specter?" said Charming. "What fool's tale are you telling me?"</p>
+
+<p>"A specter&mdash;a domino with flashing eyes, that threw me on my knees and
+boxed my ears twice."</p>
+
+<p>"It is she!" cried the king; "it is she! Why did you let her go?"</p>
+
+<p>"Your Majesty, I had not my pike; but if ever I see her again I will
+knock her down."<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_173" id="Page_173">[173]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>"Do no such thing!" returned the king. "If ever she returns, do not
+frighten her; follow her and discover her retreat. But where is she?
+Which way did she go? Lead me; if I find her your fortune is made."</p>
+
+<p>"Sire," said the honest porter, looking at the moon, "if the specter
+is anywhere, it must be up yonder; I saw it, as plainly as I see Your
+Majesty, dissolving in mist. But before taking flight it gave me a
+message for Your Majesty."</p>
+
+<p>"What? Speak quickly!"</p>
+
+<p>"Sire, its words were terrible; I shall never dare repeat them to Your
+Majesty."</p>
+
+<p>"Speak, I order you."</p>
+
+<p>"Sire, the specter said, in a sepulchral voice, 'Tell the king that if
+he marries again he is a dead man. The loved one will return.'"</p>
+
+<p>"Here," said the prince, whose eyes shone with a strange luster, "take
+this purse. Henceforth I attach you to my person; I appoint you my
+first attendant, counting on your devotion and prudence. Let this
+affair remain a secret between us."</p>
+
+<p>"That makes two," murmured Rachimburg, as he departed with a firm
+tread, like a man who neither suffers himself to be cast down by fear
+or dazzled by good fortune. He was a strong-minded man.</p>
+
+<p>The next morning the court gazette contained the following<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_174" id="Page_174">[174]</a></span> lines, in
+the form of a letter without signature, in the unofficial part of the
+paper:</p>
+
+<p>"A rumor has been spread that the king is thinking of marrying again.
+The king knows what he owes to his people, and is always ready to
+sacrifice himself for the happiness of his subjects. But the people of
+Wild Oats have too much delicacy not to respect a recent affliction.
+The king's whole thoughts are fixed on his beloved wife; he hopes the
+consolation from time that is at present refused him."</p>
+
+<p>This note threw the court and town in agitation. The young girls
+thought the scruples of the prince exaggerated; more than one mother
+shrugged her shoulders, and said that the king had vulgar prejudices
+worthy only of the common people; but at night there was strife in
+every well-ordered household. There was not a wife of any pretensions
+to aristocratic birth that did not quarrel with her unworthy spouse
+and force him to admit that there was but one heart capable of love,
+and but one faithful husband in the whole kingdom, namely, Prince
+Charming.</p>
+
+
+<h2>VII</h2>
+<h3>TWO CONSULTATIONS</h3>
+<p>After so much excitement, the king was seized with a cruel fit of
+tedium. To divert himself, he attempted every<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_175" id="Page_175">[175]</a></span> kind of pleasure; he
+hunted, he presided over his council, he went to the play and the
+opera, he received all the state corporations with their wives, he
+read a Carthaginian novel, and reviewed the troops half a score of
+times; but all in vain: an inexorable memory, an ever-present image
+left him no rest or peace. The gipsy pursued him even in his dreams;
+he saw her, he talked to her, and she listened to him; but, by some
+unaccountable fatality, as soon as she raised her mask, Pazza's pale,
+sad face always appeared.</p>
+
+<p>The doctor was the only confidant to whom Charming could avow his
+remorse, but at his word Wieduwillst burst into laughter.</p>
+
+<p>"The effect of habit, sire," he said. "Gain time, multiply
+impressions, and all will be effaced."</p>
+
+<p>To procure the prince excitement and to drive away sorrow by a bold
+diversion, the doctor supped every evening alone with His Majesty, and
+poured out intoxication and forgetfulness with a liberal hand.
+Wieduwillst did not spare himself, but wine had little effect on his
+strong brain; he would have defied Bacchus and Silenus together with
+Charming. While the prince, by turn noisy and silent, plunged into the
+extremes of joy and sadness, always restless and never happy,
+Wieduwillst, calm and smiling, directed his thoughts, and through pure
+goodness of soul took upon himself all the fatigue and care of the
+government.<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_176" id="Page_176">[176]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>Three decrees had already placed in his hands the police, the courts,
+and the finances. The doctor well understood all the advantages of
+centralization. The way in which he administered the taxes relieved
+him from all personal anxiety for the future. The courts punished
+those who clamored too loudly; the police silenced those who whispered
+too much. Nevertheless, in spite of the ability of these political
+schemes, the people, always ungrateful, did not appreciate their
+happiness. The inhabitants of Wild Oats delight in complaining; the
+pleasure was spoiled for them.</p>
+
+<p>King Bizarre's name was in all hearts and every one regretted the good
+old times when they shouted over the roof-tops that they were gagged.</p>
+
+<p>The doctor was ambitious; he was born for a prime minister. Every
+morning some new ordinance made the people feel that the king was
+nothing and the minister everything. Charming was the only one that
+did not perceive his nothingness. Shut up in his palace, and dying of
+ennui, his sole companion was a page placed near him by the prime
+minister on Rachimburg's recommendation. Frolicsome, chattering, and
+indiscreet, a good musician and capital card-player, Tonto, for that
+was the page's name, amused the king by his pranks; he pleased the
+prime minister no less, but by other virtues. Devoted to his
+benefactor, the good-natured page innocently repeated to<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_177" id="Page_177">[177]</a></span> him the most
+trifling words of the prince&mdash;an easy task, moreover, as the king was
+constantly dreaming and never spoke.</p>
+
+<p>It is a fine thing to have the advantages of power; but appetite comes
+by eating even with ministers. The ambitious doctor began to desire
+both the honors and luster of royalty. Charming's best friend did not
+once think of dethroning him; nations sometimes have foolish
+prejudices and cling to old habits, but nothing was easier than to
+frighten a sick prince and send him afar off in search of a cure that
+would be long coming, while in his absence the doctor would reign as
+his proxy.</p>
+
+<p>Charming was young; he still clung to life, and, moreover, how could
+he resist the tender solicitude of the good doctor? The three most
+renowned physicians of the faculty met one evening in consultation at
+the palace&mdash;long Tristram, fat Jocundus, and little Guilleret, three
+celebrated men&mdash;three geniuses who had made their fortune, each with
+one idea, which had been the reason why they had never had any more.</p>
+
+<p>After the king had been cross-questioned, looked at, handled,
+auscultated, and turned round again and again, Tristram spoke first,
+in a rude voice.</p>
+
+<p>"Sire," said he, "you must be bled like a peasant, and live without
+any exertion whatever. Your disease is a deficiency of blood, a
+constitutional atony. Nothing but a<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_178" id="Page_178">[178]</a></span> journey to the Clear Waters can
+cure you. Go quickly, or you are a dead man. You have my opinion."</p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 600px;"><a name="pic_12" id="pic_12"></a>
+<img src="images/image_21.jpg" width="600" height="731" alt="THE MOST RENOWNED PHYSICIANS OF THE FACULTY MET ONE
+EVENING IN CONSULTATION AT THE PALACE"  />
+<span class="caption">THE MOST RENOWNED PHYSICIANS OF THE FACULTY MET ONE
+EVENING IN CONSULTATION AT THE PALACE</span>
+</div>
+
+<p>"Sire," said fat Jocundus, "I fully share the admirable opinion of my
+dear professional brother. You are suffering from superabundant
+vitality. Your disease is a constitutional plethora. Go, drink the
+Clear Waters, and you will be a well man again. You have my opinion."</p>
+
+<p>"Sire," said little Guilleret, "the diagnostic of my masters fills me
+with admiration. I bow before their learning. Like them, I believe
+that you are suffering from disorder of the sympathetic nerves. Your
+disease is a constitutional nervousness. Drink the Clear Waters. Go
+quickly, or you are a dead man. You have my opinion."</p>
+
+<p>A unanimous opinion was drawn up and immediately carried to the court
+gazette by Tonto; and the three doctors rose, bowed to the minister
+and the king, shook hands with one another, and went down-stairs
+quarreling or laughing, I know not which; the chronicle is almost
+illegible, owing to a large blot in this place.</p>
+
+<p>After the three physicians had gone, Wieduwillst read the opinion,
+reflected deeply, and looked at the king. Charming, who had supped a
+little better this evening even than usual, had not once listened to
+the doctors, but sat gazing around him with bloodshot eyes.</p>
+
+<p>"Sire," said he, "it is the unanimous opinion of these gentlemen that,
+if you wish to be cured, you must go to <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_179" id="Page_179">[179]</a></span>the Clear Waters and
+abandon the affairs of state. Such a resolution appears to me unworthy
+of Your Royal Majesty. A great prince should sacrifice himself for his
+people, and&mdash;"</p>
+
+<p>"Enough," said the king. "Spare me this worn-out moralizing and come
+to the conclusion. You wish me to go, my good friend; you are dying
+for me to do so, for my own interest, of course. Draw up a decree
+placing the regency in your hands, and I will sign it."</p>
+
+<p>"Sire, the decree is here, in your portfolio; a good minister always
+has papers drawn up to suit whatever circumstances may arise. He never
+knows what may happen."</p>
+
+<p>Charming took the pen, carelessly signed the decree without reading
+it, and handed it to the minister, who approached to receive it with a
+smile; then, seized with a new caprice, he drew back the paper and
+read it.</p>
+
+<p>"What!" said he, "no statement of reasons; nothing to assure my people
+of the kindness I bear them! Doctor, you are too modest; to-morrow
+this decree shall be in the gazette, with a statement from the hand of
+your friend and master. Good night; these gentlemen have tired me."</p>
+
+<p>The doctor went out with a light step, erect brow, and sparkling eye,
+prouder and more insolent than ever. Charming sank again into his
+reverie, thinking that, in spite of all,<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_180" id="Page_180">[180]</a></span> he was not the most unhappy
+of princes, since Heaven had given him such a friend.</p>
+
+<p>All at once the strangest little doctor that had ever been seen in a
+castle entered the king's apartment unannounced. He wore a wig with
+long curls, his snow-white beard fell on his breast, and his eyes were
+so bright and youthful that it seemed as though they must have come
+into the world sixty years after the rest of his body.</p>
+
+<p>"Where are those knaves?" cried he, with a shrill voice, rapping on
+the floor with his cane. "Where are those ignorant fellows, those
+pedants, those ill-bred men that did not wait for me? Ah! so you are
+the patient," said he to the stupefied king. "That is good. Put out
+your tongue. Quick! I am in a hurry."</p>
+
+<p>"Who are you?" asked the king.</p>
+
+<p>"I am Doctor Truth, the greatest doctor in the world, as you will see,
+in spite of my modesty. Ask Wieduwillst, my pupil, who sent for me
+from the Land of Dreams. I cure everybody, even those who are not ill.
+Put out your tongue; that's right. Where is the opinion? Very well.
+Atony&mdash;<i>asinis!</i> Plethora&mdash;<i>asini!</i> Nervousness&mdash;<i>asinorum!</i> Drink the
+Clear Waters&mdash;<i>asininum!</i> Do you know what is your disease? It is
+vexation, and even worse."</p>
+
+<p>"Do you see that?" said Charming, terrified.</p>
+
+<p>"Yes, my son, it is written on your tongue. But I will cure you: it
+shall be done by to-morrow noon."<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_181" id="Page_181">[181]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>"To-morrow!" said the king. "All my treasures&mdash;"</p>
+
+<p>"Silence, my son. What portfolio is that?&mdash;the minister's? Good. Sign
+these three papers for me."</p>
+
+<p>"They are blank decrees," said the king. "What do you wish to do with
+them?"</p>
+
+<p>"They are my ordinances. Sign. Well done, my son; be obedient, and
+to-morrow noon you shall be as gay as a lark. First ordinance: If you
+would live at peace, appear at peace; I suppress six regiments. Second
+ordinance: A penny in a peasant's pocket is worth twenty in the king's
+treasury; I suppress one fourth of the taxes. Third ordinance: Liberty
+is like the sunshine&mdash;it is the happiness and fortune of the poor; I
+throw open the political prisons and demolish the debtors' prisons.
+You are laughing, my son; it is a good sign when a patient laughs at
+his doctor."</p>
+
+<p>"Yes," said Charming, "I am laughing to think of Wieduwillst's face
+to-morrow on reading these ordinances in the court gazette. Enough of
+these follies, buffoon doctor; give me back the papers and put an end
+to this farce."</p>
+
+<p>"What is this?" said the little man, taking up the decree of the
+regency. "God forgive me! it is an abdication. What are you thinking
+of, Prince Charming? What! the inheritance bequeathed to you by your
+fathers, the people intrusted to you by God, your name, your honor,<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_182" id="Page_182">[182]</a></span>
+will you throw all these at the feet of an adventurer? Will you let
+yourself be dethroned and duped by a deceiver? Impossible! It does not
+suit me. I oppose it. Do you hear?"</p>
+
+<p>"What insolent fellow addresses his prince in this way?"</p>
+
+<p>"Politeness is not in words. Charming, are you mad? Are you dreaming?
+Are you wholly without heart?"</p>
+
+<p>"This is too much!" cried the king. "Begone, wretch, or I will throw
+you out of the window."</p>
+
+<p>"Begone!" said the little doctor, in a shrill voice. "No, not till I
+have destroyed this mad and stupid document. See, I tear your
+abdication in pieces and trample it under-foot!"</p>
+
+<p>Charming seized the madman and called his guards. No one answered. The
+little man struggled with wonderful strength. With his foot he threw
+the lamp on the ground; but the king, despite the darkness, kept fast
+hold of the sorcerer, who felt his strength failing.</p>
+
+<p>"Let me go!" murmured he; "for Heaven's sake let me go! You know not
+what you are doing. You are breaking my arm."</p>
+
+<p>His words and prayers were useless. Suddenly a shower of blows, dealt
+by a strong hand, fell on the king's ears. Charming let go his hold in
+surprise, and turned to attack his invisible enemy. He found nothing
+but empty space, and, staggering in the darkness, cried loudly for the
+help<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_183" id="Page_183">[183]</a></span> that did not come. Such a thing could not have happened in a
+minister's house; kings are always worse guarded.</p>
+
+
+<h2>VIII</h2>
+<h3>THE END OF A DREAM</h3>
+<p>At last a door opened and Rachimburg entered, according to etiquette,
+to undress the king. The faithful servant appeared greatly vexed to
+find him without a light, groping along the wall.</p>
+
+<p>"Where is that infernal doctor?" asked Charming, foaming with rage.</p>
+
+<p>"It is more than an hour, sire, since His Excellency quitted the
+palace."</p>
+
+<p>"Who is talking of Wieduwillst?" cried the king. "Which way did the
+villain go that just insulted me?"</p>
+
+<p>Rachimburg looked at the prince with a contrite air, and raised his
+eyes to heaven, sighing.</p>
+
+<p>"A man went out of the door that leads to your rooms," said Charming.
+"How did he enter, and where has he fled?"</p>
+
+<p>"Sire," said Rachimburg, "I have neither quitted my post nor seen any
+one."</p>
+
+<p>"I tell you that a man was in this room a moment ago."</p>
+
+<p>"Sire, Your Majesty is never mistaken; if a man was in<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_184" id="Page_184">[184]</a></span> this room he
+is still here, unless he has flown through the window or Your Majesty
+has been dreaming."</p>
+
+<p>"Fool, do I look like a man who has been dreaming? Did I overturn this
+lamp? did I tear these papers?"</p>
+
+<p>"Sire, I am nothing but a worm of the earth; God forbid that I should
+contradict my sovereign. Your majesty does not hire me to give him the
+lie. But this year strange dreams are an epidemic. No one knows what
+he may do or suffer in his sleep. Only just now I was overtaken with
+sleep in spite of myself, and if I were not sure that I was dreaming I
+should declare that an invisible hand boxed my ears twice, at which I
+awakened with a start."</p>
+
+<p>"It was the specter!" said the king.</p>
+
+<p>"Your Majesty is right," replied Rachimburg; "I am nothing but a
+simpleton; it was the specter."</p>
+
+<p>"And I did not know her!" resumed Charming. "Nevertheless, it was her
+voice and air. What does this mean? Is it a new insult? Is it a
+warning from heaven? Does some danger threaten me? No matter, I will
+remain in my kingdom. My friend, not a word of all this: take this
+purse and keep the secret."</p>
+
+<p>"That makes the third," murmured the faithful Rachimburg, as he
+undressed the king with a zeal and address which several times made
+His Majesty smile.</p>
+
+<p>So many emotions one after another banished sleep; it was daybreak
+before the prince dozed, and broad daylight<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_185" id="Page_185">[185]</a></span> before he awoke. In the
+first moment between sleeping and waking Charming fancied that he
+heard a strange noise&mdash;bells ringing, cannon firing, and three or four
+bands of music playing each a different air. He was not mistaken; it
+was an infernal hubbub. The king rang. Rachimburg entered, carrying a
+bouquet of flowers.</p>
+
+<p>"Sire," said he, "will His Majesty permit the humblest of his servants
+to be the first to express to him the universal joy? Your people are
+intoxicated with love and gratitude. The taxes lessened, the prisons
+opened, the army reduced! Sire, you are the greatest prince in the
+world; never has earth seen a ruler like you. Show yourself at the
+balcony; answer these cries of 'Hurrah for the king!' Smile on the
+people that bless you."</p>
+
+<p>Rachimburg could not finish; tears choked his voice. He attempted to
+wipe his eyes, but in his excitement he took the gazette from his
+pocket instead of a handkerchief, and began to kiss it like a madman.</p>
+
+<p>Charming took the journal, and vainly attempted, while dressing, to
+collect his ideas. By what chance had these insane ordinances found
+their way into the official journal? Who had sent them? Why did not
+Wieduwillst make his appearance? The prince wished to reflect,
+consult, and question; but the people were under the windows, and
+their majesties were too impatient to wait.</p>
+
+<p>As soon as the king appeared in the balcony he was<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_186" id="Page_186">[186]</a></span> greeted with
+shouts of enthusiasm, which, despite everything, thrilled his heart.
+Men tossed their caps in the air, women waved their handkerchiefs,
+mothers lifted up their children and made them stretch their innocent
+hands to heaven, and repeat, "Hurrah for the king!" The guns of the
+palace guards were decked with flowers, the drums beat, and the
+officers' swords flashed in the sun. It was a scene of delirious joy.
+Charming was infected by the general emotion; he wept without exactly
+knowing why. At that instant the clock struck noon. The specter was
+right&mdash;the prince was cured.</p>
+
+<p>After the crowd it was the turn of the corporations, all of whom, the
+ministers at the head, came to congratulate and thank the king for
+having so well understood the wishes of his faithful counselors. A
+single person was lacking, namely, Wieduwillst. None knew where he had
+hidden his ignorance and spite. A mysterious note received by him that
+morning had occasioned his flight, yet this note contained only the
+words, <i>The king knows all!</i> Who had written this fatal letter? Not
+the prince; he alone, perhaps, in the palace, thought of the minister,
+and wondered at not seeing him by his side.</p>
+
+<p>All at once Tonto entered, pale and haggard. He ran to the king and
+gave him a letter which an officer had brought at full gallop. The
+governor of the province, General Bayonet, sent terrible news; the six
+disbanded regiments had<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_187" id="Page_187">[187]</a></span> mutinied, headed by Wieduwillst. The rebels
+had proclaimed the downfall of the king, whom they accused of
+abominable crimes, especially of the murder of the queen. Numerous and
+well commanded, they were approaching the city, which was defended
+only by a few doubtful and disaffected regiments. Bayonet entreated
+the king to come instantly and take command; an hour later, and all
+would be lost.</p>
+
+<p>Hurried on by Tonto and Rachimburg, the king secretly quitted the
+palace, followed by a few officers. A proclamation, placarded on all
+the walls of the city and at every corner of the streets, declared
+that there was no truth in the rumors spread by a few malicious
+persons, and that the army had never been more devoted or faithful.
+Upon this there was a universal panic; stocks fell 50 per cent. in
+half an hour, and did not rise again till unofficial news arrived that
+the king had been well received at head-quarters.</p>
+
+
+<h2>IX</h2>
+<h3>HEROIC REMEDIES FOR GREAT EVILS</h3>
+<p>The news was false; the prince had been received with great coldness.
+It was his own fault. Sad, despondent, and abstracted, Charming had
+neither found a jest for the soldiers nor a word of trust for the
+officers. He entered<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_188" id="Page_188">[188]</a></span> the general's tent and fell into a chair. Tonto
+was little less disheartened.</p>
+
+<p>"Sire," said Bayonet, "permit me to speak to you with the frankness of
+a soldier and the freedom of an old friend. The army is murmuring and
+hesitating; we must secure it, or all is lost. The enemy is in sight;
+we must attack him. Five minutes sometimes decide the fate of empires;
+it is so with us now. Do not wait till it is too late."</p>
+
+<p>"Very well," said the king. "To horse! in an instant I will be with
+you."</p>
+
+<p>Left alone with Tonto and Rachimburg, the king exclaimed, in despair,
+"My good friends, quit a master who can do no more for you. I shall
+not dispute my wretched life with my enemies. Betrayed in friendship
+and treacherously assassinated, I recognize in my misfortune the hand
+of an avenging God. It is in punishment for my crime. I killed the
+queen in my stupid vengeance; the hour has come to expiate my fault,
+and I am ready."</p>
+
+<p>"Sire," said Tonto, trying to smile, "shake off these sad thoughts. If
+the queen were here she would tell you to defend yourself. Believe
+me," he added, twisting his budding mustache, "I am acquainted with
+women! Were they dead, they would still love to avenge themselves.
+Besides, you did not kill the queen; and perhaps she is not so dead as
+you imagine."<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_189" id="Page_189">[189]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>"What do you say?" exclaimed the king; "you are losing your reason."</p>
+
+<p>"I say that there are women who die expressly to enrage their
+husbands; why should there not be those that would rise from the dead
+to enrage them still more? Leave the dead, and think of the living who
+love you. You are a king; fight like a king, and, if necessary, fall
+like a king."</p>
+
+<p>"Sire," said Bayonet, entering, sword in hand, "time presses."</p>
+
+<p>"General, to horse!" cried Tonto; "let us go."</p>
+
+<p>Bayonet quitted the room to give the needful orders. When he was gone,
+Charming looked at Tonto and said: "No, I will not go. I do not
+understand my feelings; I abhor myself. I am not afraid of death; I am
+going to kill myself; nevertheless, I will not fight."</p>
+
+<p>"Sire," said Tonto, "in Heaven's name, summon up your courage. To
+horse! Great God!" he exclaimed, wringing his hands, "the prince will
+not listen to me; we are lost. Come!" said he, taking hold of
+Charming's cloak; "up, sire; to horse, unhappy prince! Save your
+kingdom&mdash;save your people&mdash;save all that love you. Coward! look at me;
+I am nothing but a child, yet I am about to die for you. Fight! do not
+disgrace yourself. If you do not rise I will insult you&mdash;I, your
+servant. You are a coward&mdash;do you hear? a coward!"</p>
+
+<p>And behold! the insolent page boxed the king's ears.<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_190" id="Page_190">[190]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>"S'death!" cried Charming, drawing his sword. "Before dying I will
+have the pleasure of punishing one subject, at least."</p>
+
+<p>But the page had left the tent. With one bound he sprang into the
+saddle and galloped toward the enemy, sword in hand, crying, "The
+king! my friends&mdash;the king! Sound the trumpets! Forward!"</p>
+
+<p>Charming, mad with anger, spurred his horse in pursuit of the page:
+like a bull at the sight of a red flag, he rushed forward, head
+downward, caring neither for death nor for danger. Bayonet rushed
+after the king, and the army after the general. It was the finest
+cavalry charge ever known in history.</p>
+
+<p>At the noise of the squadrons, which shook the ground like thunder,
+the enemy, surprised, scarcely had time to form in line of battle. One
+man, however, had recognized the king&mdash;the infamous Wieduwillst.
+Charming was alone; wholly absorbed in his vengeance, he saw nothing
+but the page whom he was pursuing. The traitor threw himself on the
+prince, sword in hand, and would have slain him at one stroke had not
+Tonto, plunging his spurs into the flanks of his horse, made the
+animal rear and fall on Wieduwillst. The page received the blow
+intended for his master. He threw up his arms and fell with a loud
+cry; but his fall, at least, was avenged. The king thrust his sword
+into the throat of the treacherous physician, and drew it forth,<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_191" id="Page_191">[191]</a></span>
+dripping with blood, not without pleasure. Man is decidedly the king
+of wild beasts.</p>
+
+<p>The traitor's death decided the fate of the day. The royal army,
+electrified by the heroism of its leader, soon dispersed the
+straggling battalions. The rebels, having nothing more to hope, sued
+for pardon, and their prayer was granted by the happy and clement
+king.</p>
+
+<p>An hour after quitting the camp where he had wished to die, Charming
+returned in triumph, bringing with him conquerors and conquered, all
+blended in the same ranks, the former loudly protesting their loyalty,
+the latter overpowering them with their enthusiasm. Nothing sharpens
+devotion so much as a little treason.</p>
+
+
+<h2>X</h2>
+<h3>IN WHICH WE SEE THAT IT IS WRONG TO JUDGE ACCORDING<br />
+  TO APPEARANCES, AND THAT TONTO WAS NOT TONTO</h3>
+<p>The king entered his tent to rest a moment, when the sight of
+Rachimburg reminded him of Tonto.</p>
+
+<p>"Is the page dead?" he asked.</p>
+
+<p>"No, sire," answered Rachimburg; "unfortunately for him, he is still
+living; he is hopeless. I ordered him carried to his aunt's, the
+Countess de Castro's, close by here."</p>
+
+<p>"Is he the countess's nephew?" said the king. "I was never told of
+it."<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_192" id="Page_192">[192]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>"Your Majesty has forgotten it," replied Rachimburg, quietly. "The
+poor child is fatally wounded in the shoulder; he cannot recover. It
+would give him great happiness could he see Your Majesty before he
+dies."</p>
+
+<p>"Very well," returned the king; "lead me to him."</p>
+
+<p>On his arrival at the castle Charming was met by the countess, who
+conducted him to a darkened room. The page was stretched, pale and
+bleeding, on a couch; nevertheless, he had strength to raise his head
+and welcome the king.</p>
+
+<p>"What a miracle!" exclaimed Charming. "This is the strangest wound
+that I ever saw in my life: one side of Tonto's mustache is gone!"</p>
+
+<p>"Sire," said the countess, "the blade of the sword probably swept off
+one side. Nothing is so capricious as sword wounds, as every one
+knows."</p>
+
+<p>"How strange!" cried the king. "On one side it is Tonto, my page, my
+insolent subject, and on the other it is&mdash;no, I am not mistaken&mdash;it is
+you, my good angel and my savior; it is you, my poor Pazza!"</p>
+
+<p>He fell on his knees and seized her hand, which lay on the coverlet.</p>
+
+<p>"Sire," said Pazza, "my days are numbered, but before dying&mdash;"</p>
+
+<p>"No, no, Pazza, you shall not die," cried the king, in tears.<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_193" id="Page_193">[193]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>"Before dying," she added, casting down her eyes, "I hope that Your
+Majesty will forgive me the box on the ear which I gave you this
+morning in indiscreet zeal&mdash;"</p>
+
+<p>"Enough," said the king; "I forgive you. After all, a throne and honor
+were well worth&mdash;what I received."</p>
+
+<p>"Alas!" said Pazza, "that is not all."</p>
+
+<p>"What!" exclaimed Charming, "is there anything more?"</p>
+
+<p>"Oh, sire, what have you done?" cried the countess; "my child is
+dying!"</p>
+
+<p>"My Pazza, you must not die!" exclaimed the king. "Speak, and be sure
+that I forgive in advance all you have done. Alas! it is I that have
+need of forgiveness."</p>
+
+<p>"Sire, the little doctor who took the liberty of boxing Your Majesty's
+ears&mdash;"</p>
+
+<p>"Was it you that sent him?" asked Charming, with a frown.</p>
+
+<p>"No, sire, I myself was he. Ah, what would I not have done to save my
+king! It was I who, to save Your Majesty from the traitorous knaves
+that surrounded you, took the liberty of boxing your ears&mdash;"</p>
+
+<p>"Enough," said Charming; "I forgive you, though the lesson was a harsh
+one."</p>
+
+<p>"Alas! this is not all," said Pazza.</p>
+
+<p>"What, more?" cried the king, rising.</p>
+
+<p>"Oh, aunt, I am dying!" exclaimed Pazza. By dint of care, however, she
+was restored to life; and, turning her<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_194" id="Page_194">[194]</a></span> languishing eyes toward the
+king, "Sire," said she, "the gipsy girl at the masked ball, who dared
+to box your ears&mdash;"</p>
+
+<p>"Was yourself, Pazza?" said charming. "Oh, I forgive you for that; I
+well deserved it. How could I doubt you, who are sincerity itself!
+But, now I think of it, do you remember the rash vow that you made on
+the night of our marriage? You have kept your promise; it is for me to
+keep mine. Pazza, make haste to recover, and return to the castle from
+which happiness fled with you."</p>
+
+<p>"I have a last favor to ask of Your Majesty," said Pazza. "Rachimburg
+was the witness this morning of a scene for which I blush, and of
+which all must remain ignorant. I commend this faithful servant to
+your goodness."</p>
+
+<p>"Rachimburg," said the king, "take this purse, and keep the secret
+under penalty of your head."</p>
+
+<p>"That makes the fourth," whispered Rachimburg to himself; "my fortune
+is made."</p>
+
+<p>In a few moments Pazza was asleep. "Do you think that she will
+recover?" asked Charming, anxiously, of the countess.</p>
+
+<p>"Bah!" said the old lady. "No matter how ill a woman may be, happiness
+will bring her back from the brink of the grave. Kiss the queen, my
+nephew; it will do her more good than all the doctors in the world."</p>
+
+<p>Charming stooped and kissed the sleeping Pazza. An<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_195" id="Page_195">[195]</a></span> angelic smile
+stole over her features, at the sight of which he wept like a child.</p>
+
+
+<h2>XI</h2>
+<h3>A WIFE SHOULD OBEY HER HUSBAND</h3>
+<p>The countess was right (women are always right&mdash;past sixty). A
+fortnight of happiness set Pazza on her feet again, and enabled her to
+make a triumphant entry into the city with the king, her husband. Her
+paleness, and her wounded arm, which she carried in a sling, added to
+her grace and beauty. Charming had eyes for no one but the queen, and
+the people's looks followed the king's.</p>
+
+<p>They were more than an hour in reaching the castle. The magistrates
+had erected not less than three triumphal arches, frowning fortresses,
+defended each by thirty-six deputations and thirty-six speeches. The
+first arch, made of trellis-work, and adorned with leaves and flowers,
+bore the inscription,</p>
+
+<p class="center">
+TO THE MOST TENDER AND FAITHFUL OF HUSBANDS<br />
+</p>
+
+<p>This was intrusted to the keeping of five or six thousand young girls,
+dressed in white, with pink ribbons, representing the spring of the
+year, the hope of the future, welcoming Glory and Beauty.</p>
+
+<p>The second arch, more solidly built, was a frame covered<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_196" id="Page_196">[196]</a></span> with
+tapestry, surmounted by Justice, with her eyes bandaged and her scales
+in her hand.</p>
+
+<p>On the pedestal of the statue was written,</p>
+
+<p class="center">
+TO THE FATHER OF HIS PEOPLE,<br />
+THE BEST AND WISEST OF PRINCES<br />
+</p>
+
+<p>A host of priests, statesmen, and magistrates, in robes of all colors,
+represented Religion, Wisdom, and Virtue; at least so said these
+venerable and discreet personages, who are never in error.</p>
+
+<p>Last came an immense arch, a true military trophy, bearing as its
+motto,</p>
+
+<p class="center">
+TO THE BOLDEST AND MOST VALIANT OF KINGS<br />
+</p>
+
+<p>Here the army awaited its general, and the queen was saluted by the
+majestic voice of a hundred cannon and two hundred drums&mdash;a voice
+before which all human eloquence falters, and which always has the
+last word.</p>
+
+<p>I spare you a description of the dinner, which was interminable, and
+of sixty more speeches from the court gazette, where they had already
+done service two or three times, and wherein they were again deposited
+for the use of future generations. There is nothing so monotonous as
+happiness, and we must be indulgent to those who sing its praises
+officially. In such cases, the ablest is he who says the least.<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_197" id="Page_197">[197]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>The long evening, during which the king had lavished his most gracious
+smiles on those whom he despised at the bottom of his heart, was at
+length at an end, and Charming led Pazza, no longer to a dungeon, but
+to a magnificent apartment, where a new surprise awaited her. At the
+bottom of the room was an illuminated transparency, on which were
+written lines so bad that a king alone could have been the author of
+them. These lines, which were published in the official gazette, have
+been handed down to us by one of those indiscreet persons who suffer
+no follies of the past to be lost. Such persons are the rag-pickers of
+history.</p>
+
+<div class="poem"><div class="stanza">
+<span class="i0">Ye indolent dunces, who rust in your sloth,<br /></span>
+<span class="i2">Too lazy or wilful to learn;<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Ye courtiers, who crowd round the king, nothing loth<br /></span>
+<span class="i2">By base flattery his favor to earn;<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Ye doctors, who laugh at us cowards, and sell<br /></span>
+<span class="i2">Long words and wise oracles dear&mdash;<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Beware lest some night a mischievous sprite<br /></span>
+<span class="i2">Should give you a box on the ear.<br /></span>
+</div><div class="stanza">
+<span class="i0">And you, ye proud husbands, puffed up with conceit,<br /></span>
+<span class="i2">Who deem yourselves statesmen so wise<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">That the whole world admiringly bows at your feet&mdash;<br /></span>
+<span class="i2">Who truth, love, and goodness despise&mdash;<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Beware lest some day your less frivolous wives,<br /></span>
+<span class="i2">Derided by those they held dear,<br /></span>
+<span class="i0">Should start from your side, aroused by just pride,<br /></span>
+<span class="i2">And give you a box on the ear.<br /></span>
+<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_198" id="Page_198">[198]</a></span></div></div>
+
+<p>"What means this enigma, sire?" asked Pazza.</p>
+
+<p>"It means that I do myself justice," answered the king. "I am nothing
+except through you, dear Pazza; all that I know and all that I think I
+owe to you. Without you I am nothing but a soulless body, fit only for
+follies."</p>
+
+<p>"Pardon me if I contradict Your Majesty," said Pazza.</p>
+
+<p>"Oh," returned the king, "I affect no false modesty; I know very well
+that I have the clearest head of any in my council; my ministers
+themselves are forced to acknowledge it, for they are always of my
+opinion; but with all this there is more wisdom in your little finger
+than in all my royal brain. My resolution, therefore, is fixed. Let my
+court and people celebrate my wisdom, my goodness, and even my valor;
+it is all very well, and I accept the homage. You alone have the right
+to laugh at it, and you will not betray me. But from this day I
+abandon my power to you. The king, my dear Pazza, will be only the
+chief of your subjects, the faithful minister of your will. You shall
+write the piece and I will play it; the applause will be mine,
+according to custom, and I will give it back to you by force of love."</p>
+
+<p>"Do not talk in this way, my dear," said Pazza.</p>
+
+<p>"I know what I am saying," returned the king, warmly. "I wish you to
+rule; I mean that in my empire, as in my house, nothing shall be done
+except by your command; I am the master and the king; I desire and
+order it."<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_199" id="Page_199">[199]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>"Sire," said Pazza, "I am your wife and servant; it is my duty to
+obey."</p>
+
+<p>After this, says the chronicle, they lived happily to a good old age,
+beloved by all their subjects; and the people of the kingdom of Wild
+Oats still talk of the good old days of Prince Charming and the
+Princess Pazza.</p>
+
+<h3>THE END</h3>
+
+<hr style="width: 65%;" />
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+<pre>
+
+
+
+
+
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@@ -0,0 +1,5949 @@
+The Project Gutenberg EBook of Laboulaye's Fairy Book, 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: Laboulaye's Fairy Book
+
+Author: Various
+
+Commentator: Kate Douglas Wiggin
+
+Illustrator: Edward G. McCandlish
+
+Translator: Mary L. Booth
+
+Release Date: August 21, 2008 [EBook #26386]
+
+Language: English
+
+Character set encoding: ASCII
+
+*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK LABOULAYE'S FAIRY BOOK ***
+
+
+
+
+Produced by Sankar Viswanathan, David Edwards, and the
+Online Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net
+(This file was produced from images generously made
+available by The Internet Archive)
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+    [Illustration: HE FLUNG HUGE MASSES OF ROCK AFTER THE VESSEL]
+
+
+                       _Laboulaye's_ FAIRY BOOK
+
+
+                           _Illustrated by_
+
+
+                              Edward G.
