<h2>CINDERELLA</h2>
<p>The wife of a rich man fell sick: and when she felt that her
end drew nigh, she called her only daughter to her bedside, and
said, "Always be a good girl, and I will look down from heaven
and watch over you." Soon afterwards she shut her eyes and
died, and was buried in the garden; and the little girl went
every day to her grave and wept, and was always good and kind
to all about her. And the snow spread a beautiful white
covering over the grave: but by the time the sun had melted it
away again, her father had married another wife. This new wife
had two daughters of her own, that she brought home with her:
they were fair in face but foul at heart, and it was now a
sorry time for the poor little girl. "What does the
good-for-nothing thing want in the parlour?" said they; "they
who would eat bread should first earn it; away with the kitchen
maid!" Then they took away her fine clothes, and gave her an
old frock to put on, and laughed at her and turned her into the
kitchen.</p>
<span class="pagenum"><SPAN name="page26" id="page26"></SPAN></span>
<p>Then she was forced to do hard work; to rise early, before
daylight, to bring the water, to make the fire, to cook and to
wash. Besides that, the sisters plagued her in all sorts of
ways and laughed at her. In the evening, when she was tired,
she had no bed to lie down on, but was made to sleep by the
hearth among the ashes; and then, as she was of course always
dusty and dirty, they called her Cinderella.</p>
<p>It happened once that the father was going to the fair, and
asked his wife's daughters what he should bring them. "Fine
clothes," said the first: "Pearls and diamonds," said the
second. "Now, child," said he to his own daughter, "what will
you have?" "The first sprig, dear father, that rubs against
your hat on your way home," said she. Then he bought for the
two first the fine clothes and pearls and diamonds they had
asked for: and on his way home as he rode through a green
copse, a sprig of hazel brushed against him, and almost pushed
off his hat; so he broke it off and brought it away; and when
he got home he gave it to his daughter. Then she took it and
went to her mother's grave and planted it there, and cried so
much that it was watered with her tears; and there it grew and
became a fine tree. Three times every day she went to it and
wept; and soon a little bird came and built its nest upon the
tree, and talked with her and watched over her, and brought her
whatever she wished for.</p>
<p>Now it happened that the king of the land held a feast which
was to last three days, and out of those who came to it his son
was to choose a bride for himself; and Cinderella's two sisters
were asked to come. So they called her up and said, "Now, comb
our hair, brush our shoes, and tie our sashes for us, for we
are going to dance at the king's feast." Then she did as she
was told, but when all was done she could not help crying, for
she thought to herself, she would have liked to go to the dance
too; and at last she begged her mother very hard to let her go.
"You! Cinderella?" said she; "you who have nothing to wear, no
clothes at all, and who cannot even dance—you want to go
to the ball?" And when she kept on begging—to get rid of
her, she said at last, "I will throw this basinful of peas into
the ash heap, and if you have picked them all out in two
<span class="pagenum"><SPAN name="page27" id="page27"></SPAN></span> hours' time you shall go to
the feast too." Then she threw the peas into the ashes; but
the little maiden ran out at the back door into the garden,
and cried out—</p>
<div class="poem">
<div class="stanza">
<p>"Hither, hither, through the sky.</p>
<p>Turtle-doves and linnets, fly!</p>
<p>Blackbird, thrush, and chaffinch gay,</p>
<p>Hither, hither, haste away!</p>
<p class="i2">One and all, come help me quick,</p>
<p>Haste ye, haste ye—pick, pick, pick!"</p>
</div>
</div>
<div class="figright"
style="width:50%;">
<ANTIMG width-obs="400" src="images/027.png" alt="Woman sweeping" /></div>
<p>Then first came two white doves flying in at the kitchen
window; and next came two turtle-doves; and after them all the
little birds under heaven came chirping and fluttering in, and
flew down into the ashes; and the little doves stooped their
heads down and set to work, pick, pick, pick; and then the
others began to pick, pick, pick; and picked out all the good
grain and put it in a dish, and left the ashes. At the end of
one hour the work was done, and all flew out again at the
<span class="pagenum"><SPAN name="page28" id="page28"></SPAN></span> windows. Then Cinderella
brought the dish to her mother, overjoyed at the thought
that now she should go to the feast. But she said, "No, no!
