# The Red Fairy Book

THE
RED FAIRY BOOK
WORKS BY ANDREW LANG.
CUSTOM AND MYTH: Studies of Early Usage and Belief. With 15 Illustrations. Crown 8vo. 7s. 6d.
BOOKS AND BOOKMEN. With 2 Coloured Plates and 17 Illustrations. Crown 8vo. 6s. 6d.
GRASS OF PARNASSUS. A Volume of Selected Verses. Fcp. 8vo. 6s.
LETTERS ON LITERATURE. Crown 8vo. 4s. 6d.
OLD FRIENDS: Essays in Epistolary Parody. 6s. 6d.
BALLADS OF BOOKS. Edited by Andrew Lang. Fcp. 8vo. 6s.
THE BLUE FAIRY BOOK. Edited by Andrew Lang. With numerous Illustrations by H. J. Ford and G. P. Jacomb Hood. Crown 8vo. 6s.
THE RED FAIRY BOOK. Edited by Andrew Lang. With numerous Illustrations by H. J. Ford and Lancelot Speed. Crown 8vo. 6s.
London: LONGMANS, GREEN, & CO.
THE TWELVE PRINCESSES QUIT THE CASTLE BY THE SECRET STAIRCASE.
THE
RED FAIRY BOOK
EDITED BY
ANDREW LANG
WITH NUMEROUS ILLUSTRATIONS BY H. J. FORD AND LANCELOT SPEED
LONDON
LONGMANS, GREEN, AND CO.
AND NEW YORK: 15 EAST 16th STREET
1890
TO
MASTER BILLY TREMAYNE MILES
A PROFOUND STUDENT
YET
AN AMIABLE CRITIC
PREFACE
In a second gleaning of the fields of Fairy Land we cannot expect to find a second Perrault. But there are good stories enough left, and it is hoped that some in the Red Fairy Book may have the attraction of being less familiar than many of the old friends. The tales have been translated, or, in the case of those from Madame d’Aulnoy’s long stories, adapted, by Mrs. Hunt from the Norse, by Miss Minnie Wright from Madame d’Aulnoy, by Mrs. Lang and Miss Bruce from other French sources, by Miss May Sellar, Miss Farquharson, and Miss Blackley from the German, while the story of ‘Sigurd’ is condensed by the Editor from Mr. William Morris’s prose version of the ‘Volsunga Saga.’ The Editor has to thank his friend, M. Charles Marelles, for permission to reproduce his versions of the ‘Pied Piper,’ of ‘Drakestail,’ and of ‘Little Golden Hood’ from the French, and M. Henri Carnoy for the same privilege in regard to ‘The Six Sillies’ from La Tradition.
Lady Frances Balfour has kindly copied an old version of ‘Jack and the Beanstalk,’ and Messrs. Smith and Elder have permitted the publication of two of Mr. Ralston’s versions from the Russian.
A. L.
CONTENTS
| | PAGE |
| The Twelve Dancing Princesses | 1 |
| The Princess Mayblossom | 13 |
| Soria Moria Castle | 30 |
| The Death of Koschei the Deathless | 42 |
| The Black Thief and Knight of the Glen | 54 |
| The Master Thief | 67 |
| Brother and Sister | 82 |
| Princess Rosette | 89 |
| The Enchanted Pig | 104 |
| The Norka | 116 |
| The Wonderful Birch | 123 |
| Jack and the Beanstalk | 133 |
| The Little Good Mouse | 146 |
| Graciosa and Percinet | 158 |
| The Three Princesses of Whiteland | 175 |
| The Voice of Death | 182 |
| The Six Sillies | 186 |
| Kari Woodengown | 189 |
| Drakestail | 202 |
| The Ratcatcher | 208 |
| The True History of Little Goldenhood | 215 |
| The Golden Branch | 220 |
| The Three Dwarfs | 238 |
| Dapplegrim | 246 |
| The Enchanted Canary | 257 |
| The Twelve Brothers | 274 |
| Rapunzel | 282 |
| The Nettle Spinner | 286 |
| Farmer Weatherbeard | 294 |
| Mother Holle | 303 |
| Minnikin | 307 |
| Bushy Bride | 322 |
| Snowdrop | 329 |
| The Golden Goose | 340 |
| The Seven Foals | 346 |
| The Marvellous Musician | 354 |
| The Story of Sigurd | 357 |
PLATES
| The Twelve Princesses quit the Castle by the secret staircase | } | Frontispiece |
| Father Lawrence, conceiving himself to be addressed by an Angel, falls on his knees before him | To face page | 76 |
| Drakestail, with his friends stowed away in his gizzard, demands speech of the King | „ | 204 |
| The sleeping King, guided by his attendants, cuts the finger of the beautiful Maiden | „ | 328 |
This work was published before January 1, 1929, and is in the public domain worldwide because the author died at least 100 years ago.
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