The Fairy Tales of Charles Perrault 6

The Fairy Tales of Charles Perrault 6

"I am spinning, my pretty child," said the old woman, who did not know

who she was.

 

"Ha!" said the Princess, "this is very pretty; how do you do it? Give

it to me, that I may see if I can do so." She had no sooner taken the

spindle into her hand, than, whether being very hasty at it, somewhat

unhandy, or that the decree of the Fairy had so ordained it, it ran

into her hand, and she fell down in a swoon.

 

The good old woman not knowing very well what to do in this affair,

cried out for help. People came in from every quarter in great

numbers; they threw water upon the Princess's face, unlaced her,

struck her on the palms of her hands, and rubbed her temples with

Hungary-water; but nothing would bring her to herself.

 

And now the King, who came up at the noise, bethought himself of the

prediction of the Fairies, and judging very well that this must

necessarily come to pass, since the Fairies had said it, caused the

Princess to be carried into the finest apartment in his palace, and to

be laid upon a bed all embroidered with gold and silver. One would

have taken her for an angel, she was so very beautiful; for her

swooning away had not diminished one bit of her complexion; her cheeks

were carnation, and her lips like coral; indeed her eyes were shut,

but she was heard to breathe softly, which satisfied those about her

that she was not dead. The King commanded that they should not disturb

her, but let her sleep quietly till her hour of awakening was come.

 

The good Fairy, who had saved her life by condemning her to sleep a

hundred years, was in the kingdom of Matakin, twelve thousand leagues

off, when this accident befell the Princess; but she was instantly

informed of it by a little dwarf, who had boots of seven leagues, that

is, boots with which he could tread over seven leagues of ground at

one stride. The Fairy came away immediately, and she arrived, about an

hour after, in a fiery chariot, drawn by dragons. The King handed her

out of the chariot, and she approved every thing he had done; but, as

she had a very great foresight, she thought, when the Princess should

awake, she might not know what to do with herself, being all alone in

this old palace; and this was what she did: She touched with her wand

every thing in the palace (except the King and the Queen),

governesses, maids of honour, ladies of the bedchamber, gentlemen,

officers, stewards, cooks, under-cooks, scullions, guards, with their

beef-eaters, pages, footmen; she likewise touched all the horses which

were in the stables, as well as their grooms, the great dogs in the

outward court, and pretty little Mopsey too, the Princess's little

spaniel-bitch, which lay by her on the bed.

 

Immediately upon her touching them, they all fell asleep, that they

might not awake before their mistress, and that they might be ready to

wait upon her when she wanted them. The very spits at the fire, as

full as they could hold of partridges and pheasants, did fall asleep,

and the fire likewise. All this was done in a moment. Fairies are not

long in doing their business.

 

And now the King and the Queen, having kissed their dear child without

waking her, went out of the palace, and put forth a proclamation, that

nobody should dare to come near it. This, however, was not necessary;

for, in a quarter of an hour's time, there grew up, all round about

the park, such a vast number of trees, great and small, bushes and

brambles, twining one within another, that neither man nor beast could

pass thro'; so that nothing could be seen but the very top of the

towers of the palace; and that too, not unless it was a good way off.

Nobody doubted but the Fairy gave herein a sample of her art, that the

Princess, while she continued sleeping, might have nothing to fear

from any curious people.

 

* * * * *

 

When a hundred years were gone and past, the son of the King then

reigning, and who was of another family from that of the sleeping

Princess, being gone a-hunting on that side of the country, asked,

what were those towers which he saw in the middle of a great thick

wood? Every one answered according as they had heard; some said that

it was a ruinous old castle, haunted by spirits; others, that all the

sorcerers and witches of the country kept there their sabbath, or

nights meeting. The common opinion was that an Ogre[1] lived there,

and that he carried thither all the little children he could catch,

that he might eat them up at his leisure, without any-body's being

able to follow him, as having himself, only, the power to pass thro'

the wood.

 

[Footnote 1: OGRE is a giant, with long teeth and claws, with a raw

head and bloody-bones, who runs away with naughty little boys and

girls, and eats them up. [Note by the translator.]]

 

The Prince was at a stand, not knowing what to believe, when a very

aged countryman spake to him thus: "May it please your Royal Highness,

it is now above fifty years since I heard my father, who had heard my

grandfather, say that there then was in this castle, a Princess, the

most beautiful was ever seen; that she must sleep there a hundred

years, and should be awaked by a king's son; for whom she was

reserved." The young Prince was all on fire at these words, believing,

without a moment's doubt, that he could put an end to this rare

adventure; and pushed on by love and honour resolved that moment to

look into it.

