Complete Fairy Tales by Perrault Charles; Betts Christopher;

Author:Perrault, Charles; Betts, Christopher;
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Published: 2009-09-17T04:00:00+00:00

The Prince passes gentlemen and ladies, all asleep

The Prince sees the beautiful Princess

The Prince told him that he had got lost in the forest while out hunting, and that he had spent the night in a hovel belonging to a charcoal-burner, who had given him cheese and black bread to eat. The King, who was a good soul, believed him, but his mother was not convinced. She noticed that he went hunting almost every day, and always had some excuse to give when he had slept away from home for two or three nights; so she became certain that he was carrying on some love-affair, for he lived in this way with the Princess for more than two whole years, and had two children with her. The first was a girl, and was named Dawn; and the second, who was a boy, was called Day, since he looked even more beautiful than his sister.

The Queen said to her son several times, in the hope of drawing him out, that one should enjoy oneself in life, but he never dared to entrust her with his secret; although he loved her, he was afraid of her, because she came from a family of ogres, and the King had married her only because of her great wealth. It was even whispered at court that she herself had ogreish tendencies, and that when she saw small children going by she found it almost impossible to prevent herself from jumping on them, which is why the Prince would never say anything. But when the King died, which happened after another two years, and the Prince was in command, he made his marriage public, and went in a grand procession to fetch the Queen his wife from her castle. A magnificent reception was held for her in the capital, where she made her entrance into the town accompanied by her two children.

Some time later, the new King went to war against his neighbour the Emperor Cantalabutto. He left the government of the kingdom in the hands of the Queen his mother, asking her to take special care of his wife and children, for he was to be away at the war for the whole summer. As soon as he had left, the Queen Mother sent her daughter-in-law and the children to a summer residence she had in the forest, so as to satisfy her horrible desires more easily. She went there herself a few days later, and said one evening to her steward: ‘Tomorrow evening for supper, I want to eat little Dawn.’

‘Alas, my lady!’ said the steward.

‘That is my wish,’ said the Queen, and her tone was the tone of an ogress who wants fresh meat, ‘and I want to eat her with onion and mustard sauce.’ The poor man, realizing that an ogress was not to be trifled with, took a great knife and went up to little Dawn’s room. She was then four years old, and came across the room skipping and laughing to embrace him and ask him for sweets.

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