+                             McCandlish
+
+                           _Translated by_
+
+                            Mary L. Booth
+
+
+                          _Introduction by_
+
+                         Kate Douglas Wiggin
+
+
+
+
+
+
+         HARPER & BROTHERS, PUBLISHERS, NEW YORK _and_ LONDON
+
+
+
+
+                        LABOULAYE'S FAIRY BOOK
+
+             Copyright, 1866, 1920, by Harper & Brothers
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+
+
+
+CONTENTS
+
+
+                                      PAGE
+
+INTRODUCTION                           ix
+
+YVON AND FINETTE                        3
+
+THE CASTLE OF LIFE                     46
+
+DESTINY                                79
+
+THE TWELVE MONTHS                      86
+
+SWANDA, THE PIPER                      96
+
+THE GOLD BREAD                        102
+
+THE STORY OF THE NOSES                109
+
+THE THREE CITRONS                     115
+
+THE STORY OF COQUERICO                137
+
+KING BIZARRE AND PRINCE CHARMING      145
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+
+
+
+ILLUSTRATIONS
+
+
+HE FLUNG HUGE MASSES OF ROCK AFTER THE VESSEL              _Frontispiece_
+
+HE WAS SOON SNORING SO LOUDLY THAT IT SEEMED LIKE THUNDER
+SHAKING THE MOUNTAINS                                      _Facing p._ 16
+
+SHE FOUND HERSELF IN FRONT OF A WRETCHED HUT AT THE DOOR OF
+WHICH STOOD AN OLD WOMAN, OF WHOM SHE BEGGED SHELTER FOR
+THE NIGHT                                                      "       26
+
+AT NIGHT THE GRANDMOTHER ALWAYS GAVE HIM GOOD COUNSELS
+FOR HIM TO FOLLOW WHEN SHE WAS GONE                            "       48
+
+PRETTY DOBRUNKA WAS OBLIGED TO DO ALL THE WORK OF THE
+HOUSE                                                          "       88
+
+TURNED OUT BY HER MOTHER, DOBRUNKA WENT UNHAPPILY INTO
+THE FOREST                                                     "       92
+
+HE BEGAN TO PLAY, AND NEVER HAD HIS MUSIC PRODUCED SUCH AN
+EFFECT                                                         "      100
+
+AS THE MOTHER GAZED LOVINGLY AT HER BEAUTIFUL DAUGHTER,
+MARIENKA LAUGHED IN HER SLEEP                                  "      106
+
+HE RAN TO THE TREE AND SHOOK IT WITH ALL HIS MIGHT, WHEN,
+BEHOLD! A YOUNG GIRL FELL FROM THE BRANCHES                    "      112
+
+HE INSTANTLY GAVE HER THE WATER, WHEN, LO! A BEAUTIFUL,
+SLENDER YOUNG GIRL STOOD BEFORE HIM                            "      126
+
+PAZZA, THOUGH SHE LOVED THE PRINCE, WAS A VERY STERN           "      154
+SCHOOLMISTRESS
+
+THE MOST RENOWNED PHYSICIANS OF THE FACULTY MET ONE EVENING
+IN CONSULTATION AT THE PALACE                                  "      178
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+
+
+
+INTRODUCTION
+
+By KATE DOUGLAS WIGGIN
+
+
+There was once a green book, deliciously thick, with gilt-edged pages
+and the name of the author in gilt script on the front cover.
+
+Like an antique posy ring, it was a "box of jewels, shop of rarities";
+it was a veritable Pandora's box, and if you laid warm, childish hands
+upon it and held it pressed close to your ear, you could hear, as
+Pandora did, soft rustlings, murmurings, flutterings, and whisperings
+from the fairy folk within. For this was a fairy book--Edouard
+Laboulaye's "Tales," and its heroes and heroines became first the
+daily companions, and then the lifetime possession, of the two little
+girls to whom it belonged.
+
+From the New England village where it was originally given to them, it
+traveled to the far West and its tales were told to countless
+immigrant children of San Francisco, whose great eyes opened wider
+still as they listened, breathless, to stories beloved by their
+ancestors. In later years the green volume journeyed by clumsy,
+rattling stage and rawboned nags to Mexico, and the extraordinary
+adventures of "Yvon and Finette," "Carlino," and "Graceful" were
+repeated in freshly learned Spanish, to many a group of brown-cheeked
+little people on the hillsides of Sonora.
+
+And now, long, long afterward, there stands on a shelf above my desk
+the very selfsame worn green volume, read and re-read a hundred times,
+but so tenderly and respectfully that it has kept all its pages and
+both its covers; and on this desk itself are the proofs of a new
+edition with clear, beautiful print and gay pictures by Edward
+McCandlish!
+
+To be asked to write an introduction to this particular book seems
+insufferable patronage; yet one would do it for love of Laboulaye, or
+for the sake of one's own "little past," or to draw one more young
+reader into the charmed circle that will welcome these pages.
+
+The two children who adored Laboulaye's "Tales" possessed many another
+fairy book, so why did this especial volume hold a niche apart in the
+gallery of their hearts?
+
+Partly, perhaps, because of the Gallic wit and vivacity with which the
+tales are told, for children are never too young to appreciate the
+charms of style.
+
+You remember, possibly, the French chef who, being imprisoned with no
+materials save the tools of his trade, and commanded on pain of death
+to produce an omelette, proudly emerged at last, bearing a savory dish
+made out of the sole of his shoe?
+
+Of even such stuff Laboulaye could have concocted a delectable tale;
+but with Brittany, Bohemia, Italy, Dalmatia, Hungary, and Spain for
+his storehouses, one has only to taste to know how finely flavored are
+the dishes he sets forth.
+
+In his preface to the first American edition Laboulaye writes a letter
+to Mlle. Gabrielle Laboulaye, aged two! In it he says: "When you throw
+away this book with your doll, do not be too severe with your old
+grandfather for wasting his time on such trifles as fairy stories.
+Experience will teach you that the truest and sweetest things in life
+are not those which we see, but of which we dream." Happy the children
+who have this philosophy set before them early in life.
+
+Like the fairy tales Robert Louis Stevenson remembered, these of
+Laboulaye's have "the golden smell of broom and the shade of pine,"
+and they will come back to the child whenever the Wind of Memory
+blows.
+
+In common with the stories of Charles Perrault, literary parent of the
+fairy tale, Laboulaye's charming narratives have a certain unique
+quality due to the fact that they were intended and collected for the
+author's own children, were told to them round the fireside in the
+evening, and so received at first hand the comment and suggestion of a
+bevy of competent, if somewhat youthful, critics.
+
+It is said that there is a great scarcity of fairy folk in modern
+France; and that, terrified by the thunders of the Revolution, they
+left their unhappy country in a body during its stormy years, first
+assembling in grateful concourse around the tomb of Perrault, upon
+whose memory they conferred the boon of immortality.
+
+If this story is true--and the last reported act of the fairies on
+leaving France makes it appear so--then we may be sure that a few of
+the more hardy and adventurous fays skipped back again across the
+border and hid themselves in Laboulaye's box of jewels, where they
+give to each gem an even brighter sheen and a more magical luster.
+
+"QUILLCOTE," HOLLIS, MAINE.
+
+_August, 1920._
+
+
+
+
+LABOULAYE'S FAIRY BOOK
+
+
+
+
+On the Kerver
+
+YVON _and_ FINETTE
+
+_A Tale of Brittany_
+
+[Illustration: ]
+
+
+I
+
+Once upon a time there lived in Brittany a noble lord, who was called
+the Baron Kerver. His manor-house was the most beautiful in the
+province. It was a great Gothic castle, with a groined roof and walls,
+covered with carving, that looked at a distance like a vine climbing
+over an arbor. On the first floor six stained-glass balcony windows
+looked out on each side toward the rising and the setting sun. In the
+morning, when the baron, mounted on his dun mare, went forth into the
+forest, followed by his tall greyhounds, he saw at each window one of
+his daughters, with prayer-book in hand, praying for the house of
+Kerver, and who, with their fair curls, blue eyes, and clasped hands,
+might have been taken for six Madonnas in an azure niche. At evening,
+when the sun declined and the baron returned homeward, after riding
+round his domains, he perceived from afar, in the windows looking
+toward the west, six sons, with dark locks and eagle gaze, the hope
+and pride of the family, that might have been taken for six sculptured
+knights at the portal of a church. For ten leagues round, all who
+wished to quote a happy father and a powerful lord named the Baron
+Kerver.
+
+The castle had but twelve windows, and the baron had thirteen
+children. The last, the one that had no place, was a handsome boy of
+sixteen, by the name of Yvon. As usual, he was the best beloved. In
+the morning, at his departure, and at evening, on his return, the
+baron always found Yvon waiting on the threshold to embrace him. With
+his hair falling to his waist, his graceful figure, his wilful air,
+and his bold bearing, Yvon was beloved by all the Bretons. At twelve
+years of age he had bravely attacked and killed a wolf with an ax,
+which had won him the name of _Fearless_. He deserved the title, for
+never was there a bolder heart.
+
+One day, when the baron had stayed at home, and was amusing himself by
+breaking a lance with his squire, Yvon entered the armory in a
+traveling dress, and, bending one knee to the ground, "My lord and
+father," said he to the baron, "I come to ask your blessing. The house
+of Kerver is rich in knights, and has no need of a child; it is time
+for me to go to seek my fortune. I wish to go to distant countries to
+try my strength and to make myself a name."
+
+"You are right, Fearless," replied the baron, more moved than he
+wished to appear. "I will not keep you back; I have no right to do so;
+but you are very young, my child; perhaps it would be better for you
+to stay another year with us."
+
+"I am sixteen, my father; at that age you had already fought one of
+the proudest lords of the country. I have not forgotten that our arms
+are a unicorn ripping up a lion, and our motto. Onward! I do not wish
+the Kervers to blush for their last child."
+
+Yvon received his father's blessing, shook hands with his brothers,
+embraced his sisters, bid adieu to all the weeping vassals, and set
+out with a light heart.
+
+Nothing stopped him on his way. A river appeared, he swam it; a
+mountain, he climbed it; a forest, he made his way through it with the
+sun for a guide. "_On--the Kerver!_" he cried, whenever he met with an
+obstacle, and went straight forward in spite of everything.
+
+For three years he had been roaming over the world in search of
+adventures, sometimes conquering, sometimes conquered, always bold and
+gay, when he received an offer to go to fight the heathen of Norway.
+To kill unbelievers and to conquer a kingdom was a double pleasure.
+Yvon enlisted twelve brave comrades, freighted a ship, and hoisted
+from the mainmast a blue standard with the unicorn and motto of the
+Kervers.
+
+The sea was calm, the wind fair, and the night serene. Yvon,
+stretched on the deck, watched the stars, and sought the one which
+cast its trembling light on his father's castle. All at once the
+vessel struck upon a rock; a terrible crash was heard; the sails fell
+like tinder; and an enormous wave burst over the deck and swept away
+everything upon it.
+
+"_On--the Kerver!_" cried Yvon, as soon as his head appeared above the
+water, and he began to swim as tranquilly as if he had been bathing in
+the lake of the old castle. Happily the moon was rising. Yvon saw, at
+a little distance, a black speck among the silvery waves--it was land.
+He approached it, not without difficulty, and finally succeeded in
+gaining a foothold. Dripping wet, exhausted with fatigue, and out of
+breath, he dragged himself on the sand, then, without more anxiety,
+said his prayers and went to sleep.
+
+
+II
+
+In the morning, on awaking, Yvon tried to discover in what country he
+had been cast. He saw in the distance a house as large as a church,
+with windows fifty feet in height. He walked a whole day before
+reaching it, and at last found himself in front of an immense door,
+with a knocker so heavy that it was impossible for a man to lift it.
+
+Yvon took a great stone and began to knock. "Come in," cried a voice
+that sounded like the roar of a bull. At the same instant the door
+opened, and the little Breton found himself in the presence of a
+giant not less than forty feet in height.
+
+"What is your name, and what do you want here?" said the giant, taking
+up Yvon between his thumb and finger and lifting him from the ground
+so as to see him better.
+
+"My name is Fearless, and I am seeking my fortune," answered Yvon,
+looking at the monster with an air of defiance.
+
+"Well, brave Fearless, your fortune is made," said the giant, in a
+mocking tone. "I am in need of a servant and I will give you the
+place. You can go to work directly. This is the time for leading my
+sheep to the pasture; you may clean the stable while I am gone. I
+shall give you nothing else to do," added he, bursting into a laugh.
+"You see that I am a good master. Do your task, and, above all things,
+don't prowl about the house, or it will cost you your life."
+
+"Certainly I have a good master; the work is not hard," thought Yvon,
+when the giant was gone. "I have plenty of time to sweep the stable.
+What shall I do meanwhile to amuse myself? Shall I look about the
+house? Since I am forbidden to do so, it must be because there is
+something to see."
+
+He entered the first room, and saw a large fireplace in which a great
+pot was hanging, suspended from a hook. The pot was boiling, but there
+was no fire on the hearth.
+
+"What does this mean?" thought Yvon; "there is some mystery here." He
+cut off a lock of his hair, dipped it into the pot, and took it out
+all coated with copper.
+
+"Oh, oh!" cried he, "this is a new kind of soup; anybody that swallows
+it must have an iron-clad stomach."
+
+He went into the next room; there also a pot was suspended from a
+hook, and boiling without fire. Yvon dipped a lock of hair into it,
+and took it out all coated with silver.
+
+"The broth is not so rich as this in the Kerver kitchen," thought he,
+"but it may have a better taste."
+
+Upon this, he entered the third room. There also a pot was suspended
+from a hook, and boiling without fire. Yvon dipped a lock of hair into
+it, and took it out all coated with gold. It shone so brightly that it
+might have been mistaken for a sunbeam.
+
+"Good!" cried he. "In our country the old women have a saying, 'Everything
+gets worse and worse'; here it is just the contrary--everything gets
+better and better. What shall I find in the fourth room, I wonder--diamond
+soup?"
+
+He pushed open the door and saw something rarer than precious stones.
+This was a young woman of such marvelous beauty that Yvon, dazzled,
+fell on his knees at the sight.
+
+"Unfortunate youth!" cried she, in a trembling voice, "what are you
+doing here?"
+
+"I belong to the house," answered Yvon; "the giant took me into his
+service this morning."
+
+"His service!" repeated the young girl. "May Heaven preserve you from
+it!"
+
+"Why so?" said Yvon. "I have a good master; the work is not hard. The
+stable once swept, my task is finished."
+
+"Yes, and how will you set to work to sweep it?" said the lady. "If
+you sweep it in the usual way, for every forkful of dung that you
+throw out of the door, ten will come in at the window. But I will tell
+you what to do. Turn the fork and sweep with the handle, and the dung
+will instantly fly out of itself."
+
+"I will obey," said Yvon; upon which he sat down by the young girl and
+began to talk with her. She was the daughter of a fairy, whom the
+wretched giant had made his slave. Friendship soon springs up between
+companions in misfortune. Before the end of the day Finette (for that
+was the lady's name) and Yvon had already promised to belong to each
+other if they could escape from their abominable master. The
+difficulty was to find the means.
+
+Time passes quickly in this kind of talk. Evening was approaching when
+Finette sent away her new friend, advising him to sweep the stable
+before the giant came home.
+
+Yvon took down the fork and attempted to use it as he had seen it
+done at his father's castle. He soon had enough of it. In less than a
+second there was so much dung in the stable that the poor boy knew not
+which way to turn. He did as Finette had bid him; he turned the fork
+and swept with the handle, when, behold! in the twinkling of an eye
+the stable was as clean as if no cattle had ever entered it.
+
+The task finished, Yvon seated himself on a bench before the door of
+the house. As soon as he saw the giant coming he lolled back in his
+seat, crossed his legs, and began to sing one of his native airs.
+
+"Have you cleaned the stable?" asked the giant, with a frown.
+
+"Everything is ready, master," answered Yvon, without troubling
+himself to move.
+
+"I am going to see for myself," howled the giant. He entered the
+stable grumbling, found everything in order, and came out furious.
+
+"You have seen my Finette," cried he; "this trick did not come from
+your own head."
+
+"What is myfinette?" asked Yvon, opening his mouth and shutting his
+eyes. "Is it one of the animals that you have in this country? Show it
+to me, master."
+
+"Hold your tongue, fool," replied the giant; "you will see her sooner
+than you will want to."
+
+The next morning the giant gathered his sheep together to lead them
+to the pasture, but before setting out he ordered Yvon to go in the
+course of the day in search of his horse, which was turned out to
+graze on the mountain. "After that," said he, bursting into a laugh,
+"you can rest all day long. You see that I am a good master. Do your
+task; and, above all things, don't prowl about the house or I will cut
+off your head."
+
+Yvon winked his eye as the giant left. "Yes, you are a good master,"
+said he, between his teeth. "I understand your tricks; but, in spite
+of your threats, I shall go into the house and talk with your Finette.
+It remains to be seen whether she will not be more mine than yours."
+
+He ran to the young girl's room. "Hurrah!" cried he; "I have nothing
+to do all day but to go to the mountain after a horse."
+
+"Very well," said Finette. "How will you set to work to ride him?"
+
+"A fine question," returned Yvon. "As if it was a difficult thing to
+ride a horse! I fancy that I have ridden worse ones than this."
+
+"It is not so easy as you think," replied Finette; "but I will tell
+you what to do. Take the bit that hangs behind the stable door, and,
+when the animal rushes toward you breathing fire and smoke from his
+nostrils, force it straight between his teeth; he will instantly
+become as gentle as a lamb, and you can do what you please with him."
+
+"I will obey," said Yvon; upon which he sat down by the side of
+Finette and began to talk with her. They talked of everything; but,
+however far their fancy strayed, they always came back to the point
+that they were promised to each other and that they must escape from
+the giant. Time passes quickly in this kind of talk. The evening drew
+nigh. Yvon had forgotten the horse and the mountain, and Finette was
+obliged to send him away, advising him to bring back the animal before
+his master's arrival.
+
+Yvon took down the bit that was hidden behind the stable door and
+hastened to the mountain, when, lo! a horse almost as large as an
+elephant rushed toward him at full gallop, breathing fire and smoke
+from his nostrils. Yvon firmly awaited the huge animal, and, the
+moment he opened his enormous jaws, thrust between them the bit; when,
+lo! the horse instantly became as gentle as a lamb. Yvon made him
+kneel down, sprang on his back, and tranquilly returned home.
+
+His task finished, Yvon seated himself on the bench before the door of
+the house. As soon as he saw the giant coming, he lolled back in his
+seat, crossed his legs, and began to sing one of his native airs.
+
+"Have you brought back the horse?" asked the giant, with a frown.
+
+"Yes, master," answered Yvon, without taking the trouble to move. "He
+is a fine animal and does you credit. He is gentle, well trained, and
+as quiet as a lamb. He is feeding yonder in the stable."
+
+"I am going to see for myself," howled the giant. He entered the
+stable, grumbling, found everything in order, and came out furious.
+
+"You have seen my Finette," he said; "this trick did not come from
+your own head."
+
+"Oh, master," returned Yvon, opening his mouth and shutting his eyes,
+"it is the same story over again. What is this myfinette? Once for
+all, show me this monster."
+
+"Hold your tongue, fool," returned the giant; "you will see her sooner
+than you will want to."
+
+The third day at dawn the giant gathered his sheep together to lead
+them to the pasture; but, before setting out, he said to Yvon:
+
+"To-day you must go to the bottomless pit to collect my rent. After
+that," continued he, bursting into a laugh, "you may rest all day
+long. You see that I am a good master."
+
+"A good master, so be it," murmured Yvon, "but the task is none the
+less hard. I will go and see my Finette, as the giant says; I have
+great need of her help to get through to-day's business."
+
+When Finette had learned what was the task of the day, "Well," said
+she, "how will you go to work to do it?"
+
+"I don't know," said Yvon, sadly; "I have never been to the bottomless
+pit, and, even if I knew the way there, I should not know what to ask
+for. Tell me what to do."
+
+"Do you see that great rock yonder?" said Finette; "that is one of the
+gates of the bottomless pit. Take this stick, knock three times on the
+stone, and a demon will come out all streaming with flames, who will
+ask you how much you want. Take care to answer, 'No more than I can
+carry.'"
+
+"I will obey," said Yvon; upon which he took a seat by the side of
+Finette and began to talk with her. He would have been there till this
+time if the young girl had not sent him to the great rock, when the
+evening drew nigh, to execute the giant's commands.
+
+On reaching the spot pointed out to him, Yvon found a great block of
+granite. He struck it three times with the stick, when, lo! the rock
+opened and a demon came forth all streaming with flames.
+
+"What do you want?" he cried.
+
+"I have come for the giant's rent," answered Yvon, calmly.
+
+"How much do you want?"
+
+"I never want any more than I can carry," replied the Breton.
+
+"It is well for you that you do not," returned the man in flames.
+"Enter this cavern and you will find what you want."
+
+Yvon entered, and opened his eyes wide. Everywhere he saw nothing but
+gold, silver, diamonds, carbuncles, and emeralds. They were as
+numerous as the sands on the seashore. The young Kerver filled a sack,
+threw it across his shoulder, and tranquilly returned home.
+
+His task finished, our Breton seated himself on the bench before the
+door of the house. As soon as he saw the giant coming he lolled back
+in his seat, crossed his legs, and began to sing one of his native
+airs.
+
+"Have you been to the bottomless pit to collect my rent?" asked the
+giant, with a frown.
+
+"Yes, master," answered Yvon, without taking the trouble to stir. "The
+sack is right there before your eyes; you can count it."
+
+"I am going to see for myself," howled the giant. He untied the
+strings of the sack, which was so full that the gold and silver rolled
+in all directions.
+
+"You have seen my Finette," he cried; "this trick did not come from
+your own head."
+
+"Don't you know but one song?" said Yvon, opening his mouth and
+shutting his eyes. "It is the old story, myfinette, myfinette. Once
+for all, show me this thing."
+
+"Well, well," roared the giant, with fury, "wait till to-morrow and
+you shall make her acquaintance."
+
+"Thank you, master," said Yvon. "It is very good of you; but I see
+from your face that you are laughing at me."
+
+
+III
+
+The next morning the giant went out without giving Yvon any orders,
+which troubled Finette. At noon he returned without his flock,
+complaining of the heat and fatigue, and said to the young girl:
+
+"You will find a child, my servant, at the door. Cut his throat, put
+him into the great pot to boil, and call me when the broth is ready."
+Saying this, he stretched himself on the bed to take a nap, and was
+soon snoring so loudly that it seemed like thunder shaking the
+mountains.
+
+Finette prepared a log of wood, took a large knife, and called Yvon.
+She pricked his little finger; three drops of blood fell on the log.
+
+"That is enough," said Finette; "now help me to fill the pot."
+
+They threw into it all that they could find--old clothes, old shoes,
+old carpets, and everything else. Finette then took Yvon by the hand
+and led him through the three antechambers, where she ran in a mold
+three bullets of gold, two bullets of silver, and one bullet of
+copper, after which they quitted the house and ran toward the sea.
+
+[Illustration: HE WAS SOON SNORING SO LOUDLY THAT IT SEEMED LIKE
+THUNDER SHAKING THE MOUNTAINS]
+
+"_On--the Kerver!_" cried Yvon, as soon as he saw himself in the
+country. "Explain yourself, dear Finette; what farce are we playing
+now?"
+
+"Let us run--let us run!" she cried; "if we do not quit this wretched
+island before night, it is all over with us."
+
+"_On--the Kerver!_" replied Yvon, laughing, "and down with the giant!"
+
+When he had snored a full hour, the giant stretched his limbs, half
+opened one eye, and cried, "Is it ready?"
+
+"It is just beginning to boil," answered the first drop of blood on
+the log.
+
+The giant turned over, and snored louder than ever for an hour or two
+longer. Then he stretched his limbs, half opened one eye, and cried
+out: "Do you hear me? Is it almost ready?"
+
+"It is half done," answered the second drop of blood on the log.
+
+The giant turned over, and slept an hour longer. Then he yawned,
+stretched his great limbs, and cried out, impatiently:
+
+"Isn't it ready yet?"
+
+"It is ready now," answered the third drop of blood on the log.
+
+The giant sat up in bed, rubbed his eyes, and looked around to see who
+had spoken; but it was in vain to look; he saw nobody.
+
+"Finette," howled he, "why isn't the table set?"
+
+There was no answer. The giant, furious, sprang out of bed, seized a
+ladle, which looked like a caldron with a pitchfork for a handle, and
+plunged it into the pot to taste the soup.
+
+"Finette!" howled he, "you haven't salted it. What sort of soup is
+this? I see neither meat nor vegetables."
+
+No; but, in return, he saw his carpet, which had not quite all boiled
+to pieces. At this sight he fell into such a fit of rage that he could
+not keep his feet.
+
+"Villains!" said he, "you have played a fine trick on me; but you
+shall pay for it."
+
+He rushed out with a stick in his hand, and strode along at such a
+rate that in a quarter of an hour he discovered the two fugitives
+still far from the seashore. He uttered such a cry of joy that the
+earth shook for twelve leagues around.
+
+Finette stopped, trembling. Yvon clasped her to his heart.
+
+"_On--the Kerver!_" said he; "the sea is not far off; we shall be
+there before our enemy."
+
+"Here he is! here he is!" cried Finette, pointing to the giant not a
+hundred yards off; "we are lost if this charm does not save us."
+
+She took the copper bullet and threw it on the ground, saying,
+
+    "Copper bullet, save us, pray;
+    Stop the giant on his way."
+
+And behold, the earth cracked apart with a terrific noise, and an
+enormous fissure, a bottomless pit, stopped the giant just as he was
+stretching out his hand to seize his prey.
+
+"Let us fly!" cried Finette, grasping the arm of Yvon, who was gazing
+at the giant with a swaggering air, defying him to come on.
+
+The giant ran backward and forward along the abyss, like a bear in his
+cage, seeking a passage everywhere and finding none; then, with a
+furious jerk, he tore up an immense oak by the roots and flung it
+across the gap. The branches of the oak nearly crushed the children as
+it fell. The giant seated himself astride the huge tree, which bent
+under his weight, and crept slowly along, suspended between heaven and
+earth, entangled as he was among the branches. When he reached the
+other side, Yvon and Finette were already on the shore, with the sea
+rolling before them.
+
+Alas! there was neither bark nor ship. The fugitives were lost. Yvon,
+always brave, picked up stones to attack the giant and to sell his
+life dearly. Finette, trembling with fear, threw one of the silver
+bullets into the sea, saying,
+
+    "Silver bullet, bright and pliant,
+    Save us from this frightful giant."
+
+Scarcely had she spoken the magic words when a beautiful ship rose
+from the waves like a swan spreading its white wings. Yvon and Finette
+plunged into the sea; a rope was thrown them by an invisible hand,
+and when the furious giant reached the shore the ship was receding
+rapidly at full sail, leaving behind it a long furrow of shining foam.
+
+Giants do not like the water. This fact is certified to by old Homer,
+who knew Polyphemus; and the same observation will be found in all
+natural histories worthy of the name. Finette's master resembled
+Polyphemus. He roared with rage when he saw his slaves about to escape
+him. He ran hesitatingly along the shore; he flung huge masses of rock
+after the vessel, which happily fell by the side of it and only made
+great black holes in the water; and, finally, mad with anger, he
+plunged head foremost into the sea and began to swim after the ship
+with frightful speed. At each stroke he advanced forty feet, blowing
+like a whale, and like a whale cleaving the waves. By degrees he
+gained on his enemies; one more effort would bring him within reach of
+the rudder, and already he was stretching out his arm to seize it,
+when Finette threw the second silver bullet into the sea and cried, in
+tears,
+
+    "Silver bullet, bright and pliant,
+    Save us from this frightful giant."
+
+Suddenly from the midst of the foam darted forth a gigantic swordfish,
+with a sword at least twenty feet in length. It rushed straight toward
+the giant, who scarcely had time to dive, chased him under the water,
+pursued him on the top of the waves, followed him closely whichever
+way he turned, and forced him to flee as fast as he could to his
+island, where he finally landed with the greatest difficulty, and fell
+upon the shore dripping, worn out, and conquered.
+
+"_On--the Kerver!_" cried Yvon; "we are saved."
+
+"Not yet," said Finette, trembling. "The giant has a witch for a
+godmother; I fear that she will revenge on me the insult offered to
+her godson. My art tells me, my dear Yvon, that if you quit me a
+single instant until you give me your name in the chapel of the
+Kervers I have everything to dread."
+
+"By the unicorn of my ancestors," cried Yvon, "you have the heart of a
+hare and not of a hero! Am I not here? Am I going to abandon you? Do
+you believe that Providence has saved us from the fangs of that
+monster to wreck us in port?"
+
+He laughed so gaily that Finette laughed in turn at the terror that
+had seized her.
+
+
+IV
+
+The rest of the voyage passed off admirably. An invisible hand seemed
+to impel the ship onward. Twenty days after their departure the boat
+landed Yvon and Finette near Kerver Castle. Once on shore, Yvon turned
+to thank the crew. No one was there. Both boat and ship had vanished
+under the waves, leaving no trace behind but a gull on the wing.
+
+Yvon recognized the spot where he had so often gathered shells and
+chased the crabs to their holes when a child. Half an hour's walk
+would bring him in sight of the towers of the old castle. His heart
+beat; he looked tenderly at Finette and saw, for the first time, that
+her dress was fantastic and unworthy of a woman about to enter the
+noble house of Kerver.
+
+"My dear child," said he, "the baron, my father, is a noble lord,
+accustomed to be treated with respect. I cannot introduce you to him
+in this gipsy dress; neither is it fitting that you should enter our
+great castle on foot like a peasant. Wait for me a few moments, and I
+will bring you a horse and one of my sister's dresses. I wish you to
+be received like a lady of high degree. I wish my father himself to
+meet you on your arrival, and hold it an honor to give you his hand."
+
+"Yvon, Yvon," cried Finette, "do not quit me, I beg you. Once returned
+to your castle, I know that you will forget me."
+
+"Forget you!" exclaimed Yvon. "If any one else were to offer me such
+an insult I would teach him with my sword to suspect a Kerver. Forget
+you, my Finette! You do not know the fidelity of a Breton."
+
+That the Bretons are faithful no one doubts; but that they are still
+more headstrong is a justice that none will deny them. It was useless
+for poor Finette to plead in her most loving tones; she was forced to
+yield. She resigned herself with a heavy heart, and said to Yvon:
+
+"Go without me, then, to your castle, but only stay long enough to
+speak to your friends; then go straight to the stable, and return as
+soon as possible. You will be surrounded by people; act as if you saw
+no one, and, above all, do not eat or drink anything whatever. Should
+you take only a glass of water, evil would come upon us both."
+
+Yvon promised and swore all that Finette asked, but he smiled in his
+heart at this feminine weakness. He was sure of himself; and he
+thought with pride how different a Breton was from those fickle
+Frenchmen whose words, they say, are borne away by the first breath of
+the wind.
+
+On entering the old castle he could scarcely recognize its dark walls.
