IN TIMES PAST there lived a King and Queen, who said
to each other every day of their lives, “Would that we had a child!” and yet
they had none. But it happened once that when the Queen was bathing, there came
a frog out of the water, and he squatted on the ground, and said to her, “Thy
wish shall be fulfilled; before a year has gone by, thou shalt bring a daughter
into the world.”
And as the frog foretold, so it happened; and
the Queen bore a daughter so
beautiful that the King could not contain himself for
joy, and he ordained a great feast. Not only did he bid to it his relations,
friends, and acquaintances, but also the wise women, that they might be kind
and favorable to the child. There were thirteen of
them in his kingdom, but as he had only provided
twelve golden plates for them to eat from, one of them had to be left out.
However, the feast was
celebrated with all splendor; and as it drew to an end, the wise women stood
forward to present to the child their wonderful gifts: one bestowed virtue, one
beauty, a third riches, and so on, whatever there is in the world to wish for.
And when eleven of them had said their say, in came the uninvited thirteenth,
burning to revenge herself, and without greeting or respect, she cried with a
loud voice, “In the fifteenth year of her age the Princess shall prick herself
with a spindle and shall fall down dead.” And without speaking one more word
she turned away and left the hall.
Every one was terrified
at her saying, when the twelfth came forward, for she had not yet bestowed her
gift, and though she could not do away with the evil prophecy, yet she could
soften it, so she said, “The Princess shall not die, but fall into a deep sleep
for a hundred years.” Now the King, being desirous of saving his child even
from this misfortune, gave commandment that all the spindles in his kingdom
should be burnt up.
The maiden grew up,
adorned with all the gifts of the wise women;
and she was so lovely, modest, sweet, and kind and clever, that no one
who saw her could help loving her.
It happened one day,
she being already fifteen years old, that the King and Queen rode abroad; and
the maiden was left behind alone in the castle. She wandered about into all the
nooks and corners, and into all the chambers and parlors, as the fancy took
her, till at last she came to an old tower. She climbed the narrow winding
stair which led to a little door, with a rusty key sticking out of the lock;
she turned the key, and the door opened, and there in the little room sat an
old woman with a spindle, diligently spinning her flax.
“Good day, mother,”
said the Princess, “what are you doing?” “I am spinning,” answered the old
woman, nodding her head. “What thing is that that twists round so briskly?”
asked the maiden, and taking the spindle into her hand she began to spin; but
no sooner had she touched it than the evil prophecy was fulfilled, and she
pricked her finger with it. In that very moment she fell back upon the bed that
stood there, and lay in a deep sleep, and this sleep fell upon the whole castle.
The King and Queen, who
had returned and were in the great hall fell fast asleep, and with them the
whole court. The horses in their stalls, the dogs in the yard, the pigeons on
the roof, the flies on the wall, the very fire that flickered on the hearth,
became still, and slept like the rest; and the meat on the spit ceased
roasting, and the
cook, who was going to pull the scullion’s hair for
some mistake he had made, let him go, and went to sleep. And the wind ceased,
and not a leaf fell from the trees about the castle.
Then round about that
place there grew a hedge of thorns thicker every year, until at last the whole
castle was hidden from view, and nothing of it could be seen but the vane on
the roof. And a rumor went abroad in all that country of the beautiful sleeping
Rosamond, for so was the Princess called; and from time to time many Kings’
sons came and tried to force their way through the hedge; but it was impossible
for them to do so, for the thorns held fast together like strong hands, and the
young men were caught by them, and not being able to get free, there died a
lamentable death.
Many a long year
afterwards there came a King’s son into that country, and heard an old man tell
how there should be a castle standing behind the hedge of thorns, and that
there a beautiful enchanted Princess named Rosamond had slept for a hundred
years, and with her the King and Queen, and the
whole court. The old man had been told by his grandfather that many Kings’ sons
had sought to pass the thorn-hedge, but had been caught and pierced by the
thorns, and had died a miserable death. Then said
the young man, “Nevertheless, I do not fear to try;
I shall win through and see the lovely Rosamond.” The good old man tried to
dissuade him, but he would not listen to his words.
For now the hundred
years were at an end, and the day had come when Rosamond should be awakened.
When the Prince drew near the hedge of thorns, it was changed into a hedge of
beautiful large flowers, which parted and bent aside to let him pass, and then
closed behind him in a thick hedge. When he reached the castleyard,
he saw the horses and brindled hunting-dogs lying
asleep,and on the roof the pigeons were sitting with their heads under their
wings. And when he came indoors, the flies on the wall were asleep, the cook in
the kitchen had his hand uplifted to strike the scullion, and the kitchenmaid
had the black fowl on her lap ready to pluck. Then he mounted higher, and saw
in the hall the whole court lying asleep, and above them, on their thrones,
slept the King and the Queen. And still he went farther, and all was so quiet
that he could hear his own breathing, and at last he came to the tower, and
went up the winding stair, and opened the door of the little room where
Rosamond lay.
And when he saw her
looking so lovely in her sleep, he could notturn away his eyes; and presently
he stooped and kissed her, and she awaked, and opened her eyes, and looked very
kindly on him.
And she rose, and they
went forth together, the King and the Queen and whole court waked up, and gazed
on each other with great eyes of wonderment. And the horses in the yard got up
and shook themselves, the hounds sprang up and wagged their tails, the pigeons
on the roof drew their heads from under their wings, looked round, and flew
into the field, the flies on the wall crept on a little farther, the kitchen
fire leapt up and blazed, and cooked the meat, the joint on the spit began to
roast, the cook gave the scullion such a box on the ear that he roared out, and
the maid went on
plucking the fowl.
Then the wedding of the
Prince and Rosamond was held with all splendor, and they lived very happily
together until their lives’ end.
THE END
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