Girl, you have no clothes and cannot dance, you shall not
go." And when Cinderella begged very hard to go, she said,
"If you can in one hour's time pick two of these dishes of
peas out of the ashes, you shall go too." And thus she
thought she should at last get rid of her. So she shook two
dishes of peas into the ashes; but the little maiden went
out into the garden at the back of the house, and cried as
before—</p>
<br clear="all" />
<div class="poem">
<div class="stanza">
<p>"Hither, hither, through the sky.</p>
<p>Turtle-doves and linnets, fly!</p>
<p>Blackbird, thrush, and chaffinch gay,</p>
<p>Hither, hither, haste away!</p>
<p>One and all, come help me quick,</p>
<p>Haste ye, haste ye—pick, pick, pick!"</p>
</div>
</div>
<p>Then first came two white doves in at the kitchen window;
and next came the turtle-doves; and after them all the little
birds under heaven came chirping and hopping about, and flew
down about the ashes; and the little doves put their heads down
and set to work, pick, pick, pick; and then the others began to
pick, pick, pick; and they put all the good grain into the
dishes, and left all the ashes, Before half-an-hour's time all
was done, and out they flew again. And then Cinderella took the
dishes to her mother, rejoicing to think that she should now go
to the ball. But her mother said, "It is all of no use, you
cannot go, you have no clothes, and cannot dance, and you would
only put us to shame:" and off she went with her two daughters
to the feast.</p>
<p>Now when all were gone, and nobody left at home, Cinderella
went sorrowfully and sat down under the hazel-tree, and cried
out—</p>
<div class="poem">
<div class="stanza">
<p>"Shake, shake, hazel tree,</p>
<p>Gold and silver over me!"</p>
</div>
</div>
<p>Then her friend the bird flew out of the tree and brought a
gold and silver dress for her, and slippers of spangled silk;
and she put them on, and followed her sisters to the feast. But
they did not know her, and thought it must be some strange
princess, she looked so fine and beautiful in her rich clothes;
and they never once thought of Cinderella, but took for granted
that she was safe at home in the dirt.</p>
<div class="figcenter"
style="width:100%;">
<SPAN href="images/159.jpg"
name="fig159s" id="fig159s"><ANTIMG width-obs="479"
src="images/159s.jpg" alt="CINDERELLA" /></SPAN>
<p><i>Painted by Jennie Harbour</i></p>CINDERELLA</div>
<span class="pagenum"><SPAN name="page29" id="page29"></SPAN></span>
<div class="figcenter"
style="width:100%;">
<ANTIMG width-obs="500" src="images/029.png" alt="Cinderella and Clock" /></div>
<p>The king's son soon came up to her, and took her by the hand
and danced with her and no one else; and he never left her
hand; but when any one else came to ask her to dance, he said,
"This lady is dancing with me." Thus they danced till a late
hour of the night, and then she wanted to go home: and the
king's son said, "I shall go and take care of you to your
home;" for he wanted to see where the beautiful maid lived. But
she slipped away from him unawares, and ran off towards home,
and the prince followed her; but she jumped up into the
pigeon-house and shut the door. Then he waited till her father
came home, and told him that the unknown maiden who had been at
the feast had hidden herself in the pigeon-house. But when they
had broken open the door they found no one within; and as they
came back into the house,
<span class="pagenum"><SPAN name="page30" id="page30"></SPAN></span> Cinderella lay as she always
did, in her dirty frock by the ashes, and her dim little
lamp burnt in the chimney; for she had run as quickly as she
could through the pigeon-house and on to the hazel-tree, and
had there taken off her beautiful clothes, and laid them
beneath the tree, that the bird might carry them away, and
had seated herself amid the ashes again in her little old
frock.</p>
<p>The next day, when the feast was again held, and her father,
mother, and sisters were gone, Cinderella went to the hazel
tree, and said—</p>
<div class="poem">
<div class="stanza">
<p>"Shake, shake, hazel tree,</p>
<p>Gold and silver over me!"</p>
</div>
</div>
<p>And the bird came and brought a still finer dress than the
one she had worn the day before. And when she came in it to the
ball, every one wondered at her beauty; but the king's son, who
was waiting for her, took her by the hand, and danced with her;
and when any one asked her to dance, he said as before, "This
lady is dancing with me." When night came she wanted to go
home; and the king's son followed her as before, that he might
see into what house she went; but she sprang away from him, all
at once, into the garden behind her father's house. In this
garden stood a fine large pear tree full of ripe fruit; and
Cinderella, not knowing where to hide herself, jumped up into
it without being seen. Then the king's son could not find out
where she was gone, but waited till her father came home, and
said to him, "The unknown lady who danced with me has slipped
away, and I think she must have sprung into the pear tree." The
father thought to himself, "Can it be Cinderella?" So he
ordered an axe to be brought; and they cut down the tree, but
found no one upon it. And when they came back into the kitchen,
