Transcription
The Prince Who Would Seek ImmortalityFrom the Crimson Fairy Book, Edited by Andrew LangOnce upon a time, in the very middleof the middle of a large kingdom, there wasa town, and in the town a palace, and in thepalace a king. This king had one son whomhis father thought was wiser and clevererthan any son ever was before, and indeed hisfather had spared nopains to make himso. He had been verycareful in choosinghis tutors andgovernors when hewas a boy, and whenhe became a youthhe sent him to travel,so that he might seethe ways of otherpeople, and find thatthey were often asgood as his own.It was now ayear since the princehad returned home,for his father feltthat it was time that his son should learnhow to rule the kingdom which would oneday be his. But during his long absence theprince seemed to have changed his characteraltogether. From being a merry and lighthearted boy, he had grown into a gloomy andthoughtful man. The king knew of nothingthat could have produced such an alteration.He vexed himself about it from morning tillnight, till at length an explanation occurredto him—the young man was in love!Now the prince never talked about hisfeelings—for the matter of that he scarcelytalked at all; and the father knew that if hewas to come to the bottom of the prince’sdismal face, hewould have to begin.So one day, afterdinner, he took hisson by the arm andled him into anotherroom, hung entirelywith the pictures ofbeautiful maidens,each one more lovelythan the other.‘My dear boy,’he said, ‘you are verysad; perhaps afterall your wanderingsit is dull for youhere all alone withme. It would bemuch better if you would marry, and I havecollected here the portraits of the mostbeautiful women in the world of a rank equalto your own. Choose which among themyou would like for a wife, and I will send anembassy to her father to ask for her hand.’‘Alas! Your Majesty,’ answered the prince,‘it is not love or marriage that makes meso gloomy; but the thought, which haunts— —Created for Lit2Go on the web at fcit.usf.edu
The Prince Who Would Seek ImmortalityEdited by Andrew Langme day and night, that all men, even kings,must die. Never shall I be happy again tillI have found a kingdom where death isunknown. And I have determined to givemyself no rest till I have discovered the Landof Immortality.’The old king heard him with dismay;things were worse than he thought. He triedto reason with his son, and told him thatduring all these years he had been lookingforward to his return, in order to resign histhrone and its cares, which pressed so heavilyupon him. But it was in vain that he talked;the prince would listen to nothing, and thefollowing morning buckled on his sword andset forth on his journey.He had been travelling for many days,and had left his fatherland behind him, whenclose to the road he came upon a huge tree,and on its topmost bough an eagle was sittingshaking the branches with all his might. Thisseemed so strange and so unlike an eagle,that the prince stood still with surprise, andthe bird saw him and flew to the ground.The moment its feet touched the ground hechanged into a king.‘Why do you look so astonished?’ heasked.‘I was wondering why you shook theboughs so fiercely,’ answered the prince.‘I am condemned to do this, forneither I nor any of my kindred can die tillI have rooted up this great tree,’ replied theking of the eagles. ‘But it is now evening,and I need work no more to-day. Come tomy house with me, and be my guest for thenight.’The prince accepted gratefully theeagle’s invitation, for he was tired andhungry. They were received at the palaceby the king’s beautiful daughter, who gaveorders that dinner should be laid for themat once. While they were eating, the eaglequestioned his guest about his travels, andif he was wandering for pleasure’s sake, orwith any special aim. Then the prince toldhim everything, and how he could neverturn back till he had discovered the Land ofImmortality.‘Dear brother,’ said the eagle, ‘you havediscovered it already, and it rejoices my heartto think that you will stay with us. Haveyou not just heard me say that death hasno power either over myself or any of mykindred till that great tree is rooted up? Itwill take me six hundred years’ hard workto do that; so marry my daughter and let usall live happily together here. After all, sixhundred years is an eternity!’‘Ah, dear king,’ replied the young man,‘your offer is very tempting! But at the end ofsix hundred years we should have to die, sowe should be no better off! No, I must go ontill I find the country where there is no deathat all.’Then the princess spoke, and tried topersuade the guest to change his mind, buthe sorrowfully shook his head. At length,seeing that his resolution was firmly fixed,she took from a cabinet a little box which— —Created for Lit2Go on the web at fcit.usf.edu