+All the windows were festooned with leaves and flowers within and
+without; the courtyard was strewn with fragrant grass; on one side was
+spread tables groaning under their weight; on the other, musicians,
+mounted on casks, were playing merry airs. The vassals, dressed in
+their holiday attire, were singing and dancing and dancing and
+singing. It was a great day of rejoicing at the castle. The baron
+himself was smiling. It is true that he had just married his fifth
+daughter to the Knight of Kervalec. This marriage added another
+quartering to the illustrious escutcheon of the Kervers.
+
+Yvon, recognized and welcomed by all the crowd, was instantly
+surrounded by his relatives, who embraced him and shook him by the
+hand. Where had he been? Where did he come from? Had he conquered a
+kingdom, a duchy, or a barony? Had he brought the bride the jewels of
+some queen? Had the fairies protected him? How many rivals had he
+overthrown? All these questions were showered upon him without reply.
+Yvon respectfully kissed his father's hand, hastened to his sisters'
+chamber, took two of their finest dresses, went to the stable, saddled
+a pony, mounted a beautiful Spanish jennet, and was about to quit the
+castle, when he found his relatives, friends, and vassals all standing
+in his way, their glasses in their hands, ready to drink their young
+lord's health and his safe return.
+
+Yvon gracefully thanked them, bowed, and made his way by degrees
+through the crowd, when, just as he was about to cross the drawbridge,
+a fair-haired lady, with a haughty and disdainful air, a stranger to
+him, a sister of the bridegroom, perhaps, approached him, holding a
+pomegranate in her hand.
+
+"My handsome knight," said she, with a singular smile, "you surely
+will not refuse a lady's first request. Taste this pomegranate, I
+entreat you. If you are neither hungry nor thirsty after so long a
+journey, I suppose at least that you have not forgotten the laws of
+politeness."
+
+Yvon dared not refuse this appeal. He was very wrong. Scarcely had he
+tasted the pomegranate when he looked round him like a man waking from
+a dream.
+
+"What am I doing on this horse?" thought he. "What means this pony
+that I am leading? Is not my place in my father's house at my sister's
+wedding? Why should I quit the castle?"
+
+He threw the bridle to one of the grooms, leaped lightly to the
+ground, and offered his hand to the fair-haired lady, who accepted him
+as her attendant on the spot, and gave him her bouquet to hold as a
+special mark of favor.
+
+Before the evening was over there was another betrothed couple in the
+castle. Yvon had pledged his faith to the unknown lady and Finette was
+forgotten.
+
+
+V
+
+Poor Finette, seated on the seashore, waited all day long for Yvon,
+but Yvon did not come. The sun was setting in the fiery waves when
+Finette rose, sighing, and took the way to the castle in her turn. She
+had not walked long in a steep road, bordered with thorn-trees in
+blossom, when she found herself in front of a wretched hut at the door
+of which stood an old woman about to milk her cow. Finette approached
+her and, making a low courtesy, begged a shelter for the night.
+
+The old woman looked at the stranger from head to foot. With her
+buskins trimmed with fur, her full red petticoat, her blue jacket
+edged with jet, and her diadem, Finette looked more like an Egyptian
+princess than a Christian. The old woman frowned and, shaking her fist
+in the face of the poor forsaken girl, "Begone, witch!" she cried;
+"there is no room for you in this honest house."
+
+"My good mother," said Finette, "give me only a corner of the stable."
+
+"Oh," said the old woman, laughing and showing the only tooth she had
+left, which projected from her mouth like a bear's tusk, "so you want
+a corner of the stable, do you! Well, you shall have it if you will
+fill my milk-pail with gold."
+
+"It is a bargain," said Finette, quietly. She opened a leather purse
+which she wore at her belt, took from it a golden bullet, and threw it
+into the milk-pail, saying,
+
+    "Golden bullet, precious treasure,
+    Save me, if it be thy pleasure."
+
+And behold! the pieces of gold began to dance about in the pail; they
+rose higher and higher, flapping about like fish in a net, while the
+old woman, on her knees, gazed with wonder at the sight.
+
+[Illustration: SHE FOUND HERSELF IN FRONT OF A WRETCHED HUT AT THE
+DOOR OF WHICH STOOD AN OLD WOMAN, OF WHOM SHE BEGGED SHELTER FOR THE
+NIGHT]
+
+When the pail was full the old woman rose, put her arm through the
+handle, and said to Finette, "Madam, all is yours, the house, the cow,
+and everything else. Hurrah! I am going to the town to live like a
+lady with nothing to do. Oh dear, how I wish I were only sixty!" And,
+shaking her crutch, without looking backward, she set out on a run
+toward Kerver Castle.
+
+Finette entered the house. It was a wretched hovel, dark, low, damp,
+bad-smelling, and full of dust and spiders' webs--a horrible refuge
+for a woman accustomed to living in the giant's grand castle. Without
+seeming troubled, Finette went to the hearth, on which a few green
+boughs were smoking, took another golden bullet from her purse, and
+threw it into the fire, saying,
+
+    "Golden bullet, precious treasure,
+    Save me, if it be thy pleasure."
+
+The gold melted, bubbled up, and spread all over the house like
+running water, and behold! the whole cottage, the walls, the thatch,
+the wooden rocking-chair, the stool, the chest, the bed, the cow's
+horns--everything, even to the spiders in their webs, was turned to
+gold. The house gleamed in the moonlight, among the trees, like a star
+in the night.
+
+When Finette had milked the cow and drank a little new milk, she threw
+herself on the bed without undressing, and, worn out by the fatigue
+of the day, fell asleep in the midst of her tears.
+
+Old women do not know how to hold their tongues, at least in Brittany.
+Finette's hostess had scarcely reached the village when she hastened
+to the house of the steward. He was an important personage, who had
+more than once made her tremble when she had driven her cow into her
+neighbor's pasture by mistake. The steward listened to the old woman's
+story, shook his head, and said it looked like witchcraft; then he
+mysteriously brought a pair of scales, weighed the guineas, which he
+found to be genuine and of full weight, kept as many of them as he
+could, and advised the owner to tell no one of this strange adventure.
+"If it should come to the ears of the bailiff or the seneschal," said
+he, "the least that would happen to you, mother, would be to lose
+every one of these beautiful bright guineas. Justice is impartial; it
+knows neither favor nor repugnance; it takes the whole."
+
+The old woman thanked the steward for his advice, and promised to
+follow it. She kept her word so well that she only told her story that
+evening to two neighbors, her dearest friends, both of whom swore on
+the heads of their little children to keep it secret. The oath was a
+solemn one, and so well kept that at noon the next day there was not a
+boy of six in the village that did not point his finger at the old
+woman, while the very dogs seemed to bark in their language, "Here is
+the old woman with her guineas!"
+
+A girl that amuses herself by filling milk-pails with gold is not to
+be found every day. Even though she should be something of a witch,
+such a girl would none the less be a treasure in a family. The
+steward, who was a bachelor, made this wise reflection that night on
+going to bed. Before dawn he rose to make his rounds in the direction
+of the stranger's cottage. By the first gleam of day he spied
+something shining in the distance like a light among the woods. On
+reaching the place, he was greatly surprised to find a golden cottage
+instead of the wretched hut that had stood there the day before. But,
+on entering the house, he was much more surprised and delighted to
+find a beautiful young girl, with raven hair, sitting by the window
+and spinning on her distaff with the air of an empress.
+
+Like all men, the steward did himself justice, and knew, at the bottom
+of his heart, that there was not a woman in the world that would not
+be too happy to give him her hand. Without hesitating, therefore, he
+declared to Finette that he had come to marry her. The young girl
+burst out laughing, upon which the steward flew into a passion.
+
+"Take care!" said he, in a terrible voice. "I am the master here. No
+one knows who you are or whence you came. The gold that you gave the
+old woman has raised suspicions. There is magic in this house. If you
+do not accept me for a husband this very instant, I will arrest you,
+and before night, perhaps, a witch will be burned before Kerver
+Castle."
+
+"You are very amiable," said Finette, with a charming grimace; "you
+have a peculiar way of paying court to ladies. Even when they have
+decided not to refuse, a gallant man spares their blushes."
+
+"We Bretons are plain-spoken people," replied the steward; "we go
+straight to the point. Marriage or prison, which do you choose?"
+
+"Oh!" cried Finette, laying down the distaff, "there are the
+firebrands falling all over the room."
+
+"Don't trouble yourself," said the steward; "I will pick them up."
+
+"Lay them carefully on the top of the ashes," returned Finette. "Have
+you the tongs?"
+
+"Yes," said the steward, picking up the crackling coals.
+
+"_Abracadabra!_" cried Finette, rising. "Villain, may the tongs hold
+you, and may you hold the tongs till sunset!"
+
+No sooner said than done. The wicked steward stood there all day with
+the tongs in his hand, picking up and throwing back the burning coals
+that snapped in his face and the hot ashes that flew into his eyes. It
+was useless for him to shout, pray, weep, and blaspheme; no one heard
+him. If Finette had stayed at home, she would doubtless have taken
+pity on him; but after putting the spell upon him, she hastened to
+the seashore, where, forgetting everything else, she watched for Yvon
+in vain.
+
+The moment that the sun set, the tongs fell from the steward's hands.
+He did not stop to finish his errand, but ran as if the devil or
+justice were at his heels. He made such leaps, he uttered such groans,
+he was so blackened, scorched, and benumbed, that every one in the
+village was afraid of him, thinking that he was mad. The boldest tried
+to speak to him, but he fled without answering, and hid himself in his
+house, more ashamed than a wolf that has left his paw in the trap.
+
+At evening, when Finette returned home in despair, instead of the
+steward she found another visitor little less formidable. The bailiff
+had heard the story of the guineas and had also made up his mind to
+marry the stranger. He was not rough, like the steward, but a fat,
+good-natured man that could not speak without bursting into a laugh,
+showing his great yellow teeth, and puffing and blowing like an ox,
+though at heart he was not less obstinate or less threatening than his
+predecessor. Finette entreated the bailiff to leave her alone. He
+laughed, and hinted to her, in a good-natured way, that, by right of
+his office, he had the power to imprison and hang people without
+process of law. She clasped her hands and begged him with tears to go.
+For his only answer, he took a roll of parchment from his pocket,
+wrote on it a contract of marriage, and declared to Finette that,
+should he stay all night, he would not leave the house till she had
+signed the promise.
+
+"Nevertheless," said he, "if you do not like my person, I have another
+parchment here on which I will write an agreement to live apart; and
+if my sight annoys you you have only to shut your eyes."
+
+"Why," said Finette, "I might decide to do as you wish if I were sure
+of finding a good husband in you; but I am afraid."
+
+"Of what, my dear child?" asked the bailiff, smiling, and already as
+proud as a peacock.
+
+"Do you think," said she, with a pettish air, "that a good husband
+would leave that door wide open and not know that his wife was
+freezing with cold?"
+
+"You are right, my dear," said the bailiff; "it was very stupid in me.
+I will go and shut it."
+
+"Have you hold of the knob?" asked Finette.
+
+"Yes, my charmer," answered the happy bailiff; "I am just shutting the
+door."
+
+"_Abracadabra!_" cried Finette. "May you hold the door, villain, and
+may the door hold you till daybreak."
+
+And behold! the door opened and shut, and slammed against the walls
+like an eagle flapping its wings. You may judge what a dance the poor
+captive kept up all night. Never had he tried such a waltz, and I
+imagine that he never wished to dance a second one of the same sort.
+Sometimes the door swung open with him in the street; sometimes it
+flew back and crushed him against the wall. He swung backward and
+forward, screaming, swearing, weeping, and praying, but all in vain;
+the door was deaf, and Finette asleep.
+
+At daybreak his hands unclasped and he fell in the road head foremost.
+Without waiting to finish his errand, he ran as if the Moors were
+after him. He did not even turn round, for fear that the door might be
+at his heels. Fortunately for him, all were still asleep when he
+reached the village, and he could hide himself in bed without any one
+seeing his deplorable plight. This was a great piece of good fortune
+for him, for he was covered with whitewash from head to foot, and so
+pale, haggard, and trembling that he might have been taken for the
+ghost of a miller escaped from the infernal regions.
+
+When Finette opened her eyes she saw by her bedside a tall man dressed
+in black, with a velvet cap and a sword. It was the seneschal of the
+barony of Kerver. He stood with his arms folded, gazing at Finette in
+a way that chilled the very marrow of her bones.
+
+"What is your name, vassal?" said he, in a voice of thunder.
+
+"Finette, at your service, my lord," replied she, trembling.
+
+"Is this house and furniture yours?"
+
+"Yes, my lord, everything, at your service."
+
+"I mean that it shall be at my service," returned the seneschal,
+sternly. "Rise, vassal! I do you the honor to marry you, and to take
+yourself, your person, and your property under my guardianship."
+
+"My lord," returned Finette, "this is much too great an honor for a
+poor girl like me, a stranger, without friends or kindred."
+
+"Be silent, vassal!" replied the seneschal. "I am your lord and
+master; I have nothing to do with your advice. Sign this paper."
+
+"My lord," said Finette, "I don't know how to write."
+
+"Do you think that I do, either?" returned the seneschal, in a voice
+that shook the house. "Do you take me for a clerk? A cross--that is
+the signature of gentlemen."
+
+He made a large cross on the paper, and handed the pen to Finette.
+
+"Sign," said he. "If you are afraid to make a cross, infidel, you pass
+your own death sentence, and I shall take on myself to execute it." He
+drew his heavy sword from the scabbard as he spoke, and threw it on
+the table.
+
+For her only answer, Finette leaped out of the window and ran to the
+stable. The seneschal pursued her thither, but, on attempting to
+enter, an unexpected obstacle stopped him. The frightened cow had
+backed at the sight of the young girl, and stood in the doorway, with
+Finette clinging to her horns and making of her a sort of buckler.
+
+"You shall not escape me, sorceress!" cried the seneschal, and, with a
+grasp like that of Hercules, he seized the cow by the tail and dragged
+her out of the stable.
+
+"_Abracadabra!_" cried Finette. "May the cow's tail hold you, villain,
+and may you hold the cow's tail till you have both been around the
+world together."
+
+And behold! the cow darted off like lightning, dragging the unhappy
+seneschal after her. Nothing stopped the two inseparable comrades;
+they rushed over mountains and valleys, crossed marshes, rivers,
+quagmires, and brakes, glided over the seas without sinking, were
+frozen in Siberia and scorched in Africa, climbed the Himalayas,
+descended Mont Blanc, and at length, after thirty-six hours of a
+journey, the like of which had never been seen, both stopped out of
+breath in the public square of the village.
+
+A seneschal harnessed to a cow's tail is a sight not to be seen every
+day, and all the peasants in the neighborhood crowded together to
+wonder at the spectacle. But, torn as he was by the cactuses of
+Barbary and the thickets of Tartary, the seneschal had lost nothing of
+his haughty air. With a threatening gesture he dispersed the rabble,
+and limped to his house to taste the repose of which he began to feel
+the need.
+
+
+VI
+
+While the steward, the bailiff, and the seneschal were experiencing
+these little unpleasantnesses, of which they did not think it proper
+to boast, preparations were being made for a great event at Kerver
+Castle, namely, the marriage of Yvon and the fair-haired lady. Two
+days had passed in these preparations, and all the friends of the
+family had gathered together for twenty leagues round, when, one fine
+morning Yvon and his bride, with the Baron and Baroness Kerver, took
+their seats in a great carriage adorned with flowers, and set out for
+the celebrated church of St. Maclou.
+
+A hundred knights in full armor, mounted on horses decked with
+ribbons, rode on each side of the betrothed couple, each with his
+vizor raised and his lance at rest in token of honor. By the side of
+each baron, a squire, also on horseback, carried the seigniorial
+banner. At the head of the procession rode the seneschal, with a
+gilded staff in his hand. Behind the carriage gravely walked the
+bailiff, followed by the vassals, while the steward railed at the
+serfs, a noisy and curious rabble.
+
+As they were crossing a brook, a league from the castle, one of the
+traces of the carriage broke, and they were forced to stop. The
+accident repaired, the coachman cracked his whip, and the horses
+started with such force that the new trace broke in three pieces. Six
+times this provoking piece of wood was replaced, and six times it
+broke anew, without drawing the carriage from the hole where it was
+wedged.
+
+Every one had a word of advice to offer; even the peasants, as
+wheelwrights and carpenters, were not the last to make a show of their
+knowledge. This gave the steward courage; he approached the baron,
+took off his cap, and, scratching his head,
+
+"My lord," said he, "in the house that you see shining yonder among
+the trees there lives a woman who does things such as nobody else can
+do. Only persuade her to lend you her tongs, and, in my opinion, they
+will hold till morning."
+
+The baron made a sign, and ten peasants ran to the cottage of Finette,
+who very obligingly lent them her gold tongs. They were put in the
+place of the trace; the coachman cracked his whip, and off went the
+carriage like a feather.
+
+Every one rejoiced, but the joy did not last long. A hundred steps
+farther, lo! the bottom of the carriage gave way; little more, and the
+noble Kerver family would have sunk quite out of sight. The
+wheelwrights and the carpenters set to work at once; they sawed
+planks, nailed them down fast, and in the twinkling of an eye repaired
+the accident. The coachman cracked his whip and the horses started,
+when, behold! half of the carriage was left behind; the Baroness
+Kerver sat motionless by the side of the bride, while Yvon and the
+baron were carried off at full gallop. Here was a new difficulty.
+Three times was the carriage mended, three times it broke anew. There
+was every reason to believe that it was enchanted.
+
+Every one had a word of advice to offer. This gave the bailiff
+courage. He approached the baron and said, in a low tone:
+
+"My lord, in the house that you see shining yonder among the trees
+there lives a woman who does things such as nobody else can do. Only
+persuade her to lend you her door for the bottom of the carriage, and,
+in my opinion, it will hold till morning."
+
+The baron made a sign, and twenty peasants ran to the cottage of
+Finette, who very obligingly lent them her gold door. They put it in
+the bottom of the carriage, where it fitted as if it had been made
+expressly for it. The party took their seats in the carriage, the
+coachman cracked his whip, the church was in sight, and all the
+troubles of the journey seemed ended.
+
+Not at all! Suddenly the horses stopped and refused to draw. There
+were four of them. Six, eight, ten, twenty-four more were put to the
+carriage, but all in vain; it was impossible to stir them. The more
+they were whipped the deeper the wheels sunk into the ground, like the
+coulter of a plow.
+
+What were they to do? To go on foot would have been a disgrace. To
+mount a horse and ride to the church like simple peasants was not the
+custom of the Kervers. They tried to lift the carriage, they pushed
+the wheels, they shook it, they pulled it, but all in vain. Meanwhile
+the day was declining and the hour for the marriage had passed.
+
+Every one had a word of advice to offer. This gave the seneschal
+courage. He approached the baron, alighted from his horse, raised his
+velvet cap, and said:
+
+"My lord, in the house that you see shining yonder among the trees
+there lives a woman who does things such as nobody else can do. Only
+persuade her to lend you her cow to draw the carriage, and, in my
+opinion, she will draw it till morning."
+
+The baron made a sign, and thirty peasants ran to the cottage of
+Finette, who very obligingly lent them her golden-horned cow.
+
+To go to church drawn by a cow was not, perhaps, what the ambitious
+bride had dreamed of, but it was better than to remain unmarried in
+the road. The heifer was harnessed, therefore, before the four horses,
+and everybody looked on anxiously to see what this boasted animal
+would do.
+
+But before the coachman had time to crack his whip, lo! the cow
+started off as if she were about to go around the world anew. Horses,
+carriage, baron, betrothed, coachman, all were hurried away by the
+furious animal. In vain the knights spurred their horses to follow the
+pair; in vain the peasants ran at full speed, taking the cross-road
+and cutting across the meadows. The carriage flew as if it had wings;
+a pigeon could not have followed it.
+
+On reaching the door of the church, the party, a little disturbed by
+this rapid journey, would not have been sorry to alight. Everything
+was ready for the ceremony and the bridal pair had long been expected;
+but, instead of stopping, the cow redoubled her speed. Thirteen times
+she ran round the church like lightning, then suddenly made her way in
+a straight line across the fields to the castle, with such force that
+the whole party were almost shaken to pieces before their arrival.
+
+
+VII
+
+No more marriage was to be thought of for that day; but the tables
+were set and the dinner served, and the Baron Kerver was too noble a
+knight to take leave of his brave Bretons until they had eaten and
+drunk according to custom--that is, from sunset till sunrise, and even
+a little later.
+
+Orders were given for the guests to take their seats. Ninety-six
+tables were ranged in eight rows. In front of them, on a large
+platform covered with velvet, with a canopy in the middle, was a table
+larger than the rest, and loaded with fruit and flowers, to say
+nothing of the roast hares, and the peacocks smoking beneath their
+plumage. At this table the bridal pair were to have been seated in
+full sight, in order that nothing might be lacking to the pleasures
+of the feast, and that the meanest peasant might have the honor of
+saluting them by emptying his cup of hydromel to the honor and
+prosperity of the high and mighty house of Kerver.
+
+The baron seated the hundred knights at his table, and placed their
+squires behind their chairs to serve them. At his right he put the
+bride and Yvon, but he left the seat at his left vacant, and, calling
+a page, "Child," said he, "run to the house of the stranger lady who
+obliged us only too much this morning. It was not her fault if her
+success exceeded her good will. Tell her that the Baron Kerver thanks
+her for her help and invites her to the wedding feast of his son, Lord
+Yvon."
+
+On reaching the golden house, where Finette, in tears, was mourning
+for her beloved, the page bent one knee to the ground and, in the
+baron's name, invited the stranger lady to the castle to do honor to
+the wedding of Lord Yvon.
+
+"Thank your master for me," answered the young girl, proudly, "and
+tell him that if he is too noble to come to my house, I am too noble
+to go to his."
+
+When the page repeated this answer to his master the Baron Kerver
+struck the table such a blow that three plates flew in the air.
+
+"By my honor," said he, "this is spoken like a lady, and for the first
+time I own myself beaten. Quick, saddle my dun mare, and let my
+knights and squires prepare to attend me."
+
+It was with this brilliant train that the baron alighted at the door
+of the golden cottage. He begged Finette's pardon, held the stirrup
+for her, and seated her behind him on his own horse, neither more nor
+less than a duchess in person. Through respect, he did not speak a
+single word to her on the way. On reaching the castle he uncovered his
+head and led her to the seat of honor that he had chosen for her.
+
+The baron's departure had made a great excitement, and his return
+caused still greater surprise. Every one asked who the lady could be
+that the baron treated with such respect. Judging from her costume,
+she was a foreigner. Could she be the Duchess of Normandy or the Queen
+of France? The steward, the bailiff, and the seneschal were appealed
+to. The steward trembled, the bailiff turned pale, and the seneschal
+blushed, but all three were as mute as fishes. The silence of these
+important personages added to the general wonder.
+
+All eyes were fixed on Finette, who felt a deadly chill at her heart,
+for Yvon saw, but did not know her. He cast an indifferent glance at
+her, then began again to talk in a tender tone to the fair-haired
+lady, who smiled disdainfully.
+
+Finette, in despair, took from the purse the golden bullet, her last
+hope. While talking with the baron, who was charmed with her wit, she
+shook the little ball in her hand, and repeated, in a whisper,
+
+    "Golden bullet, precious treasure,
+    Save me, if it be thy pleasure."
+
+And behold! the bullet grew larger and larger, until it became a
+goblet of chased gold, the most beautiful cup that ever graced the
+table of baron or king.
+
+Finette filled the cup herself with spiced wine, and, calling the
+seneschal, who was cowering behind her, she said, in her gentlest
+tones, "My good seneschal, I entreat you to offer this goblet to Lord
+Yvon. I wish to drink his health, and I am sure that he will not
+refuse me this pleasure."
+
+Yvon took the goblet, which the seneschal presented to him on a salver
+of enamel and gold, with a careless hand, bowed to the stranger, drank
+the wine, and, setting the cup on the table before him, turned to the
+fair-haired lady who occupied all his thoughts. The lady seemed
+anxious and vexed. He whispered a few words in her ear that seemed to
+please her, for her eyes sparkled, and she placed her hand again in
+his.
+
+Finette cast down her head and began to weep. All was over.
+
+"Children," cried the baron, in a voice of thunder, "fill your
+glasses. Let us drink to the noble stranger who honors us with her
+presence. To the noble lady of the golden cottage!"
+
+All began to huzzah and drink. Yvon contented himself with raising his
+goblet to a level with his eyes. Suddenly he started and stood mute,
+his mouth open and his eyes fixed, like a man that has a vision.
+
+It was a vision. In the gold of the goblet Yvon saw his past life as
+in a mirror: the giant pursuing him; Finette dragging him along; both
+embarking in the ship that saved them; both landing on the shore of
+Brittany; he quitting her for an instant; she weeping at his
+departure. Where was she? By his side, of course. What other woman
+than Finette could be by the side of Yvon?
+
+He turned toward the fair-haired lady and cried out like a man
+treading on a serpent. Then, staggering as if he were drunk, he rose
+and looked around him with haggard eyes. At the sight of Finette he
+clasped his trembling hands and, dragging himself toward her, fell on
+his knees and exclaimed, "Finette, forgive me!"
+
+To forgive is the height of happiness. Before evening Finette was
+seated by the side of Yvon, both weeping and smiling.
+
+And what became of the fair-haired lady? No one knows. At the cry of
+Yvon she disappeared; but it was said that a wretched old hag was seen
+flying on a broomstick over the castle walls, chased by the dogs; and
+it was the common opinion among the Kervers that the fair-haired lady
+was none other than the witch, the godmother of the giant. I am not
+sure enough of the fact, however, to dare warrant it. It is always
+prudent to believe, without proof, that a woman may be a witch, but it
+is never wise to say so.
+
+What I can say on the word of a historian is that the feast,
+interrupted for a moment, went on gayer than ever. Early the next
+morning they went to the church, where, to the joy of his heart, Yvon
+married Finette, who was no longer afraid of evil spirits; after which
+they ate, drank, and danced for thirty-six hours, without any one
+thinking of resting. The steward's arms were a little heavy, the
+bailiff rubbed his back at times, and the seneschal felt a sort of
+weariness in his limbs, but all three had a weight on their
+consciences which they could not shake off, and which made them
+tremble and flutter, till finally they fell on the ground and were
+carried off. Finette took no other vengeance on them; her only desire
+was to render all happy around her, far and near, who belonged to the
+noble house of Kerver. Her memory still lives in Brittany; and among
+the ruins of the old castle, any one will show you the statue of the
+good lady, with five bullets in her hand.
+
+
+
+
+_The_ Castle _of_ Life
+
+[Illustration:]
+
+
+Once upon a time there lived at Salerno a poor old woman who earned
+her bread by fishing, and whose only comfort and stay in life was her
+grandson, a boy twelve years of age, whose father had been drowned in
+a storm and whose mother had died of grief. Graceful, for this was the
+child's name, loved nobody in the world but his grandmother; he
+followed her to the shore every morning before daybreak to pick up the
+shell-fish or draw the net to the beach, longing for the time when he
+should be strong enough to go to sea himself and brave the waves that
+had swallowed up all his kindred. He was so handsome, so well made,
+and so promising, that no sooner had he entered the town with his
+basket of fish on his head than every one ran after him, and he sold
+the whole before he reached the market.
+
+Unfortunately, the grandmother was very old; she had but one front
+tooth left, her head shook with age, and her eyes were dim. Every
+morning she found it harder to rise than the day before. Feeling that
+she had but a few days longer to live, at night, before Graceful
+wrapped himself in his blanket and lay down on the ground to sleep,
+she always gave him good counsels for him to follow when she was gone;
+she told him what fishermen to avoid, and how, by being good and
+industrious, prudent and resolute, he would make his way in the world
+and finally have a boat and nets of his own. The poor boy paid little
+heed to all this wisdom. As soon as his grandmother began to put on a
+grave air he threw his arms around her neck and cried: "Grandmamma,
+grandmamma, don't leave me. I have hands, I am strong, I shall soon be
+able to work for us both; but if you were not here at night when I
+came home from fishing, what would become of me?"
+
+"My child," said the old woman one day to him, "I shall not leave you
+so much alone as you think; when I am gone you will have two powerful
+protectors whom more than one prince might envy you. A long time ago I
+did a favor to two great ladies, who will not forget you when the time
+comes to call them, which will be very soon."
+
+"Who are these two ladies?" asked Graceful, who had never seen any
+women but fishermen's wives in the hut.
+
+"They are two fairies," replied his grandmother--"two powerful
+fairies--the Fairy of the Woods and the Fairy of the Waters. Listen to
+me, my child; I am going to intrust you with a secret--a secret which
+you must keep as carefully as I have done, and which will give you
+wealth and happiness. Ten years ago, the same year that your father
+died and your mother also left us, I went out one morning before
+daybreak to surprise the crabs asleep in the sand. As I was stooping
+down, hidden by a rock, I saw a kingfisher slowly floating toward the
+beach. The kingfisher is a sacred bird which should always be
+respected; knowing this, I let it alight and did not stir, for fear of
+frightening it. At the same moment I saw a beautiful green adder come
+from a cleft of the mountain and crawl along the sand toward the bird.
+When they were near each other, without either seeming surprised at
+the meeting, the adder coiled itself around the neck of the
+kingfisher, as if tenderly embracing it; they remained thus entwined
+for a few moments, after which they suddenly separated, the adder to
+return to the rock, and the kingfisher to plunge into the waves which
+bore it away.
+
+[Illustration: AT NIGHT THE GRANDMOTHER ALWAYS GAVE HIM GOOD COUNSELS
+FOR HIM TO FOLLOW WHEN SHE WAS GONE]
+
+"Greatly astonished at what I had seen, I returned the next morning at
+the same hour, and at the same hour the kingfisher also alighted on
+the sands and the adder came from its retreat. There was no doubt that
+they were fairies, perhaps enchanted fairies, to whom I could render a
+service. But what was I to do? To show myself would have been to
+displease them and run into danger; it was better to wait for a
+favorable opportunity which chance would doubtless offer. For a whole
+month I lay in ambush, witnessing the same spectacle every morning,
+when one day I saw a huge black cat arrive first at the place of
+meeting and hide itself behind a rock, almost under my hand. A black
+cat could be nothing else than an enchanter, according to what I had
+learned in my childhood, and I resolved to watch him. Scarcely had the
+kingfisher and the adder embraced each other when, behold! the cat
+gathered itself up and sprang upon these innocents. It was my turn to
+throw myself upon the wretch, who already held his victims in his
+murderous claws; I seized him, despite his struggles, although he tore
+my hands in pieces, and without pity, knowing with whom I had to deal,
+I took the knife which I used to open shell-fish, and cut off the
+monster's head, claws, and tail, confidently awaiting the success of
+my devotion.
+
+"I did not wait long; no sooner had I thrown the body of the animal
+into the sea than I saw before me two beautiful ladies, one crowned
+with white plumes, the other with a serpent's skin thrown like a scarf
+across her shoulder. They were, as I have already told you, the Fairy
+of the Waters and the Fairy of the Woods, who, enchanted by a wretched
+genie who had learned their secret, had been forced to remain a
+kingfisher and an adder until freed by some generous hand, and who
+owed me their power and freedom.
+
+"'Ask of us what you will,' said they, 'and your request shall be
+instantly granted.'
+
+"I reflected that I was old, and had suffered too much in life to wish
+to begin it anew, while the day would come, my child, when nothing
+would be too great for your desires; when you wish to be rich,
+noble--a general, a marquis, a prince, perhaps! When that day comes,
+thought I, I can give him everything, and a single moment of such
+happiness will repay me for eighty years of pain and misery. I thanked
+the fairies, therefore, and entreated them to keep their good will
+till the day when I should have need of it. The Fairy of the Waters
+took a small feather from her crown, and the Fairy of the Woods
+detached a scale from her scarf.
+
+"'My good woman,' said they, 'when you wish for us, place this feather
+and this scale in a vessel of pure water and call on us, making a
+wish. Should we be at the end of the world, we will be at your side in
+an instant, ready to pay the debt we owe you.'
+
+"I bowed my head in token of gratitude. When I raised it all had
+vanished; even the wounds and blood had disappeared from my hands, and
+I should have thought that I had been dreaming, had not the scale of
+the serpent and the feather of the kingfisher remained in my hand."
+
+"And where are these treasures, grandmamma?" asked Graceful.
+
+"My child, I have carefully concealed them," answered the old woman,
+"not wishing to show them to you till you were a man and able to make
+use of them; but since death is about to separate us, the moment has
+come to give you these precious talismans. You will find at the back
+of the cupboard a wooden chest hidden under some rags; in the chest is
+a little pasteboard box, wound about with tow; open this box and you
+will find the scale and the feather carefully wrapped in cotton. Take
+care not to break them; handle them respectfully, and I will tell you
+what next to do."
+
+Graceful brought the box to the poor woman, who was no longer able to
+quit her pallet, and she herself took from it the two articles.
+
+"Now," said she, giving them to her grandson, "put a bowlful of water
+in the middle of the room; place the scale and the feather in the
+water, and make a wish--wish for fortune, nobility, wit, power,
+whatever you please; only, as I feel that I am dying, kiss me once
+more, my child, before speaking the words that will separate us
+forever, and receive my last blessing; it will be another talisman to
+bring you happiness."
+
+But, to the old woman's surprise, Graceful did not come near her,
+either to kiss her or to receive her blessing. He quickly placed the
+bowl in the middle of the room, threw the feather and scale into the
+water, and shouted at the top of his voice, "Appear, Fairy of the
+Waters! I wish that my grandmother may live forever. Appear, Fairy of
+the Woods! I wish that my grandmother may live forever."
+
+And behold! the water bubbled, bubbled, bubbled; the bowl grew to a
+great basin, which the walls of the hut could scarcely hold, and from
+the bottom of the basin Graceful saw two beautiful young women rise,
+whom he knew directly from their wands to be fairies. One wore a crown
+of holly leaves mixed with red berries, and diamond ear-rings
+resembling acorns in their cups; she was dressed in a robe of olive
+green, over which a speckled skin was knotted like a scarf across the
+right shoulder--this was the Fairy of the Woods. As to the Fairy of
+the Waters, she wore a garland of reeds on her head, with a white robe
+trimmed with the feathers of aquatic birds, and a blue scarf, which
+now and then rose above her head and fluttered like the sail of a
+ship. Great ladies as they were, they looked smilingly at Graceful,
+who had taken refuge in his grandmother's arms, and trembled with fear
+and admiration.
