The Fairy Tales of Charles Perrault
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.
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.
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
made a magnificent entry into the capital city, she riding between her
two children.
Some time after, the King went to make war with the Emperor
Cantalabutte, his neighbour. He left the government of the kingdom to
the Queen his mother, and earnestly recommended to her care his wife
and children. He was like to be at war all the summer, and as soon as
he departed, the Queen-mother sent her daughter-in-law and her
children to a country-house among the woods, that she might with the
more ease gratify her horrible longing.
Some few days afterwards she went thither herself, and said to her
clerk of the kitchen:
"I have a mind to eat little Aurora for my dinner to morrow."
"Ah! Madam," cried the clerk of the kitchen.
"I will have it so," replied the Queen (and this she spake in the tone
of an Ogress, who had a strong desire to eat fresh meat), "and will
eat her with a Sauce Robert."[2]
[Footnote 2: This is a French sauce, made with onions shredded and
boiled tender in butter, to which is added vinegar, mustard, salt,
pepper, and a little wine. [Note by the translator.]]
The poor man knowing very well that he must not play tricks with
Ogresses, took his great knife and went up into little Aurora's
chamber. She was then four years old, and came up to him jumping and
laughing, to take him about the neck, and ask him for some
sugar-candy. Upon which he began to weep, the great knife fell out of
his hand, and he went into the back-yard, and killed a little lamb,
and dressed it with such good sauce, that his mistress assured him she
had never eaten anything so good in her life. He had at the same time
taken up little Aurora, and carried her to his wife, to conceal her in
the lodging he had at the end of the court yard.
About eight days afterwards, the wicked Queen said to the clerk of the
kitchen:
"I will sup upon little Day."
He answered not a word, being resolved to cheat her, as he had done
before. He went to find out little Day, and saw him with a little
foil in his hand, with which he was fencing with a great monkey; the
child being then only three years of age. He took him up in his arms,
and carried him to his wife, that she might conceal him in her chamber
along with his sister, and in the room of little Day cooked up a young
kid very tender, which the Ogress found to be wonderfully good.
This was hitherto all mighty well: but one evening this wicked Queen
said to her clerk of the kitchen:
"I will eat the Queen with the same sauce I had with her children."
It was now that the poor clerk of the kitchen despaired of being able
to deceive her. The young Queen was turned of twenty, not reckoning