 

[Illustration: "THE PRINCE ENQUIRES OF THE AGED COUNTRYMAN"]

 

Scarce had he advanced towards the wood, when all the great trees, the

bushes and brambles, gave way of themselves to let him pass thro'; he

walked up to the castle which he saw at the end of a large avenue

which he went into; and what a little surprised him was, that he saw

none of his people could follow him, because the trees closed again,

as soon as he had pass'd thro' them. However, he did not cease from

continuing his way; a young and amorous Prince is always valiant. He

came into a spacious outward court, where everything he saw might have

frozen up the most fearless person with horror. There reigned over all

a most frightful silence; the image of death everywhere shewed itself,

and there was nothing to be seen but stretched out bodies of men and

animals, all seeming to be dead. He, however, very well knew, by the

ruby faces and pimpled noses of the beef-eaters, that they were only

asleep; and their goblets, wherein still remained some drops of wine,

shewed plainly, that they fell asleep in their cups.

 

He then crossed a court paved with marble, went up the stairs, and

came into the guard-chamber, where the guards were standing in their

ranks, with their muskets upon their shoulders, and snoring as loud as

they could. After that he went through several rooms full of gentlemen

and ladies, all asleep, some standing, others sitting. At last he came

into a chamber all gilded with gold, where he saw, upon a bed, the

curtains of which were all open, the finest sight was ever beheld: a

Princess, who appeared to be about fifteen or sixteen years of age,

and whose bright, and in a manner resplendent beauty, had somewhat in

it divine. He approached with trembling and admiration, and fell down

before her upon his knees.

 

And now, as the inchantment was at an end, the Princess awaked, and

looking on him with eyes more tender than the first view might seem to

admit of: "Is it you, my Prince," said she to him, "you have tarried

long."

 

The Prince, charmed with these words, and much more with the manner in

which they were spoken, knew not how to shew his joy and gratitude; he

assured her, that he loved her better than he did himself; his

discourse was not well connected, but it pleased her all the more;

little eloquence, a great deal of love. He was more at a loss than

she, and we need not wonder at it; she had time to think on what to

say to him; for it is very probable (though history mentions nothing

of it) that the good Fairy, during so long a sleep, had entertained

her with pleasant dreams. In short, when they talked four hours

together, they said not half what they had to say.

 

[Illustration: "HE SAW, UPON A BED, THE FINEST SIGHT WAS EVER BEHELD"]

 

In the mean while, all the palace awaked; every one thought upon their

particular business; and as all of them were not in love, they were

ready to die for hunger; the chief lady of honour, being as sharp set

as other folks, grew very impatient, and told the Princess aloud,

That supper was served up. The Prince helped the Princess to rise, she

was entirely dressed, and very magnificently, but his Royal Highness

took care not to tell her that she was dressed like his great

grand-mother, and had a point-band peeping over a high collar; she

looked not a bit the less beautiful and charming for all that.

 

They went into the great hall of looking-glasses, where they supped,

and were served by the Princess's officers; the violins and hautboys

played old tunes, but very excellent, tho' it was now above a hundred

years since they had been played; and after supper, without losing any

time, the lord almoner married them in the chapel of the castle, and

the chief lady of honour drew the curtains. They had but very little

sleep; the Princess had no occasion, and the Prince left her next

morning to return into the city, where his father must needs have been

anxious on his account. The Prince told him that he lost his way in

the forest, as he was hunting, and that he had lain at the cottage of

a collier, who gave him cheese and brown bread.

 

The King his father, who was of an easy disposition, believed him; but

his mother could not be persuaded this was true; and seeing that he

went almost every day a-hunting, and that he always had some excuse

ready when he had laid out three or four nights together, she no

longer doubted he had some little amour, for he lived with the

Princess above two whole years, and had by her two children, the

eldest of which, who was a daughter, was named Aurora, and the

youngest, who was a son, they called Day, because he was even

handsomer and more beautiful than his sister.

 

The Queen said more than once to her son, in order to bring him to

speak freely to her, that a young man must e'en take his pleasure; but

he never dared to trust her with his secret; he feared her, tho' he

loved her; for she was of the race of the Ogres, and the King would

never have married her, had it not been for her vast riches; it was

even whispered about the court, that she had Ogreish inclinations, and

that, whenever she saw little children passing by, she had all the

difficulty in the world to refrain from falling upon them. And so the

Prince would never tell her one word.

 

But when the King was dead, which happened about two years afterwards;

and he saw himself lord and master, he openly declared his marriage;

and he went in great ceremony to fetch his Queen from the castle. They