+
+"Here we are, my child," said the Fairy of the Waters, who spoke
+first, as the eldest. "We have heard what you said, and your wish does
+you honor; but, though we can help you in the plan which you have
+conceived, you alone can execute it. We can, indeed, prolong your
+grandmother's life for some time, but, for her to live forever, you
+must go the Castle of Life, four long days' journey from here, on the
+coast of Sicily. There you will find the Fountain of Immortality. If
+you can accomplish each of these four days' journey without turning
+aside from the road, and, on reaching the castle, can answer three
+questions that will be put to you by an invisible voice, you will
+obtain what you desire. But, my child, reflect well before undertaking
+this adventure, for you will meet more than one danger on the way; and
+if you fail a single time to reach the end of your day's journey you
+will not only miss the object of your pursuit, but you will never quit
+the country, from which none has ever returned."
+
+"I will go, madam," returned Graceful.
+
+"But you are very young, my child," said the Fairy of the Woods, "and
+you do not even know the way."
+
+"No matter," replied Graceful. "I am sure, beautiful ladies, that you
+will not forsake me, and to save my grandmother I would go to the end
+of the world."
+
+"Wait," said the Fairy of the Woods. Then separating the lead from a
+broken window-pane, she placed it in the hollow of her hand.
+
+And behold! the lead began to melt and bubble without seeming to burn
+the fairy, who threw the metal on the hearth, where it cooled in a
+thousand different forms.
+
+"What do you see in all that?" said the fairy to Graceful.
+
+"It seems to me, madam," said he, after looking attentively, "that I
+see a spaniel with a long tail and large ears."
+
+"Call him," said the fairy.
+
+A barking was instantly heard, and forth from the metal sprang a black
+and flame-colored spaniel, which began to gambol and leap around
+Graceful.
+
+"This will be your companion," said the fairy. "His name is Fido. He
+will show you the way; but I warn you that it is for you to direct
+him, and not for him to lead you. If you make him obey, he will serve
+you; if you obey him, he will destroy you."
+
+"And I," said the Fairy of the Waters, "have I nothing to give you, my
+poor Graceful?"
+
+Then, looking around her, the lady saw on the ground a bit of paper,
+which she tossed into the fire with her tiny foot. The paper caught
+fire, and as soon as the blaze had died away thousands of little
+sparks were seen chasing one another about. The fairy watched these
+sparks with a curious eye; then, as the last one was about to go out,
+she blew upon the cinders, when, lo! the chirp of a bird was heard,
+and a swallow rose, which fluttered, terrified, about the room and
+finally alighted on Graceful's shoulder.
+
+"This will be your companion," said the Fairy of the Waters. "Her name
+is Pensive. She will show you the way; but I warn you it is for you to
+direct her, and not for her to lead you. If you make her obey, she
+will serve you; if you obey her, she will destroy you."
+
+"Stir the black ashes," added the good Fairy of the Waters, "and
+perhaps you will find something there."
+
+Graceful obeyed. Under the ashes of the paper he found a vial of rock
+crystal, sparkling like a diamond. This, the fairy said, was to hold
+the water of immortality, which would break any vessel made by the
+hand of man. By the side of the vial Graceful found a dagger with a
+triangular blade--a very different thing from the stiletto of his
+father the fisherman, which he had been forbidden to touch. With this
+weapon he could brave the proudest enemy.
+
+"My sister, you shall not be more generous than I," said the other
+fairy; then, taking a rush from the only chair in the room, she blew
+upon it, when, lo! the rush instantly swelled, and in less time than
+it takes to tell it became a beautiful musket, inlaid with
+mother-of-pearl. A second rush produced a cartridge-box, which
+Graceful slung around his body and which became him marvelously. One
+would have thought him a prince setting out for the chase; he was so
+handsome that his grandmother wept for joy and emotion.
+
+The two fairies vanished; Graceful kissed the good old woman, urging
+her to await his return, and knelt before her to receive her blessing.
+She entreated him to be patient, just, and charitable, and, above all,
+not to wander from the right path. "Not for my sake," added the old
+woman, "for I would gladly welcome death, and I regret the wish that
+you have made, but for your own, my child, that you may return to me
+and that I may not die without your being here to close my eyes."
+
+It was late. Graceful threw himself on the ground, too agitated, it
+seemed, to sleep. But slumber soon overtook him, and he slept soundly
+all night, while his poor grandmother watched the face of her dear
+child lighted by the flickering lamp, and did not weary of mournfully
+admiring him.
+
+
+II
+
+Early in the morning, when dawn was scarcely breaking, the swallow
+began to twitter, and Fido to pull the blankets. "Let us go,
+master--let us go," said the two companions, in their language, which
+Graceful understood by the gift of the fairies; "the tide is already
+rising on the beach, the birds are singing, the flies are humming, and
+the flowers are opening in the sun. Let us go; it is time."
+
+Graceful kissed his grandmother for the last time, and took the road
+to Paestum, Pensive fluttering to the right and the left in pursuit of
+the flies, and Fido fawning on his young master or running before him.
+
+They had gone two leagues from the town when Graceful saw Fido talking
+with the ants, who were marching in regular troops, carrying all their
+provisions with them.
+
+"Where are you going?" asked he.
+
+"To the Castle of Life," they answered.
+
+A little farther on Pensive encountered the grasshoppers, who had also
+set out on a journey, together with the bees and the butterflies; all
+were going to the Castle of Life, to drink of the Fountain of
+Immortality. They traveled in company, like people following the same
+road. Pensive introduced Graceful to a young butterfly that chatted
+agreeably. Friendship springs up quickly in youth; in an hour the two
+comrades were inseparable.
+
+To go straight forward does not suit the taste of butterflies, and
+Graceful's friend was constantly losing himself among the grass.
+Graceful, who had never been free in his life, nor had seen so many
+flowers and so much sunshine, followed all the windings of his
+companion, and troubled himself no more about the day than if it were
+never to end; but, after a few leagues' journey his new friend began
+to be weary.
+
+"Don't go any farther," said he to Graceful. "See how beautiful is
+this landscape, how fragrant these flowers, and how balmy these
+fields. Let us stay here; this is life."
+
+"Let us go on," said Fido; "the day is long, and we are only at the
+beginning."
+
+"Let us go on," said Pensive; "the sky is clear and the horizon
+unbounded. Let us go on."
+
+Graceful, restored to his senses, reasoned sagely with the butterfly,
+who fluttered constantly to the right and the left, but all in vain.
+"What matters it to me?" said the insect. "Yesterday I was a
+caterpillar, to-night I shall be nothing. I will enjoy to-day." And he
+settled on a full-blown Paestum rose. The perfume was so strong that
+the poor butterfly was suffocated. Graceful vainly endeavored to
+recall him to life; then, bemoaning his fate, he fastened him with a
+pin to his hat like a cockade.
+
+Toward noon the grasshoppers stopped in turn. "Let us rest," said
+they; "the heat will overpower us if we struggle against the noonday
+sun. It is so pleasant to live in sweet repose! Come, Graceful, we
+will divert you and you shall sing with us."
+
+"Listen to them," said Pensive; "they sing so sweetly!" But Fido would
+not stop; his blood seemed on fire, and he barked so furiously that
+Graceful forgot the grasshoppers to follow his importunate companion.
+
+At evening Graceful met the honey-bee loaded with booty. "Where are
+you going?" said he.
+
+"I am returning home," said the bee; "I shall not quit my hive."
+
+"What!" rejoined Graceful; "industrious as you are, will you do like
+the grasshoppers and renounce your share in immortality?"
+
+"Your castle is too far off," returned the bee. "I have not your
+ambition. My daily labor suffices for me; I care nothing for your
+travels; to me work is life."
+
+Graceful was a little moved at losing so many of his fellow-travelers
+on the first day; but when he thought with what ease he had
+accomplished the first day's journey his heart was filled with joy. He
+caressed Fido, caught the flies which Pensive took from his hand, and
+slept full of hope, dreaming of his grandmother and the two fairies.
+
+
+III
+
+The next morning, at daybreak, Pensive called her young master.
+
+"Let us go," said she; "the tide is already rising on the shore, the
+birds are singing, the bees are humming, and the flowers are opening
+in the sun. Let us go; it is time."
+
+"Wait a moment," said Fido. "The day's journey is not long; before
+noon we shall be in sight of the temples of Paestum, where we are to
+stop for the night."
+
+"The ants are already on the way," returned Pensive; "the road is
+harder than yesterday, and the weather more uncertain. Let us go."
+
+Graceful had seen his grandmother smiling on him in his dreams, and he
+set out on his way with even greater ardor than the day before. The
+morning was glorious; on the right the blue waves broke with a gentle
+murmur on the strand; on the left, in the distance, the mountains were
+tinged with a roseate hue; the plain was covered with tall grass
+sprinkled with flowers; the road was lined with aloes, jujubes, and
+acanthuses, and before them lay a cloudless horizon. Graceful,
+ravished with hope and pleasure, fancied himself already at the end of
+his journey. Fido bounded over the fields and chased the frightened
+partridges; Pensive soared in the air and sported with the light. All
+at once Graceful saw a beautiful doe in the midst of the reeds,
+looking at him with languishing eyes as if she were calling him. He
+went toward her; she bounded forward, but only a little way. Three
+times she repeated the same trick, as if to allure him on.
+
+"Let us follow her," said Fido. "I will cut off the way and we will
+soon catch her."
+
+"Where is Pensive?" said Graceful.
+
+"What does it matter?" replied Fido; "it is the work of an instant.
+Trust to me--I was born for the chase--and the doe is ours."
+
+Graceful did not let himself be bid twice. While Fido made a circuit
+he ran after the doe, which paused among the trees as if to suffer
+herself to be caught, then bounded forward as soon as the hand of the
+pursuer touched her. "Courage, master!" cried Fido, as he came upon
+her. But with a toss of the head, the doe flung the dog in the air,
+and fled swifter than the wind.
+
+Graceful sprang forward in pursuit. Fido, with burning eyes and
+distended jaws, ran and yelped as if he were mad. They crossed
+ditches, brakes, and hedges, unchecked by nothing. The wearied doe
+lost ground. Graceful redoubled his ardor, and was already stretching
+out his hand to seize his prey when all at once the ground gave way
+beneath his feet and he fell, with his imprudent companion, into a
+pit covered over with leaves. He had not recovered from his fall when
+the doe, approaching the brink, cried, "You are betrayed; I am the
+wife of the King of the Wolves, who is coming to eat you both." Saying
+this, she disappeared.
+
+"Alas! master," said Fido, "the fairy was right in advising you not to
+follow me. We have acted foolishly and I have destroyed you."
+
+"At all events," said Graceful, "we will defend our lives"; and,
+taking his musket, he double-loaded it, in readiness for the King of
+the Wolves; then, somewhat calmed, he examined the deep ditch into
+which he had fallen. It was too high for him to escape from it; in
+this hole he must await his death. Fido understood the look of his
+friend.
+
+"Master," said he, "if you take me in your arms and throw me with all
+your might, perhaps I can reach the top; and, once there, I can help
+you."
+
+Graceful had not much hope. Three times he endeavored to throw Fido,
+and three times the poor animal fell back; finally, at the fourth
+effort, he caught hold of some roots, and aided himself so well with
+his teeth and paws that he escaped from the tomb. He instantly threw
+into the ditch the boughs which he found about the edge.
+
+"Master," said he, "plant these branches in the earth and make
+yourself a ladder. Quick! quick!" he added. "I hear the howls of the
+King of the Wolves."
+
+Graceful was adroit and agile. Anger redoubled his strength; in a
+moment he was outside. Then he secured his dagger in his belt, changed
+the powder in the pan of his musket, and, placing himself behind a
+tree, awaited the enemy with firmness.
+
+Suddenly a frightful cry was heard, and an animal, with tusks like
+those of the wild boar, rushed on him with prodigious bounds. Graceful
+took aim and fired. The bullet hit the mark and the animal fell back
+howling, but instantly sprang forward anew. "Load your musket again!
+Make haste!" cried Fido, springing courageously in the face of the
+monster and seizing his throat with his teeth.
+
+The wolf had only to shake his head to fling the poor dog to the
+ground. He would have swallowed him at one mouthful had not Fido
+glided from his jaws, leaving one of his ears behind. It was
+Graceful's turn to save his companion; he boldly advanced and fired
+his second shot, taking aim at the shoulder. The wolf fell; but,
+rising, with a last effort he threw himself on the hunter, who fell
+under him. On receiving this terrible shock, Graceful thought himself
+lost; but without losing courage, and calling the good fairies to his
+aid, he seized his dagger and thrust it into the heart of the animal,
+which, ready to devour his enemy, straightened his limbs and died.
+
+Graceful rose, covered with blood and froth, and seated himself,
+trembling, upon a fallen tree. Fido crept painfully to his feet,
+without daring to caress him, for he felt how much he was to blame.
+
+"Master," said he, "what will become of us? Night is approaching and
+we are so far from Paestum!"
+
+"We must go," said the child, and he rose; but he was so weak that he
+was obliged to sit down again. A burning thirst devoured him; he was
+feverish and everything whirled before his eyes. He thought of his
+grandmother, and began to weep. What was poor Graceful's remorse for
+having so soon forgotten such fair promises, and condemned himself to
+die in a country from which there was no return, and all this for the
+bright eyes of a doe! How sadly ended the day so well begun!
+
+Sinister howls were soon heard; the brothers of the King of the Wolves
+were calling him and coming to his aid. Graceful embraced Fido, his
+only friend, and forgave him the imprudence for which they were both
+about to pay with their lives; then loaded his musket, offered up a
+prayer to the good fairies, commended his grandmother to them, and
+prepared to die.
+
+"Graceful! Graceful! where are you?" cried a little voice that could
+be none other than Pensive's, and the swallow alighted on the head of
+her master.
+
+"Courage!" said she; "the wolves are still far off. There is a spring
+close by where you can quench your thirst and stanch your bleeding
+wounds, and I have found a hidden path which will lead us to Paestum."
+
+Graceful and Fido dragged themselves along to the brook, trembling
+with hope and fear; then entered the obscure path, a little reanimated
+by the soft twittering of Pensive. The sun had set; they walked in the
+twilight for some hours, and, when the moon rose, they were out of
+danger. They had still to journey over a painful and dangerous road
+for those who no longer had the ardor of the morning. There were
+marshes to cross, ditches to leap, and thickets to break through,
+which tore Graceful's face and hands; but at the thought that he could
+still repair his fault and save his grandmother his heart was so light
+that his strength redoubled at every step with his hope. At last,
+after a thousand obstacles, they reached Paestum just as the stars
+marked midnight.
+
+Graceful threw himself on the pavement of the temple of Neptune, and,
+after thanking Pensive, fell asleep, with Fido at his feet, wounded,
+bleeding, and silent.
+
+
+IV
+
+The sleep was not long. Graceful was up before daybreak, which seemed
+long in coming. On descending the steps of the temple he saw the ants,
+who had raised a heap of sand and were bringing grain from the new
+harvest. The whole republic was in motion. The ants were all going or
+coming, talking to their neighbors, and receiving or giving orders;
+some were dragging wisps of straw, others were carrying bits of wood,
+others conveying away dead flies, and others heaping up provisions; it
+was a complete winter establishment.
+
+"What!" said Graceful to the ants, "are you not going to the Castle of
+Life? Do you renounce immortality?"
+
+"We have worked long enough," answered one of the laborers; "the time
+for harvest has come. The road is long and the future uncertain, and
+we are rich. Let fools count on to-morrow; the wise man uses to-day.
+When a person has hoarded riches honestly it is true philosophy to
+enjoy them."
+
+Fido thought that the ant was right; but, as he no longer dared
+advise, he contented himself with shaking his head as they set out.
+Pensive, on the contrary, said that the ant was a selfish fellow, and
+that, if life were made only for enjoyment, the butterfly was wiser
+than he. At the same time, and with a lighter wing than ever, the
+swallow soared upward to lead the way.
+
+Graceful walked on in silence. Ashamed of the follies of the day
+before, although he still regretted the doe, he resolved that on the
+third day nothing should turn him aside from the road. Fido, with his
+mutilated ear, limped after his master and seemed not less dreamy than
+he. At noon they sought for a shady place in which to rest for a few
+moments. The sun was less scorching than the day before. It seemed as
+if both country and season had changed. The road lay through meadows
+lately mown for the second time, or beautiful vineyards full of
+grapes, and was lined with great fig-trees laden with fruit, in which
+thousands of insects were humming; golden clouds were floating in the
+horizon, the air was soft and gentle, and everything tempted to
+repose.
+
+In the most beautiful of the meadows, by the side of a brook which
+diffused its coolness afar, Graceful saw a herd of buffaloes chewing
+the cud under the shade of the ashes and plane-trees. They were lazily
+stretched on the ground, in a circle around a large bull that seemed
+their chief and king. Graceful approached them, and was received with
+politeness. They invited him by a nod to be seated, and pointed out to
+him great bowls full of milk and cheese. Our traveler admired the
+calmness and gravity of these peaceful and powerful animals, which
+seemed like so many Roman senators in their curule chairs. The gold
+ring which they wore in their noses added still more to the majesty of
+their aspect. Graceful, who felt calmer and more sedate than the day
+before, thought, in spite of himself, how pleasant it would be to live
+in the midst of this peace and plenty; if happiness were anywhere, it
+must surely be found here.
+
+Fido shared his master's opinion. It was the season of the southward
+migration of the quails; the ground was covered with tired birds,
+resting to regain strength before crossing the sea, and Fido had only
+to stoop down to find game worthy of a prince. Satiated with eating,
+he stretched himself at Graceful's feet and slept soundly.
+
+When the buffaloes had finished chewing their cud, Graceful, who had
+hitherto feared to disturb them, entered into conversation with the
+bull, who showed a cultivated mind and wide experience.
+
+"Are you the masters of this rich domain?" asked he.
+
+"No," replied the old buffalo; "we belong, with all the rest, to the
+Fairy Crapaudine, the Queen of the Vermilion Towers, the richest of
+all the fairies."
+
+"What does she require of you?" asked Graceful.
+
+"Nothing, except to wear this gold ring in the nose and to pay her a
+tribute of milk," returned the bull, "or, at most, to give her one of
+our children from time to time to regale her guests. At this price we
+enjoy our plenty in perfect security, and we have no reason to envy
+any on earth, for none are so happy as we."
+
+"Have you never heard of the Castle of Life and the Fountain of
+Immortality?" asked Graceful, who, without knowing why, blushed as he
+put the question.
+
+"There were some old men among our ancestors who still talked of these
+visions," replied the bull; "but we are wiser than our fathers; we
+know that there is no other happiness than to chew the cud and
+sleep."
+
+Graceful rose sadly to resume his journey, and asked what were those
+reddish square towers which he saw in the distance.
+
+"They are the Vermilion Towers," returned the bull; "they bar the way;
+and you must pass through the castle of the Fairy Crapaudine in order
+to continue your road. You will see the fairy, my young friend, and
+she will offer you hospitality and riches. Take my advice and do like
+those that have gone before you, all of whom accepted the favors of
+our mistress, and found that they had done well to abandon their
+dreams in order to live happy."
+
+"And what became of them?" asked Graceful.
+
+"They became buffaloes like us," rejoined the bull, who, not having
+finished his afternoon nap, closed his eyes and fell asleep.
+
+Graceful started and awakened Fido, who rose, grumbling. He called
+Pensive. Pensive did not answer; she was talking with a spider that
+had spun a great web between the branches of an ash-tree, which was
+glittering in the sun, full of flies. "Why take this long journey?"
+said the spider to the swallow. "What is the use of changing your
+climate and putting your life at the mercy of the sea, the weather, or
+a master? Look at me; I depend on nobody, and have everything for
+myself. I am my own mistress; I enjoy my art and genius; I bring the
+world to me; nothing can disturb either my calculations, or a
+serenity which I owe to myself alone."
+
+Graceful called Pensive three times without making her hear, so
+completely was she engrossed in admiration of her new friend. Every
+instant some giddy fly fell into the web, and each time the spider,
+like an attentive hostess, offered the prey to her astonished
+companion, when suddenly a breeze passed--a breeze so light that it
+did not ruffle a feather of the swallow's wing. Pensive looked for the
+spider; the web had been swept away by the winds, and the poor insect
+was clinging by one foot to the last thread, when a bird seized it and
+bore it away.
+
+
+V
+
+Setting out again on their way, they proceeded in silence to the
+palace of Crapaudine. Graceful was introduced with great ceremony by
+two beautiful greyhounds, caparisoned with purple and wearing on their
+necks broad collars sparkling with rubies. After crossing a great
+number of halls, all full of pictures, statues, gold, and silver, and
+coffers overflowing with money and jewels, Graceful and his companions
+entered a circular temple, which was Crapaudine's drawing-room. The
+walls were of lapis-lazuli, and the ceiling, of sky-blue enamel, was
+supported by twelve chiseled pillars of massive gold, with capitals of
+acanthus leaves of white enamel edged with gold. A huge frog, as
+large as a rabbit, was seated in a velvet easy-chair. It was the fairy
+of the place. The charming Crapaudine was draped in a scarlet mantle
+covered with glittering spangles, and wore on her head a ruby diadem
+whose luster lighted up her fat cheeks mottled with green and yellow.
+As soon as she perceived Graceful she extended to him her fingers,
+covered with rings, which the poor boy was obliged respectfully to
+raise to his lips as he bowed.
+
+"My friend," said the fairy to him, in a hoarse voice, which she
+vainly tried to soften, "I was expecting you, and I will not be less
+generous to you than my sisters have been. On the way here you have
+seen but a small part of my riches. This palace, with its pictures,
+its statues, and its coffers full of gold, these vast domains, and
+these innumerable flocks, all may be yours if you wish; it depends
+only on yourself to become the richest and happiest of men."
+
+"What must I do for this?" asked Graceful, greatly excited.
+
+"Less than nothing," replied the fairy; "chop me up into little pieces
+and eat me. It is not a very disagreeable thing to do," added
+Crapaudine, looking at Graceful with eyes redder than usual.
+
+"Can I not season you, at least?" said Graceful, who had been unable
+to look without envy at the beautiful gardens of the fairy.
+
+"No, you must eat me without seasoning; but walk about my palace, see
+and handle all my treasures, and reflect that, by giving me this proof
+of devotion, they will all be yours."
+
+"Master," sighed Fido, in a supplicating voice, "a little courage! We
+are so comfortable here!"
+
+Pensive said nothing, but her silence was consent. As to Graceful, who
+remembered the buffaloes and the gold ring, he distrusted the fairy.
+Crapaudine perceived it.
+
+"Do not think, my dear Graceful, that I wish to deceive you," she
+said. "In offering you all that I possess, I also demand of you a
+service which I will reward as it deserves. When you have done what I
+propose I shall become a young girl, as beautiful as Venus, except
+that my hands and feet will remain like those of a frog, which is very
+little when one is rich. Ten princes, twenty marquises, and thirty
+counts have already begged me to marry them as I am; when I become a
+woman, I will give you the preference, and we will enjoy my vast
+fortune together. Do not blush for your poverty; you have about you a
+treasure that is worth all mine, the vial which my sister gave you."
+Saying this, she stretched out her slimy fingers to seize the
+talisman.
+
+"Never!" cried Graceful, shrinking back, "never! I wish neither repose
+nor fortune; I wish to quit this place and to go to the Castle of
+Life."
+
+"You shall never go there!" exclaimed the fairy, in a rage. The castle
+instantly disappeared, a circle of fire surrounded Graceful, and an
+invisible clock began to strike midnight. At the first stroke the
+child started; at the second, without hesitating, he plunged headlong
+into the flames. To die for his grandmother seemed to him the only
+means of showing his love and repentance.
+
+
+VI
+
+To Graceful's surprise, the flames parted without touching him, and he
+suddenly found himself in a new country, with his two companions by
+his side. This country was no longer Italy, but Russia, the end of the
+earth. He was wandering on a mountain covered with snow. Around him he
+saw nothing but great trees, coated with hoar-frost and dripping water
+from all their branches; a damp and penetrating mist chilled him to
+the bones; the moist earth sank under his feet; and, to crown his
+wretchedness, it was necessary to descend a steep precipice, at the
+bottom of which a torrent was breaking noisily over the rocks.
+Graceful took his dagger and cut a branch from a tree to support his
+faltering steps. Fido, with his tail between his legs, barked feebly;
+and Pensive, her ruffled feathers covered with icicles, clung to her
+master's shoulder. The poor bird was half dead, but she encouraged
+Graceful and did not complain.
+
+When, after infinite pains, he reached the foot of the mountain,
+Graceful found a river filled with enormous icebergs, striking against
+one another and whirling in the current, and this river he must
+cross, without bridge, without boat, and without aid.
+
+"Master," said Fido, "I can go no farther. Accursed be the fairy that
+drew me from nothingness to place me in your service." Saying this, he
+lay down on the ground and would not stir. Graceful vainly tried to
+restore his courage, and called him his companion and friend. All that
+the poor dog could do was to answer his master's caresses for the last
+time by wagging his tail and licking his hands; then his limbs
+stiffened and he expired.
+
+Graceful took Fido on his back in order to carry him to the Castle of
+Life, and boldly climbed one of the icebergs, still followed by
+Pensive. With his staff he pushed this frail bark into the middle of
+the current, which bore it away with frightful rapidity.
+
+"Master," said Pensive, "do you hear the roaring of the waters? We are
+floating toward a whirlpool which will swallow us up! Give me a last
+caress and farewell!"
+
+"No," said Graceful. "Why should the fairies have deceived us? The
+shore may be close by; perhaps the sun is shining behind the clouds.
+Mount, mount, my good Pensive; perchance above the fog you will find
+light and will see the Castle of Life!"
+
+Pensive spread her half-frozen wings, and courageously soared amid the
+cold and mist. Graceful listened for a moment to the sound of her
+flight; then all was silent, while the iceberg pursued its furious
+course through the darkness. Graceful waited a long time; at last,
+when he felt himself alone, hope abandoned him, and he lay down to
+await death on the tottering iceberg. Livid flashes of lightning shot
+through the clouds, horrible bursts of thunder were heard, and the end
+of the world and of time seemed approaching. All at once, in the midst
+of his despair, Graceful heard the cry of the swallow, and Pensive
+fell at his feet. "Master, master," cried she, "you were right. I have
+seen the shore; the dawn is close at hand. Courage!" Saying this, she
+convulsively spread her tired wings and lay motionless and lifeless.
+
+Graceful started up, placed the poor bird that had sacrificed itself
+for him next his heart, and, with superhuman ardor, urged the iceberg
+on to safety or destruction. Suddenly he heard the roaring of the
+breakers. He fell on his knees and closed his eyes, awaiting death.
+
+A wave like a mountain broke over his head and cast him fainting on
+the shore, which no living person had touched before him.
+
+
+VII
+
+When Graceful recovered his senses, the ice, clouds, and darkness had
+disappeared. He was lying on the ground in the midst of a charming
+country, covered with trees bathed in a soft light. In front of him
+was a beautiful castle, from which bubbled a brook that flowed into a
+sea as blue, calm, and transparent as the sky. Graceful looked about
+him; he was alone--alone with the remains of his two companions, which
+the waves had washed on the shore. Exhausted with suffering and
+excitement, he dragged himself to the brook and bent over the water to
+refresh his parched lips, when he shrank back with affright. It was
+not his face that he saw in the water, but that of an old man with
+silvery locks who strongly resembled him. He turned round; there was
+no one behind him. He again drew near the fountain; he saw the old
+man, or rather, doubtless, the old man was himself. "Great fairies,"
+he cried. "I understand you. If it is my life that you wish in
+exchange for that of my grandmother, I joyfully accept the sacrifice."
+And without troubling himself further about his old age and wrinkles,
+he plunged his head into the water and drank eagerly.
+
+On rising, he was astonished to see himself again as he was when he
+left home, only more beautiful, with blacker hair and brighter eyes
+than ever. He picked up his hat, which had fallen near the spring, and
+which a drop of water had touched by chance, when what was his
+surprise to see the butterfly that he had pinned to it fluttering its
+wings and seeking to fly. He gave it its liberty, and ran to the beach
+for Fido and Pensive, then plunged them both into the blessed
+fountain. Pensive flew upward with a joyful cry and disappeared amid
+the turrets of the castle. Fido, shaking the water from both ears,
+ran to the kennels of the palace, where he was met by magnificent
+watch-dogs, which, instead of barking and growling at the new-comer,
+welcomed him joyfully like an old friend. Graceful had at last found
+the Fountain of Immortality, or rather the brook that flowed from
+it--a brook already greatly weakened, and which only gave two or three
+hundred years of life to those that drank of it; but nothing prevented
+them from drinking anew.
+
+Graceful filled his vial with this life-giving water and approached
+the palace. His heart beat, for a last trial remained. So near
+success, he feared the more to fail. He mounted the steps of the
+castle. All was closed and silent; no one was there to receive the
+traveler. When he had reached the last step and was about to knock at
+the door, a voice, rather gentle than harsh, stopped him.
+
+"Have you loved?" said the invisible voice.
+
+"Yes," answered Graceful; "I have loved my grandmother better than any
+one in the world."
+
+The door opened a little way.
+
+"Have you suffered for her whom you have loved?" resumed the voice.
+
+"I have suffered," replied Graceful; "much through my own fault,
+doubtless, but a little for her whom I wished to save."
+
+The door opened half-way and the child caught a glimpse of woods,
+waters, and a sky more beautiful than anything of which he had ever
+dreamed.
+
+"Have you always done your duty?" said the voice, in a harsher tone.
+
+"Alas! no," replied Graceful, falling on his knees; "but when I have
+failed I have been punished by my remorse even more than by the hard
+trials through which I have passed. Forgive me, and punish me as I
+deserve, if I have not yet expiated all my faults; but save her whom I
+love--save my grandmother."
+
+The door instantly opened wide, though Graceful saw no one.
+Intoxicated with joy, he entered a courtyard surrounded with arbors
+embowered in foliage, with a fountain in the midst, spouting from a
+tuft of flowers larger, more beautiful, and more fragrant than any he
+had seen on earth. By the side of the spring stood a woman dressed in
+white, of noble bearing, and seemingly not more than forty years old.
+She advanced to meet Graceful, and smiled on him so sweetly that the
+child felt himself touched to the heart, and his eyes filled with
+tears.
+
+"Don't you know me?" said the woman.
+
+"Oh, grandmother! is it you?" he exclaimed. "How came you in the
+Castle of Life?"
+
+"My child," said she, pressing him to her heart, "He who brought me
+here is an enchanter more powerful than the fairies of the woods and
+the waters. I shall never more return to Salerno. I shall receive my
+reward here for the little good I have done by tasting a happiness
+which time will not destroy."
+
+"And me, grandmother!" cried Graceful, "what shall become of me? After
+seeing you here, how can I return to suffer alone?"
+
+"My dear child," she replied, "no one can live on earth after he has
+caught a glimpse of the celestial delights of this abode. You have
+lived, my dear Graceful; life has nothing more to teach you. You have
+passed in four days through the desert where I languished eighty
+years, and henceforth nothing can separate us."
+
+The door closed, and from that time nothing was heard of Graceful or
+his grandmother. It was in vain that search was made for the palace
+and enchanted fountain; they were never more discovered on earth. But
+if we understood the language of the stars, if we felt what their
+gentle rays tell us every evening, we should long ago have learned
+from them where to look for the Castle of Life and the Fountain of
+Immortality.
+
+
+
+
+Destiny
+
+_A Dalmatian Tale_
+
+[Illustration:]
+
+
+Once upon a time there were two brothers, who lived together in one
+family. One did everything, while the other was an idle fellow who
+troubled himself about nothing but eating and drinking. The harvests
+were always magnificent; they had cows, horses, sheep, pigs, bees, and
+everything else in plenty.
+
+The elder brother, who did everything, said to himself, one day, "Why
+should I work for this idler? It is better for us to separate; I will
+work for myself alone, and he can do as he likes." He said to his
+brother, therefore:
+
+"Brother, it is not just for me to do everything, while you trouble
+yourself about nothing but eating and drinking; we must separate."
+
+His brother tried to dissuade him from his plan, saying:
+
+"Brother, don't do this, we are so well off as we are. You have
+everything in your own hands; what is mine is yours; and you know that
+I am always satisfied with what you do or order done."
+
+The elder, however, persisted in his resolution till the younger was
+forced to yield. "Since it must be so," said he, "I am not angry.
+Divide the property as you like."
+
+The division made, each took his share. The idler hired a drover for
+his cattle, a groom for his horses, a shepherd for his sheep, a
+goatherd for his goats, a swineherd for his hogs, and a keeper for his
+bees, and said to them all, "I intrust my property to you. May God
+have you in His keeping." And he continued to stay at home, with no
+more care than before.
+
+The elder, on the contrary, labored for himself as he had done for the
+common good: he kept his own flocks and had an eye to everything; yet,
+in spite of all this, he found bad luck and misfortune everywhere;
+everything went wrong with him, until at last he was so poor that he
+had not even a pair of shoes, but was forced to go barefoot. He said
+to himself, "I will go to my brother's house and see how affairs are
+prospering with him."
+
+His road lay through a pasture in which a flock of sheep was feeding.
+On approaching them he saw that they had no shepherd. A beautiful
+young girl was seated near them, with her distaff, spinning gold
+thread.
+
+He saluted the young girl and asked her to whom the flock belonged.
+
+"To him to whom I belong belong also these sheep," answered she.
+
+"And who are you?" said he.
+
+"I am your brother's fortune?" she replied.
+
+"And where is my fortune?" he exclaimed, seized with anger and envy.
+
+"Ah! she is far from you," said the young girl.
+
+"Can I find her?" asked he.
