The Sleeping Beauty in the Wood · page 21 2101He would not, however, surprise her, but told her, with a great deal of respect, the orders he had received from the Queen-mother.102“Do it; do it” (said she, stretching out her neck).103“Execute your orders, and then I shall go and see my children, my poor children, whom I so much and so tenderly loved.”104For she thought them dead ever since they had been taken away without her knowledge.105“No, no, madam” (cried the poor clerk of the kitchen, all in tears); “you shall not die, and yet you shall see your children again; but then you must go home with me to my lodgings, where I have concealed them, and I shall deceive the Queen once more, by giving her in your stead a young hind.”106Upon this he forthwith conducted her to his chamber, where, leaving her to embrace her children, and cry along with them, he went and dressed a young hind, which the Queen had for her supper, and devoured it with the same appetite as if it had been the young Queen.107Exceedingly was she delighted with her cruelty, and she had invented a story to tell the King, at his return, how the mad wolves had eaten up the Queen his wife and her two children.108One evening, as she was, according to her custom, rambling round about the courts and yards of the palace to see if she could smell any fresh meat, she heard, in a ground room, little Day crying, for his mamma was going to whip him, because he had been naughty; and she heard, at the same time, little Morning begging pardon for her brother.109The Ogress presently knew the voice of the Queen and her children, and being quite mad that she had been thus deceived, she commanded next morning, by break of day (with a most horrible voice, which made everybody tremble), that they should bring into the middle of the great court a large tub, which she caused to be filled with toads, vipers, snakes, and all sorts of serpents, in order to have thrown into it the Queen and her children, the clerk of the kitchen, his wife and maid; all whom she had given orders should be brought thither with their hands tied behind them.110They were brought out accordingly, and the executioners were just going to throw them into the tub, when the King (who was not so soon expected) entered the court on horseback (for he came post) and asked, with the utmost astonishment, what was the meaning of that horrible spectacle.111No one dared to tell him, when the Ogress, all enraged to see what had happened, threw herself head foremost into the tub, and was instantly devoured by the ugly creatures she had ordered to be thrown into it for others.112The King could not but be very sorry, for she was his mother; but he soon comforted himself with his beautiful wife and his pretty children.1 2← previousLittle Red Riding Hoodnext →Cinderella, or the Little Glass Slipper↑ back to The Blue Fairy BookThis page in Markdown → https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg503/10/page/2/