The Saline County journal. [volume] (Salina, Kan.) 1871-1893, 1878-12-12

hour for her waking should come. The
good fairy who had saved her life by con-
demning her to sleep one hundred years
was in the kingdom Of Mataguin, II 1000
leagues away, when this accident hap
pened to the princess; but she was warned
in a moment BY little dwarf who had
seven league boots. These were boots
with which one could make seven leagues
at single stride.)
The fairy started immediately, and in
an hour she arrived, IN ID chariot all OF
fire, drawn by dragons. The king vent
to give her his hand on her descent from
the chariot. She approved of all he had
done, but she was wonderfully far-sighted.
she thought that when the princess should
awaken she would be much frightened all
alone in this old castle This is what she
did:
She touched with her wand all that were
in the castle Except the king and the
queen)-governesses, maids of honor,
gentlemen, officers, stewards, cooks, soul
lions, messengers, guards, porters, pages,
footmen; she touched, also. all the horses
that were in the stables with the grooms,
the great mastiffs of the court yard, and
the little Pouste, tine princess little dog
which was near her on the bed. The mo-
ment she touched them they all slept, on
ly to awake when their mistress did, so as
to be ready to serve her when she should
need them. The spits even, which were
at the fire, full of patridges and pheasants,
slept, and the fire too. All this was done
IN n cment; the fairies are not long at
their work.
Then the hing and queen, having kissed
their dear child, without waking her,
v'Hnt out of the castle, and published rules
fer all who should approach it. These
regulations were not at all necessary, FOR
there grew, in a quarter Of an hour. all
around the park such a great quantity OF
large trees and small ones, Of brambles
and thons, interlacing each other, that
neither beast nor man would be able to
pass; so that one could see only the cas-
tie tower, and this only at a great distance.
You would not doubt that the fairy had
USED all her art here, so that the princess,
while she slept, should have nothing to
fear from the curious.
At the end of hundred years. the son Of
the king who relgned then, and who was
another family from the sleeping Princess,
having come to the chase in this direction,
asked what were those towers that he saw
In the midst of the forest SO thick. Each
replied according to what he had heard;
some said it was an old castle where he
would see spirits; others that all the for
ests of this country, were keeping their
Sabbath. The most common opinion was
that an ogre dwelt there, and that he car
ried there all the children that he could
catch, in order to eat them at his leisure,
and without anybody being able to follow
him, he only being able to make passage
through the wood. The Prince knew not
who to believe, when an old countryman
spoke up and said: Ny Prince, it is more
than fifty years since | heard my father
say there Is in this castle princess, the
most beautiful ever known; that she is to
sleep there a hundred years, and that she
will be awakened by the son of king, for
whom she is reserved. At these words
the young prince was all on fire. He be-
lieved without doubt that he should put
an end to this adventure, and, excited by
love and by glory, he resolved to see i'm
mediately what there was in it.
Scarcely had he advanced toward the for
est then all these great trees, these brambles
and thorns spread apart to allow him to
pass. He went toward the castle which
he saw at the end of a grand avenue that
he entered; and, what surprised him q
little, he found that none of his men had
been able to follow him, because the trees
had closed together again when he had
passed. This did not stop him IN his pur-
suit. A prince, young and in love, is al
WAYS brave.
He entered large outer court, where
everything that he saw at first was calcu-
lated to paralyze him with terror. There
was fightful silence; everywhere was
the image of death; there were only pros
trate bodies of men and animals, who ap-
peared dead. However, he perceived by
the pimpled noses and the red faces of the
porters that they were only asleep, and
their glasses, in which were still some
drees of wine, showed that they were
sleeping in liquor. He passed large
court paved with marble: he mounted the
stairs; he entered the halls of the guards,
who were ranged in order, carbines on
their shoulders, and snoring with their
betters. He passed through many rooms
full of gentlemen and ladies, ali sleeping
those standing. these seated. He enter
ed room all golden, and he saw upon a
couch, whose curtains were open on both
sides, the most beautiful sight he had ever
seen, a Princess who appeared about if
teen or sixteen years of age, and whose re-
splendent beauty had something luminous
and divine in it. He approached. trem-
bling admiring, and fell on his knees
beside her. Then, as the end Of the
enchantment was come, she awoke, and
regarding him with eyes more tender than
a first sight would seem to permit: '.ls
it you, my Prince" she said TO him,
lyon have kept me long waiting"
The Prince charmed with these words
and vet more with the manner in
which they were spoken, knew not how TO
show his gratitude: he assured her that
he loved her more than himself. His
| words were poorly arranged-Ettle elo-
quence, much love. He was more embar-
raised than she, and one need not be as
tonished at that. She had time to think
what she would saw to him; for it would
seem however. the story says nothing
about 1T that the good fairy, during this
long slumber. had procured her the pleas
ure Of agreeable dreams. They talked to-
gether at least four hours, and still they
had not said half the things they wished
to say.
Meanwhile. all the palace woke with
the princess, each resumed his own place,
and rs they were not all in love. they
were dying of hunger. The maid of hon
or. anxious like the Others. was impatient.
and called aloud to the princess that the
food was served. The prince assisted the
princess to rise; she was ali dressed, and
very magnifcently, but he was verv care
ful not to say that she dressed like his
grandmother. and that she wore ruiz
She was none the less beautiful They
passed into hall of mirrors, and supped
there. served nv the officers of the pm
cess The violins and the hau,boys played
pieces. old but excellent, although it was