+
+"You can," she replied, "if you only look yonder."
+
+On hearing these words, and seeing that the sheep were the finest that
+could be imagined, he had no wish to see the other flocks, but went
+straight to his brother, who, as soon as he saw him, burst into tears,
+moved with pity.
+
+"Where have you been so long?" asked he. And, seeing him clothed in
+rags and barefooted, he gave him a pair of shoes and some money.
+
+After staying three days in his brother's house, the poor man set out
+for home. No sooner had he reached his house than he threw a bag
+across his shoulder, with a piece of bread in it, took a staff in his
+hand, and set out to seek his fortune.
+
+After walking for some time he found himself in a great forest, where
+he saw a wretched old hag asleep under a tree. He gave her a blow on
+the back with his staff to awaken her. She moved with difficulty, and,
+half opening her bleared eyes, said to him, "Thank God that I was
+asleep, for if I had been awake you would not have had those shoes."
+
+"Who are you, then," asked he, "that would have prevented my having
+these shoes?"
+
+"I am your fortune," answered the old woman.
+
+"What! are you my fortune?" cried he, striking his breast. "May God
+exterminate you! Who gave you to me?"
+
+"It was Destiny," replied the old woman.
+
+"Where is Destiny?" he asked.
+
+"Go and find him," said the old woman, lying down to sleep again.
+
+He set out in search of Destiny. After a long, long journey, at length
+he reached a wood, where he found a hermit, of whom he asked the way
+to the abode of Destiny.
+
+"Go straight up yonder mountain and you will find his castle,"
+answered the hermit; "but when you find him take care not to speak to
+him, but only do all that you see him do."
+
+The traveler thanked the hermit and took his way to the mountain. When
+he reached the abode of Destiny he saw a magnificent palace full of
+servants constantly bustling about and doing nothing. As to Destiny,
+he was supping at a table bountifully served. When the stranger saw
+this he also sat down at the table and supped with the master of the
+house. After supper Destiny went to bed, and his guest did the same.
+
+At midnight a terrible noise was heard in the castle, and a voice
+cried, "Destiny, Destiny, such a number of souls have come into the
+world this night; give them something according to thy good pleasure."
+
+And behold! Destiny rose, and opened a golden chest filled with
+shining guineas, which he scattered by handfuls about the room,
+saying, "Such as I am to-day, such shalt thou be all thy life!"
+
+At daybreak the beautiful castle had vanished, and in its place stood
+an ordinary house, in which, however, nothing was wanting. When
+evening came Destiny sat down to supper. His guest did the same, but
+no one spoke a word. Supper over, they went to bed. At midnight a
+terrible noise was heard, and a voice cried, "Destiny, Destiny, such a
+number of souls have come into the world this night; give them
+something according to thy good pleasure."
+
+And behold! Destiny rose, and opened a silver chest, but this time
+there were no guineas in it, but only silver coin, with a few small
+pieces of gold, which Destiny scattered on the floor, saying, "Such as
+I am to-day, such shalt thou be all thy life!"
+
+At daybreak this house had also disappeared, and a smaller one stood
+in its place. The same thing happened every night, and every morning
+the house was smaller, until finally there was nothing but a wretched
+hut. Destiny now took a spade and began to dig the ground. His guest
+did the same, and both worked all day. When night came, Destiny took
+a crust of bread and, breaking it in two, gave half to his companion.
+This was all his supper. When they had eaten it they went to bed.
+
+At midnight a terrible noise was heard, and a voice cried out,
+"Destiny, Destiny, such a number of souls have come into the world
+this night; give them something according to thy good pleasure."
+
+And behold! Destiny rose, and opened a wooden chest filled with
+pebbles mixed with a few copper coins, which he scattered on the
+ground, saying, "Such as I am to-day, such shalt thou be all thy
+life!"
+
+When morning dawned the cabin was changed into a splendid palace, as
+on the first day. Then, for the first time, Destiny spoke to his
+guest. "Why did you come here?" asked he.
+
+The poor man told him the whole story of his wretchedness, and how he
+had come to ask Destiny himself why he had given him such a bad
+fortune.
+
+"You saw what I was the first night, when I scattered guineas, and
+what followed," replied Destiny. "Such as I am on the night that a man
+is born, such will that man be all his life. You were born on a night
+of poverty; you will always be poor. Your brother, on the contrary,
+came into the world on a lucky night; he will always be fortunate.
+But, since you have taken so much trouble to find me, I will tell you
+how to help yourself. Your brother has a daughter by the name of
+Miliza, who is as fortunate as her father. Take her for your wife when
+you return home, but be careful always to say that all that you have
+belongs to her."
+
+The poor man thanked Destiny again and again, and set out for home. As
+soon as he arrived he went straight to his brother's house and said,
+
+"Brother, give me Miliza for a wife; you see that I am all alone in
+the world."
+
+"I am willing," answered his brother; "Miliza is yours."
+
+The bridegroom carried Miliza to his house. He soon became very rich,
+but he always took good care to say, "All that I have belongs to
+Miliza."
+
+One day, however, as he was admiring his wheat, which was the most
+beautiful that ever was seen, a stranger passed by and asked, "Whose
+wheat is this?"
+
+"It is mine," answered he, without thinking. But scarcely had he
+spoken when, behold! the wheat took fire, and the flames spread all
+over the field. Without stopping to put it out, he ran after the
+traveler, crying, "Stop, sir, I was mistaken; it belongs to Miliza, my
+brother's daughter."
+
+The fire went out at once of its own accord. He had learned a good
+lesson which he never forgot, and from that time thenceforth he was
+fortunate, thanks to Miliza.
+
+
+
+
+The Twelve Months
+
+_A Bohemian Tale_
+
+[Illustration:]
+
+
+There was once a woman who was left a widow with two children. The
+elder, who was only her stepdaughter, was named Dobrunka; the younger,
+who was as wicked as her mother, was called Katinka. The mother
+worshiped her daughter, but she hated Dobrunka, simply because she was
+as beautiful as her sister was ugly. Dobrunka did not even know that
+she was pretty, and she could not understand why her stepmother flew
+into a rage at the mere sight of her. The poor child was obliged to do
+all the work of the house; she had to sweep, cook, wash, sew, spin,
+weave, cut the grass, and take care of the cow, while Katinka lived
+like a princess--that is to say, did nothing.
+
+Dobrunka worked with a good will, and took reproaches and blows with
+the gentleness of a lamb; but nothing soothed her stepmother, for
+every day added to the beauty of the elder sister and the ugliness of
+the younger. "They are growing up," thought the mother, "and suitors
+will soon appear, who will refuse my daughter when they see this
+hateful Dobrunka, who grows beautiful on purpose to spite me. I must
+get rid of her, cost what it may."
+
+One day in the middle of January, Katinka took a fancy for some
+violets. She called Dobrunka and said, "Go to the forest and bring me
+a bunch of violets, that I may put them in my bosom and enjoy their
+fragrance."
+
+"Oh, sister, what an idea!" answered Dobrunka; "as if there were any
+violets under the snow!"
+
+"Hold your tongue, stupid fool," returned her sister, "and do as I bid
+you. If you do not go to the forest and bring me back a bunch of
+violets I will beat you to a jelly." Upon this the mother took
+Dobrunka by the arm, put her out of the door, and drew the bolt on
+her.
+
+The poor girl went to the forest weeping bitterly. Everything was
+covered with snow; there was not even a footpath. She lost her way and
+wandered about till, famishing with hunger and perishing with cold,
+she entreated God to take her from this wretched life.
+
+All at once she saw a light in the distance. She went on, climbing
+higher and higher, until at last she reached the top of a huge rock,
+upon which a great fire was built. Around the fire were twelve stones,
+and on each stone sat a motionless figure, wrapped in a large mantle,
+his head covered with a hood which fell over his eyes. Three of these
+mantles were white like the snow, three were green like the grass of
+the meadows, three were golden like the sheaves of ripe wheat, and
+three were purple like the grapes of the vine. These twelve figures,
+gazing at the fire in silence, were the Twelve Months of the year.
+
+Dobrunka knew January by his long white beard. He was the only one
+that had a staff in his hand. The poor girl was terribly frightened.
+She drew near, saying, in a timid voice, "My good sirs, please to let
+me warm myself by your fire; I am freezing with cold."
+
+January nodded his head. "Why have you come here, my child?" he asked.
+"What are you looking for?"
+
+"I am looking for violets," replied Dobrunka.
+
+"This is not the season for them; there are no violets in the time of
+snow," said January, in his gruff voice.
+
+"I know it," replied Dobrunka, sadly; "but my sister and mother will
+beat me to a jelly if I do not bring them some. My good sirs, please
+to tell me where I can find them."
+
+Old January rose, and, turning to a young man in a green mantle, put
+his staff in his hand, and said to him, "Brother March, this is your
+business."
+
+March rose in turn, and stirred the fire with the staff, when, behold!
+the flames rose, the snow melted, the buds put forth on the trees, the
+grass turned green under the bushes, the flowers peeped through the
+verdure, and the violets opened--it was spring.
+
+"Make haste, my child, and gather your violets," said March.
+
+[Illustration: PRETTY DOBRUNKA WAS OBLIGED TO DO ALL THE WORK OF THE
+HOUSE]
+
+Dobrunka gathered a large bouquet, thanked the Twelve Months, and
+joyfully ran home. You can imagine the astonishment of Katinka and the
+stepmother. The fragrance of the violets filled the whole house.
+
+"Where did you find these fine things?" asked Katinka, in a disdainful
+voice.
+
+"Up yonder, on the mountain," answered her sister. "It looked like a
+great blue carpet under the bushes."
+
+Katinka put the bouquet in her bosom and did not even thank the poor
+child.
+
+The next morning the wicked sister, as she sat idling by the stove,
+took a fancy for some strawberries.
+
+"Go to the forest and bring me some strawberries," said she to
+Dobrunka.
+
+"Oh, sister, what an idea! as if there were any strawberries under the
+snow!"
+
+"Hold your tongue, stupid fool, and do as I bid you. If you don't go
+to the forest and bring me back a basket of strawberries, I will beat
+you to a jelly."
+
+The mother took Dobrunka by the arm, put her out of the door, and drew
+the bolt on her.
+
+The poor girl returned to the forest, looking with all her eyes for
+the light that she had seen the day before. She was fortunate enough
+to spy it, and she reached the fire trembling and almost frozen.
+
+The Twelve Months were in their places, motionless and silent.
+
+"My good sirs," said Dobrunka, "please to let me warm myself by your
+fire; I am almost frozen with cold."
+
+"Why have you returned?" asked January. "What are you looking for?"
+
+"I am looking for strawberries," answered she.
+
+"This is not the season for them," returned January, in his gruff
+voice; "there are no strawberries under the snow."
+
+"I know it," replied Dobrunka, sadly; "but my mother and sister will
+beat me to a jelly if I do not bring them some. My good sirs, please
+to tell me where I can find them."
+
+Old January rose and, turning to a man in a golden mantle, he put his
+staff in his hand, saying, "Brother June, this is your business."
+
+June rose in turn, and stirred the fire with the staff, when, behold!
+the flames rose, the snow melted, the earth grew green, the trees were
+covered with leaves, the birds sang and the flowers opened--it was
+summer. Thousands of little white stars enameled the turf, then turned
+to red strawberries, looking, in their green cups, like rubies set in
+emeralds.
+
+"Make haste, my child, and gather your strawberries," said June.
+
+Dobrunka filled her apron, thanked the Twelve Months, and joyfully
+ran home. You may imagine the astonishment of Katinka and the
+stepmother. The fragrance of the strawberries filled the whole house.
+
+"Where did you find these things?" asked Katinka, in a disdainful
+voice.
+
+"Up yonder on the mountain," answered her sister; "there were so many
+of them that they looked like blood poured on the ground."
+
+Katinka and her mother devoured the strawberries without even thanking
+the poor child.
+
+The third day the wicked sister took a fancy for some red apples. The
+same threats, the same insults, and the same violence followed.
+Dobrunka ran to the mountain, and was fortunate enough to find the
+Twelve Months warming themselves, motionless and silent.
+
+"You here again, my child?" said old January, making room for her by
+the fire. Dobrunka told him, with tears, how, if she did not bring
+home some red apples, her mother and sister would beat her to death.
+
+Old January repeated the ceremonies of the day before. "Brother
+September," said he to a gray-bearded man in a purple mantle, "this is
+your business."
+
+September rose and stirred the fire with the staff, when, behold! the
+flames ascended, the snow melted, and the trees put forth a few yellow
+leaves, which fell one by one before the wind--it was autumn. The only
+flowers were a few late pinks, daisies, and immortelles. Dobrunka saw
+but one thing, an apple-tree with its rosy fruit.
+
+"Make haste, my child; shake the tree," said September.
+
+She shook it, and an apple fell; she shook it again, and a second
+apple followed.
+
+"Make haste, Dobrunka, make haste home!" cried September, in an
+imperious voice.
+
+The good child thanked the Twelve Months, and joyfully ran home. You
+may imagine the astonishment of Katinka and the stepmother.
+
+"Red apples in January! Where did you get these apples?" asked
+Katinka.
+
+"Up yonder on the mountain; there is a tree there that is as red with
+them as a cherry-tree in July."
+
+"Why did you bring only two? You ate the rest on the way."
+
+"Oh, sister, I did not touch them; I was only permitted to shake the
+tree twice, and but two apples fell."
+
+"Begone, you fool!" cried Katinka, striking her sister, who ran away
+crying.
+
+The wicked girl tasted one of the apples; she had never eaten anything
+so delicious in her life, neither had her mother. How they regretted
+not having any more!
+
+[Illustration: TURNED OUT BY HER MOTHER, DOBRUNKA WENT UNHAPPILY INTO
+THE FOREST]
+
+"Mother," said Katinka, "give me my fur cloak. I will go to the forest
+and find the tree, and whether I am permitted or not I will shake
+it so hard that all the apples will be ours."
+
+The mother tried to stop her. A spoiled child listens to nothing.
+Katinka wrapped herself in her fur cloak, drew the hood over her head,
+and hastened to the forest.
+
+Everything was covered with snow; there was not even a footpath.
+Katinka lost her way, but she pushed on, spurred by pride and
+covetousness. She spied a light in the distance. She climbed and
+climbed till she reached the place, and found the Twelve Months each
+seated on his stone, motionless and silent. Without asking their
+permission, she approached the fire.
+
+"Why have you come here? What do you want? Where are you going?" asked
+old January, gruffly.
+
+"What matters it to you, old fool?" answered Katinka. "It is none of
+your business where I came from or whither I am going." She plunged
+into the forest. January frowned and raised his staff above his head.
+In the twinkling of an eye the sky was overcast, the fire went out,
+the snow fell, and the wind blew. Katinka could not see the way before
+her. She lost herself, and vainly tried to retrace her steps. The snow
+fell and the wind blew. She called her mother, she cursed her sister,
+she cursed God. The snow fell and the wind blew. Katinka froze, her
+limbs stiffened, and she fell motionless. The snow still fell and the
+wind still blew.
+
+The mother went without ceasing from the window to the door, and from
+the door to the window. The hours passed and Katinka did not return.
+
+"I must go and look for my daughter," said she. "The child has
+forgotten herself with those hateful apples." She took her fur cloak
+and hood, and hastened to the mountain. Everything was covered with
+snow; there was not even a footpath. She plunged into the forest,
+calling her daughter. The snow fell and the wind blew. She walked on
+with feverish anxiety, shouting at the top of her voice. The snow
+still fell and the wind still blew.
+
+Dobrunka waited through the evening and the night, but no one
+returned. In the morning she took her wheel and spun a whole distaff
+full; there was still no news. "What can have happened?" said the
+girl, weeping. The sun was shining through an icy mist and the ground
+was covered with snow. Dobrunka prayed for her mother and sister. They
+did not return; and it was not till spring that a shepherd found the
+two corpses in the forest.
+
+Dobrunka remained the sole mistress of the house, the cow, and the
+garden, to say nothing of a piece of meadow adjoining the house. But
+when a good and pretty girl has a field under her window, the next
+thing that follows is a young farmer who offers her his heart and
+hand. Dobrunka was soon married. The Twelve Months did not abandon
+their child. More than once, when the north wind blew fearfully and
+the windows shook in their frames, old January stopped up all the
+crevices of the house with snow, so that the cold might not enter this
+peaceful abode.
+
+Dobrunka lived to a good old age, always virtuous and happy, having,
+according to the proverb, winter at the door, summer in the barn,
+autumn in the cellar, and spring in the heart.
+
+
+
+
+Swanda the Piper
+
+_A Bohemian Tale_
+
+[Illustration:]
+
+
+Swanda, the Piper, was a jolly companion. Like every true musician, he
+was born with an unquenchable thirst; besides, he was madly fond of
+play, and would have risked his soul at strajak, the favorite game at
+cards in Bohemia. When he had earned a little money he would throw
+aside his pipes, and drink and play with the first comer till he
+returned to his home as light in pocket as when he had left it. But he
+was always so merry, witty, and good-natured that not a drinker ever
+left the table while the piper was there, and his name still lives in
+Bohemia as the prince of good fellows.
+
+One day there was a festival at Mokran, and no merry-making was ever
+complete without the piper. Swanda, after blowing his pipe till
+midnight and earning twenty zwanzigers, determined to amuse himself on
+his own account. Neither prayers nor promises could persuade him to
+go on with his music; he was determined to drink his fill and to
+shuffle the cards at his ease; but, for the first time in his life, he
+found no one to play with him.
+
+Swanda was not the man to quit the inn so long as he had a kreutzer in
+his pocket, and on that day he had many of them. By dint of talking,
+laughing, and drinking he took one of those fixed ideas which are not
+uncommon among those who look too often in the bottom of their glass,
+and determined to play at any price; but all his neighbors refused his
+challenge. Furious at finding no partner, he rose with an unsteady
+step, paid for what he had drank, and left the inn.
+
+"I will go to Drazic," said he; "the schoolmaster and the bailiff
+there are honest people who are not afraid of play, and I shall find
+partners. Hurrah!"
+
+The night was clear and the moon shone like a fish's eye. On reaching
+a cross-road Swanda raised his eyes by chance, and stopped, mute and
+motionless. A flock of ravens were croaking over his head, and in
+front of him rose four posts, standing like pillars, and connected at
+the top by cross-beams, from each of which swung a half-devoured
+corpse. It was a robbers' gallows, a spectacle by no means amusing to
+a less stoical spirit than that of Swanda.
+
+He had not recovered from the first shudder when suddenly there
+appeared before him a man dressed in black, with pale and hollow
+cheeks, and eyes that glittered like carbuncles.
+
+"Where are you going so late, friend Piper?" asked he, in a soft
+voice.
+
+"To Drazic, Mr. Black Coat," answered the intrepid Swanda.
+
+"Would you like to earn something by your music?"
+
+"I am tired of blowing," returned Swanda. "I have some silver in my
+pocket, and wish to amuse myself."
+
+"Who talks to you of silver? It is with gold that we pay."
+
+Saying this, the stranger flashed before his eyes a handful of shining
+ducats. The piper was the son of a thrifty mother; he knew not how to
+resist such an invitation, and followed the black man and his gold.
+
+How the time passed he never could remember. It is true that his head
+was a little heavy. The only thing that he recollected was that the
+black man warned him to accept whatever was offered him, whether gold
+or wine, but never to return thanks except by saying "Good luck,
+brother!"
+
+Without knowing how he had entered, he found himself in a dark room
+where three men, dressed in black like his guide, were playing at
+strajak by no other light than their glittering eyes. On the table
+were piles of gold, and a jug from which each one drank in his turn.
+
+"Brothers," said the black man, "I bring you friend Swanda, whom you
+have long known by reputation. I thought to please you on this
+feast-day by giving you a little music."
+
+"A good idea!" said one of the players. Then, taking the jug, he
+handed it to Swanda, saying, "Here, piper, drink and play."
+
+Swanda had some scruples; but, after all, it is impossible to have
+charcoal without putting your finger into the ashes. The wine, though
+rather warm, was not bad. He replaced the jug on the table, and
+raising his hat, said, "Good luck, brother!" as he had been advised.
+
+He began to play, and never had his music produced such an effect.
+Each note made the players leap for joy. Their eyes shot forth flames;
+they moved about uneasily in their chairs; they staked the ducats by
+handfuls; they shouted and burst into loud fits of laughter without
+stirring a muscle of their pallid faces. The jug passed from hand to
+hand, always full, though replenished by no one.
+
+As soon as Swanda finished an air they handed him the jug, from which
+he never failed to drink deeply, and threw handfuls of gold into his
+hat. "Good luck, brother!" he repeated, astounded at his
+fortune--"good luck!"
+
+The feast lasted a long time. At last, the piper having struck up a
+polka, the black men, in a transport of mirth, quitted the table and
+danced and waltzed with an ardor and frenzy which ill accorded with
+their icy faces. One of the dancers gathered up all the gold that was
+heaped on the table, and, pouring it into Swanda's hat, "Here," said
+he, "take this for the pleasure that you have given us."
+
+"God bless you, my good lords!" said the dazzled piper. Scarcely had
+he spoken when men, room, and cards vanished.
+
+In the morning a peasant on his way to the fields heard the sound of a
+pipe as he approached the cross-road. "It is Swanda," said he. But
+where was the piper? Seated on a corner of the gallows, he was blowing
+with all his might, while the corpses of the robbers danced in the
+wind to his music.
+
+"Halloo, comrade!" cried the peasant. "How long have you been playing
+the cuckoo up there?"
+
+Swanda started, dropped his pipe, opened his eyes, and glided,
+bewildered, down the gallows. His first thought, however, was for his
+ducats. He rummaged his pockets and turned his hat inside out, but all
+in vain; there was not even a kreutzer!
+
+"My friend," said the peasant, making the sign of the cross, "God has
+punished you by giving you the devil for a partner; you love cards too
+well."
+
+"You are right," said Swanda, trembling; "I will never touch them
+again in my life."
+
+[Illustration: HE BEGAN TO PLAY AND NEVER HAD HIS MUSIC PRODUCED SUCH
+AN EFFECT.]
+
+He kept his word; and, to thank Heaven for having preserved him
+from such peril, he took the fatal pipe to which the devil had danced,
+and suspended it as a votive offering in the church of Strakonic, his
+birthplace, where it may be seen to this day. The pipe of Strakonic
+has become a proverb, and it is even said that its sound is heard
+every year at the day and hour when Swanda played for Satan and his
+friends.
+
+
+
+
+_The_ Gold Bread
+
+_A Hungarian Tale_
+
+[Illustration:]
+
+
+Once upon a time there was a widow who had a beautiful daughter. The
+mother was modest and humble; the daughter, Marienka, was pride
+itself. She had suitors from all sides, but none satisfied her; the
+more they tried to please her the more she disdained them.
+
+One night, when the poor mother could not sleep, she took her beads
+and began to pray for her dear child, who gave her more than one care.
+Marienka was asleep by her side. As the mother gazed lovingly at her
+beautiful daughter, Marienka laughed in her sleep.
+
+"What a beautiful dream she must have to laugh in this way!" said the
+mother. Then she finished her prayer, hung her beads on the wall, laid
+her head on the same pillow with her daughter, and fell asleep.
+
+"My dear child," said she in the morning, "what did you dream last
+night that you laughed so?"
+
+"What did I dream, mamma? I dreamed that a nobleman came here for me
+in a copper coach, and that he put a ring on my finger set with a
+stone that sparkled like the stars. And when I entered the church the
+people had eyes for no one but the blessed Virgin and me."
+
+"My daughter, my daughter, that was a proud dream!" said the mother,
+shaking her head. But Marienka went out singing.
+
+The same day a wagon entered the yard. A handsome young farmer in good
+circumstances came to ask Marienka to share a peasant's bread with
+him. The mother was pleased with the suitor, but the proud Marienka
+refused him, saying, "Though you should come in a copper coach, and
+put a ring on my finger set with a stone that sparkled like the stars,
+I would not have you for a husband." And the farmer went away storming
+at Marienka's pride.
+
+The next night the mother waked, took her beads, and prayed still more
+earnestly for her daughter, when, behold! Marienka laughed again as
+she was sleeping.
+
+"I wonder what she is dreaming," said the mother, who prayed, unable
+to sleep.
+
+"My dear child," she said the next morning, "what did you dream last
+night that you laughed aloud?"
+
+"What did I dream, mamma? I dreamed that a nobleman came here for me
+in a silver coach, and that he offered me a golden diadem. And when I
+entered the church the people looked at me more than they did at the
+blessed Virgin."
+
+"Hush! you are blaspheming. Pray, my daughter, pray that you may not
+fall into temptation."
+
+But Marienka ran away to escape her mother's sermon.
+
+The same day a carriage entered the yard. A young lord came to entreat
+Marienka to share a nobleman's bread with him.
+
+"It is a great honor," said the mother; but vanity is blind.
+
+"Though you should come in a silver coach," said Marienka to the new
+suitor, "and should offer me a golden diadem, I would not have you for
+a husband."
+
+"Take care, my child," said the poor mother; "pride is a device of the
+Evil One."
+
+"Mothers never know what they are saying," thought Marienka, and she
+went out shrugging her shoulders.
+
+The third night the mother could not sleep for anxiety. As she lay
+awake, praying for her daughter, behold! Marienka burst into a loud
+fit of laughter.
+
+"Oh!" said the mother, "what can the unhappy child be dreaming now?"
+And she continued to pray till daylight.
+
+"My dear child," said she in the morning, "what did you dream last
+night?"
+
+"You will be angry again if I tell you," answered Marienka.
+
+"No, no," replied the mother. "Tell me."
+
+"I dreamed that a noble lord, with a great train of attendants, came
+to ask me in marriage. He was in a golden coach, and he brought me a
+dress of gold lace. And when I entered the church, the people looked
+at nobody but me."
+
+The mother clasped her hands. Marienka, half dressed, sprang from the
+bed and ran into the next room, to avoid a lecture that was tiresome
+to her.
+
+The same day three coaches entered the yard, one of copper, one of
+silver, and one of gold; the first drawn by two horses, the second by
+four, and the third by eight, all caparisoned with gold and pearls.
+From the copper and silver coaches alighted pages dressed in scarlet
+breeches and green jackets and cloaks, while from the golden coach
+stepped a handsome nobleman all dressed in gold. He entered the house,
+and, bending one knee on the ground, asked the mother for her
+daughter's hand.
+
+"What an honor!" thought the mother.
+
+"My dream has come to pass," said Marienka. "You see, mother, that, as
+usual, I was right and you were wrong."
+
+She ran to her chamber, tied the betrothal knot, and offered it
+smilingly as a pledge of her faith to the handsome lord, who, on his
+side, put a ring on her finger set with a stone that sparkled like the
+stars, and presented her with a golden diadem and a dress of gold
+lace.
+
+The proud girl ran to her room to dress for the ceremony, while the
+mother, still anxious, said to the bridegroom, "My good sir, what
+bread do you offer my daughter?"
+
+"Among us," said he, "the bread is of copper, silver, and gold. She
+can take her choice."
+
+"What does this mean?" thought the mother. But Marienka had no
+anxiety; she returned as beautiful as the sun, took her lover's arm,
+and set out for the church without asking her mother's blessing. The
+poor woman was left to pray alone on the threshold; and when Marienka
+returned and entered the carriage she did not even turn round to look
+at her mother or to bid her a last farewell.
+
+The eight horses set off at a gallop, and did not stop till they
+reached a huge rock in which there was a hole as large as the gate of
+a city. The horses plunged into the darkness, the earth trembled, and
+the rock cracked and crumbled. Marienka seized her husband's hand.
+
+"Don't be alarmed, my fair one; in a moment it will be light."
+
+All at once a thousand lights waved in the air. The dwarfs of the
+mountain, each with a torch in his hand, came to salute their lord,
+the King of the Mines. Marienka learned for the first time her
+husband's name. Whether he was a spirit of good or of evil, at least
+he was so rich that she did not regret her choice.
+
+[Illustration: AS THE MOTHER GAZED LOVINGLY AT HER BEAUTIFUL DAUGHTER,
+MARIENKA LAUGHED IN HER SLEEP]
+
+They emerged from the darkness, and advanced through bleached
+forests and mountains that raised their pale and gloomy summits to the
+skies. Firs, beeches, birches, oaks, rocks, all were of lead. At the
+end of the forest stretched a vast meadow the grass of which was of
+silver; and at the bottom of the meadow was a castle of gold, inlaid
+with diamonds and rubies. The carriage stopped before the door, and
+the King of the Mines offered his hand to his bride, saying, "My fair
+one, all that you see is yours."
+
+Marienka was delighted. But it is impossible to make so long a journey
+without being hungry; and it was with pleasure, therefore, that she
+saw the mountain dwarfs bring in a table, everything on which
+glittered with gold, silver, and precious stones. The dishes were
+marvelous--side-dishes of emeralds, and roasts of gold on silver
+salvers. Every one ate heartily except the bride, who begged her
+husband for a little bread.
+
+"Bring the copper bread," said the King of the Mines.
+
+Marienka could not eat it.
+
+"Bring the silver bread," said he.
+
+Marienka could not eat it.
+
+"Bring the gold bread," said he, at length.
+
+Marienka could not eat it.
+
+"My fair one," said the King of the Mines, "I am very sorry; but what
+can I offer you? We have no other bread."
+
+The bride burst into tears. Her husband laughed aloud; his heart was
+of metal, like his kingdom.
+
+"Weep, if you like," he cried; "it will do you no good. What you
+wished for you possess. Eat the bread that you have chosen."
+
+It was thus that the rich Marienka lived in her castle, dying of
+hunger, and seeking in vain for a root to allay the torture that was
+consuming her. God had humbled her by granting her prayer.
+
+Three days in the year, the Rogation Days, when the ground half opens
+to receive the fruitful rain sent by the Lord, Marienka returns to the
+earth. Dressed in rags, pale and wrinkled, she begs from door to door,
+too happy when any one throws her a few crusts, and when she receives
+as alms from the poor what she lacks in her palace of gold--a little
+bread and a little pity.
+
+
+
+
+The Story _of the Noses_
+
+_A Bohemian Tale_
+
+[Illustration:]
+
+
+At Dewitz, in the neighborhood of Prague, there once lived a rich and
+whimsical old farmer who had a beautiful daughter. The students of
+Prague, of whom there were at that time twenty-five thousand, often
+walked in the direction of Dewitz, and more than one of them offered
+to follow the plow in hopes of becoming the son-in-law of the farmer.
+The first condition that the cunning peasant set on each new servant
+was this: "I engage you," he would say, "for a year--that is, till the
+cuckoo sings the return of spring; but if, from now till then, you say
+once that you are not satisfied, I will cut off the end of your nose.
+I give you the same right over me," he added, laughing. And he did as
+he said. Prague was full of students with the ends of their noses
+glued on, which did not prevent an ugly scar, and, still less, bad
+jokes. To return from the farm disfigured and ridiculed was well
+calculated to cool the warmest passion.
+
+A young man by the name of Coranda, somewhat ungainly in manner, but
+cool, adroit, and cunning, which are not bad aids in making one's
+fortune, took it in his head to try the adventure. The farmer received
+him with his usual good nature, and, the bargain made, sent him to the
+field to work. At breakfast-time the other servants were called, but
+good care was taken to forget Coranda. At dinner it was the same.
+Coranda gave himself no trouble about it. He went to the house, and
+while the farmer's wife was feeding the chickens unhooked an enormous
+ham from the kitchen rafters, took a huge loaf from the cupboard, and
+went back to the fields to dine and take a nap.
+
+"Are you satisfied?" cried the farmer, when he returned at night.
+
+"Perfectly satisfied," said Coranda; "I have dined better than you
+have."
+
+At that instant the farmer's wife came rushing in, crying that her ham
+was gone. Coranda laughed, and the farmer turned pale.
+
+"Are you not satisfied?" asked Coranda.
+
+"A ham is only a ham," answered his master. "Such a trifle does not
+trouble me." But after that time he took good care not to leave the
+student fasting.
+
+Sunday came. The farmer and his wife seated themselves in the wagon to
+go to church, saying to Coranda, "It is your business to cook the
+dinner. Cut up the piece of meat you see yonder, with onions, carrots,
+leeks, and parsley, and boil them all together in the great pot over
+the kitchen fire."
+
+"Very well," answered Coranda.
+
+There was a little pet dog at the farm-house by the name of Parsley.
+Coranda killed him, skinned him, cut him up with the meat and
+vegetables, and put the whole to boil over the kitchen fire. When the
+farmer's wife returned she called her favorite; but, alas! she saw
+nothing but a bloody skin hanging by the window.
+
+"What have you done?" said she to Coranda.
+
+"What you ordered me, mistress. I have boiled the meat, onions,
+carrots, and leeks, and parsley in the bargain."
+
+"Wicked wretch!" cried the farmer, "had you the heart to kill the
+innocent creature that was the joy of the house?"
+
+"Are you not satisfied?" said Coranda, taking his knife from his
+pocket.
+
+"I did not say that," returned the farmer. "A dead dog is nothing but
+a dead dog." But he sighed.
+
+A few days after, the farmer and his wife went to market. Fearing
+their terrible servant, they said to him, "Stay at home and do exactly
+what you see others do."
+
+"Very well," said Coranda.
+
+There was an old shed in the yard the roof of which was falling to
+pieces. The carpenters came to repair it, and began, as usual, by
+tearing down the roof. Coranda took a ladder and mounted the roof of
+the house, which was quite new. Shingles, lath, nails, and tiles, he
+tore off everything, and scattered them all to the winds. When the
+farmer returned the house was open to the sky.
+
+"Villain!" said he, "what new trick have you played me?"
+
+"I have obeyed you, master," answered Coranda. "You told me to do
+exactly what I saw others do. Are you not satisfied?" And he took out
+his knife.
+
+"Satisfied!" returned the farmer; "why should I not be satisfied? A
+few shingles more or less will not ruin me." But he sighed.