The Prince Who Would Seek ImmortalityEdited by Andrew Langcontained her picture, and gave it to himsaying:‘As you will not stay with us, prince,accept this box, which will sometimesrecall us to your memory. If you are tired oftravelling before you come to the Land ofImmortality, open this box and look at mypicture, and you will be borne along eitheron earth or in the air, quick as thought, orswift as the whirlwind.’The prince thanked her for her gift,which he placed in his tunic, and sorrowfullybade the eagle and his daughter farewell.Never was any present in the world asuseful as that little box, and many times didhe bless the kind thought of the princess.One evening it had carried him to the topof a high mountain, where he saw a manwith a bald head, busily engaged in diggingup spadefuls of earth and throwing them ina basket. When the basket was full he tookit away and returned with an empty one,which he likewise filled. The prince stood andwatched him for a little, till the bald-headedman looked up and said to him: ‘Dearbrother, what surprises you so much?’‘I was wondering why you were fillingthe basket,’ replied the prince.‘Oh!’ replied the man, ‘I am condemnedto do this, for neither I nor any of my familycan die till I have dug away the whole ofthis mountain and made it level with theplain. But, come, it is almost dark, and Ishall work no longer.’ And he plucked aleaf from a tree close by, and from a roughdigger he was changed into a stately baldheaded king. ‘Come home with me,’ headded; ‘you must be tired and hungry, andmy daughter will have supper ready for us.’The prince accepted gladly, and they wentback to the palace, where the bald-headedking’s daughter, who was still more beautifulthan the other princess, welcomed them atthe door and led the way into a large hall andto a table covered with silver dishes. Whilethey were eating, the bald-headed king askedthe prince how he had happened to wanderso far, and the young man told him allabout it, and how he was seeking the Landof Immortality. ‘You have found it already,’answered the king, ‘for, as I said, neither Inor my family can die till I have levelled thisgreat mountain; and that will take full eighthundred years longer. Stay here with us andmarry my daughter. Eight hundred years issurely long enough to live.’‘Oh, certainly,’ answered the prince;‘but, all the same, I would rather go and seekthe land where there is no death at all.’So next morning he bade them farewell,though the princess begged him to stay withall her might; and when she found that shecould not persuade him she gave him as aremembrance a gold ring. This ring was stillmore useful than the box, because when onewished oneself at any place one was theredirectly, without even the trouble of flyingto it through the air. The prince put it on hisfinger, and thanking her heartily, went hisway.— —Created for Lit2Go on the web at fcit.usf.edu
The Prince Who Would Seek ImmortalityEdited by Andrew LangHe walked on for some distance, andthen he recollected the ring and thought hewould try if the princess had spoken truly asto its powers. ‘I wish I was at the end of theworld,’ he said, shutting his eyes, and whenhe opened them he was standing in a streetfull of marble palaces. The men who passedhim were tall and strong, and their clotheswere magnificent. He stopped some of themand asked in all the twenty-seven languageshe knew what was the name of the city, butno one answered him. Then his heart sankwithin him; what should he do in this strangeplace if nobody could understand anythinghe said? Suddenly his eyes fell upon a mandressed after the fashion of his native country,and he ran up to him and spoke to him in hisown tongue. ‘What city is this, my friend?’he inquired.‘It is the capital city of the BlueKingdom,’ replied the man, ‘but the kinghimself is dead, and his daughter is now theruler.’With this news the prince was satisfied,and begged his countryman to show him theway to the young queen’s palace. The manled him through several streets into a largesquare, one side of which was occupied bya splendid building that seemed borne upon slender pillars of soft green marble. Infront was a flight of steps, and on these thequeen was sitting wrapped in a veil of shiningsilver mist, listening to the complaints ofher people and dealing out justice. Whenthe prince came up she saw directly thathe was no ordinary man, and telling herchamberlain to dismiss the rest of herpetitioners for that day, she signed to theprince to follow her into the palace. Luckilyshe had been taught his language as a child,so they had no difficulty in talking together.The prince told all his story and howhe was journeying in search of the Landof Immortality. When he had finished, theprincess, who had listened attentively, rose,and taking his arm, led him to the door ofanother room, the floor of which was madeentirely of needles, stuck so close togetherthat there was not room for a single needlemore.‘Prince,’ she said, turning to him, ‘yousee these needles? Well, know that neither Inor any of my family can die till I have wornout these needles in sewing. It will take atleast a thousand years for that. Stay here, andshare my throne; a thousand years is longenough to live!’‘Certainly,’ answered he; ‘still, at the endof the thousand years I should have to die!No, I must find the land where there is nodeath.’The queen did all she could to persuadehim to stay, but as her words proved useless,at length she gave it up. Then she said tohim: ‘As you will not stay, take this littlegolden rod as a remembrance of me. It hasthe power to become anything you wish it tobe, when you are in need.’So the prince thanked her, and puttingthe rod in his pocket, went his way.— —Created for Lit2Go on the web at fcit.usf.edu