there lay Cinderella in the ashes as usual; for she had slipped
down on the other side of the tree, and carried her beautiful
clothes back to the bird at the hazel tree, and then put on her
little old frock.</p>
<p>The third day, when her father and mother and sisters were
gone she went again into the garden, and said—-</p>
<div class="poem">
<div class="stanza">
<p>"Shake, shake, hazel tree,</p>
<p>Gold and silver over me!"</p>
</div>
</div>
<p>Then her kind friend the bird brought a dress still finer
than the former ones, and slippers which were all of gold; so
that when she <!--page 31 contained image-->
<span class="pagenum"><SPAN name="page32" id="page32"></SPAN></span> came to the feast no one knew
what to say for wonder at her beauty; and the king's son
danced with her alone; and when any one else asked her to
dance he said, "This lady is my partner." Now when night
came she wanted to go home; and the king's son would go with
her, and said to himself, "I will not lose her this time;"
but, however, she managed to slip away from him, though in
such a hurry that she dropped her left golden slipper upon
the stairs.</p>
<div class="figcenter"
style="width:100%;">
<ANTIMG width-obs="450" src="images/031.png" alt="SHE SPRANG AWAY FROM HIM, ALL AT ONCE, INTO THE GARDEN" />
<br/>
"SHE SPRANG AWAY FROM HIM, ALL AT ONCE,<br/>
INTO THE GARDEN BEHIND HER FATHER'S HOUSE."</div>
<p>So the prince took the shoe, and went the next day to the
king his father, and said, "I will take for my wife the lady
that this golden shoe fits." Then both the sisters were
overjoyed to hear this; for they had beautiful feet, and had no
doubt that they could wear the golden slipper. The eldest went
first into the room where the slipper was, and wanted to try it
on, and the mother stood by. But her great toe could not go
into it, and the shoe was altogether much too small for her.
Then the mother gave her a knife, and said, "Never mind, cut it
off; when you are queen you will not care about toes, you will
not want to go on foot." So the silly girl cut her great toe
off, and squeezed the shoe on, and went to the king's son. Then
he took her for his bride, and set her beside him on his horse
and rode away with her. But on their way home they had to pass
by the hazel tree that Cinderella had planted and there sat a
little dove on the branch singing—-</p>
<div class="poem">
<div class="stanza">
<p>"Back again! back again! look to the shoe!</p>
<p>The shoe is too small, and not made for you!</p>
<p>Prince! prince! look again for thy bride,</p>
<p>For she's not the true one that sits by thy
side."</p>
</div>
</div>
<p>Then the prince got down and looked at her foot, and saw by
the blood that streamed from it what a trick she had played
him. So he turned his horse round and brought the false bride
back to her home, and said, "This is not the right bride; let
the other sister try and put on the slipper." Then she went
into the room and got her foot into the shoe, all but the heel,
which was too large. But her mother squeezed it in till the
blood came, and took her to the king's son; and he set her as
his bride beside him on his horse, and rode away with her. But
when they came to the hazel tree the little dove sat there
still, and sang—</p>
<div class="poem">
<div class="stanza">
<p>"Back again! back again! look to the shoe!</p>
<p>The shoe is too small, and not made for you!</p>
<p>Prince! prince! look again for thy bride,</p>
<p>For she's not the true one that sits by thy
side."</p>
</div>
</div>
<span class="pagenum"><SPAN name="page33" id="page33"></SPAN></span>
<div class="figcenter"
style="width:100%;">
<ANTIMG width-obs="600" src="images/033.png" alt="Trying on the Shoe" /></div>
<p>Then he looked down and saw that the blood streamed so from
the shoe that her white stockings were quite red. So he turned
his horse and brought her back again also. "This is not the
true bride," said he to the father; "have you no other
daughters?" "No," said he; "there is only a little dirty
Cinderella here, the child of my first wife; I am sure she
cannot be the bride." However, the prince told him to send her.
But the mother said, "No, no, she is much too dirty, she will
not dare to show herself;" still the prince would have her
come. And she first washed her face and hands, and then went in
and curtsied to him, and he handed to her the golden
slipper.</p>
<p>Then she took her clumsy shoe off her left foot and put on
the golden slipper; and it fitted her as if it had been made
for her. And when the Prince drew near and looked at her face
he knew her, and said, "This is the right bride."</p>
<p>But the mother and both the sisters were frightened and
turned pale with anger as he took Cinderella on his horse, and
rode away with her. And when they came to the hazel tree, the
white dove sang—</p>
<div class="poem">
<div class="stanza">
<p>"Home! home! look at the shoe!</p>
<p>Princess! the shoe was made for you!</p>
<p>Prince! prince! take home thy bride.</p>
<p>For she is the true one that sits by thy side!"</p>
</div>
</div>
<p>And when the dove had done its song, it came flying and
perched upon her shoulder, and so went home with
her.</p>
<span class="pagenum"><SPAN name="page34" id="page34"></SPAN></span>
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