+
+Night came, the farmer and his wife said to each other that it was
+high time to get rid of this incarnate demon. As is always the case
+with sensible people, they never did anything without consulting their
+daughter, it being the custom in Bohemia to think that children always
+have more wit than their parents.
+
+"Father," said Helen, "I will hide in the great pear-tree early in the
+morning, and call like the cuckoo. You can tell Coranda that the year
+is up, since the cuckoo is singing; pay him and send him away."
+
+Early in the morning the plaintive cry of the cuckoo was heard through
+the fields. The farmer seemed surprised. "Well, my boy, spring is
+come," said he. "Do you hear the cuckoo singing yonder? I will pay you
+and we will part good friends."
+
+[Illustration: HE RAN TO THE TREE AND SHOOK IT WITH ALL HIS MIGHT,
+WHEN, BEHOLD! A YOUNG GIRL FELL FROM THE BRANCHES]
+
+"A cuckoo!" said Coranda; "that is a bird which I have always wanted
+to see."
+
+He ran to the tree and shook it with all his might, when, behold! a
+young girl fell from the branches, fortunately more frightened than
+hurt.
+
+"Villain!" cried the farmer.
+
+"Are you not satisfied?" said Coranda, opening his knife.
+
+"Wretch! you kill my daughter and you think that I ought to be
+satisfied! I am furious. Begone, if you would not die by my hand!"
+
+"I will go when I have cut off your nose," said Coranda. "I have kept
+my word. Do you keep yours."
+
+"Stop!" cried the farmer, putting his hand before his face. "You will
+surely let me redeem my nose?"
+
+"It depends on what you offer," said Coranda.
+
+"Will you take ten sheep for it?"
+
+"No."
+
+"Ten cows?"
+
+"No; I would rather cut off your nose." And he sharpened his knife on
+the door-step.
+
+"Father," said Helen, "the fault was mine; it belongs to me to repair
+it. Coranda, will you take my hand instead of my father's nose?"
+
+"Yes," replied Coranda.
+
+"I make one condition," said the young girl. "We will make the same
+bargain; the first one of us that is not satisfied after marriage
+shall have his nose cut off by the other."
+
+"Good," replied Coranda. "I would rather it was the tongue; but that
+will come next."
+
+Never was a finer wedding seen at Prague, and never was there a
+happier household. Coranda and the beautiful Helen were a model pair.
+The husband and wife were never heard to complain of each other; they
+loved with drawn swords, and, thanks to their ingenious bargain, kept
+for long years both their love and their noses.
+
+
+
+
+_The Three Citrons_
+
+A Neapolitan Tale
+
+[Illustration: ]
+
+
+Once upon a time there lived a king who was called the King of the
+Vermilion Towers. He had but one son, whom he loved as the apple of
+his eye, and who was the only hope of a royal line about to become
+extinct. The old king's whole ambition was to marry this illustrious
+prince--to find him a princess at once handsome, noble, young, and
+rich. He could think of nothing but this wished-for marriage.
+
+Unhappily, among all the virtues in which the heir to a crown is never
+lacking, Carlino, for that was the young prince's name, had the
+trifling fault of being shyer than a deer. He shook his head and fled
+to the woods at the mere sound of a woman's name, to the great grief
+of his father, who was in despair at seeing his family about to die
+out. But his grief was in vain; nothing touched the heart of Carlino.
+The tears of a father, the prayers of a whole people, the interest of
+the state, nothing could melt this stony heart. Twenty preachers had
+wasted their eloquence and thirty senators their Latin in reasoning
+with him. To be stubborn is one of the privileges of royalty, as
+Carlino had known from his birth, and he would have thought himself
+dishonored by being second to a mule in obstinacy.
+
+But more things often happen in an hour than in a hundred years, and
+no one can say with safety, "This is a road that I shall never
+travel." One morning at breakfast, as Carlino, instead of listening to
+his father's sermon, was amusing himself by watching the flies buzzing
+in the air, he forgot that he had a knife in his hand, and pricked his
+finger in a gesture of impatience. The blood gushed forth and fell
+into a plate of cream that had just been handed to him, where it made
+a curious mixture of white and red. Either by chance or by the
+punishment of Heaven, the prince was instantly seized with the maddest
+caprice that could be imagined.
+
+"Sir," said he to his father, "if I do not soon find a woman as white
+and red as this cream dyed with my blood, I am lost. This wonder must
+exist somewhere. I love her; I am dying for her; I must have her; I
+will have her. To a resolute heart nothing is impossible. If you would
+have me live, let me go in search of her, or before to-morrow I shall
+be dead of loneliness."
+
+The poor King of the Vermilion Towers was thunderstruck at this folly.
+It seemed to him that his palace was crumbling over his head; he
+turned red and pale by turns, stammered, wept, and finally cried, in
+a voice broken with sobs:
+
+"Oh, my child, the staff of my old age, my heart's blood, the life of
+my soul, what an idea have you taken into your head! Have you lost
+your reason? Yesterday you almost made me die of sorrow by refusing to
+marry; to-day you are about to drive me from the world by another
+piece of folly. Whither would you go, unhappy boy? Why leave your
+home, where you have been born and bred? Do you know to what danger
+and suffering the traveler exposes himself? Drive away these perilous
+fancies, and stay with me, my child, if you would not deprive me of
+life and destroy your kingdom and house at one blow."
+
+All these words, and others equally wise, had no more effect than an
+official harangue. Carlino, his eye fixed and his brow bent, listened
+to nothing but his passion. All that was said to him went in at one
+ear and out at the other; it was eloquence cast to the winds.
+
+When the old king, worn out with prayers and tears, perceived that it
+was easier to melt a leaden weathercock on its steeple than a spoiled
+child in pursuit of his whim, he heaved a deep sigh and determined to
+let Carlino go; and giving him counsels to which he scarcely listened,
+several bags filled with guineas, which were rather better received
+than the counsels, and two trusty servants, the good king clasped his
+rebellious son to his heart and bade him adieu, then mounted to the
+top of the great tower to follow the ungrateful boy with his eyes as
+far as he could see. When Carlino at last disappeared in the distance,
+the poor monarch thought that his heart was breaking. He buried his
+face in his hands and wept, not like a child, but like a father. The
+tears of a child are like the summer rain, large drops that are soon
+dried up; the tears of a father are like the autumnal rain, which
+falls slowly and soaks into the ground.
+
+While the king wept, Carlino, mounted on a fine horse, rode on gaily,
+his plume waving in the wind, like a hero about to conquer the world.
+To find what he sought was not an easy task, however, and his journey
+lasted more than one day. He crossed mountains and valleys, traversed
+kingdoms, duchies, earldoms, and baronies, and visited cities,
+villages, castles, and cottages, gazing at all the women, and gazed at
+by them in turn; but all in vain: the treasure that he sought was not
+to be found in old Europe.
+
+At the end of four months he reached Marseilles, resolved to embark
+for the Indies. At the sight of the raging sea, however, his brave and
+faithful servants were seized with an epidemic, called by the
+physicians stay-at-homeativeness in Hebrew, and the headache in the
+feet in Latin. To the great regret of these honest people, they were
+forced to quit their good master and remain quietly on shore, wrapped
+in their warm blankets, while Carlino, embarked on a frail bark,
+braved the winds and waves.
+
+Nothing can stop a heart hurried away by passion. The prince roamed
+over Egypt, India, and China, going from province to province, from
+city to city, from house to house, and from cabin to cabin, everywhere
+seeking the original of the fair image that was engraved on his heart,
+but in vain. He saw women of all colors and shades, brown, blond,
+olive, sandy, white, yellow, red, and black, but he did not see her
+whom he loved.
+
+Always seeking and never finding, Carlino at last reached the end of
+the world. There was nothing more before him but the ocean and the
+sky. His hopes were at an end; his dream had vanished. As he was
+walking despairingly up and down the seashore, he spied an old man
+warming himself in the sun. The prince asked him if there was nothing
+beyond these waves that stretched as far as the eye could reach.
+
+"No," said the old man; "no one has ever discovered anything in this
+shoreless ocean, or, at least, those who have ventured on it have
+never returned to tell the story. I remember, however, having heard
+the old men among us say, when I was a child," he added, "that their
+fathers had told them that yonder, a long, long way off, far beyond
+the horizon, was the Island of the Fates; but woe to the imprudent man
+who approaches these merciless fairies: he is struck with death at
+their sight."
+
+"What does that matter?" cried Carlino. "I would face death itself to
+gain my wishes."
+
+A bark lay by the strand. The prince sprang on board and unfurled the
+sail. The wind, which blew off the shore, hurried forward the frail
+craft, the land disappeared, and Carlino found himself in the midst of
+the ocean. In vain he gazed about him; there was nothing but the
+sea--the sea everywhere; in vain the bark bounded over the foaming
+waves with the speed of lightning, like a steed with mane floating on
+the wind; there was nothing but the sea--the sea everywhere. Billows
+followed billows, the hours passed one after another, the day
+declined, and the solitude and silence seemed to deepen around
+Carlino, when all at once he uttered a cry; he saw a black speck in
+the distance. At the same instant the bark, shooting ahead like an
+arrow, struck upon the sand at the foot of huge rocks, which raised
+their dark summits, notched and worn by time, to the skies. Fate had
+thrown Carlino upon that strand from which none had ever returned.
+
+To climb this wall was not an easy matter; there was neither road nor
+path; and when Carlino, after long efforts, with torn hands and
+wearied limbs, at last succeeded in reaching a level spot, what he
+found was not calculated to reassure him. He saw nothing but glaciers
+piled upon one another--black, damp rocks rising from the midst of the
+snows--not a tree, not a blade of grass, not a bit of moss; it was the
+picture of winter and death. The only sign of life in this desert was
+a wretched hovel, the roof of which was loaded with great stones in
+order to resist the fury of the winds. The prince approached the hut,
+and was about to enter it, when he stopped short, struck with surprise
+and terror at the spectacle which presented itself.
+
+At the end of the room was a great web of cloth, on which were
+pictured all the conditions of life. There were kings, soldiers,
+farmers, and shepherds, with ladies richly dressed, and peasant women
+spinning by their side. At the bottom boys and girls were dancing
+gaily, holding each other by the hand. Before the web walked the
+mistress of the house--an old woman, if the name woman can be given to
+a skeleton with bones scarcely hidden by a skin yellower and more
+transparent than wax. Like a spider ready to pounce upon its prey, the
+old woman, armed with a great pair of shears, peered at all the
+figures with a jealous eye, then suddenly fell upon the web and cut it
+at random, when, lo! a piercing wail rose from it that would have
+moved a heart of stone. The tears of children, the sobs of mothers,
+the despair of lovers, the last murmurs of old age, all human sorrow
+seemed mingled in this wail. At the sound the old woman burst into a
+loud laugh, and her hideous face lighted up with ferocious delight,
+while an invisible hand mended the web, eternally destroyed and
+eternally repaired.
+
+The hag, again opening her shears, was already approaching the web
+anew, when she saw the shadow of Carlino.
+
+"Fly, unhappy man," cried she, without turning round; "I know what
+brings you here, but I can do nothing for you. Go to my sister;
+perhaps she will give you what you desire. She is Life--I am Death."
+
+Carlino did not wait for a second bidding. He rushed onward, too happy
+to escape this scene of horror.
+
+The landscape soon changed. Carlino found himself in a fertile valley.
+On every side were harvests, blossoming fields, vines loaded with
+grapes, and olive-trees full of fruit. In the thick shade of a
+fig-tree, by a running spring, sat a blind woman unrolling the last
+gold and silver thread from a spindle. Around her lay several
+distaffs, full of different kinds of materials ready for
+spinning--flax, hemp, wool, silk, and others.
+
+When she had finished her task the fairy stretched out her trembling
+hand at random, took the first distaff that came, and began to spin.
+
+Carlino bowed respectfully to the lady, and began with emotion to tell
+her the story of his pilgrimage, when the fairy stopped him at the
+first word.
+
+"My child," said she, "I can do nothing for you. I am only a poor
+blind woman that does not even know herself what she is doing. This
+distaff, which I have taken at random, decides the fate of all who are
+born while I am spinning it. Riches or poverty, happiness or
+misfortune, are attached to this thread that I cannot see. The slave
+of destiny, I can create nothing. Go to my other sister; perhaps she
+will give you what you desire. She is Birth; I am Life."
+
+"Thanks, madam," answered Carlino; and with a light heart he ran to
+find the youngest of the Fates. He soon discovered her, fresh and
+smiling as the spring. Everything about her was taking root and
+germinating; the corn was bursting through the earth and putting forth
+its green blades from the brown furrows; the orange-blossoms were
+opening; the buds on the trees were unfolding their pink scales; the
+chickens, scarcely feathered, were running round the anxious hen, and
+the lambs were clinging to their mother. It was the first smile of
+life.
+
+The fairy received the prince with kindness. After listening to him
+without laughing at his folly, she asked him to sup with her, and at
+dessert gave him three citrons, and a beautiful knife with a
+mother-of-pearl handle.
+
+"Carlino," said she, "you can now return to your father's house. The
+prize is gained; you have found what you have been seeking. Go, then,
+and when you have reached your kingdom, stop at the first fountain
+that you see and cut one of these citrons. A fairy will come forth,
+who will ask you for a drink. Give her the water quickly, or she will
+slip through your fingers like quicksilver. If the second escapes you
+in the same way, have an eye to the last; give her a drink instantly,
+and you will have a wife according to your heart."
+
+Intoxicated with joy, the prince kissed again and again the charming
+hand that crowned his wishes. He was more happy than wise, and little
+deserved to succeed; but fairies have their caprices, and Fortune is
+always a fairy.
+
+It was a long distance from the end of the world to the kingdom of the
+Vermilion Towers. Carlino experienced more than one storm and braved
+more than one danger on his way across land and sea, but at last,
+after a long voyage and a thousand trials, he reached his father's
+country with his three citrons, which he had treasured like the apple
+of his eye.
+
+He was not more than two hours' journey from the royal castle when he
+entered a dense forest where he had hunted many a time. A transparent
+fountain, bordered with wild flowers and shaded by the trembling
+leaves of the aspen, invited the traveler to repose. Carlino seated
+himself on a carpet of verdure enameled with daisies, and, taking his
+knife, cut one of the citrons.
+
+All at once a young girl as white as milk and as red as a strawberry
+darted past him like lightning. "Give me a drink!" said she, pausing
+an instant.
+
+"How beautiful she is!" cried the prince, so ravished by her charms
+that he forgot the advice of the Fate. He paid dearly for it; in a
+second the fairy had disappeared. Carlino smote his breast in despair,
+and stood as astonished as a child that sees the running water slip
+through his fingers.
+
+He tried to calm himself, and cut the next citron with a trembling
+hand, but the second fairy was even more beautiful and more fleeting
+than her sister. While Carlino admired her, wonder-struck, in the
+twinkling of an eye she took flight.
+
+This time the prince burst into tears and wept so bitterly that he
+seemed a part of the fountain. He sobbed, tore his hair, and called
+down all the maledictions of Heaven on his head.
+
+"Fool that I am!" he cried; "twice I have let her escape as though my
+hands were tied. Fool that I am, I deserve my fate. When I should have
+run like a greyhound I stood still like a post. A fine piece of
+business! But all is not lost; the third time conquers. I will try the
+magic knife once more, and if it deceives me this time I will use it
+on myself."
+
+He cut the last citron. The third fairy darted forth and said, like
+her companions, "Give me a drink!" But the prince had learned a
+lesson. He instantly gave her the water, when, lo! a beautiful,
+slender young girl, as white as milk, with cheeks like roses, stood
+before him, looking like a freshly opened rosebud. She was a marvel of
+beauty such as the world had never seen, as fresh as a lily and as
+graceful as a swan; her hair was of brighter gold than the sun, her
+clear blue eyes revealed the depths of her heart, her rosy lips seemed
+made only to comfort and charm; in a word, from head to foot she was
+the most enchanting creature that had ever descended from heaven to
+earth. It is a great pity that we have no likeness of her.
+
+At the sight of his bride the prince almost lost his reason from joy
+and surprise. He could not understand how this miracle of freshness
+and beauty had sprung from the bitter rind of a citron.
+
+"Am I asleep?" he cried. "Am I dreaming? If I am the sport of a
+delusion, for pity's sake do not awaken me."
+
+The fairy's smile soon reassured him. She accepted his hand, and was
+the first to ask to repair to the good king of the Vermilion Towers,
+who would be so happy to bless his children.
+
+"My love," answered Carlino, "I am as impatient as you to see my
+father and to prove to him that I was right; but we cannot enter the
+castle arm in arm like two peasants. You must go like a princess; you
+must be received like a queen. Wait for me by this fountain; I will
+run to the palace, and return in two hours with a dress and equipage
+worthy of you." Saying this, he tenderly kissed her hand and left her.
+
+The young girl was afraid, on finding herself alone; the cry of a
+raven, the rustling of the trees, a dead branch broken by the wind,
+everything frightened her. She looked tremblingly about her, and saw
+an old oak by the side of the fountain whose huge trunk offered her a
+shelter. She climbed the tree and hid herself in it, all but her
+lovely face, which, encircled by the foliage, was reflected in the
+transparent fountain as in a clear mirror.
+
+[Illustration: HE INSTANTLY GAVE HER THE WATER, WHEN, LO! A BEAUTIFUL,
+SLENDER YOUNG GIRL STOOD BEFORE HIM]
+
+Now there was a negress, by the name of Lucy, who lived in the
+neighborhood, and who was sent every day by her mistress to the
+fountain for water. Lucy came, as usual, with her pitcher on her
+shoulder, and just as she was about to fill it, she spied the image of
+the fairy in the spring. The fool, who had never seen herself, thought
+that the face was her own. "Poor Lucy!" she cried. "What! you, so
+fresh and beautiful, are forced by your mistress to carry water like a
+beast of burden! No, never!" And in her vanity she dashed the pitcher
+to the ground and returned home.
+
+When her mistress asked her why she had broken the pitcher, the slave
+shrugged her shoulders and said, "The pitcher that goes often to the
+well is soon broken." Upon this her mistress gave her a little wooden
+cask and ordered her to go back immediately and fill it at the
+fountain.
+
+The negress ran to the spring, and, gazing lovingly at the beautiful
+image in the water, sighed and said, "No, I am not an ape, as I am so
+often told; I am more beautiful than my mistress. Mules may carry
+casks--not I!" She dashed the cask on the ground, broke it in a
+thousand pieces, and returned to her mistress, grumbling.
+
+"Where is the cask?" asked her mistress, who was waiting impatiently
+for the water.
+
+"A mule ran against me and knocked it down, and it is all broken to
+pieces."
+
+At these words her mistress lost patience. Seizing a broom, she gave
+the negress one of those lessons that are not soon forgotten; then,
+taking down a leathern bottle that was hanging on the wall, "Run,
+wretched ape," she said; "and if you do not instantly bring this back
+to me full of water, I will beat you within an inch of your life."
+
+The negress took to her heels in terror, and filled the bottle
+obediently; but when it was filled she stopped to look once more in
+the fountain; and seeing the lovely face reflected there, "No!" she
+cried, in a burst of anger--"no, I will not be a water-carrier; no, I
+was not made to serve my mistress like a dog."
+
+Saying this, she took from her hair the great pin that held it, and
+pierced the bottle through and through. The water spouted out in every
+direction. At the sight the fairy in the tree burst into a fit of
+laughter. The negress looked up, saw the beautiful stranger, and
+understood the whole.
+
+"Oh!" said she to herself, "so you are the cause of my beating; no
+matter, you shall pay me well for it." Then, raising her voice, she
+called, in her sweetest tones, "What are you doing up there, lovely
+lady?"
+
+The fairy, who was as good as she was beautiful, tried to comfort the
+slave by talking with her. The acquaintance was soon made; an innocent
+soul is unsuspicious in friendship. The fairy, without distrust, told
+the negress all that had happened to her and the prince, why she was
+alone in the forest, and how she was every instant expecting Carlino
+with a grand equipage to conduct his bride to the king of the
+Vermilion Towers, and to marry her there in the presence of all the
+court.
+
+On hearing this story, the wicked and envious negress conceived an
+abominable idea. "Madame," said she, "if the prince is coming with all
+his suite, you must be ready to meet him. Your hair is all in
+disorder; let me come to you, and I will comb it."
+
+"With pleasure," answered the fairy, with a gracious smile, as she
+stretched out a little white hand, which looked, in Lucy's great black
+paw, like a crystal mirror in an ebony frame.
+
+No sooner had she climbed the tree than the wicked slave untied the
+fairy's hair and began to comb it; then, all at once, taking her great
+hair-pin, she pierced her to the brain. Feeling herself wounded, the
+fairy cried, "Palomba! Palomba!" when she instantly turned to a
+wood-pigeon and flew away. The horrible negress took her victim's
+place, and stretched out her neck among the foliage, looking like a
+statue of jet in a niche of emerald.
+
+Meanwhile the prince, mounted on a magnificent horse, was riding
+thither at full speed, followed by a long cavalcade. Poor Carlino was
+astonished to find a crow where he had left a swan. He almost lost his
+reason, his voice was choked with tears, and he gazed in all
+directions, hoping to see his bride among the foliage. But the
+negress, putting on a suffering air, said to him, casting down her
+eyes, "Look no farther, my prince; a wicked fairy has made me her
+victim, and a wretched fate has changed your lily to charcoal."
+
+Though he cursed the fairies who had played on his credulity, Carlino,
+like a true prince, would not break his word. He gallantly gave his
+hand to Lucy and helped her to descend from the tree, all the while
+heaving sighs that would have melted a heart of stone. When the
+negress was dressed like a princess, and covered with lace and
+diamonds that adorned her as the stars adorn the night, by rendering
+the darkness still more visible, Carlino seated her at his right hand,
+in a magnificent carriage lined with plate-glass and drawn by six
+white horses, and took his way to the palace, as happy as a criminal
+with the rope about his neck.
+
+The old king came to meet them a league from the castle. The wonderful
+stories of his son had turned his brain. In spite of etiquette and
+against the remonstrances of his courtiers, he hastened to admire the
+incomparable beauty of his daughter-in-law. "Upon my word," he
+exclaimed, at the sight of a crow instead of the dove that had been
+promised him--"upon my word, this is too much. I knew that my son was
+mad, but I did not know that he was blind. Is this the spotless lily
+that he has been to the end of the world to seek? Is this the rose
+fresher than the morning dew, the miracle of beauty that has come from
+the rind of a citron? Does he think that I will bear this new insult
+to my gray hairs? Does he think that I will leave to mulatto children
+the empire of the Vermilion Towers, the glorious inheritance of my
+ancestors? This baboon shall never enter my palace."
+
+The prince fell at his father's feet and tried to move him. The prime
+minister, a man of great experience, remonstrated with his master
+that, at court, black often becomes white and white black in the space
+of twenty-four hours; and that there was no reason to be astonished at
+such a very natural metamorphosis. What was the king of the Vermilion
+Towers to do? He was a king and a father, and by this double title
+always accustomed to do the will of others. He yielded and consented
+with a bad grace to this strange union. The court gazette announced to
+the whole kingdom the happy choice that the prince had made, and
+ordered the people to rejoice. The wedding was postponed for a week;
+it was impossible to make the preparations for the ceremony in less
+time than this.
+
+The negress was lodged in a magnificent suite of apartments;
+countesses disputed with one another the honor of putting on her
+slippers; and duchesses obtained, not without difficulty, the glorious
+privilege of handing her her nightgown. The town and castle were
+adorned with flags of all colors; walls were thrown down, yews were
+planted, walks were graveled, old speeches were furbished up, stale
+compliments were newly framed, and poems and sonnets that had done
+duty everywhere were patched up anew. There was but one idea in the
+kingdom--that of thankfulness to the prince for having chosen a wife
+so worthy of him.
+
+The kitchen was not forgotten. Three hundred scullions, a hundred
+cooks, and fifty stewards set to work, under the superintendence of
+the famous Bouchibus, the chief of the royal kitchens. Pigs were
+killed, sheep cut up, capons larded, pigeons plucked, and turkeys
+spitted; it was a universal massacre. It is impossible to have a feast
+worthy of the name without the help of the poultry-yard.
+
+In the midst of this bustle a beautiful wood-pigeon, with blue wings,
+perched on one of the kitchen windows, and cooed, in a plaintive
+voice,
+
+    "Bouchibus, tell me, for you must know, sure,
+    What has Carlino to do with the Moor?"
+
+The great Bouchibus was at first too busy with public affairs to
+attend to the cooing of a pigeon; but after a while he began to be
+astonished at understanding the language of birds, and thought it his
+duty to inform his new mistress of the wonder. The negress did not
+disdain to go to the kitchen. As soon as she heard the song, with a
+cry of affright, she ordered Bouchibus to catch the pigeon and make a
+stew of it.
+
+No sooner said than done. The poor bird suffered itself to be caught
+without resistance. In an instant Bouchibus, armed with his great
+knife, cut off its head and threw it into the garden. Three drops of
+blood fell on the ground; and three days after there sprang from the
+earth a beautiful citron-tree, which grew so fast that before night it
+was in blossom.
+
+The prince, while taking the air in his balcony, chanced to spy a
+citron-tree which he had never seen before. He called the cook and
+asked him who had planted this beautiful tree. The story of Bouchibus
+perplexed him greatly. He at once commanded, under penalty of death,
+that no one should touch the citron-tree, and that the greatest care
+should be taken of it.
+
+The next morning, as soon as he awoke, the prince hastened to the
+garden. There were already three citrons on the tree--three citrons
+exactly like those which the Fate had given him. Carlino gathered
+them, hastened to his apartments, and shut himself up under lock and
+key. With a trembling hand he filled a golden cup, set with rubies,
+which had belonged to his mother, with water, and opened the magic
+knife, which had never left him.
+
+He cut a citron, and the first fairy came forth. Carlino scarcely
+glanced at her, and suffered her to take flight. It was the same with
+the second; but as soon as the third appeared he gave her the cup,
+from which she drank with a smile, and stood before him more graceful
+than ever.
+
+The fairy then told Carlino all that she had suffered from the wicked
+negress. The prince, beside himself with mingled joy and anger,
+laughed and wept, sang and raved. The king, hearing the noise, ran to
+see what was the matter, and you may judge of his surprise. He danced
+about like a madman, with his crown on his head and his scepter in his
+hand. All at once he stopped short, bent his brow, which was a sign
+that a thought had struck him, threw a large veil over the princess
+which covered her from head to foot, and taking her by the hand, led
+her to the dining-room.
+
+It was the hour for breakfast. The ministers and courtiers were ranged
+round a long table, magnificently served, waiting for the entrance of
+the royal family to be seated. The king called the guests one after
+another, and, raising the veil as each approached the fairy, asked:
+
+"What shall be done to the person who sought to destroy this marvel of
+beauty?"
+
+And each one, wonder-struck, answered in his own way. Some said that
+the author of such a crime deserved a hempen cravat; others thought
+that the wretch should be thrown into the water with a stone to his
+neck. Beheading seemed to the old minister too mild a punishment for
+such a villain; he was in favor of flaying him alive, and all present
+applauded his humanity.
+
+When the negress's turn came she approached without suspicion, and did
+not recognize the fairy. "Sire," said she, "a monster capable of
+injuring this charming creature deserves to be roasted alive in an
+oven, and to have his ashes thrown to the winds."
+
+"You have pronounced your own sentence," cried the king of the
+Vermilion Towers. "Wretch, behold your victim and prepare to die. Let
+a funeral pile be built in the square in front of the castle. I will
+give my good people the pleasure of seeing a witch burn; it will
+occupy them for an hour or two."
+
+"Sire," said the young fairy, taking the king's hand, "Your Majesty
+surely will not refuse me a wedding gift?"
+
+"No, indeed, my child," replied the old king. "Ask what you will;
+should it be my crown, I will gladly give it to you."
+
+"Sire," continued the fairy, "grant me this wretched creature's
+pardon. An ignorant and miserable slave, life has taught her nothing
+but hatred and malice; let me render her happy and teach her that the
+only happiness on earth consists in loving others."
+
+"My daughter," said the king, "it is very evident that you are a
+fairy; you know nothing of human justice. Among us, we do not reform
+the wicked, we kill them; it is sooner done. But I have given my word.
+Tame this serpent at your own risk and peril; I am willing."
+
+The fairy raised the negress, who kissed her hands, weeping; then they
+all sat down to the table. The king was so happy that he ate enough
+for four. As for Carlino, who kept his eyes fixed on his bride, he cut
+his thumb five or six times in a fit of absent-mindedness, which each
+time put him in the best humor imaginable. Everything gives us
+pleasure when the heart is happy.
+
+When the old king died, full of years and honor, Carlino and his
+lovely wife ascended the throne in turn. For half a century, if
+history is to be believed, they neither raised the taxes, shed a drop
+of blood, nor caused a tear to fall; and although more than a thousand
+years have passed since then, the good people of the Vermilion Towers
+still sigh at the mention of this distant age, and little children are
+not the only ones to ask when the fairies will reign again.
+
+
+
+
+Story of
+
+Coquerico
+
+_A Spanish Tale_
+
+[Illustration:]
+
+
+Once upon a time there was a handsome hen who lived like a great lady
+in the poultry-yard of a rich farmer, surrounded by a numerous family
+which clucked about her, and none of which clamored more loudly or
+picked up the corn faster with his beak than a poor little deformed
+and crippled chicken. This was precisely the one that the mother loved
+best. It is the way with all mothers; the weakest and most unsightly
+are always their favorites. This misshapen creature had but one eye,
+one wing, and one leg in good condition; it might have been thought
+that Solomon had executed his memorable sentence on Coquerico, for
+that was the name of the wretched chicken, and cut him in two with his
+famous sword. When a person is one-eyed, lame, and one-armed, he may
+reasonably be expected to be modest; but our Castilian ragamuffin was
+prouder than his father, the best spurred, most elegant, bravest, and
+most gallant cock to be seen from Burgos to Madrid. He thought himself
+a phoenix of grace and beauty, and passed the best part of the day
+in admiring himself in the brook. If one of his brothers ran against
+him by accident, he abused him, called him envious and jealous, and
+risked his only remaining eye in battle; if the hens clucked on seeing
+him, he said it was to hide their spite because he did not condescend
+to look at them.
+
+One day, when he was more puffed up with vanity than usual, he
+resolved no longer to remain in such a narrow sphere, but to go out
+into the world, where he would be better appreciated.
+
+"My lady mother," said he, "I am tired of Spain; I am going to Rome to
+see the pope and cardinals."
+
+"What are you thinking of, my poor child!" cried his mother. "Who has
+put such a folly into your head? Never has one of our family been
+known to quit his country, and for this reason we are the honor of our
+race, and are proud of our genealogy. Where will you find a
+poultry-yard like this--mulberry-trees to shade you, a whitewashed
+henroost, a magnificent dunghill, worms and corn everywhere, brothers
+that love you, and three great dogs to guard you from the foxes? Do
+you not think that at Rome itself you will regret the ease and plenty
+of such a life?"
+
+Coquerico shrugged his crippled wing in token of disdain. "You are a
+simple woman, my good mother," said he; "everything is accounted
+worthy of admiration by him who has never quitted his dunghill. But I
+have wit enough to see that my brothers have no ideas and that my
+cousins are nothing but rustics. My genius is stifling in this hole; I
+wish to roam the world and seek my fortune."
+
+"But, my son, have you never looked in the brook?" resumed the poor
+hen. "Don't you know that you lack an eye, a leg, and a wing? To make
+your fortune, you need the eyes of a fox, the legs of a spider, and
+the wings of a vulture. Once outside of these walls, you are lost."
+
+"My good mother," replied Coquerico, "when a hen hatches a duck she is
+always frightened on seeing it run to the water. You know me no
+better. It is my nature to succeed by my wit and talent. I must have a
+public capable of appreciating the charms of my person; my place is
+not among inferior people."
+
+"My son," said the hen, seeing all her counsels useless--"my son,
+listen at least to your mother's last words. If you go to Rome, take
+care to avoid St. Peter's Church; the saint, it is said, dislikes
+cocks, especially when they crow. Shun, moreover, certain personages
+called cooks and scullions; you will know them by their paper caps,
+their tucked-up sleeves, and the great knives which they wear at their
+sides. They are licensed assassins, who track our steps without pity
+and cut our throats without giving us time to cry mercy. And now, my
+child," she added, raising her claw, "receive my blessing. May St.
+James, the patron saint of pilgrims, protect thee!"
+
+Coquerico pretended not to see the tear that trembled in his mother's
+eye, nor did he trouble himself any more about his father, who
+bristled his plumage and seemed about to call him back. Without caring
+for those whom he left behind, he glided through the half-open door
+and, once outside, flapped his only wing and crowed three times, to
+celebrate his freedom--"Cock-a-doodle-doo!"
+
+As he half flew, half hopped over the fields, he came to the bed of a
+brook which had been dried up by the sun. In the middle of the sands,
+however, still trickled a tiny thread of water, so small that it was
+choked by a couple of dead leaves that had fallen into it.
+
+"My friend," exclaimed the streamlet at the sight of our traveler--"my
+friend, you see my weakness; I have not even the strength to carry
+away these leaves which obstruct my passage, much less to make a
+circuit, so completely am I exhausted. With a stroke of your beak you
+can restore me to life. I am not an ingrate; if you oblige me, you may
+count on my gratitude the first rainy day, when the water from heaven
+shall have restored my strength."
+
+"You are jesting," said Coquerico. "Do I look like one whose business
+it is to sweep the brooks? Apply to those of your own sort." And with
+his sound leg, he leaped across the streamlet.
+
+"You will remember me when you least expect it," murmured the brook,
+but with so feeble a voice that it was lost on the proud cock.
+
+A little farther on, Coquerico saw the wind lying breathless on the
+ground.
+
+"Dear Coquerico, come to my aid," it cried; "here on earth we should
+help one another. You see to what I am reduced by the heat of the day;
+I, who in former times uprooted the olive-trees and lashed the waves
+to frenzy, lie here well-nigh slain by the dog-star. I suffered myself
+to be lulled to sleep by the perfume of the roses with which I was
+playing; and, lo! here I am, stretched almost lifeless upon the
+ground. If you will raise me a couple of inches with your beak and fan
+me a little with your wing, I shall have the strength to mount to
+yonder white clouds which I see in the distance, where I shall receive
+aid enough from my family to keep me alive till I gain fresh strength
+from the next whirlwind."