The Prince Who Would Seek ImmortalityEdited by Andrew LangScarcely had he left the town behind himwhen he came to a broad river which no manmight pass, for he was standing at the endof the world, and this was the river whichflowed round it. Not knowing what to donext, he walked a little distance up the bank,and there, over his head, a beautiful city wasfloating in the air. He longed to get to it, buthow? neither road nor bridge was anywhereto be seen, yet the city drew him upwards,and he felt that here at last was the countrywhich he sought. Suddenly he rememberedthe golden rod which the mist-veiled queenhad given him. With a beating heart he flungit to the ground, wishing with all his mightthat it should turn into a bridge, and fearingthat, after all, this might prove beyond itspower. But no, instead of the rod, therestood a golden ladder, leading straight upto the city of the air. He was about to enterthe golden gates, when there sprang at hima wondrous beast, whose like he had neverseen. ‘Out sword from the sheath,’ cried theprince, springing back with a cry. And thesword leapt from the scabbard and cut offsome of the monster’s heads, but others grewagain directly, so that the prince, pale withterror, stood where he was, calling for help,and put his sword back in the sheath again.The queen of the city heard the noiseand looked from her window to see what washappening. Summoning one of her servants,she bade him go and rescue the stranger,and bring him to her. The prince thankfullyobeyed her orders, and entered her presence.The moment she looked at him, thequeen also felt that he was no ordinary man,and she welcomed him graciously, and askedhim what had brought him to the city. Inanswer the prince told all his story, and howhe had travelled long and far in search of theLand of Immortality.‘You have found it,’ said she, ‘for I amqueen over life and over death. Here you candwell among the immortals.’A thousand years had passed sincethe prince first entered the city, but theyhad flown so fast that the time seemed nomore than six months. There had not beenone instant of the thousand years that theprince was not happy till one night when hedreamed of his father and mother. Then thelonging for his home came upon him with arush, and in the morning he told the Queenof the Immortals that he must go and seehis father and mother once more. The queenstared at him with amazement, and cried:‘Why, prince, are you out of your senses? Itis more than eight hundred years since yourfather and mother died! There will not evenbe their dust remaining.’‘I must go all the same,’ said he.‘Well, do not be in a hurry,’ continuedthe queen, understanding that he wouldnot be prevented. ‘Wait till I make somepreparations for your journey.’ So sheunlocked her great treasure chest, and tookout two beautiful flasks, one of gold and oneof silver, which she hung round his neck.Then she showed him a little trap-door in— —Created for Lit2Go on the web at fcit.usf.edu
The Prince Who Would Seek ImmortalityEdited by Andrew Langone corner of the room, and said: ‘Fill thesilver flask with this water, which is belowthe trap-door. It is enchanted, and whoeveryou sprinkle with the water will becomea dead man at once, even if he had lived athousand years. The golden flask you must fillwith the water here,’ she added, pointing toa well in another corner. ‘It springs from therock of eternity; you have only to sprinkle afew drops on a body and it will come to lifeagain, if it had been a thousand years dead.’The prince thanked the queen for hergifts, and, bidding her farewell, went on hisjourney.He soon arrived in the town where themist-veiled queen reigned in her palace, butthe whole city had changed, and he couldscarcely find his way through the streets. Inthe palace itself all was still, and he wanderedthrough the rooms without meeting anyoneto stop him. At last he entered the queen’sown chamber, and there she lay, with herembroidery still in her hands, fast asleep. Hepulled at her dress, but she did not waken.Then a dreadful idea came over him, and heran to the chamber where the needles hadbeen kept, but it was quite empty. The queenhad broken the last over the work she heldin her hand, and with it the spell was brokentoo, and she lay dead.Quick as thought the prince pulled outthe golden flask, and sprinkled some drops ofthe water over the queen. In a moment shemoved gently, and raising her head, openedher eyes.‘Oh, my dear friend, I am so glad youwakened me; I must have slept a long while!’