Andrew Lang_Fairy Book 01 Read Free Page B

Prince
Hyacinth had not a thought to spare for anything of that
sort, he was so much struck with her beauty. The Princess,
whom he thought quite charming, had, however, a
little saucy nose, which, in her face, was the prettiest
thing possible, but it was a cause of great embarrassment
to the courtiers, who had got into such a habit of laughing
at little noses that they sometimes found themselves
laughing at hers before they had time to think; but this
did not do at all before the Prince, who quite failed to see
the joke, and actually banished two of his courtiers who
had dared to mention disrespectfully the Dear Little
Princess's tiny nose!
    The others, taking warning from this, learned to think
twice before they spoke, and one even went so far as to
tell the Prince that, though it was quite true that no man
could be worth anything unless he had a long nose, still,
a woman's beauty was a different thing; and he knew a
learned man who understood Greek and had read in some
old manuscripts that the beautiful Cleopatra herself had
a "tip-tilted" nose!
    The Prince made him a splendid present as a reward for
this good news, and at once sent ambassadors to ask the
Dear Little Princess in marriage. The King, her father,
gave his consent; and Prince Hyacinth, who, in his anxiety
to see the Princess, had gone three leagues to meet her
was just advancing to kiss her hand when, to the horror
of all who stood by, the enchanter appeared as suddenly
as a flash of lightning, and, snatching up the Dear Little
Princess, whirled her away out of their sight!
    The Prince was left quite unconsolable, and declared
that nothing should induce him to go back to his kingdom
until he had found her again, and refusing to allow any of
his courtiers to follow him, he mounted his horse and rode
sadly away, letting the animal choose his own path.
    So it happened that he came presently to a great plain,
across which he rode all day long without seeing a single
house, and horse and rider were terribly hungry, when, as
the night fell, the Prince caught sight of a light, which
seemed to shine from a cavern.
    He rode up to it, and saw a little old woman, who
appeared to be at least a hundred years old.
    She put on her spectacles to look at Prince Hyacinth,
but it was quite a long time before she could fix them
securely because her nose was so very short.
    The Prince and the Fairy (for that was who she was)
had no sooner looked at one another than they went into
fits of laughter, and cried at the same moment, "Oh, what
a funny nose!"
    "Not so funny as your own," said Prince Hyacinth to
the Fairy; "but, madam, I beg you to leave the consideration
of our noses—such as they are—and to be good
enough to give me something to eat, for I am starving,
and so is my poor horse."
    "With all my heart," said the Fairy. "Though your nose
is so ridiculous you are, nevertheless, the son of my best
friend. I loved your father as if he had been my brother.
Now
he
had a very handsome nose!"
    "And pray what does mine lack?" said the Prince.
    "Oh! it doesn't
lack
anything," replied the Fairy. "On
the contrary quite, there is only too much of it. But
never mind, one may be a very worthy man though his
nose is too long. I was telling you that I was your father's
friend; he often came to see me in the old times, and you
must know that I was very pretty in those days; at least,
he used to say so. I should like to tell you of a conversation
we had the last time I ever saw him."
    "Indeed," said the Prince, "when I have supped it will
give me the greatest pleasure to hear it; but consider,
madam, I beg of you, that I have had nothing to eat
to-day."
    "The poor boy is right," said the Fairy; "I was
forgetting. Come in, then, and I will give you some supper, and
while you are eating I can tell you my story in a very few
words—for I don't like endless tales myself. Too long a
tongue is worse than too long a nose, and I remember
when I was young that I was so much admired for not
being a