+
+"My lord," answered the spiteful Coquerico, "Your Excellency has more
+than once amused himself by playing tricks at my expense. It is not a
+week since your lordship glided like a traitor behind me and diverted
+himself by opening my tail like a fan and covering me with confusion
+in the face of nations. Have patience, therefore, my worthy friend;
+mockers always have their turn; it does them good to repent and to
+learn to respect those whose birth, wit, and beauty should screen them
+from the jests of a fool." And Coquerico, bristling his plumage,
+crowed three times in his shrillest voice and proudly strutted
+onward.
+
+A little farther on he came to a newly mown field where the farmers
+had piled up the weeds in order to burn them. Coquerico approached a
+smoking heap, hoping to find some stray kernels of corn, and saw a
+little flame which was charring the green stalks without being able to
+set them on fire.
+
+"My good friend," cried the flame to the new-comer, "you are just in
+time to save my life; I am dying for want of air. I cannot imagine
+what has become of my cousin, the wind, who cares for nothing but his
+own amusement. Bring me a few dry straws to rekindle my strength, and
+you will not have obliged an ingrate."
+
+"Wait a moment," said Coquerico, "and I will serve you as you deserve,
+insolent fellow that dares ask my help!" And behold! he leaped on the
+heap of dried weeds, and trampled it down till he smothered both flame
+and smoke; after which he exultingly shouted three times,
+"Cock-a-doodle-doo!" and flapped his wings, as if he had done a great
+deed.
+
+Proudly strutting onward and crowing, Coquerico at last arrived at
+Rome, the place to which all roads lead. Scarcely had he reached the
+city when he hastened to the great Church of St. Peter. Grand and
+beautiful as it was, he did not stop to admire it, but, planting
+himself in front of the main entrance, where he looked like a fly
+among the great columns, he raised himself on tiptoe and began to
+shout, "Cock-a-doodle-doo!" only to enrage the saint and disobey his
+mother.
+
+He had not yet ended his song when one of the pope's guard, who
+chanced to hear him, laid hands on the insolent wretch who dared thus
+to insult the saint, and carried him home in order to roast him for
+supper.
+
+"Quick!" said he to his wife on entering the house, "give me some
+boiling water; here is a sinner to be punished."
+
+"Pardon, pardon, Madame Water!" cried Coquerico. "Oh, good and gentle
+water, the best and purest thing in the world, do not scald me, I pray
+you!"
+
+"Did you have pity on me when I implored your aid, ungrateful wretch?"
+answered the water, boiling with indignation. And with a single gush
+it inundated him from head to foot, and left not a bit of down on his
+body.
+
+The unhappy Coquerico stripped of all his feathers, the soldier took
+him and laid him on the gridiron.
+
+"Oh, fire, do not burn me!" cried he, in an agony of terror. "Oh,
+beautiful and brilliant fire, the brother of the sun and the cousin of
+the diamond, spare an unhappy creature; restrain thy ardor, and soften
+thy flame; do not roast me!"
+
+"Did you have pity on me when I implored your aid, ungrateful wretch?"
+answered the fire, and, fiercely blazing with anger, in an instant it
+burnt Coquerico to a coal.
+
+The soldier, seeing his roast chicken in this deplorable condition,
+took him by the leg and threw him out of the window. The wind bore the
+unhappy fowl to a dunghill, where it left him for a moment.
+
+"Oh, wind," murmured Coquerico, who still breathed, "oh, kindly
+zephyr, protecting breeze, behold me cured of my vain follies. Let me
+rest on the paternal dunghill."
+
+"Let you rest!" roared the wind. "Wait, and I will teach you how I
+treat ingrates." And with one blast it sent him so high in the air
+that, as he fell back, he was transfixed by a steeple.
+
+There St. Peter was awaiting him. With his own hand he nailed him to
+the highest steeple in Rome, where he is still shown to travelers.
+However high placed he may be, all despise him because he turns with
+the slightest wind; black, dried up, stripped of his feathers, and
+beaten by the rain, he is no longer called Coquerico, but Weathercock,
+and thus expiates, and must expiate eternally, his disobedience,
+vanity, and wickedness.
+
+
+
+
+KING BIZARRE and PRINCE CHARMING
+
+OR, THE ART OF GOVERNING MEN
+
+A TALE OF ALL NATIONS
+
+[Illustration:]
+
+
+I
+
+KING BIZARRE AND PRINCE CHARMING
+
+In the kingdom of Wild Oats, a happy country, a land blessed of
+Heaven, where the men are always right and the women never wrong,
+there lived long ago a king who thought of nothing but the happiness
+of his kingdom, and who, it is said, never was dull for lack of
+amusement. Whether he was beloved by his people is doubtful; it is
+certain that the courtiers had little esteem and less love for their
+prince. For this reason, they had given him the surname of King
+Bizarre, the only title by which he is known in history, as is seen in
+the _Great Chronicles of the Kingdoms and Principalities of the World
+Which Have Never Existed_, a learned masterpiece which has
+immortalized the erudition and criticism of the reverend father, Dr.
+Melchisedec de Mentiras y Necedad.
+
+Left a widower after a year's marriage, Bizarre had fixed his whole
+affections on his son and heir, who was the most beautiful child
+imaginable. His complexion was as fresh as a rose; his beautiful hair
+fell in golden curls on his shoulders; add to his clear blue eyes a
+straight nose, a small mouth, and a dimpled chin, and you have the
+portrait of a cherub. At twelve years of age this young marvel danced
+enchantingly, rode like a riding-master, and fenced to perfection. No
+one could have helped being won by his smile and the truly royal
+manner in which he saluted the crowd in passing when he was in good
+humor. For this reason, the voice of the people, which is never
+mistaken, had christened him Prince Charming, and his name always
+clung to him.
+
+Charming was as beautiful as the day; but the sun itself, it is said,
+has spots, and the princes do not disdain to resemble the sun. The
+child dazzled the court with his fine mien; but there were shadows
+here and there which did not escape the piercing eye of love or envy.
+Supple, agile, and adroit in all kinds of bodily exercises, Charming
+had an indolent mind. He lacked application, and had taken a fancy
+that he ought to know everything without studying. It is true that
+governesses, courtiers, and servants had continually repeated to him
+that work was not made for kings, and that a prince always knows
+enough when he lavishes on poets, writers, and artists, with a
+prodigal and disdainful hand, a little of the money which the people
+are too happy to offer him.
+
+These maxims tickled Charming's pride; and at twelve years of age the
+beautiful child, with precocious firmness, had steadily refused to
+learn the alphabet. Three teachers, chosen from the most able and
+patient instructors, a priest, a philosopher, and a colonel, had
+attempted in turn to bend his youthful obstinacy; but the priest had
+wasted his philosophy, the philosopher his tactics, and the colonel
+his Latin. Left master of the field of battle, Charming listened to
+nothing but his caprice, and lived lawless and unconstrained. As
+stubborn as a mule, as irascible as a turkey-cock, as dainty as a cat,
+and as idle as an adder, but an accomplished prince withal, he was the
+pride of the beautiful country of Wild Oats, and the hope and love of
+a people that esteemed nothing in their kings but grace and beauty.
+
+
+II
+
+PAZZA
+
+Notwithstanding he had been brought up at court, King Bizarre was a
+man of sense. Charming's ignorance was far from pleasing to him, and
+he often asked himself with anxiety what would become of his kingdom
+in the hands of a prince whom the basest of flatterers might easily
+deceive. But what was he to do, what means could he employ with a
+child that a worshiped wife had bequeathed to him in dying? Rather
+than see his son weep, Bizarre would have given him his crown; his
+affection rendered him powerless. Love is not blind, whatever the
+poets may say; alas! it would be too happy not to see a jot. It is the
+torment of him who loves to become, despite himself, the slave and
+accomplice of the ingrate who feels himself beloved.
+
+Every day, after the council, the king went to spend the evening with
+the Countess of Castro, an old lady who had dandled him on her knees
+when an infant, and who alone could recall to him the sweet memories
+of his childhood and youth. She was very ugly, and something of a
+witch, it is said; but the world is so wicked that we must never
+believe more than half its scandal. The countess had large features
+and luxuriant gray hair, and it was easy to see that she had been
+beautiful in former times.
+
+One day, when Charming had been more unreasonable than usual, the king
+entered the countess's house with an anxious air, and seating himself
+before the card-table, began to play a game of Patience. It was his
+way of diverting his thoughts and forgetting for a few hours the cares
+of royalty. Scarcely had he ranged sixteen cards in a square when he
+heaved a deep sigh.
+
+"Countess," he cried, "you see before you the most wretched of fathers
+and kings. Despite his natural grace, Charming is every day becoming
+more wilful and vicious. Must I leave such an heir after me, and
+intrust the happiness of my people to a crowned fool?"
+
+"That is the way with Nature," replied the countess; "she always
+distributes her gifts with an impartial hand. Stupidity and beauty go
+hand in hand, and wit and ugliness are seldom separated. I have an
+example of this in my own family. A few days ago a great-grandniece
+was sent to me, a child under ten years old, that has no other
+relative. She is as tawny as a frog, as scraggy as a spider, yet,
+withal, as cunning as an ape, and as learned as a book. Judge for
+yourself, sire; here is my little monster coming to salute you."
+
+Bizarre turned his head and saw a child that answered in every respect
+to the countess's description. With a high, round forehead, black,
+wild-looking eyes, rough hair turned back in the Chinese fashion,
+dull, brown skin, great white teeth, red hands, and long arms, she was
+anything but a beauty. But the chrysalis gives birth to the butterfly.
+Wait a few years, and you will see what pretty women come from these
+frightful little girls of ten.
+
+The little monster approached the king, and courtesied to him with so
+serious an air that Bizarre could not help laughing, though he felt
+little like it.
+
+"Who are you?" asked he, chucking the child under the chin.
+
+"Sire," she answered, gravely, "I am Donna Dolores Rosario Coral
+Concha Balthazara Melchiora Gaspara y Todos Santos, the daughter of
+the noble knight Don Pasquale Bartolomeo Francesco de Asiz y--"
+
+"Enough," said the king. "I did not ask for your genealogy; we are
+witnessing neither your baptism nor your marriage. What are you
+commonly called?"
+
+"Sire," replied she, "I am called Pazza."[1]
+
+[Footnote 1: That is to say, Madcap, in Italian. It appears that a
+very mixed language is spoken in the kingdom of Wild Oats.]
+
+"And why are you called Pazza?"
+
+"Because it is not my name."
+
+"That is strange," said the king.
+
+"No, it is natural," replied the child. "My aunt pretends that I am
+too giddy for any saint to wish to own me for her goddaughter, and
+that is why she has given me a name that can offend no one in
+Paradise."
+
+"Well answered, my child. I see that you are not an ordinary girl. The
+saints in Paradise are not always treated with such consideration.
+Since you know so much, tell me what is a wise man?"
+
+"A wise man, sire, is one who knows what he says when he speaks, and
+what he does when he acts."
+
+"Upon my word," exclaimed the king, "if my wise men were what you
+fancied them, I would make the Academy of Sciences my council of
+state, and would give it my kingdom to govern. What is an ignorant
+man?"
+
+"Sire," returned Pazza, "there are three kinds of ignorant men: he
+who knows nothing, he who talks of what he does not know, and he who
+will learn nothing; all three are fit for nothing but to be burned or
+hung."
+
+"That is a proverb. Do you know what proverbs are called?"
+
+"Yes, sire; they are called the wisdom of nations."
+
+"And why are they called so?"
+
+"Because they are mad; they say whatever you please; they are of all
+colors, to suit all tastes. Proverbs are like bells, which answer yes
+or no according to the humor of their listener."
+
+Upon which, springing with both feet from the ground, Pazza caught a
+fly that was buzzing about the king's nose; then, leaving Bizarre
+astonished, she took her doll and, seating herself on the ground,
+began to rock it in her arms.
+
+"Well, sire," the countess said, "what do you think of this child?"
+
+"She has too much wit," answered the king; "she will not live long."
+
+"Ah, sire," exclaimed Pazza, "you are not complimentary to my aunt;
+she is considerably older than I am."
+
+"Hush, gipsy!" said the old lady, smiling; "don't you know that nobody
+lectures kings?"
+
+"Countess," said Bizarre, "an idea has just struck me, which is so
+strange that I hardly dare tell it to you; yet I have a violent wish
+to carry it out. I can do nothing with my son; reason has no power
+with the stubborn child. Who knows whether folly would not be more
+successful? If I thought so, I would make Pazza Charming's teacher.
+The intractable boy, who rejects all masters, might be defenseless
+before a child. The only objection is that no one will be of my
+opinion; I shall have everybody against me."
+
+"Bah!" said the countess; "everybody is so stupid that it is a proof
+that you are right that you think differently."
+
+
+III
+
+THE FIRST LESSON
+
+In this manner Pazza was intrusted with the instruction of the young
+prince. There was no official appointment; it was not announced in the
+court gazette that the king, with his usual wisdom, had found an
+unparalleled genius at the first attempt, to whom he had confided the
+heart and mind of his child; but the very next morning Charming was
+sent to the countess's house, and was permitted to play with Pazza.
+
+The two children, left alone together, gazed at each other in silence.
+Pazza, being the bolder, was the first to speak.
+
+"What is your name?" asked she.
+
+"Those who know me call me Your Highness," answered Charming, in a
+piqued tone; "those who do not know me call me simply My Lord, and
+everybody says Sir to me; etiquette requires it."
+
+"What is etiquette?" asked Pazza.
+
+"I don't know," replied Charming. "When I want to jump, shout, and
+roll on the ground, I am told that it is contrary to etiquette; then I
+keep still, and yawn for lack of amusement--that is etiquette."
+
+"Since we are here to amuse ourselves," resumed Pazza, "there is no
+etiquette needed; speak to me as if I were your sister, and I will
+speak to you as if you were my brother. I will not call you My Lord."
+
+"But you don't know me," said Charming.
+
+"What does that matter?" returned Pazza; "I will love you, that is
+better. They say that you dance beautifully; teach me to dance, will
+you?"
+
+The ice was broken; Charming took the young girl by the waist, and in
+less than half an hour taught her the last new polka.
+
+"How well you dance!" said he. "You have caught the step directly."
+
+"It is because you are a good teacher," she replied. "Now it is my
+turn to teach you something."
+
+She took a beautiful picture-book, and showed him fine buildings,
+fishes, statesmen, parrots, scholars, curious animals, and flowers,
+all of which greatly amused Charming.
+
+"See," said Pazza, "here is the explanation of all the pictures; read
+it."
+
+"I don't know how to read," replied Charming.
+
+"I will teach you; I will be your little tutor."
+
+"No," replied the stubborn prince, "I do not wish to read. My masters
+tire me."
+
+"Very well; but I am not a master. See, here is an A, a beautiful
+great A; say A."
+
+"No," returned Charming, frowning, "I will never say A."
+
+"Not to please me?"
+
+"No, never. Enough of this; I do not like people to differ from me."
+
+"Sir," said Pazza, "a polite man never refuses ladies anything."
+
+"I would refuse the devil in petticoats," replied the young prince,
+tossing his head. "I am tired of you; let me alone. I don't love you
+any longer. Call me My Lord."
+
+"My Lord Charming, or my charming lord," said Pazza, flushed with
+anger, "you shall read, or I will know the reason why."
+
+"I won't read."
+
+"Will you not? One--two--three!"
+
+"No! no! no!"
+
+Pazza raised her hand, and, lo! the king's son received a box on the
+ear. Pazza had been told that she was witty to the ends of her
+fingers, and had been stupid enough to believe it; it is never right
+to jest with children.
+
+[Illustration: PAZZA, THOUGH SHE LOVED THE PRINCE, WAS A VERY STERN
+SCHOOLMISTRESS]
+
+At this first lesson in reading, Charming turned pale and trembled;
+the blood mounted to his cheeks, his eyes filled with tears, and he
+gazed at his young teacher with a look that made her start; then all
+at once, with a great effort, he regained his self-possession, and
+said, in a tremulous voice, "Pazza, that is A." And the same day and
+at one sitting he learned all the letters of the alphabet; at the end
+of the week he spelled readily, and before the month was ended he read
+with ease.
+
+King Bizarre was delighted. He kissed Pazza on both cheeks; he
+insisted on having her always with him or his son, and made this child
+his friend and counselor, to the great disdain of all the courtiers.
+Charming, still gloomy and silent, learned all that this young mentor
+could teach him, then returned to his former preceptors, whom he
+astonished by his intelligence and docility. He soon knew his grammar
+so well that the priest asked himself one day whether, by chance,
+these definitions, which he had never understood, had not a meaning.
+Charming none the less astonished the philosopher, who taught him
+every evening the opposite of what the priest had taught him in the
+morning. But, of all his masters, the one to whom he listened with the
+least repugnance was the colonel. It is true that Bayonet, for that
+was the colonel's name, was a skilful strategist, and that he could
+say, like the ancient poet, with a slight variation, "I am a man, and
+nothing that pertains to the art of despatching poor human beings is
+indifferent to me." It was he that initiated Charming into the
+mysteries of button gaiters and shoulder-straps; it was he that taught
+his pupil that the noblest study for a prince is the drilling of
+battalions, and that the groundwork of statesmanship is to have
+reviews in order to make war, and to make war in order to have
+reviews.
+
+This was not perhaps altogether according to Bizarre's idea of the art
+of government; but he thought he could correct any errors in the
+future, and besides, he was so rejoiced at Charming's progress that he
+was unwilling in any way to meddle with the admirable work of an
+education so long considered hopeless.
+
+"My child," he often said, "never forget that you owe everything to
+Pazza." As the king spoke thus, Pazza gazed tenderly at the young man.
+Despite all her wit, she was foolish enough to love him. Charming
+contented himself with coldly answering that gratitude was a princely
+virtue, and that Pazza should some day learn that her pupil had
+forgotten nothing.
+
+
+IV
+
+PAZZA'S WEDDING
+
+When Prince Charming had attained his seventeenth year, he went one
+morning in search of King Bizarre, whose health was declining and who
+was very desirous of seeing his son married before his death.
+
+"Father," said he, "I have long reflected on your wise words. You gave
+me life, but Pazza has done still more in awakening my mind and soul.
+I see but one way of paying the debt of my heart; that is, to marry
+the woman to whom I am indebted for what I am. I come to ask you for
+Pazza's hand."
+
+"My dear child," answered Bizarre, "this step does you credit. Pazza
+is not of royal blood; she is not the one whom, in different
+circumstances, I should have chosen for your wife; but her virtues,
+her merit, and, above all, the service which she has rendered us, make
+me forget idle prejudices. Pazza has the soul of a queen; she shall
+mount the throne with you. In the country of Wild Oats, wit and humor
+are held in sufficient estimation to win you forgiveness for what
+fools call a misalliance, and what I call a princely marriage. Happy
+is he who can choose an intelligent wife, capable of understanding and
+loving him! To-morrow your betrothal shall be celebrated, and in two
+years your marriage shall take place."
+
+The marriage occurred more speedily than the king had foreseen.
+Fifteen months after these memorable words, Bizarre expired of languor
+and exhaustion. He had taken the vocation of king in earnest; he fell
+a victim to royalty. The old countess and Pazza wept their friend and
+benefactor, but they were the only mourners. Without being a bad son,
+Charming was engrossed with the cares of the empire; and the court
+expected everything from the new reign, and thought no more about the
+old king, whose eyes were closed in death.
+
+After honoring his father's memory by magnificent obsequies, the young
+prince, thenceforth wholly devoted to love, celebrated his marriage
+with a splendor that charmed the good people of Wild Oats. The taxes
+were doubled, but who could regret money so nobly employed? Men came
+from a hundred leagues round to gaze at the new king, and Pazza, whose
+growing beauty and air of goodness fascinated all hearts, was not less
+admired. There were interminable dinners, harangues longer than the
+dinners, and poems more tedious than the harangues. In a word, it was
+an incomparable festival, which was talked of for six months after.
+
+Evening come, Charming took the hand of his graceful, timid, and
+blushing bride, and with cold politeness led her through the corridors
+of the old castle. All at once Pazza was frightened to find herself in
+a gloomy dungeon, with grated windows and huge bars and locks.
+
+"What is this?" asked she. "It looks like a prison."
+
+"Yes," said the prince, with a terrible look, "it is a prison which
+you will quit only for the grave."
+
+"My dear, you frighten me," said Pazza, smiling. "Am I a criminal
+without knowing it? Have I deserved your displeasure, that you
+threaten me with a dungeon?"
+
+"You have a short memory," replied Charming. "An insult is written on
+sand to the giver; it is inscribed on marble and bronze to the
+receiver."
+
+"Charming," returned the poor child, beginning to be afraid, "you are
+repeating something from those speeches that tired me so much. Can you
+find nothing better to say to me to-day?"
+
+"Wretch!" cried the king, "you no longer remember the box on the ear
+that you gave me seven years ago, but I have not forgotten it. Know
+that if I wished you for my wife, it has been only to have your life
+in my hands and to make you slowly expiate your crime of high
+treason."
+
+"My dear," said Pazza, with a pettish manner, "you may put on your
+Bluebeard airs, but you will not frighten me, I assure you. I know
+you, Charming, and I warn you that if you do not put an end to this
+bad jest, I will not only give you one box on the ear, but three,
+before I forgive you. Make haste and let me go out, or I vow that I
+will keep my word."
+
+"Vow it then, madame," cried the prince, furious at not intimidating
+his victim. "I accept your vow. I vow, too, on my side, that I will
+never acknowledge you as my wife till I have been base enough to
+receive three times an insult which nothing but blood can wash out.
+He laughs well that laughs last. Here, Rachimburg!"
+
+At this terrible name, a jailer with a bushy beard and threatening
+mien entered the room, pushed the queen on a wretched truckle-bed, and
+shut and double-locked the iron door.
+
+If Pazza wept, it was so quietly that no one heard her. Tired of the
+silence, Charming departed, with rage in his heart, resolving that his
+rigor should break the pride that braved him. Vengeance, it is said,
+is the delight of kings.
+
+Two hours later the countess received a note by a sure hand
+acquainting her with the sad fate of her niece. How this note reached
+her is known to me, but I will not betray the secret. If a charitable
+jailer is found by chance, he should be treated with consideration;
+the species is rare, and is daily becoming rarer.
+
+
+V
+
+A TERRIBLE EVENT
+
+The next morning the court gazette announced that the queen had been
+seized with a raging fit of madness on the very night of her wedding,
+and that there was little hope of saving her. There was scarcely a
+courtier, indeed, that had not observed the princess's restless air on
+the evening before, and no one was surprised at her malady. All pitied
+the king, who received with a gloomy and constrained mien the
+expressions of affection which were lavished on him. He was doubtless
+weighed down with grief, but this grief appeared very much lightened
+after the visit of the countess.
+
+The good lady was very sad, and had a great desire to see her poor
+child, but she was so old, and found herself so weak and sensitive,
+that she entreated the king to spare her a heartrending spectacle. She
+threw herself into the arms of Charming, who tenderly embraced her,
+and withdrew, saying that she placed all her hope and trust in the
+love of the king and the talent of the chief physician of the court.
+
+She had scarcely left the room when the physician whispered a few
+words in Charming's ear which called to his face a smile quickly
+repressed. The countess pacified, there was nothing more to fear; the
+vengeance was sure.
+
+Doctor Wieduwillst was a great physician. Born in the country of
+Dreams, he had early quitted his native land to seek his fortune in
+the kingdom of Wild Oats. He was too able a man not to find it. In the
+five years that he had spent in the celebrated University of
+Lugenmaulberg, the medical theory had changed twenty-five times, and,
+thanks to this solid education, the doctor had a firmness of principle
+which nothing could shake. He had the frankness and bluntness of a
+soldier, it was said; he swore at times, even with ladies, a rudeness
+which left him at liberty always to be of the same mind with the
+stronger, and to demand a fee for having no opinion. The queen had
+fallen into his incorruptible hands.
+
+She had been imprisoned for three days, and the town was already
+beginning to talk of something else, when one morning Rachimburg
+abruptly entered the king's apartments with a distracted air, and
+threw himself trembling at his feet.
+
+"Sire," said he, "I bring you my head. The queen has disappeared."
+
+"What do you tell me!" exclaimed the king, turning pale. "The thing is
+impossible; the dungeon is barred on all sides."
+
+"Yes," said the jailer, "the thing is impossible, that is certain; the
+bars are in their places, the walls are whole, and neither the locks
+nor the bolts have been disturbed; but there are witches in the world
+that pass through walls without moving a stone, and who knows but what
+the prisoner is one of them? Was it ever known whence she came?"
+
+The king sent in search of the doctor. He was a strong-minded man and
+had little faith in witches. He sounded the walls, shook the bars, and
+cross-examined the jailer, but all to no purpose. Trusty men were sent
+everywhere through the town, and spies were set on the countess, whom
+the doctor suspected, but all in vain, and after a week the search
+was abandoned. Rachimburg lost his place as jailer, but as he
+possessed the royal secret, as he was needed, and as he thirsted to
+avenge himself, he was made the warden of the royal castle. Furious at
+his bad luck, he exercised his supervision with such strictness that
+in less than three days he arrested Wieduwillst himself half a dozen
+times, and disarmed all suspicion.
+
+At the end of a week some fishermen brought to the court the robe and
+mantle of the queen. The waves had cast on the shore these sad relics,
+covered with sand and sea-foam. That the poor mad woman had drowned
+herself no one doubted on seeing the grief of the king and the tears
+of the countess. The council was assembled. It decided with a
+unanimous voice that the queen was legally dead and that the king was
+legally a widower, and for the interest of the people entreated his
+majesty to abridge a painful mourning and to marry again as soon as
+possible, in order to strengthen the dynasty. This decision was
+transmitted to the king by Wieduwillst, the chief physician to the
+king and president of the royal council, who made so touching a speech
+that the whole court burst into tears, and Charming threw himself into
+the doctor's arms, calling him his cruel friend.
+
+It is unnecessary to say that the funeral of a queen so much lamented
+was magnificent. In the kingdom of Wild Oats everything serves as a
+pretext for ceremony. The pageant was worthy of admiration, but the
+most admirable thing in it was the attitude of the young girls of the
+court. Every one looked at Charming, who was handsomer than ever in
+his mourning dress; every one wept with one eye in honor of the
+princess, and smiled with the other to attract the king. Ah! had
+photography only been invented, what portraits would antiquity have
+transmitted to us--what models for our painters! The passions still
+existed among these good people; their mobile faces were animated by
+love, hatred, and anger; to-day we are all so virtuous and prudent
+that we all wear the same dress, the same hat, and the same
+expression. Civilization is the triumph of morality and the ruin of
+art.
+
+After the description of the funeral ceremonies, which, according to
+etiquette, filled six columns, the court gazette laid down rules for
+the full and the second mourning, blue and pink, which are the
+mourning colors in the kingdom of Wild Oats. The court was required to
+be in deep affliction for three weeks, and to be comforted by degrees
+during the three weeks following; but carnival occurring during the
+period of the second mourning, and respect being had for trade, it was
+determined to give a masked ball at the palace. Tailors and
+dressmakers immediately set to work, invitations were solicited by
+great and small, and men began to intrigue as if the fate of the
+monarchy had been in question.
+
+It was in this solemn manner that they mourned for poor Pazza.
+
+
+VI
+
+THE MASKED BALL
+
+The great day so impatiently expected at length arrived. For six weeks
+the good people of Wild Oats had been in a fever of excitement.
+Nothing more was heard of ministers, senators, generals, magistrates,
+princesses, duchesses, and citizens; for twenty leagues round, clowns,
+harlequins, punchinellos, gipsies, Columbines, and Follies alone were
+to be seen. Politics were silenced, or, rather, the nation was divided
+into two great parties--the conservatives that went to the ball, and
+the opposition that stayed at home.
+
+If the official gazette is to be believed, the festival outshone in
+splendor all others past and to come. The ball was held in the midst
+of the gardens, in a rotunda magnificently decorated. A winding walk,
+shaded by elms and dimly lighted by alabaster lamps, led to a hall
+resplendent with gold, verdure, flowers, and light. An orchestra, half
+concealed in the foliage, breathed forth music, by turns plaintive and
+gay. Add to this the richness of the costumes, the brilliancy of the
+diamonds, the piquancy of the masks, and the charm of intrigue, and
+you will see that it would have needed the soul of an ancient Stoic to
+resist the intoxication of pleasure.
+
+Yet Prince Charming was not amused. Concealed under a blue domino,
+with his face entirely masked, he had addressed himself to the most
+elegant and sprightly women, and had lavishly displayed his wit and
+grace, yet he had met with nothing but indifference and coldness. They
+scarcely listened to him, answered with a yawn, and hastened to quit
+him. All eyes were fixed on a black domino with pink rosettes that
+moved carelessly among the dancers, receiving with the air of a sultan
+the compliments and smiles that every one lavished on him. This domino
+was the Lord Wieduwillst, a great friend of the prince, but still more
+the friend of his own pleasure. In an unguarded moment the doctor had
+said that morning by chance, under the seal of secrecy, and to two
+ladies only, that the prince would wear pink rosettes in his black
+domino. Was it his fault if the ladies had been indiscreet or the
+prince had changed his mind?
+
+While the doctor was enjoying, despite himself, indeed, his unexpected
+triumph, Charming seated himself in a corner of the hall and buried
+his face in his hands. Alone in the midst of the crowd, he abandoned
+himself to reflection, and the image of Pazza rose before him. He had
+no reproaches to make himself; his vengeance was just, yet he felt an
+indescribable remorse. Poor Pazza! no doubt she had been guilty; but
+at least she loved him, she understood him, she listened to him, her
+eyes sparkling with joy. How different from all those fools who had
+not recognized a prince under a domino at the first moment by his wit!
+
+He rose suddenly to quit the hall, when he perceived, a little way
+off, a mask that had also left the crowd and seemed lost in
+contemplation. A half-open domino disclosed a gipsy's dress and a pair
+of slippers with buckles, containing a foot smaller than that of
+Cinderella.
+
+The king approached the stranger, and saw through the velvet mask a
+pair of large black eyes, the melancholy glance of which surprised and
+charmed him.
+
+"Fair mask," said he, "your place is not here. Why are you not among
+the eager and curious crowd that is pressing around the prince to
+dispute his smile and heart? Do you not know that there is a crown to
+be gained there?"
+
+"I make no pretentions," answered the domino, in a grave, sweet voice.
+"In this game of chance one runs the risk of taking the servant for
+the king. I am too proud to expose myself to such a hazard."
+
+"But if I show you the prince?"
+
+"What could I say to him?" replied the stranger. "I could not blame
+him without offense, or praise him without flattery."
+
+"You think much evil of him, then?"
+
+"No, a little evil and much good; but what does it matter?" And,
+opening her fan, the domino relapsed into her reverie.
+
+This indifference surprised Charming. He addressed her with warmth,
+she replied coldly; he prayed her so urgently to listen to him that
+she finally consented to do so, not in the ball-room, where the heat
+was overpowering and the curiosity indiscreet, but in the long
+elm-walk, where a few promenaders were seeking silence and fresh air.
+
+The night was advancing, and the gipsy had already spoken several
+times of retiring, to the great regret of the prince, who vainly
+entreated her to unmask. The stranger made no reply.
+
+"You drive me to despair," cried he, inspired with strange respect and
+admiration for this mysterious figure. "Why this cruel silence?"
+
+"Because I know you, my lord," replied the stranger, with emotion.
+"Your voice, which goes to the heart, your language, your grace, all
+tell me who you are. Let me go, Prince Charming."
+
+"No, madam," cried the prince, delighted at so much wit, "you alone
+have recognized me, you alone have understood me, to you belong my
+heart and kingdom. Throw off that suspicious mask; this very instant
+we will return to the ball-room and I will present to the ignorant
+crowd the woman whom I have had the happiness not to displease. Say
+but one word, and all my people shall be at your feet."
+
+"My lord," replied the stranger, sadly, "permit me to refuse an offer
+which does me honor and the memory of which I shall always preserve. I
+am ambitious, I own; the time has been when I should have been proud
+to share your throne and name; but before all things I am a woman and
+place all my happiness in love. I will not have a divided heart,
+should my rival be only a memory; I am jealous even of the past."
+
+"I have never loved in my life," cried the prince, with a vehemence
+that made the stranger start. "There is a mystery concerning my
+marriage which I can reveal only to my wife; but I swear to you that I
+have never given away my heart; I love now for the first time."
+
+"Show me your hand," said the gipsy, approaching the lamp, "and let me
+see whether you have told the truth."
+
+Charming extended his hand with assurance; the gipsy studied the lines
+and sighed.
+
+"You are right, my lord," said she, "you have never loved. But this
+does not appease my jealousy. Another woman has loved you before me.
+These sacred bonds are not broken by death; the queen still loves
+you--you belong to her. To accept a heart which is no longer at your
+disposal would be sacrilegious and criminal in me. Farewell."
+
+"Madam," said the king, with an ill-assured voice, "you do not know
+what you make me suffer. There are things which I would gladly burn in
+eternal silence, but which you force me to reveal. The queen never
+loved me; ambition alone dictated her conduct."
+
+"That is not so," said the stranger, letting go the prince's hand.
+"The queen loved you."
+
+"No, madam," replied Charming; "my father and I were the victims of a
+detestable intrigue."
+
+"Enough!" said the stranger, whose hands trembled and whose fingers
+worked in a strange manner. "Respect the dead; do not slander them."
+
+"Madam," said the prince, "I assure you, and none ever doubted my
+word, that the queen never loved me. She was a wicked woman."
+
+"Ah!" said the domino.
+
+"Wilful, violent, and jealous."
+
+"If she was jealous, she loved you," interrupted the mask. "Seek for
+proofs which have at least a shadow of probability; do not accuse a
+heart which was wholly yours."