‘You would have slept till eternity,’answered the prince, ‘if I had not been hereto waken you.’At these words the queen rememberedabout the needles. She knew now that shehad been dead, and that the prince hadrestored her to life. She gave him thanksfrom her heart for what he had done, andvowed she would repay him if she ever got achance.The prince took his leave, and set outfor the country of the bald-headed king. Ashe drew near the place he saw that the wholemountain had been dug away, and that theking was lying dead on the ground, his spadeand bucket beside him. But as soon as thewater from the golden flask touched him heyawned and stretched himself, and slowlyrose to his feet. ‘Oh, my dear friend, I am soglad to see you,’ cried he, ‘I must have slept along while!’‘You would have slept till eternity if Ihad not been here to waken you,’ answeredthe prince. And the king remembered themountain, and the spell, and vowed to repaythe service if he ever had a chance.Further along the road which led to hisold home the prince found the great treetorn up by its roots, and the king of theeagles sitting dead on the ground, with hiswings outspread as if for flight. A flutter ranthrough the feathers as the drops of water fellon them, and the eagle lifted his beak from— —Created for Lit2Go on the web at fcit.usf.edu
The Prince Who Would Seek ImmortalityEdited by Andrew Langthe ground and said: ‘Oh, how long I musthave slept! How can I thank you for havingawakened me, my dear, good friend!’‘You would have slept till eternity if Ihad not been here to waken you’; answeredthe prince. Then the king rememberedabout the tree, and knew that he had beendead, and promised, if ever he had thechance, to repay what the prince had donefor him.At last he reached the capital of his father’skingdom, but on reaching the place where theroyal palace had stood, instead of the marblegalleries where he used to play, there lay a greatsulphur lake, its blue flames darting into theair. How was he to find his father and mother,and bring them back to life, if they were lyingat the bottom of that horrible water? Heturned away sadly and wandered back into thestreets, hardly knowing where he was going;when a voice behind him cried: ‘Stop, prince,I have caught you at last! It is a thousand yearssince I first began to seek you.’ And therebeside him stood the old, white-bearded,figure of Death. Swiftly he drew the ringfrom his finger, and the king of the eagles, thebald-headed king, and the mist-veiled queen,hastened to his rescue. In an instant they hadseized upon Death and held him tight, till theprince should have time to reach the Landof Immortality. But they did not know howquickly Death could fly, and the prince hadonly one foot across the border, when he feltthe other grasped from behind, and the voiceof Death calling: ‘Halt! Now you are mine.’The Queen of the Immortals waswatching from her window, and cried toDeath that he had no power in her kingdom,and that he must seek his prey elsewhere.‘Quite true,’ answered Death; ‘but his footis in my kingdom, and that belongs to me!’‘At any rate half of him is mine,’ repliedthe Queen, ‘and what good can the other halfdo you? Half a man is no use, either to youor to me! But this once I will allow you tocross into my kingdom, and we will decideby a wager whose he is.’And so it was settled. Death steppedacross the narrow line that surroundsthe Land of Immortality, and the queenproposed the wager which was to decidethe prince’s fate. ‘I will throw him up intothe sky,’ she said, ‘right to the back of themorning star, and if he falls down into thiscity, then he is mine. But if he should falloutside the walls, he shall belong to you.’In the middle of the city was a greatopen square, and here the queen wished thewager to take place. When all was ready, sheput her foot under the foot of the prince andswung him into the air. Up, up, he went,high amongst the stars, and no man’s eyescould follow him. Had she thrown him upstraight? the queen wondered anxiously, for,if not, he would fall outside the walls, andshe would lose him for ever. The momentsseemed long while she and Death stoodgazing up into the air, waiting to knowwhose prize the prince would be. Suddenlythey both caught sight of a tiny speck no— —Created for Lit2Go on the web at fcit.usf.edu
The Prince Who Would Seek ImmortalityEdited by Andrew Langbigger than a wasp, right up in the blue.Was he coming straight? No! Yes! But as hewas nearing the city, a light wind sprang up,and swayed him in the direction of the wall.Another second and he would have fallenhalf over it, when the queen sprang forward,seized him in her arms, and flung him intothe castle. Then she commanded her servantsto cast Death out of the city, which theydid, with such hard blows that he neverdared to show his face again in the Land ofImmortality.— —Created for Lit2Go on the web at fcit.usf.edu
The Prince Who Would Seek Immortality Edited by Andrew Lang He walked on for some distance, and then he recollected the ring and thought he would try if the princess had spoken truly as to its powers. ‘I wish I was at the end of the world,’ he said, shutting his eyes, and when he opened