+
+"So far from loving me," said the king, excitedly, "the very night of
+my marriage she dared tell me to my face that she had married me only
+for my crown."
+
+"That is not true," said the gipsy, raising her hand.
+
+"I swear it," replied Charming.
+
+"You lie!" cried the stranger. And, lo! a box on the ear blinded the
+prince; the blow was repeated, and the stranger fled.
+
+The king stepped back furious, and sought the hilt of his sword; but
+men do not go to balls armed as for war; for his sole weapon he found
+a knot of ribbons. He ran after his enemy, but which way had she fled?
+Charming lost himself twenty times in the labyrinth; he met none but
+peaceful dominos walking in couples and scarcely glancing at him as he
+passed. Breathless, distracted, and desperate, he returned to the
+ball-room, where he doubted not that the stranger had taken refuge;
+but how was he to find her?
+
+A brilliant idea crossed the prince's mind; he would order all to
+unmask, and would doubtless see the gipsy, confounded by the king's
+presence and betrayed by her own agitation. He instantly leaped on a
+chair, and exclaimed in a loud voice that caused every one to start:
+
+"Ladies and gentlemen, day is approaching and pleasure is languishing;
+let us revive mirth by a new caprice. Off with the masks! I set the
+example; let all who love me follow it."
+
+He threw off his domino, raised his mask, and appeared in the richest
+and most elegant Spanish costume ever worn by prince. There was a
+general outcry; all eyes were at first turned toward the king, then
+toward the black domino with pink rosettes, who retreated as fast as
+possible with a modesty that was not affected. All unmasked. The
+ladies gathered round the king, who, it was remarked, had the most
+violent fancy for the gipsy costume. Young or old, all the gipsies
+received his homage; he took them by the hand and gazed at them with
+an air which made all the other masks ready to burst with envy, then
+made a sign to the orchestra; the dance recommenced, and the prince
+disappeared.
+
+He hastened again to the elm-walk in search of the traitress who had
+insulted him, doubtless led by vengeance. His blood boiled in his
+veins; he wandered at random, suddenly stopping short, looking,
+listening, and spying in all directions. At the faintest gleam of
+light through the foliage he sprang forward like a madman, laughing
+and weeping at the same time as though distracted.
+
+At the turn of an alley he met Rachimburg advancing toward him
+trembling, with an air of terror.
+
+"Sire," murmured he, in a mysterious voice, "has Your Majesty seen
+it?"
+
+"What?" asked the king.
+
+"The specter; it passed close by me. I am a lost man; I shall die
+to-morrow."
+
+"What specter?" said Charming. "What fool's tale are you telling me?"
+
+"A specter--a domino with flashing eyes, that threw me on my knees and
+boxed my ears twice."
+
+"It is she!" cried the king; "it is she! Why did you let her go?"
+
+"Your Majesty, I had not my pike; but if ever I see her again I will
+knock her down."
+
+"Do no such thing!" returned the king. "If ever she returns, do not
+frighten her; follow her and discover her retreat. But where is she?
+Which way did she go? Lead me; if I find her your fortune is made."
+
+"Sire," said the honest porter, looking at the moon, "if the specter
+is anywhere, it must be up yonder; I saw it, as plainly as I see Your
+Majesty, dissolving in mist. But before taking flight it gave me a
+message for Your Majesty."
+
+"What? Speak quickly!"
+
+"Sire, its words were terrible; I shall never dare repeat them to Your
+Majesty."
+
+"Speak, I order you."
+
+"Sire, the specter said, in a sepulchral voice, 'Tell the king that if
+he marries again he is a dead man. The loved one will return.'"
+
+"Here," said the prince, whose eyes shone with a strange luster, "take
+this purse. Henceforth I attach you to my person; I appoint you my
+first attendant, counting on your devotion and prudence. Let this
+affair remain a secret between us."
+
+"That makes two," murmured Rachimburg, as he departed with a firm
+tread, like a man who neither suffers himself to be cast down by fear
+or dazzled by good fortune. He was a strong-minded man.
+
+The next morning the court gazette contained the following lines, in
+the form of a letter without signature, in the unofficial part of the
+paper:
+
+"A rumor has been spread that the king is thinking of marrying again.
+The king knows what he owes to his people, and is always ready to
+sacrifice himself for the happiness of his subjects. But the people of
+Wild Oats have too much delicacy not to respect a recent affliction.
+The king's whole thoughts are fixed on his beloved wife; he hopes the
+consolation from time that is at present refused him."
+
+This note threw the court and town in agitation. The young girls
+thought the scruples of the prince exaggerated; more than one mother
+shrugged her shoulders, and said that the king had vulgar prejudices
+worthy only of the common people; but at night there was strife in
+every well-ordered household. There was not a wife of any pretensions
+to aristocratic birth that did not quarrel with her unworthy spouse
+and force him to admit that there was but one heart capable of love,
+and but one faithful husband in the whole kingdom, namely, Prince
+Charming.
+
+
+VII
+
+TWO CONSULTATIONS
+
+After so much excitement, the king was seized with a cruel fit of
+tedium. To divert himself, he attempted every kind of pleasure; he
+hunted, he presided over his council, he went to the play and the
+opera, he received all the state corporations with their wives, he
+read a Carthaginian novel, and reviewed the troops half a score of
+times; but all in vain: an inexorable memory, an ever-present image
+left him no rest or peace. The gipsy pursued him even in his dreams;
+he saw her, he talked to her, and she listened to him; but, by some
+unaccountable fatality, as soon as she raised her mask, Pazza's pale,
+sad face always appeared.
+
+The doctor was the only confidant to whom Charming could avow his
+remorse, but at his word Wieduwillst burst into laughter.
+
+"The effect of habit, sire," he said. "Gain time, multiply
+impressions, and all will be effaced."
+
+To procure the prince excitement and to drive away sorrow by a bold
+diversion, the doctor supped every evening alone with His Majesty, and
+poured out intoxication and forgetfulness with a liberal hand.
+Wieduwillst did not spare himself, but wine had little effect on his
+strong brain; he would have defied Bacchus and Silenus together with
+Charming. While the prince, by turn noisy and silent, plunged into the
+extremes of joy and sadness, always restless and never happy,
+Wieduwillst, calm and smiling, directed his thoughts, and through pure
+goodness of soul took upon himself all the fatigue and care of the
+government.
+
+Three decrees had already placed in his hands the police, the courts,
+and the finances. The doctor well understood all the advantages of
+centralization. The way in which he administered the taxes relieved
+him from all personal anxiety for the future. The courts punished
+those who clamored too loudly; the police silenced those who whispered
+too much. Nevertheless, in spite of the ability of these political
+schemes, the people, always ungrateful, did not appreciate their
+happiness. The inhabitants of Wild Oats delight in complaining; the
+pleasure was spoiled for them.
+
+King Bizarre's name was in all hearts and every one regretted the good
+old times when they shouted over the roof-tops that they were gagged.
+
+The doctor was ambitious; he was born for a prime minister. Every
+morning some new ordinance made the people feel that the king was
+nothing and the minister everything. Charming was the only one that
+did not perceive his nothingness. Shut up in his palace, and dying of
+ennui, his sole companion was a page placed near him by the prime
+minister on Rachimburg's recommendation. Frolicsome, chattering, and
+indiscreet, a good musician and capital card-player, Tonto, for that
+was the page's name, amused the king by his pranks; he pleased the
+prime minister no less, but by other virtues. Devoted to his
+benefactor, the good-natured page innocently repeated to him the most
+trifling words of the prince--an easy task, moreover, as the king was
+constantly dreaming and never spoke.
+
+It is a fine thing to have the advantages of power; but appetite comes
+by eating even with ministers. The ambitious doctor began to desire
+both the honors and luster of royalty. Charming's best friend did not
+once think of dethroning him; nations sometimes have foolish
+prejudices and cling to old habits, but nothing was easier than to
+frighten a sick prince and send him afar off in search of a cure that
+would be long coming, while in his absence the doctor would reign as
+his proxy.
+
+Charming was young; he still clung to life, and, moreover, how could
+he resist the tender solicitude of the good doctor? The three most
+renowned physicians of the faculty met one evening in consultation at
+the palace--long Tristram, fat Jocundus, and little Guilleret, three
+celebrated men--three geniuses who had made their fortune, each with
+one idea, which had been the reason why they had never had any more.
+
+After the king had been cross-questioned, looked at, handled,
+auscultated, and turned round again and again, Tristram spoke first,
+in a rude voice.
+
+"Sire," said he, "you must be bled like a peasant, and live without
+any exertion whatever. Your disease is a deficiency of blood, a
+constitutional atony. Nothing but a journey to the Clear Waters can
+cure you. Go quickly, or you are a dead man. You have my opinion."
+
+"Sire," said fat Jocundus, "I fully share the admirable opinion of my
+dear professional brother. You are suffering from superabundant
+vitality. Your disease is a constitutional plethora. Go, drink the
+Clear Waters, and you will be a well man again. You have my opinion."
+
+"Sire," said little Guilleret, "the diagnostic of my masters fills me
+with admiration. I bow before their learning. Like them, I believe
+that you are suffering from disorder of the sympathetic nerves. Your
+disease is a constitutional nervousness. Drink the Clear Waters. Go
+quickly, or you are a dead man. You have my opinion."
+
+A unanimous opinion was drawn up and immediately carried to the court
+gazette by Tonto; and the three doctors rose, bowed to the minister
+and the king, shook hands with one another, and went down-stairs
+quarreling or laughing, I know not which; the chronicle is almost
+illegible, owing to a large blot in this place.
+
+After the three physicians had gone, Wieduwillst read the opinion,
+reflected deeply, and looked at the king. Charming, who had supped a
+little better this evening even than usual, had not once listened to
+the doctors, but sat gazing around him with bloodshot eyes.
+
+[Illustration: THE MOST RENOWNED PHYSICIANS OF THE FACULTY MET ONE
+EVENING IN CONSULTATION AT THE PALACE]
+
+"Sire," said he, "it is the unanimous opinion of these gentlemen that,
+if you wish to be cured, you must go to the Clear Waters and
+abandon the affairs of state. Such a resolution appears to me unworthy
+of Your Royal Majesty. A great prince should sacrifice himself for his
+people, and--"
+
+"Enough," said the king. "Spare me this worn-out moralizing and come
+to the conclusion. You wish me to go, my good friend; you are dying
+for me to do so, for my own interest, of course. Draw up a decree
+placing the regency in your hands, and I will sign it."
+
+"Sire, the decree is here, in your portfolio; a good minister always
+has papers drawn up to suit whatever circumstances may arise. He never
+knows what may happen."
+
+Charming took the pen, carelessly signed the decree without reading
+it, and handed it to the minister, who approached to receive it with a
+smile; then, seized with a new caprice, he drew back the paper and
+read it.
+
+"What!" said he, "no statement of reasons; nothing to assure my people
+of the kindness I bear them! Doctor, you are too modest; to-morrow
+this decree shall be in the gazette, with a statement from the hand of
+your friend and master. Good night; these gentlemen have tired me."
+
+The doctor went out with a light step, erect brow, and sparkling eye,
+prouder and more insolent than ever. Charming sank again into his
+reverie, thinking that, in spite of all, he was not the most unhappy
+of princes, since Heaven had given him such a friend.
+
+All at once the strangest little doctor that had ever been seen in a
+castle entered the king's apartment unannounced. He wore a wig with
+long curls, his snow-white beard fell on his breast, and his eyes were
+so bright and youthful that it seemed as though they must have come
+into the world sixty years after the rest of his body.
+
+"Where are those knaves?" cried he, with a shrill voice, rapping on
+the floor with his cane. "Where are those ignorant fellows, those
+pedants, those ill-bred men that did not wait for me? Ah! so you are
+the patient," said he to the stupefied king. "That is good. Put out
+your tongue. Quick! I am in a hurry."
+
+"Who are you?" asked the king.
+
+"I am Doctor Truth, the greatest doctor in the world, as you will see,
+in spite of my modesty. Ask Wieduwillst, my pupil, who sent for me
+from the Land of Dreams. I cure everybody, even those who are not ill.
+Put out your tongue; that's right. Where is the opinion? Very well.
+Atony--_asinis!_ Plethora--_asini!_ Nervousness--_asinorum!_ Drink the
+Clear Waters--_asininum!_ Do you know what is your disease? It is
+vexation, and even worse."
+
+"Do you see that?" said Charming, terrified.
+
+"Yes, my son, it is written on your tongue. But I will cure you: it
+shall be done by to-morrow noon."
+
+"To-morrow!" said the king. "All my treasures--"
+
+"Silence, my son. What portfolio is that?--the minister's? Good. Sign
+these three papers for me."
+
+"They are blank decrees," said the king. "What do you wish to do with
+them?"
+
+"They are my ordinances. Sign. Well done, my son; be obedient, and
+to-morrow noon you shall be as gay as a lark. First ordinance: If you
+would live at peace, appear at peace; I suppress six regiments. Second
+ordinance: A penny in a peasant's pocket is worth twenty in the king's
+treasury; I suppress one fourth of the taxes. Third ordinance: Liberty
+is like the sunshine--it is the happiness and fortune of the poor; I
+throw open the political prisons and demolish the debtors' prisons.
+You are laughing, my son; it is a good sign when a patient laughs at
+his doctor."
+
+"Yes," said Charming, "I am laughing to think of Wieduwillst's face
+to-morrow on reading these ordinances in the court gazette. Enough of
+these follies, buffoon doctor; give me back the papers and put an end
+to this farce."
+
+"What is this?" said the little man, taking up the decree of the
+regency. "God forgive me! it is an abdication. What are you thinking
+of, Prince Charming? What! the inheritance bequeathed to you by your
+fathers, the people intrusted to you by God, your name, your honor,
+will you throw all these at the feet of an adventurer? Will you let
+yourself be dethroned and duped by a deceiver? Impossible! It does not
+suit me. I oppose it. Do you hear?"
+
+"What insolent fellow addresses his prince in this way?"
+
+"Politeness is not in words. Charming, are you mad? Are you dreaming?
+Are you wholly without heart?"
+
+"This is too much!" cried the king. "Begone, wretch, or I will throw
+you out of the window."
+
+"Begone!" said the little doctor, in a shrill voice. "No, not till I
+have destroyed this mad and stupid document. See, I tear your
+abdication in pieces and trample it under-foot!"
+
+Charming seized the madman and called his guards. No one answered. The
+little man struggled with wonderful strength. With his foot he threw
+the lamp on the ground; but the king, despite the darkness, kept fast
+hold of the sorcerer, who felt his strength failing.
+
+"Let me go!" murmured he; "for Heaven's sake let me go! You know not
+what you are doing. You are breaking my arm."
+
+His words and prayers were useless. Suddenly a shower of blows, dealt
+by a strong hand, fell on the king's ears. Charming let go his hold in
+surprise, and turned to attack his invisible enemy. He found nothing
+but empty space, and, staggering in the darkness, cried loudly for the
+help that did not come. Such a thing could not have happened in a
+minister's house; kings are always worse guarded.
+
+
+VIII
+
+THE END OF A DREAM
+
+At last a door opened and Rachimburg entered, according to etiquette,
+to undress the king. The faithful servant appeared greatly vexed to
+find him without a light, groping along the wall.
+
+"Where is that infernal doctor?" asked Charming, foaming with rage.
+
+"It is more than an hour, sire, since His Excellency quitted the
+palace."
+
+"Who is talking of Wieduwillst?" cried the king. "Which way did the
+villain go that just insulted me?"
+
+Rachimburg looked at the prince with a contrite air, and raised his
+eyes to heaven, sighing.
+
+"A man went out of the door that leads to your rooms," said Charming.
+"How did he enter, and where has he fled?"
+
+"Sire," said Rachimburg, "I have neither quitted my post nor seen any
+one."
+
+"I tell you that a man was in this room a moment ago."
+
+"Sire, Your Majesty is never mistaken; if a man was in this room he
+is still here, unless he has flown through the window or Your Majesty
+has been dreaming."
+
+"Fool, do I look like a man who has been dreaming? Did I overturn this
+lamp? did I tear these papers?"
+
+"Sire, I am nothing but a worm of the earth; God forbid that I should
+contradict my sovereign. Your majesty does not hire me to give him the
+lie. But this year strange dreams are an epidemic. No one knows what
+he may do or suffer in his sleep. Only just now I was overtaken with
+sleep in spite of myself, and if I were not sure that I was dreaming I
+should declare that an invisible hand boxed my ears twice, at which I
+awakened with a start."
+
+"It was the specter!" said the king.
+
+"Your Majesty is right," replied Rachimburg; "I am nothing but a
+simpleton; it was the specter."
+
+"And I did not know her!" resumed Charming. "Nevertheless, it was her
+voice and air. What does this mean? Is it a new insult? Is it a
+warning from heaven? Does some danger threaten me? No matter, I will
+remain in my kingdom. My friend, not a word of all this: take this
+purse and keep the secret."
+
+"That makes the third," murmured the faithful Rachimburg, as he
+undressed the king with a zeal and address which several times made
+His Majesty smile.
+
+So many emotions one after another banished sleep; it was daybreak
+before the prince dozed, and broad daylight before he awoke. In the
+first moment between sleeping and waking Charming fancied that he
+heard a strange noise--bells ringing, cannon firing, and three or four
+bands of music playing each a different air. He was not mistaken; it
+was an infernal hubbub. The king rang. Rachimburg entered, carrying a
+bouquet of flowers.
+
+"Sire," said he, "will His Majesty permit the humblest of his servants
+to be the first to express to him the universal joy? Your people are
+intoxicated with love and gratitude. The taxes lessened, the prisons
+opened, the army reduced! Sire, you are the greatest prince in the
+world; never has earth seen a ruler like you. Show yourself at the
+balcony; answer these cries of 'Hurrah for the king!' Smile on the
+people that bless you."
+
+Rachimburg could not finish; tears choked his voice. He attempted to
+wipe his eyes, but in his excitement he took the gazette from his
+pocket instead of a handkerchief, and began to kiss it like a madman.
+
+Charming took the journal, and vainly attempted, while dressing, to
+collect his ideas. By what chance had these insane ordinances found
+their way into the official journal? Who had sent them? Why did not
+Wieduwillst make his appearance? The prince wished to reflect,
+consult, and question; but the people were under the windows, and
+their majesties were too impatient to wait.
+
+As soon as the king appeared in the balcony he was greeted with
+shouts of enthusiasm, which, despite everything, thrilled his heart.
+Men tossed their caps in the air, women waved their handkerchiefs,
+mothers lifted up their children and made them stretch their innocent
+hands to heaven, and repeat, "Hurrah for the king!" The guns of the
+palace guards were decked with flowers, the drums beat, and the
+officers' swords flashed in the sun. It was a scene of delirious joy.
+Charming was infected by the general emotion; he wept without exactly
+knowing why. At that instant the clock struck noon. The specter was
+right--the prince was cured.
+
+After the crowd it was the turn of the corporations, all of whom, the
+ministers at the head, came to congratulate and thank the king for
+having so well understood the wishes of his faithful counselors. A
+single person was lacking, namely, Wieduwillst. None knew where he had
+hidden his ignorance and spite. A mysterious note received by him that
+morning had occasioned his flight, yet this note contained only the
+words, _The king knows all!_ Who had written this fatal letter? Not
+the prince; he alone, perhaps, in the palace, thought of the minister,
+and wondered at not seeing him by his side.
+
+All at once Tonto entered, pale and haggard. He ran to the king and
+gave him a letter which an officer had brought at full gallop. The
+governor of the province, General Bayonet, sent terrible news; the six
+disbanded regiments had mutinied, headed by Wieduwillst. The rebels
+had proclaimed the downfall of the king, whom they accused of
+abominable crimes, especially of the murder of the queen. Numerous and
+well commanded, they were approaching the city, which was defended
+only by a few doubtful and disaffected regiments. Bayonet entreated
+the king to come instantly and take command; an hour later, and all
+would be lost.
+
+Hurried on by Tonto and Rachimburg, the king secretly quitted the
+palace, followed by a few officers. A proclamation, placarded on all
+the walls of the city and at every corner of the streets, declared
+that there was no truth in the rumors spread by a few malicious
+persons, and that the army had never been more devoted or faithful.
+Upon this there was a universal panic; stocks fell 50 per cent. in
+half an hour, and did not rise again till unofficial news arrived that
+the king had been well received at head-quarters.
+
+
+IX
+
+HEROIC REMEDIES FOR GREAT EVILS
+
+The news was false; the prince had been received with great coldness.
+It was his own fault. Sad, despondent, and abstracted, Charming had
+neither found a jest for the soldiers nor a word of trust for the
+officers. He entered the general's tent and fell into a chair. Tonto
+was little less disheartened.
+
+"Sire," said Bayonet, "permit me to speak to you with the frankness of
+a soldier and the freedom of an old friend. The army is murmuring and
+hesitating; we must secure it, or all is lost. The enemy is in sight;
+we must attack him. Five minutes sometimes decide the fate of empires;
+it is so with us now. Do not wait till it is too late."
+
+"Very well," said the king. "To horse! in an instant I will be with
+you."
+
+Left alone with Tonto and Rachimburg, the king exclaimed, in despair,
+"My good friends, quit a master who can do no more for you. I shall
+not dispute my wretched life with my enemies. Betrayed in friendship
+and treacherously assassinated, I recognize in my misfortune the hand
+of an avenging God. It is in punishment for my crime. I killed the
+queen in my stupid vengeance; the hour has come to expiate my fault,
+and I am ready."
+
+"Sire," said Tonto, trying to smile, "shake off these sad thoughts. If
+the queen were here she would tell you to defend yourself. Believe
+me," he added, twisting his budding mustache, "I am acquainted with
+women! Were they dead, they would still love to avenge themselves.
+Besides, you did not kill the queen; and perhaps she is not so dead as
+you imagine."
+
+"What do you say?" exclaimed the king; "you are losing your reason."
+
+"I say that there are women who die expressly to enrage their
+husbands; why should there not be those that would rise from the dead
+to enrage them still more? Leave the dead, and think of the living who
+love you. You are a king; fight like a king, and, if necessary, fall
+like a king."
+
+"Sire," said Bayonet, entering, sword in hand, "time presses."
+
+"General, to horse!" cried Tonto; "let us go."
+
+Bayonet quitted the room to give the needful orders. When he was gone,
+Charming looked at Tonto and said: "No, I will not go. I do not
+understand my feelings; I abhor myself. I am not afraid of death; I am
+going to kill myself; nevertheless, I will not fight."
+
+"Sire," said Tonto, "in Heaven's name, summon up your courage. To
+horse! Great God!" he exclaimed, wringing his hands, "the prince will
+not listen to me; we are lost. Come!" said he, taking hold of
+Charming's cloak; "up, sire; to horse, unhappy prince! Save your
+kingdom--save your people--save all that love you. Coward! look at me;
+I am nothing but a child, yet I am about to die for you. Fight! do not
+disgrace yourself. If you do not rise I will insult you--I, your
+servant. You are a coward--do you hear? a coward!"
+
+And behold! the insolent page boxed the king's ears.
+
+"S'death!" cried Charming, drawing his sword. "Before dying I will
+have the pleasure of punishing one subject, at least."
+
+But the page had left the tent. With one bound he sprang into the
+saddle and galloped toward the enemy, sword in hand, crying, "The
+king! my friends--the king! Sound the trumpets! Forward!"
+
+Charming, mad with anger, spurred his horse in pursuit of the page:
+like a bull at the sight of a red flag, he rushed forward, head
+downward, caring neither for death nor for danger. Bayonet rushed
+after the king, and the army after the general. It was the finest
+cavalry charge ever known in history.
+
+At the noise of the squadrons, which shook the ground like thunder,
+the enemy, surprised, scarcely had time to form in line of battle. One
+man, however, had recognized the king--the infamous Wieduwillst.
+Charming was alone; wholly absorbed in his vengeance, he saw nothing
+but the page whom he was pursuing. The traitor threw himself on the
+prince, sword in hand, and would have slain him at one stroke had not
+Tonto, plunging his spurs into the flanks of his horse, made the
+animal rear and fall on Wieduwillst. The page received the blow
+intended for his master. He threw up his arms and fell with a loud
+cry; but his fall, at least, was avenged. The king thrust his sword
+into the throat of the treacherous physician, and drew it forth,
+dripping with blood, not without pleasure. Man is decidedly the king
+of wild beasts.
+
+The traitor's death decided the fate of the day. The royal army,
+electrified by the heroism of its leader, soon dispersed the
+straggling battalions. The rebels, having nothing more to hope, sued
+for pardon, and their prayer was granted by the happy and clement
+king.
+
+An hour after quitting the camp where he had wished to die, Charming
+returned in triumph, bringing with him conquerors and conquered, all
+blended in the same ranks, the former loudly protesting their loyalty,
+the latter overpowering them with their enthusiasm. Nothing sharpens
+devotion so much as a little treason.
+
+
+X
+
+IN WHICH WE SEE THAT IT IS WRONG TO JUDGE ACCORDING
+
+TO APPEARANCES, AND THAT TONTO WAS NOT TONTO
+
+The king entered his tent to rest a moment, when the sight of
+Rachimburg reminded him of Tonto.
+
+"Is the page dead?" he asked.
+
+"No, sire," answered Rachimburg; "unfortunately for him, he is still
+living; he is hopeless. I ordered him carried to his aunt's, the
+Countess de Castro's, close by here."
+
+"Is he the countess's nephew?" said the king. "I was never told of
+it."
+
+"Your Majesty has forgotten it," replied Rachimburg, quietly. "The
+poor child is fatally wounded in the shoulder; he cannot recover. It
+would give him great happiness could he see Your Majesty before he
+dies."
+
+"Very well," returned the king; "lead me to him."
+
+On his arrival at the castle Charming was met by the countess, who
+conducted him to a darkened room. The page was stretched, pale and
+bleeding, on a couch; nevertheless, he had strength to raise his head
+and welcome the king.
+
+"What a miracle!" exclaimed Charming. "This is the strangest wound
+that I ever saw in my life: one side of Tonto's mustache is gone!"
+
+"Sire," said the countess, "the blade of the sword probably swept off
+one side. Nothing is so capricious as sword wounds, as every one
+knows."
+
+"How strange!" cried the king. "On one side it is Tonto, my page, my
+insolent subject, and on the other it is--no, I am not mistaken--it is
+you, my good angel and my savior; it is you, my poor Pazza!"
+
+He fell on his knees and seized her hand, which lay on the coverlet.
+
+"Sire," said Pazza, "my days are numbered, but before dying--"
+
+"No, no, Pazza, you shall not die," cried the king, in tears.
+
+"Before dying," she added, casting down her eyes, "I hope that Your
+Majesty will forgive me the box on the ear which I gave you this
+morning in indiscreet zeal--"
+
+"Enough," said the king; "I forgive you. After all, a throne and honor
+were well worth--what I received."
+
+"Alas!" said Pazza, "that is not all."
+
+"What!" exclaimed Charming, "is there anything more?"
+
+"Oh, sire, what have you done?" cried the countess; "my child is
+dying!"
+
+"My Pazza, you must not die!" exclaimed the king. "Speak, and be sure
+that I forgive in advance all you have done. Alas! it is I that have
+need of forgiveness."
+
+"Sire, the little doctor who took the liberty of boxing Your Majesty's
+ears--"
+
+"Was it you that sent him?" asked Charming, with a frown.
+
+"No, sire, I myself was he. Ah, what would I not have done to save my
+king! It was I who, to save Your Majesty from the traitorous knaves
+that surrounded you, took the liberty of boxing your ears--"
+
+"Enough," said Charming; "I forgive you, though the lesson was a harsh
+one."
+
+"Alas! this is not all," said Pazza.
+
+"What, more?" cried the king, rising.
+
+"Oh, aunt, I am dying!" exclaimed Pazza. By dint of care, however, she
+was restored to life; and, turning her languishing eyes toward the
+king, "Sire," said she, "the gipsy girl at the masked ball, who dared
+to box your ears--"
+
+"Was yourself, Pazza?" said charming. "Oh, I forgive you for that; I
+well deserved it. How could I doubt you, who are sincerity itself!
+But, now I think of it, do you remember the rash vow that you made on
+the night of our marriage? You have kept your promise; it is for me to
+keep mine. Pazza, make haste to recover, and return to the castle from
+which happiness fled with you."
+
+"I have a last favor to ask of Your Majesty," said Pazza. "Rachimburg
+was the witness this morning of a scene for which I blush, and of
+which all must remain ignorant. I commend this faithful servant to
+your goodness."
+
+"Rachimburg," said the king, "take this purse, and keep the secret
+under penalty of your head."
+
+"That makes the fourth," whispered Rachimburg to himself; "my fortune
+is made."
+
+In a few moments Pazza was asleep. "Do you think that she will
+recover?" asked Charming, anxiously, of the countess.
+
+"Bah!" said the old lady. "No matter how ill a woman may be, happiness
+will bring her back from the brink of the grave. Kiss the queen, my
+nephew; it will do her more good than all the doctors in the world."
+
+Charming stooped and kissed the sleeping Pazza. An angelic smile
+stole over her features, at the sight of which he wept like a child.
+
+
+XI
+
+A WIFE SHOULD OBEY HER HUSBAND
+
+The countess was right (women are always right--past sixty). A
+fortnight of happiness set Pazza on her feet again, and enabled her to
+make a triumphant entry into the city with the king, her husband. Her
+paleness, and her wounded arm, which she carried in a sling, added to
+her grace and beauty. Charming had eyes for no one but the queen, and
+the people's looks followed the king's.
+
+They were more than an hour in reaching the castle. The magistrates
+had erected not less than three triumphal arches, frowning fortresses,
+defended each by thirty-six deputations and thirty-six speeches. The
+first arch, made of trellis-work, and adorned with leaves and flowers,
+bore the inscription,
+
+             TO THE MOST TENDER AND FAITHFUL OF HUSBANDS
+
+This was intrusted to the keeping of five or six thousand young girls,
+dressed in white, with pink ribbons, representing the spring of the
+year, the hope of the future, welcoming Glory and Beauty.
+
+The second arch, more solidly built, was a frame covered with
+tapestry, surmounted by Justice, with her eyes bandaged and her scales
+in her hand.
+
+On the pedestal of the statue was written,
+
+                          TO THE FATHER OF HIS PEOPLE,
+                         THE BEST AND WISEST OF PRINCES
+
+A host of priests, statesmen, and magistrates, in robes of all colors,
+represented Religion, Wisdom, and Virtue; at least so said these
+venerable and discreet personages, who are never in error.
+
+Last came an immense arch, a true military trophy, bearing as its
+motto,
+
+               TO THE BOLDEST AND MOST VALIANT OF KINGS
+
+Here the army awaited its general, and the queen was saluted by the
+majestic voice of a hundred cannon and two hundred drums--a voice
+before which all human eloquence falters, and which always has the
+last word.
+
+I spare you a description of the dinner, which was interminable, and
+of sixty more speeches from the court gazette, where they had already
+done service two or three times, and wherein they were again deposited
+for the use of future generations. There is nothing so monotonous as
+happiness, and we must be indulgent to those who sing its praises
+officially. In such cases, the ablest is he who says the least.
+
+The long evening, during which the king had lavished his most gracious
+smiles on those whom he despised at the bottom of his heart, was at
+length at an end, and Charming led Pazza, no longer to a dungeon, but
+to a magnificent apartment, where a new surprise awaited her. At the
+bottom of the room was an illuminated transparency, on which were
+written lines so bad that a king alone could have been the author of
+them. These lines, which were published in the official gazette, have
+been handed down to us by one of those indiscreet persons who suffer
+no follies of the past to be lost. Such persons are the rag-pickers of
+history.
+
+    Ye indolent dunces, who rust in your sloth,
+      Too lazy or wilful to learn;
+    Ye courtiers, who crowd round the king, nothing loth
+      By base flattery his favor to earn;
+    Ye doctors, who laugh at us cowards, and sell
+      Long words and wise oracles dear--
+    Beware lest some night a mischievous sprite
+      Should give you a box on the ear.
+
+    And you, ye proud husbands, puffed up with conceit,
+      Who deem yourselves statesmen so wise
+    That the whole world admiringly bows at your feet--
+      Who truth, love, and goodness despise--
+    Beware lest some day your less frivolous wives,
+      Derided by those they held dear,
+    Should start from your side, aroused by just pride,
+      And give you a box on the ear.
+
+"What means this enigma, sire?" asked Pazza.
+
+"It means that I do myself justice," answered the king. "I am nothing
+except through you, dear Pazza; all that I know and all that I think I
+owe to you. Without you I am nothing but a soulless body, fit only for
+follies."
+
+"Pardon me if I contradict Your Majesty," said Pazza.
+
+"Oh," returned the king, "I affect no false modesty; I know very well
+that I have the clearest head of any in my council; my ministers
+themselves are forced to acknowledge it, for they are always of my
+opinion; but with all this there is more wisdom in your little finger
+than in all my royal brain. My resolution, therefore, is fixed. Let my
+court and people celebrate my wisdom, my goodness, and even my valor;
+it is all very well, and I accept the homage. You alone have the right
+to laugh at it, and you will not betray me. But from this day I
+abandon my power to you. The king, my dear Pazza, will be only the
+chief of your subjects, the faithful minister of your will. You shall
+write the piece and I will play it; the applause will be mine,
+according to custom, and I will give it back to you by force of love."
+
+"Do not talk in this way, my dear," said Pazza.
+
+"I know what I am saying," returned the king, warmly. "I wish you to
+rule; I mean that in my empire, as in my house, nothing shall be done
+except by your command; I am the master and the king; I desire and
+order it."
+
+"Sire," said Pazza, "I am your wife and servant; it is my duty to
+obey."
+
+After this, says the chronicle, they lived happily to a good old age,
+beloved by all their subjects; and the people of the kingdom of Wild
+Oats still talk of the good old days of Prince Charming and the
+Princess Pazza.
+
+
+
+THE END
+
+
+
+
+
+End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Laboulaye's Fairy Book, by Various
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